St Augustine of Canterbury

Augustine of Canterbury is the monk St Gregory the Great trusted with one of the boldest missionary tasks of the age: the conversion of the Anglo-Saxons. The life does not begin with easy triumph. On the way north, Augustine and his companions become frightened by everything they hear about the English and the dangers before them, and Augustine himself has to go back to Rome to ask release from the mission. Gregory refuses and sends him back with encouragement, and from there the life becomes one of obedient perseverance rather than brilliance for its own sake. It follows the landing in Thanet, the meeting with King Ethelbert, the grant of a dwelling and the use of St Martin's church at Canterbury, Augustine's consecration at Arles, and the first great wave of baptisms in Kent.

The mission then fills out: new helpers from Rome, practical instructions from Gregory on churches, relics, books, pagan temples, and how to retain local customs where possible. Augustine rebuilds and founds, laying the groundwork for Canterbury and for the abbey later called St Augustine's. The sorrowful part is not hidden. Augustine's attempts to win cooperation from the older British bishops fail badly, and the meeting at Augustine's Oak ends in estrangement rather than harmony. Yet the larger direction remains clear: through patient preaching, liturgical order, and disciplined beginnings, Augustine helps plant the visible foundations of the English Church.