St Bede and the Singing Stones
The Northumbrian monk is duped into wasting one of his beautifully-crafted sermons on a row of dumb rocks.
735
Anglo-Saxon Britain 410-1066
The Northumbrian monk is duped into wasting one of his beautifully-crafted sermons on a row of dumb rocks.
735
Anglo-Saxon Britain 410-1066
This story about St Bede from the 13th century ‘Golden Legend’ (some five centuries after Bede died) is not attested in earlier sources, and Bede himself has taught us to be wary of taking such stories on trust. On the other hand, it is a very good story, and deserves to be retold.
AS BEDE came to the end of his life, his eyesight started to fail. Yet he did not ease up in his duties, and with the help of a guide continued to make his rounds of the nearby villages, preaching in the open air to any who cared to attend.
It is said that one day, his guide led him — for whatever reason — to a place where there were many standing stones, but no people. Bede, peering good-naturedly, nonetheless embarked on a sermon of the kind for which he was so beloved: founded on long years of study, yet brief and easy to understand.
Whether Bede’s guide settled behind a cold stone, perhaps in the company of a small flask, or perhaps doubled up with laughter, the story does not tell. But if so, when the sermon ended he must have jumped out of his skin. For as Bede gave thanks to God, the standing stones, which hitherto had not spoken, chorused loudly:
‘Amen!’
For a not dissimilar (but definitely fictional) tale, see Rudyard Kipling’s poem Eddi’s Service.
Suggest answers to this question. See if you can limit one answer to exactly seven words.
Why did Bede preach a sermon to a ring of standing stones?
To his weak eyes, they seemed human.
Express the ideas below in a single sentence, using different words as much as possible. Do not be satisfied with the first answer you think of; think of several, and choose the best.
Bede was old. His eyesight was failing. He continued to tour villages on foot.