The preface on the life of Saint Willibrord, archbishop, begins #

¹ To the most distinguished, venerable and praiseworthy lord Beornraed, archbishop, the humble levite Alcuin sends greetings.

² When the letters of your excellence were brought to me, in which, recognising your zeal in the Lord and your long meditation on his law, I confess that I was greatly filled with joy; yet I considered myself far unequal to your request, inasmuch as I am supported by no gift of eloquence sufficient to fulfil what you have commanded, and unless charity compelled me—which is accustomed to refuse nothing—I would not dare to undertake a task beyond the strength of my own poverty. Nevertheless, aided by your prayers, divine grace granting it, and in service to the most holy father Willibrord, whose life, character, and miracles you have devoutly asked me to write, I have obeyed your commands, holy father, and have composed two little books: one proceeding in prose style, which, if it should seem worthy to your wisdom, might be read publicly to the brethren in church; the other running in Pierian metre, which ought to be pondered only in the private chamber among your scholars. Both were dictated amid daily occupations in stolen moments of night-time study, and all the more they require your defence, inasmuch as they have been less polished by their own author. It was mine not to disregard the authority of one commanding; it is yours to defend the inexperience of one obeying. I have also added to the first little book a homily, which would that it were worthy of your venerable mouth to be preached to the people. Likewise, to the second discourse I have added an elegiac poem concerning the venerable man Wilgils, namely the father of the most holy bishop Willibrord, whose body rests in a certain small cell by the sea, over which I, though unworthy, preside by lawful succession, God granting it. But also all that I have composed, whether in flowing prose or in running verse, awaits the judgement of your holiness, whether it be worthy of remembrance or to be scraped away by a harsh pumice stone; nor should it proceed into public use unless strengthened by your examination.

The Chapters of Book One begin #

¹ Concerning Wilgils, the father of Saint Willibrord.

² Concerning a dream and its interpretation, which the mother of Saint Willibrord said she had seen.

³ That the parents entrusted the boy Willibrord to the brothers of Ripon to be educated.

⁴ That, as a devout youth, he made his way to Ireland for the sake of learning.

⁵ That the same man of God sailed from Ireland to Germany out of devotion to the preaching of the Gospel.

⁶ That Duke Pippin sent the man of God to Rome, that he might be ordained archbishop.

⁷ That it was shown in a vision to the blessed apostolic Pope Sergius that he should honourably receive the man of God.

⁸ What fruit the pious preacher, returning from Rome, produced in the Gospel of Christ.

⁹ That the blessed bishop Willibrord attempted to preach in Frisia and among the Danes.

¹⁰ What he did in Frisia, when he was about to return again to the Christians.

¹¹ How he made little of the threats of King Radbod.

¹² That the man of God, returning to Duke Pippin, preached the word of God with all earnestness.

¹³ That Duke Pippin died and left the sceptres of the kingdom to his son Charles, who, after subduing Frisia, gave them Saint Willibrord as their preacher.

¹⁴ How, breaking a certain idol and being struck by the servant of that same idol with a sword, he was nevertheless not wounded.

¹⁵ That a certain man who insulted the man of God perished by a sudden death.

¹⁶ How he produced water in a dry place by his prayers.

¹⁷ How he fed twelve poor men from his flask.

¹⁸ That after the blessing of the man of God, wine increased in a cask.

¹⁹ Where forty men, with the father giving a blessing, drank from four flasks until they were satisfied.

²⁰ Concerning a certain rich man excommunicated by the man of God and then absolved.

²¹ How in the city of Trier he defended the handmaids of God from an impending devastating plague by prayer.

²² How he freed the house of a certain head of a household from a demonic disturbance.

²³ For the same holy man, by the spirit of prophecy, foretold the future prosperity of King Pippin.

²⁴ Concerning the character, death, and burial of the venerable father.

²⁵ Concerning the sarcophagus in which the body of the holy father was laid.

²⁶ Concerning how his death was revealed to one of his disciples, and concerning the brightness of light and the sweetness of fragrance which are often seen in the place of his death.

²⁷ That through the anointing with oil shining at the body of the saint, illnesses are accustomed to be healed, and concerning chains loosed in that same church.

²⁸ That a certain paralysed woman was healed at his body.

²⁹ Concerning a certain sick young man who was healed while praying in his church.

³⁰ Concerning theft of a certain deacon in the church of the holy man.

³¹ Likewise concerning Wilgils, the father of Saint Willibrord.

³² Likewise a homily to be delivered on the feast day of Saint Willibrord.

Chapter 1: #

¹ There was in the island of Britain, in the province of Northumbria, a certain head of a household, Saxon by birth and named Wilgils, who lived a devout life in Christ with his wife and all his household, as was afterwards made clear by signs. For, having left behind the secular way of life, he chose the monastic manner of living, and not long after, as the fervour of the spiritual life increased within him, he committed himself with more earnest devotion of mind to the stricter discipline of solitude, on certain headlands which are surrounded by the ocean sea and the river Humber. There also, for a long time, in a certain small oratory dedicated in the name of Christ to Saint Andrew the apostle, he served God in fasting, prayer, and vigils, in such a way that he also became renowned for signs of miracles and his name was made famous. Nor did he cease to exhort the crowds that gathered to him with the most gentle encouragement of the word of God, but he also became esteemed by the king of that people and by the nobles, to such an extent that they granted him, as a perpetual gift, certain small possessions of land adjoining those headlands for the building of a church to God; in which the pious father gathered a small but worthy community of those serving God, in which also, after the many struggles of holy labour, he rests in the body, crowned by God, and his successors possess it even to this day according to the tradition of his holiness. Of these, I, the least in merit and rank, have received by lawful succession the charge of governing that same cell, and, at your command, most blessed bishop Beornraed, I have written this account of the most holy father and greatest teacher Willibrord; you who, by the dignity of so great a father and of the highest priesthood, by descent of lineage, and by the care of the holy places which are known to have been founded by him in honour of God, have proved yourself, according to the grace given to you by God, a most worthy heir.

