Angles, they had already received the usages of the church of Kent; and the South-Saxons were yet unconverted. The way was thus prepared for the uniting of the Saxon churches, when Theodore came into Britain. But his authority as metropolitan seems the greatest obstruction to this affair; for the authority of the archbishop of Canterbury had never yet extended beyond the kingdom of Kent. And men who easily part with usages which leave their interests safe and untouched, are with difficulty brought to submit to changes which lessen their rights or their power. And the whole course of the Saxon story shows they knew no authority the bishop of Rome had to give them a metropolitan against their wills; and the independence of the several kingdoms lay cross the reason upon which the authority of metropolitans was first founded. And, though our historians are silent therein, one has much ado to forbear thinking that this was the true reason why Wilfrid declined appearing at the first synod held under Theodore, and openly resisted the authority of the seconds; and it is not unlikely that this was the true reason why that prelate did, at his first advancement to the see of York, choose rather to go to France than to Canterbury to receive his consecration 9. However this matter be, Theodore, who seems to be the greatest man that had ever yet filled his chair, but of a bold and overbearing temper, well considering how much it imported him to make a right use of the present juncture of affairs, was no sooner arrived but he presently applied himself to secure the favour and assistance of the Saxon princes, and in order thereunto travelled over the greatest part of the British isle, and with great zeal everywhere recommended the usages of the Roman church 10. 7. Wilfrid bishop of York had distinguished himself by his zeal and sufferings for the same cause, and therefore it seems probable that his case was one of the first subjects of Theodore's care; and there were several things which favoured 7 [See below, I, v, 10; xi, 5; xii, 8.] 8 [At Theodore's first synod, the synod of Hertford, Wilfrid appeared by proxy, as Inett tells us in § 8 of of this chapter. At the time of the second synod, the synod of Hatfield, 9 [But see before, § 3, note 7.] 10 Bed. ibid. IV, 2. 669. 669. the hopes Theodore had conceived of restoring Wilfrid to his bishopric. For Ceada [Chad], who succeeded Wilfrid, was an easy, good, and humble man, and one who had the true spirit of a Christian prelate, and considered the weight of the trust, and the account which must attend it, more than the dignity of it. And therefore being told by Theodore that he had usurped the right of Wilfrid, and that he was not canonically consecrated, he answered, that it was not choice but obedience which had called him to that trust he was possessed of, and that, if there was any defect either in his title or consecration, he was very ready to part with his trust and to retire. But, Jarumman bishop of Lichfield dying about this time, the matter in dispute was thus compromised: Ceada [Chad] having been consecrated by Wini bishop of Winchester, but assisted by two British bishops 3, to remove all scruples about the validity of his consecration submitted to the imposition of Theodore's hands, and by the interest of his party was removed to Lichfield: and Wilfrid was reconciled to Oswy king of the Northumbrians, and by the same interest restored to his bishopric 4. Whilst advances were thus making towards the union of the Saxon churches, Theodore, well knowing that the impressions owing only to the arts of address are seldom lasting, and that no ties are so strong as those which are bound upon men by a real interest and advantage, published a resolution equally suited to his character and design; and this was to instruct the Saxons in the knowledge of the Greek and Latin tongues, and in the knowledge of arithmetic, geometry, music, and other useful parts of learning. And in pursuance of this resolution he himself and Adrian the monk were at some pains on this subject; and, having brought over books and masters, Theodore set up schools, which taught the Greek and Latin tongues with so good success, that Bede saith there were some of their scholars in his time so perfectly masters of the Greek and Latin tongues, that they were able to speak them with the readiness and fluency of their native language 5. 1 Bed. ibid. 2 [See before, § 6, note 6.] 3 Bed. ibid. III, 28. 4 Bed. ibid. IV, 2, 3. 5 Bed. ibid. c. 2. It is hard to say whether the wisdom or the charity of this undertaking was the greater. It was easy to see that the masters brought from Rome would not forget the usages of that church, and that the Saxons trained under them would readily take the intended impressions; and that there was no other way throughly to break the interest of the Quartodecimans, but to outdo the schools set up by the Scots by setting up other more eminent. It was a wise thought, and the success was answerable. 669. 8. Every thing being thus prepared, and the intended 673. union of the Saxon churches ready for the last hand, a synod was agreed upon amongst the Saxon princes, which met in September this year at a place called Herudford, in the county of Hertford, and probably the same place that is now called Hertford and the chief town of that county. Besides Theodore, only four English bishops appeared in person, and one by his legate, but not one of the British bishops or clergy. Wilfrid bishop of York appeared by a deputy; Bisi bishop of the East-Angles, Leutherius bishop of the WestSaxons, and Winfrid bishop of the Mercians, and Putta bishop of Rochester, appeared in person. Of which last four the three former had been consecrated by Theodore, and probably raised to that station by his interest; and Putta, during the vacancy of the see of Canterbury, had been consecrated by Wilfrid: but Theodore, as bishop of the metropolis of the kingdom of Kent, was the rightful metropolitan to the bishop of Rochester, and had consecrated the other three; and therefore Theodore, setting aside his character as archbishop, had the fairest title to the chair, and did accordingly preside in the council. 