Alphege 19 April 1012

In the year of our Lord, (or there about) 953 Alphege (or Elphege, AElfheah) was born. England was suffering through one of the periods of major Viking raids.  Alphege's mother was a widow, and he, her only son.  Even so, he left the marginally comfortable world of his noble family in Weston near Bath (Somerset) and became a Monk.  Then he became a hermit, but his reputation got him appointed Abbot of Bath, then Bishop of Westminster. In 994 King Ethelred the Unready placed him in charge of negotiations with the Viking (Danish) invaders Anlaf and Swein. The Anglo-Saxon King, Ethelred paid tribute to the Vikings, but Anlaf became a Christian through Alphege's witness, and swore never to invade England again.  As far as we can tell, he never did.

Alphege continued his ministry among various negotiations of the period seeking to win them by the power of the Gospel, rather than the Danegeld (tribute) paid by King Ethelred.  In 1005 Alphege was consecrated as Archbishop of Canterbury. Just six years later, in 1011 the Vikings conquered most of southern England. Up until this time the payment of the tribute (simply a bribe) had stopped them, but this time it did not. Late in the year Canterbury itself fell to the Vikings and they captured the Archbishop and other prominent persons for ransom.

All of the others had their ransoms paid, and were released, but the Vikings demanded an extremely high price for Archbishop Alphege.  When he discovered the price, he refused to pay it or allow the money to be taken from his poverty stricken people.  The Vikings were enraged and at the end of a drunken feast, they repeated their ransom demands and Alphege refused again.  Furious, they beat him horribly with ox-bones.

Alphege stood before them and again refused the ransom, and began praying for their forgiveness and for his own poor scattered flock.  Finally Alphege collapsed under the repeated blows and lay on the ground, in pain and agony, but not yet dead.   In the crowd was a Viking named Thrim that Alphege had converted to Christ a few days before, and taking pity on Alphege, dealt a death blow with an ax to end the archbishop’s suffering.

By his death Alphege became a national hero, as a shepherd defending his flock from ravenous wolves. We give thanks to God for those of His people who like rays of light piercing the darkness shine for His people.

*Many of the words and ideas above are from various sources around the web, not all my own.

O loving God, Whose martyr bishop Alphege of Canterbury suffered violent death when he refused to permit a ransom to be extorted from his people: Grant that all pastors of Your flock may pattern themselves on the Good Shepherd, who laid down His life for the sheep; and Who with You and the Holy Spirit lives and reigns, one God, for ever and ever.

Comments

[Bill Blackrick]

Very thought provoking...I have often been ashamed of thinking that I wouldn't do this kind of thing...I know it is the thing I must do to keep the faith alive in the people I minister to if ever faced with a sacraficial situation in order to stand firm in what is right.

[Monk-in-Training]

Bill,
Have faith, I believe that the Spirit Himself would give you strength to prevail at such a moment.

Before I had children I worried that I could remember to take care that they did not run in the street. It was never a problem, God changed my heart at the time that I needed it.

If you are ever called to lay your life down like the other martyrs of the Faith, God's Spirit would be there, to empower you to do so. Or so I believe. :)