Chapter 2: #

¹ And so, that I may more deeply trace the origin of the birth of that same holy father Willibrord, and at once recall the signs of divine election while still in his mother’s womb, I return to where I began. For just as the most holy forerunner of our Lord Jesus Christ, the blessed John the Baptist, sanctified by God from his mother’s womb, was born to devout parents, as the Gospel narrative tells [Luke 1:15], going before Christ like the morning star before the sun, destined to be of benefit to many for their salvation, so also Saint Willibrord, born for the salvation of very many, is known to have been born to devout parents. For the venerable man Wilgils, of whom we spoke a little before, was joined in marriage for this purpose alone, God having so ordained it, that from him might be born such offspring for the advancement of many peoples. Therefore his wife, namely the mother of the blessed father Willibrord, in the stillness of the night saw a heavenly vision in her sleep. It seemed to her as though she saw a new moon in the sky, which grew until it appeared to be full. Gazing at it more intently, it suddenly fell with swift motion and descended into her mouth; when she had swallowed it, her inward parts were filled with its brightness. Awakening in fear, she reported the dream to a certain devout priest; and when he asked whether on that night, when the vision came to her, she had, as usual, lain with her husband, and upon her confession of this, he replied: “The moon which you saw grow from small to great is the son whom you conceived on that night; he will scatter the dark errors of gloom with the light of truth, and wherever he goes, accompanied by the radiance of heavenly light, he will display the full orb of his perfection, and by the shining brightness of his fame and the beauty of his conduct, he will draw the gaze of many to himself.” And the truth of events followed the interpretation of this dream.

Chapter 3: #

¹ It came to pass after the course of days that the woman bore a son, and, having been reborn in the sacred font of baptism, his father gave him the name Willibrord; and as soon as the little child was weaned, his father entrusted him to the brethren of the church of Ripon to be instructed in religious learning and the sacred writings, so that his more fragile age might be strengthened by firmer discipline, where he might see nothing but what is honourable and hear nothing but what is holy. And divine grace soon granted that from early childhood he should advance in understanding and excel in conduct, as was fitting for such years, so that in our own times you might have thought a new Samuel had been born, of whom it is said: “Now the boy Samuel continued to grow and was in favour both with the Lord and with men” [1 Samuel 2:26]. And there in the same monastery, the boy, destined to benefit many, received the clerical tonsure and by a devout profession made himself a monk; and, brought up among the other youths of that most holy monastery, he was inferior to none in eagerness, second to none in humility, and surpassed by none in zeal for reading; but thus the boy of good disposition advanced daily, so that he surpassed the tender years of childhood by the gravity of his conduct, and he became mature in understanding, though small and frail in body.

Chapter 4: #

¹ Therefore, as the most blessed youth advanced in sacred learning, in all sobriety, and in the honourable conduct of his life up to the twentieth year of his age, he was kindled with a zeal for a stricter life and stirred by a love of pilgrimage. And because he had heard that scholarly learning flourished in Ireland, and was also inspired by the report of the way of life of certain holy men, especially of the most blessed father and bishop Ecgberht, who was called by the surname “the Holy,” and also of the venerable man and priest of God, Wigbert—both of whom, out of love for the heavenly homeland, had left home, country, and kin, and withdrawn to Ireland, where, stripped of the world and filled with God, they daily drank the sweetest fruits of heavenly contemplation in a solitary life—the blessed youth, desiring to imitate their devotion, with the consent of his abbot and brethren hastened with swift course to Ireland. There he joined himself to the fellowship of the same fathers, so that, like a most prudent bee, he might gather from their nearness the honeyed flowers of piety and build within the hive of his own breast the sweetest combs of virtues. And there for twelve years, among distinguished teachers both of devout religion and sacred learning, he was instructed, destined to become a preacher to many peoples, until he should attain to a perfect man and to the measure of the fullness of Christ.

Chapter 5: #

¹ In the thirty-third year of his age, the flame of faith grew ever stronger in the breast of that excellent man, so that it seemed too little to him to have laboured for holiness of religion for himself alone, if he did not also benefit others by the truth of preaching. He had heard that in the northern regions of the world the harvest was indeed plentiful, but the labourers were few. And so, that the truth of the dream might be fulfilled, as his mother once testified she had seen concerning him, being conscious of his own purpose, though still unaware of the divine plan, he resolved to sail to those regions and, if it were God’s will, to enlighten with the most brilliant light of Gospel preaching those peoples who lay sluggish in long unbelief. And taking with him eleven brothers, armed with the same fervour of faith as himself, he boarded a ship; some of them were afterwards crowned with martyrdom because of their zeal in preaching the Gospel, while others, receiving the office of bishop, after the labours of holy preaching rested in peace.

