Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

A.D.
30-597.
are some of the briefest on record. Indeed, they
can scarcely be called acts. The story is that, in the
sixth century, Winifred, a young and beautiful girl,
was beheaded by King Caradoc for repulsing atten-
tions which she could not accept without violating
chastity.1 She preferred to die, and that is the value
of the legend. It is better to suffer death than to
lose purity, and those who so suffer are dear to God,
and powerful with Him.
Modern criticism, which discards legends, should
have struck off from the list of past generations the
famous King Arthur along with St. Winifred. He
has no well to show for his existence. He is the
embodiment of chivalry which never dies any more
than chastity. It is said that he was both crowned
(516) and buried (542) at Glastonbury.
ut, perhaps, the most important fact in connection
with the Church in Britain is the presence of
three British bishops at the Council of Aries in 314.
Though prior to some of the events above mentioned,
it comes last in dignity, and shows that the Church
in England was no more detached from the rest of
Christendom than is England itself the only nation
in Europe. The Council of Aries was not oecumeni-
cal although of the highest rank as a secondar
council which represented the whole Western
Church.
These bishops were Restitutus of London, Ebo-
rius of York, and Adelphius of Caerleon. They were
1 Les Moines tf Occident, iii. p. 74.