1 Bed. ibid. c. 5. [Concil. Britan. Spelman I, 152, Wilkins I, 41. Wharton, Angl. Sacr. I, 426, seems to be right in placing the synod of Hertford in the year 672. For the act of the synod contains its date, September 24 in the first Indiction; and whether we take the Indiction of Constantinople beginning September 1, or the Imperial Indiction beginning September 24, the first year of the Indiction began in September A.D. 672, and ended either on August 31 or on Septem- 673. After some discourse to recommend the unity of the church and a just veneration to the decrees of the first councils, to which the council promised obedience, Theodore produced a collection from the ancient councils; whether his own, or the same which had before been received in the eastern and western churches, is not material. But it is not unlikely that, the better to acquaint the English with the discipline and order of the ancient church, Theodore had brought over a copy of the collection or book of canons, which is mentioned in the latter end of the thirteenth session of the council of Chalcedon 2, and was afterwards confirmed in a novel of the emperor Justinian, and in the sixth century translated by Dionysius Exiguus, and received into the western church; and it is most probable that this was the book which Bede saith Theodore produced in this council. He also added such new canons, or rather made such alterations in the canons of the ancient councils, as he thought most needful to fit them to the present state of the English church. And this seems to be the case of the first, the seventh, and the ninth canons ascribed to that council. The rest appear much the same as in the collection of Dionysius 3. But whether this was the case, or whether the collection here produced was his own, is not very material: but, a col 2 Concil. ed. Surii II, 187, [Mansi VII, 308. The same book of canons is cited in the fourth and eleventh sessions of the council of Chalcedon; Mansi VII, 81, 281. Probably the novel intended by Inett is Novel. 131, c. 1, Authent. Collat. IX, xiv, 1, which begins by decreeing that the rules set forth or confirmed by the first four general councils of Nicæa, Constantinople, Ephesus, and Chalcedon, have the force of laws, adding, "Prædictarum enim quatuor synodorum dogmata sicut sanctas scripturas accipimus, et regulas sicut leges observamus"; but no particular book or collection of canons is mentioned in it. See Bevereg. Synod., Prolegom. §§ VII, VIII, IX, and Annott. p. 108, where an account is given both of the book of canons cited at Chalcedon and of the collection made by Dionysius Exiguus, and the above-mentioned novel of Justinian is quoted. See also the learned Dissertation of the two brothers Ballerini De Antiquis Collectionibus Canonum I, i, 6, III, i, in the third volume of their edition of the works of pope Leo the Great. Dionysius has been mentioned before, v. 2, note I, as the author of the paschal cycle which was in use throughout western Christendom for more than ten centuries and a half before the calendar was reformed by pope Gregory XIII.] . 3 Johnson in his collection of the English Canons refers to such of the ancient canons of the church as seem to be the originals of the canons of Hertford.] lection being produced, ten canons were agreed upon; of 673. which the first was that upon which the union was to be founded, and which did virtually include an acknowledgment of Theodore's authority as metropolitan, and this was, that Easter should be observed in the same manner through the English churches, the first Sunday after the full moon of the first month. The second, that no bishop should exercise any authority in the diocese of another. 3. That bishops should give no unnecessary trouble to religious houses, nor take any thing from them by force. The fourth directs, that monks should be subject to the authority of their abbots, and not remove to any other monastery but with the leave of the abbot. The fifth requires, that the clergy should not remove from one diocese to another without letters commendatory from their own bishops, nor be received in any other diocese without them; and that in case it so happened that the offender was retained by the bishop of the other diocese, and he did not return the clerk when required, both the clerk and the bishop should be excommunicated. The sixth requires, that bishops and clergy in their travels should not perform any offices of their function and ministry without the leave of the bishop of the diocese wherein they were. The seventh proposes the convening of synods twice in the year; but this was thought inconvenient, and therefore agreed by general consent that a synod should be held once a year at Cloveshoe 4, and that the calends of August should be the time of meeting. The eighth directs the precedence of bishops according to seniority of consecration. 4 [The name of this place is variously spelt, Clofeshoch, Cloveshou, Clofeshoo, Clofesho, Clovesho, Clofeshóas, Clofeshós, and by modern writers Cloveshoe. It used to be considered identical with Cliff at Hoo near Rochester; but there are strong reasons against that supposition. Some persons with greater probability place it at Abingdon, the old name of which was Sheovesham. See Gough's Camden, I, 147, 156, 212, |