² Therefore, as the man of God sailed with his companions, as we have said, until with a favourable course he lowered his sails at the mouth of the river Rhine, they refreshed themselves there in the desired haven of land, and soon came to the fortress of Utrecht, which is situated on the bank of that same river; and there also, after some time, by God’s gift and as the word of faith increased, that same Saint Willibrord held the seat of his bishopric. But because that same people of the Frisians, among whom that fortress was built, still remained defiled with pagan rites under their king Radbod, it seemed good to the man of God to make for Francia and to approach their duke Pippin, a vigorous man, renowned for victories and upright in character. Receiving him with all honour, and unwilling that so great a teacher should be lacking either to himself or to his people, he provided him with suitable places within the bounds of his kingdom, where he might uproot the thorns of idolatry and sow more abundantly the purest seeds of the word of God in cleansed fields, so as to fulfil that prophetic command: “Break up your fallow ground, and do not sow among thorns” [Jeremiah 4:3].

Chapter 6: #

¹ And when the man of God had most diligently travelled through each place, carrying out the desired work of preaching the Gospel, and the seeds of life, watered by the dew of heavenly grace, had sprung up most abundantly far and wide in the fields of many hearts through his preaching, the same duke of the Franks, rejoicing in his most holy devotion and in the most glorious increase of the word of God, considered with prudent counsel, as an occasion for greater progress, to send him to Rome, so that he might be ordained to the honour of the highest priesthood by the lord apostolic Sergius, a most holy man at that time; so that, having received apostolic blessing and commission, he might return to the work of the Gospel strengthened with greater confidence, according to that saying of the Apostle: “How shall they preach unless they are sent?” [Romans 10:15]. When he tried to persuade the man of God of this, he at first refused and declared that he was not worthy of such an honour of authority, and, recalling the precepts of apostolic teaching, he asserted that he was far inferior to that catalogue of virtues which the outstanding preacher of the world, instructing his son Timothy, judged that a bishop ought to possess. But the duke, in turn, urged him devoutly, though the man of God modestly refused. At last, overcome by the agreement of all, and, what is greater, compelled by God’s providence, he consented, preferring humbly to obey the counsel of many rather than stubbornly to defend his own will. And so he was sent to Rome with an honourable embassy and with gifts worthy of apostolic authority.

Chapter 7: #

¹ But on the fourth day, before he arrived there, the most blessed apostolic was warned in a dream by an angelic response that he should receive him with the highest honour, and that he would be an illuminator of many souls, chosen by God, and had come for this purpose, that he might receive from him the honour of the highest priesthood, and that nothing should be refused him, whatever he might ask. Having been made certain by this apostolic warning, he received him with great joy and the highest honour; and when he recognised in him the fervour of faith, devotion to religion, and fullness of wisdom, on the appointed day, with the people present, and with the venerable priests, his fellow ministers, assembled, he publicly in the church of the most blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, ordained him archbishop with great dignity according to apostolic custom; and when he had ordained him, he gave him the name Clement, and clothed him in his own priestly garments, and confirmed him with the pallium, as it were with the sacred shoulder-garment of Aaron, in the glory of dignity and office; and whatever he wished or asked, whether in the patronage of the saints or in ecclesiastical matters, he granted to him with all eagerness of mind, and, strengthened with blessing and enriched with gifts, he sent him back again to the work of the Gospel with saving instructions.

Chapter 8: #

¹ And having also received the blessing of apostolic authority, the devout preacher of the word of God returned with greater confidence to the same duke of the Franks. He, having received him with the utmost magnificence of honour, sent him forth by the command of his own authority to the work of the Gospel, especially in the northern regions of his kingdom, where until then, whether because of the scarcity of teachers or the hardness of the inhabitants, the flame of faith had shone less brightly. There the man of God sowed the seeds of life all the more earnestly in those regions, the more he perceived it necessary to drive away the ancient hunger of ignorance. What fruit, with divine grace assisting, he produced in those places is witnessed even to this day by the peoples throughout cities, villages, and strongholds, whom he had led by devout exhortation to the knowledge of the truth and to the worship of the one almighty God; witnesses also are the churches which he built in various places, and the congregations of those serving God which he gathered together in certain locations.

Chapter 9: #

¹ The same man of God also attempted to extend the streams of heavenly teaching beyond the borders of the kingdom of the Franks. For at that time he did not fear to approach Radbod, king of the Frisians, still a pagan with his people, and wherever he went he spoke the word of God with all confidence. But although the same king of the Frisians kindly received the man of God out of regard for his humility, he was in no way able to soften his stony heart with the nourishment of life. And when the man of God realised that he could not bear fruit among him, he turned his journey of preaching towards the most savage peoples of the Danes. There, however, as it is said, there ruled Ongendus, a man more cruel than any wild beast and harder than any stone, who nevertheless, at God’s command, treated the herald of truth with honour. And when he found them hardened in their ways, devoted to idolatry, and having no hope of a better life, he took with him thirty boys of that land hastened to return to the chosen peoples of the kingdom of the Franks. But on that very journey he instructed those same boys in the faith and washed them in the font of life, lest through the dangers of the very long voyage or through the plots of the most savage inhabitants of that land he might suffer any loss among them, wishing to forestall the cunning of the ancient enemy and to strengthen the souls he had gained with the sacraments of the Lord.

Chapter 10: #

¹ And while the devout preacher of the word of God was making his journey, he came to the border of the Frisians and the Danes, to a certain island which was called by the inhabitants of that land Fositesland, from a certain god of theirs named Fosite, because the shrines of that same god had been built there. This place was held by the pagans in such reverence that none of the heathen dared to touch anything in it, whether of the animals grazing there or of any other things, nor did anyone presume to draw water from the spring which bubbled up there, except in silence. When the man of God was driven there by a storm, he remained there for some days, until, the storms having ceased, a suitable time for sailing arrived. But, making little of the foolish religion of that place and of the most savage temper of the king, who was accustomed to condemn violators of that sanctuary to a most cruel death, he baptised three men in that spring with the invocation of the Holy Trinity, and also ordered the animals grazing in that land to be slaughtered for food for his companions. When the pagans saw this, they thought that the men would either be driven mad or would quickly perish. But when they saw that they suffered no harm, struck with amazement, they nevertheless reported what they had seen to King Radbod.

