AIDAN'S MINISTRY

After the death of Edwin and the departure of Paulinus, Northumbria reverted to paganism under Osric and Eanfrith (see 2.20). The second conversion of Northumbria took place under King Oswald, who invited Aidan to become the bishop of Lindisfarne. Virtually everything we know about Aidan comes from Bede's account. In this chapter, Bede emphasizes Aidan's virtues, especially his charity and discretion.

(1) hāc … īnsulā: i.e., Iona

ad prōvinciam…īnstituendam: gerundive expressing purpose.

(2) Segēnī: nominative. Ségéne mac Fiachnaí (d. 652), the fifth abbot of Iona Abbey (623–652).

(3) vīvendī documenta: “models of behavior” (see DMLBS, documentum 1).

clēricīs exemplum relīquit: “he set an example for the clergy”

cuius doctrīnam … docēbat: “the thing which most commended his instruction was that he was teaching (people to live) no differently that he himself lived with his own people.” Aidan practiced what he preached.

id … quod: id is the subject of commendābat, and is explained by quod: “this commended…, namely, that…”

(5) saeculī: “of the world” (“secular”)

mox: “at once”

(6) pedum incessū: pleonasm: “by the walking of his feet;” i.e., on foot

nisi sī: “except if,” “unless” (AG 525.3)

quātenus: “so that,” introducing the final (purpose) clauses (vel … invitāret, vel … cōnfortāret, atque … excitāret ….). See DMLBS, quatenus 3.b.

vel … vel: “[either] … or....” For ease of translation, the “either” can be omitted.

AIDAN'S VIRTUES

Bede is careful to show that Aidan, though Irish and mistaken about the timing of Easter, exhibits the Roman Catholic virtues of Gregory the Great. See Mayr-Harting 1972, 6.

(7) in tantum: “to such an extent”

sīve adtōnsī seu lāicī: “whether monks or laymen”

(8) ubicumque locōrum: “wherever”; locōrum is a partitive genitive with an adverb (AG 346.4), literally, “wherever of places.”

(9) ubi paululum reficiēbātur: “when he had eaten for a little while.” See DMLBS, reficere 5. In a temporal clause with ubi the perfect indicative would be more normal, in Bede as in Classical Latin (Druhan p. 168, AG 543).

accelerāvit ... ēgredī: accelerāre can take an infinitive ("hastened to leave").

(10) quīque: “each and every,” nom. pl. masc. and fem.

cōnsuētūdinem fēcērunt: “made it a custom”

quīnquāgēsimae paschālis: the quīnquāgēsima paschālis is Eastertide, the period of fifty days between Easter and Pentecost (DMLBS, quīnquāgēsimus)

quartā et sextā sabbatī: “on Wednesday and Friday”; literally, “on the fourth and sixth day of the Sabbath.” The seven days of the week were numbered from una [dies] sabbatī, “the first day of the Sabbath” (Sunday), to septima sabbatī, “the seventh day of the Sabbath” (Saturday).

ad nōnam usque hōram: = usque ad nōnam hōram, in the springtime this would be around 3:00 p.m., by our own reckoning.

prōtēlāre: “to prolong”

(11) dīvitibus: dative, indirect object of reticēbat: “he would never refrain from speaking to…”

honōris: “respect” (for the position of the wealthy)

sīquā: “if in some way”

(12) potentibus saeculī: “to powerful men of the world”

sīquōs: “if … any”

hospitiō suscēpisset: “had received with hospitality” (i.e., as guests)

ea: direct object of dispergēbat and dispēnsābat

ea … largiēbantur: “those gifts of money which were given to him by the rich.” The normally deponent largior is here passive.

vēnditī: i.e., into slavery. Slavery makes several other appearances in Bede, including Pope Gregory's encounter with English slaves in Rome (2.1), Wilfrid's freeing of 250 slaves (4.13), and the story of Imma (4.22). "Slave dealing seems to have been one of the earliest forms of continental trading in Anglo-Saxon times" (Colgrave-Mynors 1979, 404, n. 2).

THE DISCRETION OF ST. AIDAN

The importance of discrētiō (discretion or discernment) is stressed in Gregory the Great's Moralia in Job, in which it is the power of discretion that holds an individual's thoughts in check, and enables him to distinguish between sinful and virtuous thoughts and actions (Morals I.xxx.42). Gregory also discusses the importance of discretion to preachers in his Pastoral Care (Book III). As Bede himself tells us in 2.1, Gregory sets forth "with how much discrimination (discrētio) they should instruct different kinds of listeners." A preacher has to adapt his teaching to the life of his listener in order to have the best effect.

(14) Ferunt … quia: “they say that,” introducing indirect discourse with subjunctive.

sibi: refers to Oswald

missus fuerit: shifted pluperfect passive subjunctive, for missus sit

austēriōris animī: genitive of quality (AG 345)

patriam: accusative of place to which, like domum

rettulerit … quia: “related that,” introducing indirect discourse with subjunctive.

quia nīl … potuisset: re-order: quia nīl potuisset prōdesse docendō gentī ad quam missus erat.

docendō gentī: dative after prodesse: “to be of use for teaching…”

eō quod: “because”

durae … mentis: genitive of quality (AG 345)

(15) quid esset agendum: indirect question, introduced by the verb of speaking implied by tractātum habēre (“to have a discussion,” DMLBS, tractatus 3, i.e., to discuss).

dēsīderantēs … gentī quam petēbantur salūtī esse: “anxious to give that people (the English) the help that they (the monks at Iona) were being asked for.” gentī … salūtī is double dative (AG 382): “desiring it to be [for] a help for the people….” The antecedent of quam is salūtī.

dē nōn receptō … praedicātōre: after dolentēs: “grieving about the…” It’s probably easier here to translate as indirect discourse: “grieving that the preacher whom they had sent had not been received.” Or translate nōn receptō as “unwelcomed.”

(16) vidētur mihi … quia: “it seems to me that”

indoctīs audītōribus: dative with adjective dūrior (AG 384) “too harsh to…”

iuxtā: “according to”

prīmō: “first”

lac: direct object of porrēxistī

ēnūtrītī: nominative plural, appositive, agreeing with the subject

ad: with the gerundives, indicating purpose

(17) conversī: “having (been) turned” (nominative). The antecedent is ora et oculi, but the sentence continues as if omnēs were the grammatical subject.

quid dīceret: “what he was saying,” “his words” (indirect question)

ipsum esse … ipsum … debēre … dēcernunt: indirect discourse

epīcopātū: ablative of specification with dignum (AG 418.b)

grātiā: ablative after imbūtus (“imbued with”)

probābātur: “proved himself to be” (DMLBS, probāre 6).

(18) Quī ubi tempus accēpit: ubi is temporal (“when”); Colgrave-Mynors translate: “as time went on” (literally, “when he received time”).

et: “even,” “as well”

ōrnātus appāruit: “showed himself remarkable in” (+ abl.)