Father Steve Grunow – Word on Fire Blog –
Bede lived a life of exemplary holiness and was known for his charity and decency. He also had a prodigious intellect, writing theological treatises, commentaries on the Scriptures and histories, all of which remain primary sources for scholars of our own time.
If there is a lesson for us in the witness of Saint Bede it might be about the importance of knowing the Faith in depth and practicing it with enthusiasm. The dynamism of knowing what the Church teaches and practicing that teaching as a whole way of life is the source of creative energy for mission. If the minds of the Church’s faithful remain lackluster, reactionary or immature and the practice of the Faith is gestured toward rather than accomplished, the culture of the Church will not advance and grow.
Also, we live in an age in which the contribution of the Church to society and culture, past and present, is often painted in broad strokes of negativity. Saint Bede’s witness demonstrates that the Faith’s influence on humanity’s cultural aspirations is something that can be appreciated, rather than decried and feared.
May St. Bede intercede for us and help us in our mission to transform the culture in which we live through the grace and power of Jesus Christ. The inscription on the tomb of St. Bede in Durham:
“Christ is the morning star
Who when the night
Of this world is past
Brings to his saints
The promise of
The light of life
& opens everlasting day.”