Chapter 11: #

¹ But he, inflamed with excessive fury, planned to avenge upon the priest of the living God the injuries done to his gods, and for three days he cast lots according to his custom, three times each day; and never, God defending his own, could the lot of the condemned fall upon the servant of God or upon any of his companions, except that one alone of his company was indicated by lot and crowned with martyrdom. Then the holy man was summoned to the king and was greatly rebuked by him for having violated his sacred rites and done injury to his god. To him the herald of truth replied with steadfast mind: “The one whom you worship is not God but the devil, who has deceived you, O king, in the worst error, so as to hand over your soul to eternal flames. For there is no God but one, who created heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them; and whoever worships him in true faith shall have everlasting life. I, his servant, bear witness to you today, that you may at last come to your senses from the vanity of the ancient error which your fathers worshipped, and, believing in the one almighty God, our Lord Jesus Christ, and being washed in the fountain of life, may cleanse all your sins, and, casting aside all wickedness and injustice, may henceforth live as a new man in all sobriety, righteousness, and holiness. If you do this, you shall possess eternal glory with God and his saints. But if you despise me as I show you the way of salvation, know most certainly that you will endure eternal punishments and the flames of hell with the devil whom you obey.” At these words the king, astonished, replied: “I see that you do not fear our threats and that your words are as your deeds.” Although he was unwilling to believe the preacher of the truth, he nevertheless sent him back with honour to Duke Pippin of the Franks.

Chapter 12: #

¹ He, rejoicing at his arrival, urged him to persevere in the appointed work of the word of God, and, the thorns of idolatry having been uprooted, to sow the word of God earnestly in each place. This the devout preacher strove to carry out without delay, going about all the regions of that land, through cities, villages, and strongholds where he had previously preached the Gospel, exhorting all that they should remain steadfast in the firmness of the true faith with a good purpose of mind. And as day by day the number of the faithful increased and a greater crowd of believers gathered to the knowledge of the word of God, many, stirred by the fervour of faith, began to offer their possessions to the man of God. Having received these, he immediately ordered churches to be built on them, and in each he appointed priests and fellow workers in the word of God, so that the new people of God might have places where they could gather on feast days, hear saving exhortations, receive the gifts of holy baptism, and learn the rules of the Christian religion. And thus the man of God prospered more and more from day to day, divine grace granting it.

Chapter 13: #

¹ But it happened that Pippin, duke of the Franks, died, and his son Charles obtained his father’s kingdom. He added many peoples to the rule of the Franks, among whom he also joined Frisia to his inherited dominion with the glory of victory, after defeating Radbod. In that people Saint Willibrord was then established as preacher and was assigned the episcopal seat in the fortress of Utrecht. Having received a greater opportunity for preaching the Gospel, he strove to wash that people, newly won by the sword, in the sacred baptism. Nor did he allow any darkness of ancient error to remain hidden there in ignorance, but he suffused the whole with the light of the Gospel without delay, so that in that people the prophetic testimony was suddenly fulfilled: “And it shall come to pass that in the place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there it shall be said to them, ‘Sons of the living God’” [Hosea 1:10].

Chapter 14: #

¹ Divine power also performed very many miracles through his servant. Although the work of Gospel preaching is to be preferred above all the working of miracles and the showing of signs, nevertheless I judge that those deeds which are reported ought not to be kept silent, for the glory of the God who grants them, but rather to be committed to writing, lest those things which are known to have been done in former times should perish for later ages.

² Therefore, at a certain time, when the venerable man had undertaken a journey of preaching the Gospel as was his custom, he came to a certain village named Walichrum, in which an idol of the ancient error remained. When the man of God, burning with zeal, broke it in the presence of its guardian, he, inflamed with excessive fury, as though avenging the injury done to his god, in a fit of madness struck the head of the priest of Christ with a sword; but, God protecting his servant, he suffered no injury from the blow of the attacker. But his companions, seeing this, rushed to avenge by death the wicked presumption of the impious man. Yet, by the pious disposition of the man of God, the guilty man was freed from their hands and released; nevertheless, on that same day he was seized by a demonic spirit and on the third day he ended his wretched life miserably. And because the man of God did not wish to avenge his own injuries, according to the command of the Lord, they were nevertheless quickly avenged by the Lord, as he says concerning the injuries which the wicked do not fear to inflict upon his saints: “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, says the Lord” [Romans 12:19].

Chapter 15: #

¹ At another time also, when the blessed man was making a journey to a certain small cell of his jurisdiction, which from the name of the stream flowing past is called Suestra, but for the sake of a shorter route he entered a narrow path through the cornfields of a certain rich man, the keeper of those same fields, seeing this, puffed up with excessive fury, began to blaspheme the man of God. His companions, who were with him, wishing to avenge the insults brought against the man of God, were restrained by the servant of God with a gentle spirit, unwilling that anyone should perish on his account, since he longed for the salvation of all. And when he was in no way able to soothe mind of the raging man, giving place to his anger, he returned by the way he had come. But on the following day the same unfortunate man, who had not shrunk from hurling insults at the servant of God, in the sight of many, perished by a sudden death in that same place.

