Man of the English Race was brought, who having been presented to the Priests of the Britons, and finding no Benefit or Cure by their Ministry; at length, Augustin, compell'd by real Necessity, bow'd his Knees to the Father of our Lord JESUS CHRIST, praying that the loft Sight might be restor'd to the blind Man, and by the corporeal Enlightening of one Man, the Splendor of Spiritual Grace might be kindled in the Hearts of many of the Faithful. Immediately the blind Man receiv'd Sight, and Augustin was by all declar'd the Preacher of the sovereign Light. The Britons then confefs'd they were sensible, that it was the true Way of Righteousness which Auguftin taught; but that they could not depart from their ancient Customs without the Consent and Leave of their People. They therefore defir'd, that a second Synod might be appointed, at which more of their Number would be present. This being decreed, there came (as is asserted) b seven Bishops of the Britons, and many most Learned Men, particularly from their most noble Monastery, which in the En glish Tongue is call'd, Bancornaburg, over which Said by some Writers to be the Bishops of Lhandau, or Tau. St. Afaph, or Lhan Elwi, St. Patern in CardiganMire, Bangor, Chefter, Hen. or Hereford, Wiccior, or Worcester, Some think the Metropol. Bishop of Caerlegeon, or Westchester. was likewise there. Dr. Smith. • The ancient Bonium of Antoninus, it was afterwards call'd, Banconnabypig and Bonchor, from the Choir fays Cambden, now Bangor, I-Koed, or Is-y-Coed, i. e. under a Wood, to distinguish it from the Bangor in Caernarvonshire, it was likewise called Bangor Monachorum. It s which the Abbat Dinooth is said to have presided at that Time. They that were to go to the aforesaid Council, repair'd first to a certain holy and difcreet Man, who was wont to lead an eremitical Life among them, advi sing with him, whether they ought, at the Preaching of Augustin, to forsake their Traditions. He answer'd, If he is a Man of God, follow him. How shall we know that, faid they. He reply'd, Our Lord faith, Take my Yoke up- Matt. 11. on you, and learn of me, for I am meek and lowly in Heart. If therefore, that Augustin is meek and lowly of Heart, it is to be believe'd that he has taken upon him the Yoke of CHRIST, and offers the same to you to take upon you. But if he is stern and haughty, it appears that he is not of God, nor are we to regard his Words. They insisted again, And how shall we difcern even this? Do you contrive, said the Anchorite, I3 that in Flintshire, not far from Westchester, Leland says it Stands in a Valley. The Manuscript of Mr. Robert Vaughan of Henguert tells us, that both Town and Monastery have felt the severe Injuries of Time, that there is scarce now any of them remaining, there being only a small Village of that Name, and no Footsteps of the old City; except the Ruins of the two Principal Gates, Porth Kleis and Porth Wgan, the former looking towards England, and the latter towards Wales, and about a Mile distant from each other, from whence may be conjectur'd the length of the City, the River Dee runs through the midst of it. The old British Triades tell us, that in the British Times, there were in the Monastery 2400 Monks, who in their turns, viz. (100 in every Hour of the 24.) read Prayers, and fung Pfalms continually. See Gibson's Annotations to Cambden's Brirannia, Flintshire. William of Malmsbury mentions in his Time many ruin'd Churches, and vast Heaps of Rubbish, and Windings, Passages and Gateways. 29. : that he first arrive with his Company at the Place where tho Synod is to be held, and if at your Ap proach he shall rise up to you, hear him fubmiffively, being assur'd that he is the Servant of CHRIST; but if he shall despise you, and not rife up to you, whereas you are more in Number; let him also be despis'd by you. They did as he directed, and it hapned, that when they came, Augustin was fitting on a Chair; which they observing, were in a Paffion, and charging him with Pride, endeavour'd to contradict all he faid. He faid to them, You aft in many Particulars contrary to ours, or rather the Custom of the Univerfal Church, and yet, if you will comply with me in these three Points, viz. to keep Easter at the due Time; to administer Baptism, by which we are again born to God, according to the Custom of the Holy Roman and Apoftolick Church, and jointly with us to preach the Word of God to the English Nation, we will readily tolerate all the other things you do, the contrary to our Customs. They answer'd they would do none of those Things, nor receive him as their Archbishop. Alledging among themselves, that if he would now rise up to us, how much more will he contemn us, as of no Worth, if we shall begin to be under his Subjection. To whom the Man of God, Augustin is faid, in a threatning manner, to have foretold, that in cafe they would not join in Unity with their Brethren, they should be warr'd upon by their Enemies; and, if they would not preach the Way of Life to the English Nation, they should at their Hands undergo the Vengeance of Death. All which, through the Dispensation of the Divine Judgment, fell out exactly, as L he 14 he had predicted. The most warlike King of the Angles, Ethelfrid, having rais'd a mighty Army, made a very great Slaughter of that perfidious Nation, at the City of Legions, which by the English is call'd * Legacefter, but by the * Chefter. Britons more rightly d Carlegion. When being about to give Battle, he observ'd their Priefts, who were come together to offer up their Prayers to God for the fighting Soldiers, standing apart in a Place of more Safety; he enquir'd who they were, or what they came together to do in that Place? Most of them were of the Monastery of Bangor, in which it is reported, there was so great a Number of Monks, that the Monastery being divided into seven Parts with the Rulers over each, none of those Parts contain'd less than three Hundred Men, who were all wont to live by their Labour. Many of these having observ'd a Fast of three Days, resorted among others to pray at the aforesaid Battle, having one Brocmal appointed for their Protector, who whilst they were intent upon their Prayers, should defend them against the Swords of the Barbarians. King Ethelfrid being inform'd of the Occafion of their coming, faid, If then they cry to their God against us, in truth, the they do not bear Arms, 14 " 34t d This Bede calls the City of Legions, and not without Justice, if we examine what the great Mr. Cambden has faid, of it's taking its Name from the 20th Legion, calld Victrix, as he proves from the Infeription upon some Coins there found; which fee disputed by his Annotator, it was call'd by the Saxons, Legeacerten. And in the Saxon Annal, Legen-ciertene and Legacertpe, Weftchefter. yet they fight against us, who oppose us by their ১ to • To which agrees Flor. and West. but the Saxon Annals mention but two Hundred, and therefore, I wonder Bishop Gibson (in his Note's on Cambden,) should be surpriz'd at Mr. Hearn's reducing them (in the Life of King Alfred,) to that Number, and imagine it was by his own Authority. f It is necessary to observe that some who would throw the Odium of this Murder upon Augustin's Curse, affert this Passage to have been added to Bede fome Years after his Death, and it is certain the Royal Paraphrafer has made no mention of his Death. Mr. Whelock and Dr. Smith afjert it to be in all the ancient Latin Manuscripts they had Jeen. The Time of this Battle is plac'd by the Saxon Annals, in 607. Bishop Goodwin afferts bis seeing an Instrument fign'd by Augustine in 605. which Sir Henry Spelman proves spurious, no Instruments being us'd till 700. But the learned Mr. Wharton proves beyond Dispute, St. Augustin's Death to be in 604,which was before this long, if we follow the Saxon Annals, which place it in 607, and very long before, if we follow. Archbishop Uther's and the Ulster Annals, which place it in to this we may add Bede's Authority, that Pope Gregory had Obiits laid over him in the Church at Canter. bury, which plainly shows his Death to have been before that Pope's. And tho we find him in the next Chapter confecrating two Bishops, this is frequent with Bede to go backwards, for the Series of every distinct Part of his History; or to work brough a Branch of it at once. |