| To the most glorious king Ceolwulf. Bede, the servant of Christ and
Priest.
I formerly, at your request, most readily sent to you the Ecclesiastical
History of the English Nation, which I had lately published, for you to
read and judge; and I now send it again to be transcribed, and more fully
studied at your leisure. And I rejoice greatly at the sincerity and zeal,
with which you not only diligently give ear to hear the words of Holy Scripture,
but also industriously take care to become acquainted with the actions and
sayings of former men of renown, especially of our own nation. For if history
relates good things of good men, the attentive hearer is excited to imitate
that which is good; or if it recounts evil things of wicked persons, none
the less the conscientious and devout hearer or reader, shunning that which
is hurtful and wrong, is the more earnestly fired to perform those things
which he knows to be good, and worthy of the service of God. And as you
have carefully marked this, you are desirous that the said history should
be more fully made known to yourself, and to those over whom the Divine
Authority has appointed you governor, from your great regard to the common
good. But to the end that I may remove all occasion of doubting what I have
written, both from yourself and other readers or hearers of this history,
I will take care briefly to show you from what authors I chiefly learned
the same.
My principal authority and aid in this work was the most learned and reverend
Abbot Albinus; who, educated in the Church of Canterbury by those venerable
and learned men, Archbishop Theodore of blessed memory, and the Abbot Hadrian,
transmitted to me by Nothelm, the pious priest of the Church of London,
either in writing, or by word of mouth of the same Nothelm, all that he
thought worthy of memory that had been done in the province of Kent, or
the adjacent parts, by the disciples of the blessed Pope Gregory, as he
had learned the same either from written records, or the traditions of his
predecessors. The same Nothelm, afterwards went to Rome, and having, with
leave of the present Pope Gregory, searched into the archives of the Holy
Roman Church, found there some epistles of the blessed Pope Gregory; and
other popes; and, returning home, by the advice of the aforesaid most reverend
father Albinus, brought them to me, to be inserted in my history. Thus,
from the beginning of this volume to the time when the English nation received
the faith of Christ, we have acquired matter from the writings of former
men, gathered from various sources; but from that time till the present,
what was transacted in the Church of Canterbury by the disciples of the
blessed Pope Gregory or their successors, and under what kings the same
happened, has been conveyed to us, as we have said, by Nothelm through the
industry of the aforesaid Abbot Albinus. They also partly informed me by
what bishops and under what kings the provinces of the East and West Saxons,
as also of the East Angles, and of the Northumbrians, received the grace
of the Gospel. In short, I was chiefly encouraged to undertake this work
by the exhortations of the same Albinus. In like manner, Daniel, the most
reverend Bishop of the West Saxons, who is still living, communicated to
me in writing some things relating to the Ecclesiastical History of that
province, and the adjoining one of the South Saxons, as also of the Isle
of Wight. But how, by the ministry of those holy priests of Christ, Cedd
and Ceadda, the province of the Mercians was brought to the faith of Christ,
which they knew not before, and how that of the East Saxons recovered the
faith after having rejected it, and how those fathers lived and died, we
learned from the brethren of the monastery, which was built by them, and
is called Laestingaeu. Further, what ecclesiastical matters took place in
the province of the East Angles, was partly made known to us from the writings
and tradition of former men, and partly by the account of the most reverend
Abbot Esi. What was done with regard to the faith of Christ, and what was
the episcopal succession in the province of Lindsey, we had either from
the letters of the most reverend prelate Cynibert, or by word of mouth from
other persons of good credit. But what was done in the Church in the different
parts of the province of Northumbria from the time when they received the
faith of Christ till this present, I received not on the authority of any
one man, but by the faithful testimony of innumerable witnesses, who might
know or remember the same; besides what I had of my own knowledge. Wherein
it is to be observed, that what I have written concerning our most holy
father, Bishop Cuthbert, either in this volume, or in my account of his
life and actions, I partly took from what I found written of him by the
brethren of the Church of Lindisfame, accepting without reserve the statements
I found there; but at the same time took care to add such things as I could
myself have knowledge of by the faithful testimony of trustworthy informants.
And I humbly entreat the reader, that if he shall find in these our writings
anything not delivered according to the truth, he will not lay the blame
of it on me, for, as the true rule of history requires, withholding nothing,
I have laboured to commit to writing such things as I could gather from
common report, for the instruction of posterity.
Moreover, I beseech all men who shall hear or read this history of our nation,
that for my infirmities both of mind and body, they will offer up frequent
intercessions to the throne of Grace. And I further pray, that in recompense
for the labour wherewith I have recorded in the several provinces and more
important places those events which I considered worthy of note and of interest
to their inhabitants, I may for my reward have the benefit of their pious
prayers. |