Chapter 16: #

¹ While the man, full of God, was travelling around the coastal places on account of the urgency of evangelical preaching, in which they were suffering from a lack of fresh water, when he saw that his companions were enduring this severely because of the burning of thirst, having called one of them, he ordered him to dig a small pit inside his tent, where in secret, with knees fixed, he prayed to God, that He who brought forth water from the rock for His people in the desert might, by the same mercy, bring forth water from the sandy ground for His servants. He was quickly heard, and suddenly a spring of very sweet taste filled the pit. Seeing this, his companions, giving thanks to Almighty God, who had glorified His saint and had deigned to hear him, drank to satisfaction and took care to carry with them, for the need of the appointed journey, as much as seemed sufficient.

Chapter 17: #

¹ Again, the holy priest of God, travelling on a journey in a certain place, saw twelve poor beggars, all at once asking from those passing by some relief for themselves. As he was most gentle, he looked upon them with a kindly spirit and instructed one of his companions to take his special flask and to give the poor to drink of Christ. From it all twelve drank to satisfaction, and in a marvellous way, when they had gone, the flask of excellent wine, from which so many men had drunk, was found as full as before. When this was discovered, all blessed our Lord, saying: “Truly it has been fulfilled in us what Christ said in the Gospel: Give, and it shall be given to you” [Luke 6:38].

Chapter 18: #

¹ The holy man also came to his monastery for the purpose of visiting it, and after prayers to God and fraternal greetings and peaceful exhortations, going around the individual dwellings of the brothers, wishing as a pious shepherd to examine whether anything in them ought to be corrected, he also entered the cellar, in which he found a small amount of wine in one cask, into which, for the sake of his blessing, he placed his staff with prayer, and went out. But that same night the wine in that very vessel began to increase and to overflow beyond the rim of the cask. When the cellarer saw this, astonished at the unexpected abundance, he did not dare to conceal what he recognised was being done by divine mercy through the blessing of His servant. On the following morning he ran and, prostrating himself at the feet of the holy father, confessed what he had seen. He, giving thanks to God in his usual way and mindful of the Lord’s command, instructing his disciples that they should tell no one of the glory of the transfiguration before the day of his resurrection [Matthew 17:9], ordered that same cellarer not to reveal to anyone the miracle which he had seen before the day of his death.

Chapter 19: #

¹ But also another miracle similar to this Christ God worked through his blessing. When the servant of God, with his companions, came to the house of a certain friend of his, wishing for a short while in the house of his beloved to relieve the weariness of the long journey with refreshment, he found that the head of the household had no wine. He ordered four small flasks, which his companions were carrying with them only as provision for the journey, to be brought, and he blessed them in the name of Him who at a wedding feast turned water into wine [John 2:1–11]. And in a marvellous way, after the grace of the blessing, about forty men drank from those small flasks to satisfaction, and with great thanksgiving, with joyful hearts, they said among themselves: “Truly the Lord Jesus has fulfilled what he promised in the Gospel: He who believes in me will also do the works that I do, and he will do greater than these” [John 14:12].

Chapter 20: #

¹ The same holy preacher went at a certain time, as was his custom, to Frisia with haste for the sake of preaching the Gospel, and because of the labour of the journey, wishing to rest his tired horses for a little while in the meadows of a certain rich man. When that rich man saw the horses feeding in his meadows, he, filled with a spirit of pride, began to drive them away and to expel them from the pasture. The man of God addressed him in most gentle words, saying: “Stop doing us wrong, brother; for we have not wished to rest in these pastures for the sake of harming you, but for our own necessity for a time. The work of God presses upon us to be carried out, in which you too may have a reward, if, as far as it concerns you, you assist us with a kindly spirit, mindful of that most sweet promise of our Lord Jesus Christ: He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me [Matthew 10:40]. But rather, refreshing yourself with us in a peaceful spirit as a friend, drink a little, and when we proceed on the journey we have begun, you, blessed by God, return to your home.” But he, stubborn in wickedness, unwilling to yield to the peaceful words of the man of God, instead repeated insults and hurled reproaches: “You urge me to drink and to make peace with you; know most certainly that I regard it as nothing to drink with you.” And the man of God, seizing upon this word from his mouth, said: “If you are unwilling to drink with me, then do not drink.” And at once, with his companions prepared, he went on his way. That defiant man also hastened to go to his home, but suddenly he burned all over with thirst; and wishing to cool his burning stomach with wine, the mouth which had poured insults upon the man of God was not able to receive a draught of wine, and he who had refused to make peace willingly with the servant of God endured upon himself a punishment of necessity. Physicians were called, to quench his thirst, to provide the sick man with the ability to drink. His inward parts were parched, but there was no one who was able to pour even a drop of wine into his burning lungs. At last, though too late, led by repentance, he came to himself; he recognised that it was Saint Willibrord whom he had offended, and, with laboured breathing, he longed for his return. When in the following year he came back by the same route, and his arrival was known beforehand, the sick man hastened to meet him, confessing his fault and declaring the punishment he suffered, and he begged to be released for the love of Christ. The man of God, moved by mercy, absolved him and gave him to drink from his own cup with a blessing. He, being immediately released, drank and returned healed to his home.

