Lives of the Saints

Lives of the Saints by Various. paperback edition. ISBN: 9780140441536.

This volume contains "The Voyage of St Brendan", Bedes "Life of Cuthbert", and Eddiuss Life of Wilfred. They are all set in the sixth and seventh centuries - a period which witnessed the clash between Roman episcopal orthodoxy and the democratic monasticism that was spreading over Ireland and Northern England. Brendans whimsical travelogue shows us Celtic monasticism before it was challenged; Bede describes its canalization into missionary activity by Cuthbert at Lindisfarne; and Eddius tells of Wilfreds enforcement of decisions made by the Synod of Whitby. The individual character of each of these three classics of the early church is clearly preserved in J.F. Webbs translation. -----from the back cover.