St Hilda of Whitby: A sign of our future?
The Revd Ray Simpson writes of one who struggles and overcomes
When the English nation was being formed,
when the people’s gods lost their shine
and the true God began to loom large;
when its church was like a chrysalis emerging from its Irish womb
but did not yet know how to fly –
God placed a shining woman on a throne not made by man
at the centre of two worlds no one else could span.
Her name was Hilda.
2014 marks the 1400th anniversary of the birth of Hilda, perhaps the most significant first millennium woman in the English-speaking world. She is becoming a symbol of an ethos
that could hold, sustain and multiply the Anglican Communion.
On November 17 the parish church and St. Hilda’s Church of
England School on Hartlepool Headland, UK, where Hilda led
her first community of men and women, launched A Year of
Hilda on her death day. I joined a planning group which proposed a tapestry, labyrinth, pilgrimage, concerts, and six seasons of learning, praying and celebrating an aspect of her spirituality.
Churches and educational institutions on five continents are
dedicated to her. In January I met members of Saint Hilda’s
Church Singapore who plan to celebrate their 80th anniversary
with fresh material about her. They see Singapore as the Antioch of Asia.
My book Hilda of Whitby: a Spirituality for Now explores
themes such as the following:
Light in a hard place. Hilda came from an invading pagan royal
family. Yet God spoke to her Uncle Edwin, the future king, and
to her mother through dreams. Today many Pagans and Muslims have dreams about Jesus. Listening to dreams may be a
route into faith.
Hope in a place of exile. Many people today find themselves in
exile. Hilda was exiled from her home kingdom of Deira
(Yorkshire) and sought refuge with relatives in East Anglia.
Christian leaders there were inviting inspiring personalities
into their own and client territories, Burgundy’s Bishop Felix
and Ireland’s prophetic monk Fursey among them. I surmise
that Hilda found hope from people she met in exile and so may
we.
Warmth in a cold place. Hilda was baptised through the ministry of the Roman missionary Bishop Paulinus whose mission
method was to require people to leave their familiar surroundings and come to royal centres. He fled when the king who
invited him was killed, and most of his converts reverted to
paganism. Hilda was in a cold place when she met Bishop Aidan from Ireland. He introduced her to an alternative approach. He walked among the people and offered them the
milk of the Gospel. As they imbibed this the life of Jesus grew
within them. He also tried to model God’s kingdom by estabCentro page 8
lishing monastic centres that were little villages of God.
The humanity and warmth of the Irish Christians never
ceased to inspire Hilda.
Bridge-builder in a church in conflict. The Archbishop of
York writes in his foreword to the new book: ‘Hilda’s example of self-sacrificial leadership, and of courageous
acceptance of what the gathered church discerned as the
will of God, is a particular challenge to us today. At the
Synod of Whitby over which she presided, although she
was a firm believer in the Celtic way she accepted fundamental
changes to the time honoured ecclesiastical polity of the Celtic
church. She was willing to embrace the new ways of the Roman mission for the sake of the unity of the Church’s witness
in this land.’ If a church puts its national culture before God,
who works in each culture, it cannot stand. Hilda continued to
receive Communion from people on different sides.
Mentor of apprentices from all backgrounds. Hilda mentored
theological students who became healing bishops, such as
John of Beverley. She fostered the infant Princess Elfleda who
became an abbess. She enabled Caedmon, the shy, illiterate
cowherd, to become the first poet and Gospel singer in English. At Saint Hilda’s, Singapore I met Dr Jonathan Robbins,
who as a boy never passed an exam, and who is now Director
of Research and Development in human learning. He seeks to
empower people who lack education. I told him that the DNA
of my own Community of Aidan and Hilda (an Acknowledged
Anglican Community), inspired by the Caedmon story, is 'to
release the song in every human heart'.
In art Hilda is depicted as holding a church to her heart. But
what she holds is not a building but callings. A recovery, not
just of a spiritual director for a few, but of soul friends, mentors and coaches for the many is beginning.
From the time Jacob wrestled
with God, overcame and was
given the name Israel (one who
struggles and overcomes) all Hebrews took their cue from and
named themselves after this
overcomer; it is their birthright.
Hilda’s name, too, means ‘one
who struggles and overcomes’.
For the last six years of her life
she suffered debilitating illness
and other trials, yet she never
ceased to give thanks night and
day. Our birthright, also, is to
struggle, overcome and praise.
The Revd Ray Simpson is an Anglican priest and the Founding Guardian of the
International Community of Aidan and Hilda www.aidanandhilda.org He is its
principal liturgist and tutor of its Celtic Christian Studies programmes, and
author of over thirty books. He lives on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne, UK, near
to the Community’s Retreat and Study Centre.
www.raysimpson.org