Chapter 21: #

¹ There is in the city of Trier a monastery of nuns, which in the time of the blessed bishop Willibrord was attacked by a most severe plague. By its violence many of the handmaids of God were dying, some lying in bed with prolonged suffering of illness, while the others, greatly disturbed by excessive fear, dreaded death as if it were present. And because the monastery of the holy man, which is called Aefternaco, is near to the same city, in which that holy man rests in body even to this day, and his successors are known to hold his tradition by rightful inheritance and by the devotion of most pious kings, the women of the same monastery, hearing that the holy man was coming there, at once sent a message, asking him not to delay in coming. He, instructed by the most gentle example of the blessed Peter, prince of the apostles, who from Joppa came to Lydda at the request of the widows of Christ in order to raise up the holy Tabitha [Acts 9:36–41], so the man of God, hearing the desire of the handmaids of Christ, did not hesitate to come to them. And when he had come at once into that monastery, having celebrated Mass for the sick, he blessed water, with which he ordered their house to be sprinkled, and he sent it to the sick to drink. They quickly recovered, by the mercy of God granting it, nor did anyone thereafter die in that monastery from the same plague.

Chapter 22: #

¹ It happened that a certain head of a household and his house were afflicted by a dreadful trial of demonic deception, so that an evil spirit was openly recognised to dwell in his house with terror and harmful acts. For it was accustomed suddenly to snatch food or clothing or other necessities of the house and to throw them into the fire; indeed, it even took a little child resting in the embrace of its parents, while they slept, and cast it into the fire; but the parents, roused by the child’s cry, scarcely rescued the infant from the blaze. And that household suffered many dreadful things from the wicked spirit, nor could it be driven out by any of the priests, until the holy man Willibrord, having been entreated by the head of the household, sent them blessed water, instructing them to carry all the furniture of that house outside and to sprinkle it with that water, foreseeing in the spirit that the house would be consumed by flames. When this had been done, the fire attacked the empty house from the place of the bed and consumed the whole of it. But another house, built in that place with the blessing of the holy water, suffered nothing thereafter of the former trial; rather, living with complete peace and quiet, they gave thanks to the Lord, who had deigned to redeem them through His servant.

Chapter 23: #

¹ The same man, beloved of God, also foretold certain things by a prophetic spirit, which after the event proved to be true. He baptised Pippin, the son of the most valiant duke of the Franks, Charles, the father of this most noble Charles, who now with the greatest triumphs and with all dignity most gloriously rules the empire of the Franks. Concerning this Pippin, his father, the same holy man foretold such a prophecy in a prophetic voice before his disciples: “Know that this child will be very exalted and glorious and greater than all the dukes of the Franks who have gone before.” The truth of this prophecy has been proved in our times, nor is there need to seek testimonies for what the authority of the whole kingdom acknowledges. For all the people know by what most noble triumphs he is celebrated as a victor, or how greatly he has extended the borders of our empire, or how devoutly he has spread the Christian religion in his kingdom, or what he has accomplished among foreign peoples for the defence of the holy Church of God. All these things can be proved better by sight than explained in words.

Chapter 24: #

¹ The same man, beloved of God, also foretold certain things by a prophetic spirit, which after the event proved to be true. He baptised Pippin, the son of the most valiant duke of the Franks, Charles, the father of this most noble Charles, who now with the greatest triumphs and with all dignity most gloriously rules the empire of the Franks. Concerning this Pippin, his father, the same holy man foretold such a prophecy in a prophetic voice before his disciples: “Know that this child will be very exalted and glorious and greater than all the dukes of the Franks who have gone before.” The truth of this prophecy has been proved in our times, nor is there need to seek testimonies for what the authority of the whole kingdom acknowledges. For all the people know by what most noble triumphs he is celebrated as a victor, or how greatly he has extended the borders of our empire, or how devoutly he has spread the Christian religion in his kingdom, or what he has accomplished among foreign peoples for the defence of the holy Church of God. All these things can be proved better by sight than explained in words.

² This holy man, however, advancing every day of his life in the work of God, beloved of God and pleasing to all the people, in the time of Charles the Elder, the most valiant duke of the Franks, as an old man and full in all perfection of days, was gathered to his fathers, to receive from God the manifold fruit of his labour, leaving this world so as to possess heaven, to see Christ without end in eternal glory, in whose love, as long as he lived among us, he did not cease to labour. On the sixth day of the month of November, that is the eighth day before the Ides, he passed from this pilgrimage to the everlasting homeland was buried in the monastery of Aefternaco, which he himself, as we have said before, had built for God. There even to this day, by the working of divine mercy, signs and healings do not cease to be performed at the relics of the holy priest of God. Of these we have judged that some should be added to this our account of him, to the glory and praise of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has often deigned to work these things through the intercession of His servant.

Chapter 25: #

¹ The venerable body was placed in a marble sarcophagus, which at first was found to be shorter than the whole body of the servant of God by about half a foot, and the brothers, greatly distressed on this account and uncertain in counsel as to what they should do, frequently discussed where they might find a suitable resting place for the holy body; but in a marvellous way, by God’s mercy granting it, the sarcophagus was suddenly found to be longer for the body of the man of God by as much as it had previously appeared shorter. And placing the body of the man of God in it with hymns, psalms, and every honour, they buried it in the church of the same monastery, which that chief priest of God had built and dedicated in honour of the Holy Trinity. And a fragrance of wondrous sweetness filled the nostrils of all, so that it was clearly understood that an angelic ministry had come to the funeral rites of the holy man.

