Godric

Unveiling the Divine Journey: Unearthing the Inspiring Life of Saint Godric

Saint Godric was born of indigent progenitors at Walpole in Norfolk, and during his youthful days, he eked out a livelihood by traversing the neighboring villages as a peddler. As he augmented his merchandise, he ventured farther afield to partake in the bustling fairs and grand cities. Then, an ardent spirit of wanderlust took hold of him, and he embarked upon a maritime existence which he pursued for a span of sixteen years. He undertook voyages to Scotland, Flanders, and Scandinavia, likely engaging in trade at the harbors he visited, for he managed to acquire a fifty-percent stake in one merchant vessel and a twenty-five-percent stake in another. This life was fraught with roughness and temptation, and one chronicler referred to him as a marauder. However, during a visit he made to Lindisfarne, he was profoundly moved by the narrative he heard regarding the life of Saint Cuthbert, whom he thereafter regarded with a special veneration. Inspired, he embarked upon a pilgrimage to Jerusalem, which had recently been seized by the Crusaders. On his homeward journey, he made a sojourn in Compostela. Upon returning to England, he assumed the role of a steward in the household of a prosperous landowner from Norfolk. Regrettably, the retainers of that household mercilessly pillaged the destitute neighbors, and Godric relinquished his position, partly due to his failure to convince the master to curb this plundering, and partly because he himself had knowingly or unknowingly partaken in the spoils. He then embarked on two additional pilgrimages, one to the shrine of Saint Giles in Provence, and the other to Rome, accompanied by his mother, who, it is recounted, traversed the entire journey barefoot.

Subsequently, we encounter him in Cumberland, where he obtained a psalter, which he committed to memory and which became his most cherished possession. Making his way eastward into the untamed regions of Durham, he chanced upon a recluse named Aelric. Godric was granted permission to join this elderly hermit, with whom he spent two contented and fruitful years. Tragically, Aelric eventually passed away, prompting Godric to embark upon a second pilgrimage to Jerusalem. It marked the final foreign expedition of his life, for in a vision, Saint Cuthbert had promised him a hermitage in England. Following a sojourn in Eskdale and another in Durham, where he served temporarily as a sacristan, he stumbled upon the site of his reverie in the heart of Bishop Flambard's hunting grounds, nestled along the banks of the River Wear, three miles from Durham. It was there, in Finchale, amidst a forest teeming with diverse game, both large and small, that he spent his remaining years. Engaging in mortifications that would have vanquished all but the hardiest of men, he found solace and companionship with the timid creatures such as stags, hares, and birds, which harbored no fear of him. Likewise, he felt no trepidation in the presence of wolves or serpents. All wild beasts became his confidants, frolicking in his company and seeking refuge with him in times of peril. Initially, he erected a humble wattle oratory, followed by a diminutive church. To the utmost extent possible, he existed in silence and seclusion, yet he remained under the guidance of the prior of Durham, who not only ensured that a priest celebrated Mass in his chapel but also frequently dispatched strangers to be enlightened by his discourse.

Amidst his esteemed visitors graced the presence of Saint Aelred and Saint Robert of Newminster, accompanied by a venerable monk by the name of Reginald. Although beseeching his tale proved arduous, Reginald, with utmost perseverance, managed to extract the account of his formative years and proceeded to pen a biography that has persevered through the annals of time.

Saint Godric, blessed with extraordinary faculties, notably possessed the divine endowments of prophecy and prescience, allowing him to perceive distant events. He foretold the demise of Bishop William of Durham and the plight that befell Saint Thomas Becket, predicting his exile, triumphant return, and ultimate martyrdom, despite never having beheld the saint in person. On numerous occasions, he bore witness to scenes transpiring afar, interrupting conversations to fervently beseech divine intervention for vessels perilously teetering on the precipice of shipwreck. Moreover, he possessed the presage of his own demise, the precise date of which he foresaw. And so it was, on the twenty-first day of May, in the year of our Lord 1170, that he relinquished his mortal coil, having dedicated six decades to his hermitage. In subsequent years, a monastery was erected at Finchale, its remnants still standing as a testament to the past. Saint Godric holds the distinguished position of co-titular patron of a Catholic church in Durham.

The monk Reginald, in his meticulous chronicles, not only transcribed the sacred utterances of Saint Godric but also preserved the melodic strains that emanated from the hermit's lips. These harmonies were divulged to him through ethereal visions bestowed by Our Lady, the departed spirit of his beloved sister, and other celestial entities. As relics of immense significance, these compositions hold the distinction of being the oldest surviving examples of English verse, coupled with their musical arrangements, which persist through the passage of time. They stand as early exemplars showcasing the employment of rhyme and meter, transcending the traditional confines of alliteration.

His feast is celebrated on 21st May.

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