Chapter 26: #

¹ But also to a certain religious disciple of the holy man, being at a distance, while keeping watch in prayer, his death was revealed; for he testifies that he saw the soul of his most holy father, with great brightness of light, borne by angelic hosts to the kingdoms of heaven with harmonious singing of praise. Many of the brothers also testified that they had often seen a marvellous light above the bed on which he gave up his blessed soul to his Creator, and had perceived the most sweet fragrance of a very pleasant scent, so that by these signs it was entirely believed that the heavenly citizens had frequented the place in which the holy soul departed to the Lord.

Chapter 27: #

¹ Also through the anointing with oil, which used to shine above the body of the holy man, many sick people were healed, God granting it and their faith cooperating. Penitents too, often coming to the same church, bound with iron rings according to custom, when the rings were broken, their bonds were suddenly loosed. Of this matter the rings still hanging in the church are witnesses.

Chapter 28: #

¹ But a certain paralysed woman, tormented for seven years by great pains, with that daily illness advancing so far in her that, deprived of all use of her limbs, she relied on the service of others; only in her little chest did her breath, scarcely drawing, pull back weary sighs. She was carried by her relatives to the church where the holy man of God rests and was placed near the shrine of his relics; there, shedding tears, she prayed that through the intercession of His holy servant the divine mercy might have pity on her. She, having been heard by the Lord God, was at once freed from all illness, and, restored to health, giving thanks to God with joy, ran to her home on her own feet, whereas before she had been carried by others.

Chapter 29: #

¹ Likewise a certain sick young man was led by the hands of his friends to the body of the blessed bishop; he trembled in all his limbs, for he could not raise his head by himself, but, as though it were not fixed to his neck, it rolled this way and that; indeed, at times he became so lifeless that he seemed altogether dead. Him, as we have said, his companions placed near the body of the holy man; but, by the mercy of God granting it, in the sight of all who were present, he was so suddenly made well that nothing of his former illness or of his earlier pain remained in him any longer.

Chapter 30: #

¹ Accordingly, a certain man, a deacon in office but not in merit, in the church of the holy man did not shrink, most wretchedly, from stealing by theft a golden cross, which the holy man was accustomed to carry with him on his journey, together with other gifts of the church. And when the brothers were troubled about this matter, since they did not know the perpetrator of the impious crime, then, trusting in the prayers of the holy man of God that so wicked a deed could not be concealed, yet striving with brotherly kindness to call the man back to repentance, not wishing him to perish, he who had committed this crime, with hardened heart, despised his own salvation, as the wicked man, as Solomon says, when he has come into the depths of evils, despises them [Proverbs 18:3]. The wretched man thought that what he knew he had done secretly and without the eyes of others could remain hidden; but he could not hide from the eye of God, to whom all things are open, who does not delay to avenge the wrongs done to His servants. For that miserable man, who did not shrink from committing this crime, was suddenly seized by a miserable death and perished, and at the very end of his life he revealed to some of the brothers the crime of his guilt and showed where he had hidden what he had stolen by theft.

² You see, brothers, with how terrible a judgement he was condemned who did not fear to violate by theft the church of the holy man of God. Therefore I beg you to keep a pure manner of life in this house, so that by the prayers of Saint Clement, an apostolic man, the divine mercy may deign to hear you in every honourable petition, just as, as we have said before, He has deigned to hear the prayers of the sick in this same church and has granted them to return home with the long-desired health. Nor indeed should it be doubted that, just as He has deigned visibly to heal their bodily infirmities, so also He does not cease daily to hear the hidden sicknesses of our souls, with His holy one interceding for us, who rests here in body and whom we believe to be present in spirit, if with firm faith and true confession we pour out our hearts with tears in this place before the sight of His mercy, who by divine clemency is ready to forgive, if we are not slow to pray. To Him be praise and glory for ever and ever.

Chapter 31: #

¹ It remains therefore concerning the blessed Wilgils, who, as we have said before, was the father of this holy man, that he from whom the first chapter of this account begins may also be the one with whom it ends. The yearly day of the holy passing of the same blessed Wilgils therefore returned, on which the pious abbot Aldberctus, successor of the venerable archbishop, after the solemn rites of the most sacred observances and the honour due to God, began with the brothers to feast and rejoice; but in that monastery no more wine was found than only two flasks, of which one was drunk at the hour of the midday meal, the other reserved for the hour of supper. Therefore after the evening chant, out of reverence for that day, the brothers returned to the refectory, and after the sacred readings the same abbot addressed the brothers: “For it is fitting for us, venerable fathers, to celebrate with spiritual joy the feast days of our venerable fathers and to allow our bodies somewhat more relaxation than the usual strictness, not for the sake of luxury, but of charity. I would by no means have concealed it from you if I had anything more in this monastery than this one flask which remained to us at the hour of the midday meal. Yet God is able, through the prayers of His saints, to make this same flask abound for us, to honour them and to gladden us and to show us, though unworthy, the miracles of His mercy, He who once deigned through the blessing of Saint Willibrord our father to satisfy forty men from four flasks. Let us drink with thanksgiving in hope what we have.” When all the brothers had drunk once and again from that same flask, it was found by the server to be as full as before. When this was heard, the abbot hastened with the brothers to give thanks to God, and rejoicing in the divine mercy, they drank that night with sobriety and gladness as much as they wished. O blessed father, who begets such a son, who was deemed worthy by God of such an heir! In him that blessing is fulfilled which is read in Deuteronomy: “Blessed are you, and blessed is the fruit of your womb” [Deuteronomy 28:4].

A homily to be spoken on the feast day of Saint Willibrord #

¹ Although throughout the churches of the whole world it is fitting for all Christian people to celebrate the feasts of the saints, to praise their victories, and to imitate their life, and since their sound has gone out into all the earth and their words to the ends of the world [Psalm 19:4], they ought to be praised in every land with the harmonious voice of all who live, yet in particular places, because of the closeness of dwelling with any one of them and because of the presence of holy relics, which have been granted for the comfort of the inhabitants, they are honoured more especially and more familiarly among their own people with a certain special veneration.

² Therefore the city of Rome, the head of the world, in a special manner rejoices in the most glorious triumphs of the blessed apostles Peter and Paul. Hence nations and peoples daily flock to it with devout intention of heart, so that each, with greater compunction of faith before the blessed apostles, may either lament his sins or seek that an entrance to the heavenly life be opened to him with more abundant hope. The city of Milan, once imperial, rejoices in Saint Ambrose as its defender. The Alpine region of Agaunum is exalted more happily by the blood of the holy Thebans than by the height of its snowy peaks. More blessedly fruitful Poitiers exults in the relics of the blessed bishop Hilary than in the disputes of buying and selling, in which injustice often prevails. Why should I speak of you, city of Tours, small indeed and of little account in your walls, yet great and praiseworthy through the protection of Saint Martin? Who would approach you for your own sake? Do not crowds of Christians flock to you on account of his most certain aid? All the districts around the city of Paris rejoice in the splendid help of Saint Denis or Saint Germanus, and they celebrate their feast days with greater gatherings of people. All Campania with its peoples hastens to the city of Reims because of Remigius, the venerable preacher, bringing their prayers to him as to a present patron. Thus the divine mercy has provided for the whole world, giving to each province or people one in whom it might rejoice as a special patron.

³ But to us He has granted no small helps through the most holy Willibrord, but has bestowed splendid and glorious aid. Let us rejoice, most beloved brothers, in the Lord and be glad with spiritual joy, who has granted us such a teacher of life, an instructor of righteousness, the founder of our unity, who has gathered us into this most sacred fold and has instructed us by the teaching of piety. Let all the people also rejoice with us, who today flock to the feast of the most holy father and have striven with devout zeal to take part in the vigils of the apostolic man and to stand in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ and of the holy angels and of this most blessed bishop. Let no one, I beg you, doubt in faith, nor hesitate concerning the granting of pardon, nor waver in the outcome of a devout petition, since He has granted us such a patron. Through his prayers He grants that we be heard, because the more confidently we beg, the more swiftly we shall be heard. For faith obtains all things, just as we have before our eyes the most certain examples of this most holy man, whose feast day we celebrate today, who from his very infancy strove through faith to please God. For, with fervent faith, he left his country, his kindred, and his friends for the love of God; he despised earthly things so that he might gain heavenly ones. Therefore he found a great reward for his labour and converted many multitudes of peoples to Christ and turned very many pagans away from the injustice of error and, with divine grace working with him, made sons of wrath to be sons of mercy. He shut up hell, opened heaven, travelled among many peoples so that he might lead all into the way of truth. Nor did he spare himself; he approached fierce peoples, if perhaps he might find the purple crowns of martyrdom. God preserved him for the salvation of many, so that he might be honoured with greater glory of preaching than if he had been crowned by martyrdom alone. He rested in peace, who had laboured in hope. He found eternal life, who left behind the temporal, taken from us, joined to the angels.

⁴ O most blessed priest of Christ, do not abandon us as we labour on earth, but do not cease to help us from heaven by your prayers. Your life among men was always proved for God; may your prayers before God always be intent for men. Your meditation was in the law of the Lord day and night; therefore you flourished like a palm in the house of the Lord. Like the cedar of Lebanon you increased your sons, who cry out to you with the whole intention of their mind: may you deign to help them with your loving intercession. May we feel your most merciful help to be present with us, we who most devoutly attend upon your services. O blessed soul, who have left behind the labours of the world and have entered into heavenly rest with the manifold fruit of your toil; you have multiplied the talents entrusted to you, you have received the promised rewards! You were faithful over a few things on earth; being set over many, you rejoice in heaven. The joys of the Lord your God, which you always desired, you have now begun to possess for ever. We pursue you, O father, with continual praises; you assist us with constant prayers. We believe that in the presence of the Lord your God you are able to obtain all that you ask, since you were able, by His grace, to perform so many miracles in our presence. You are now a citizen among the angels, a companion of the saints, rejoicing with them you will sing the new song: “As we have heard, so have we seen. Blessed are those who dwell in your house, O Lord; they will praise you for ever and ever; and: The God of gods shall be seen in Zion” [Psalm 84:4; Psalm 84:7]. The blessed vision of whom is full happiness, as the Truth itself bears witness in the Gospel, saying: “He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I will love him and will manifest myself to him” [John 14:21]. In whose most sweet love this saint lived in the world, and therefore he rejoices in His presence in heaven.

⁵ See, dearest brothers, how great is the glory of following God. This man, for the love of Christ, despised his homeland, chose exile, valued the riches of the world as little, and willingly loved poverty. And we have known what honour he afterwards had among men; but greater is the glory which he possesses eternally among the angels. May the examples of this most holy teacher rouse us from the sloth of idleness, make us strive with a strong spirit for the heavenly life, despise temporal things and desire eternal ones, and fulfil in ourselves what we proclaim in him. We praise the struggles of his labour; let us correct our ways in his footsteps, so that we who follow the examples of his holiness may obtain the rewards of blessedness, through Him who crowned him and helps us, Jesus Christ our Lord, who with the Father and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns in everlasting glory. Amen.

⁶ Here ends the first book, happily.