DRAMA OF THE LOST DISCIPLES #13
by George Jowett (1961)
ST. PAUL'S MISSION IN BRITAIN
SINCE the beginning of time when the peoples of the earth
amalgamated into kingdoms, the pages of history are filled with
the spectacular conquests of ambitious kings and mighty Caesars
who, by military subjection, built mighty empires to their name.
Backed by powerful, organized armies, with the wealth and
resources of the nation behind them, the conquerors slaughtered
and trampled underfoot the peoples of other nations whose only
offence was to defend their land and homes.
Even as history extols their despotic fame it writes their
pitiful obituary, exemplifying the words Jesus spoke in rebuke to
Peter when he had slashed the ear off an offending servant's head
with his sword: "All they that take the sword shall perish with
the sword."
History books are the graveyard of military dynasties which
rose and fell by the sword to satiate the ambitious greed of so
many murderous conquerors. Such is the record of Empire,
thousands of years before Christ, and in the two thousand years
that have followed.
In comparison, imagination is staggered as we contemplate
the achievements of that handful of apostles and disciples who
first stood for Christ.
Penniless, suffering poverty, incarcerated, tortured, exiled
and without a weapon in their hands, each stood alone in the
midst of imperial hostility as they conquered the world for
Christ, a conquest that has endured and thrived for two thousand
years. Empires have come and gone with the flag of Christ waving
over their dust as majestically as the day it was unfurled when
the British armies, led by Guiderius and Arviragus, defeated the
Romans in the first battle of the Claudian campaign, A.D. 43.
Thus are the words of Jesus vindicated. Yet, in spite of the
glaring truth, a major portion of the world today, more than
ever, believes the sword is mightier than the Word. We see it as
the Communistic regime seeks to bring the rest of the world under
their tyrannical heel of slavery. Despite their faults and
frequent backsliding for two thousand years it has been the
Christian Anglo/Saxon world that has stood against the evils of
material despotism and won. Often alone and overwhelmingly
outnumbered, they have fought for the freedom of man's spirit
wherever it was challenged.
God has said, 'Ye are My people. Ye shall not perish from
the face of the earth.' In the same breath God warns us that we
shall be scourged with rods for our backsliding, meaning that we
shall pay a price for our waywardness. We shall be punished with
Pearl Harbours and Dunkirks. Then He says, when we are on the
verge of disaster He will 'put hooks in their jaws and turn them
back' so that we may triumph.
What a bitter price we unnecessarily will pay.
Read carefully the reports written by our great commanders
in battle who could report no other explanation for victory, when
all seemed lost, but a miracle.
The Third World War is bound to come. Win we shall, but at a
price. We have asked for it. The punishment can be minimized if
we but open our ears and hearts to the Word of God and our
Saviour Jesus Christ; if we will but listen to the words of the
apostles and disciples of our Lord, as our forefathers did in
ancient Britain, and gird ourselves with the strength of divine
promise, as they did.
St. Paul laboured among the Gentiles to fulfil the promise
which James said Simeon had declared, that God would take a
people out of the Gentiles for His name, who would keep His Word,
His Laws, and the Sabbath.
Are we those people? Scientists, scholars and ecclesiastics
think so. St. Paul certainly believed so. His coming to the first
Christian church at Rome implementing the British royal converts
was his triumph, to be culminated in his special mission to
Britain by other members of this same royal family of Christians.
Before he had gone to Rome he had sent his representative to
Britain, in Aristobulus, the father-in-law of St. Peter. He was
one of the original seventy elected by Christ and was the brother
of Barnabas. It was his wife on whom Jesus wrought the miracle as
recorded in St. Matthew's Gospel. In his epistles St. Paul sends
his greeting 'to the household of Aristobulus'. It is stated that
Aristobulus was in Britain before St. Paul wrote his epistle to
the Romans.
Aristobulus was ostensibly Paul's forerunner in Britain,
sent by the Apostle to the Gentiles to prepare the way for his
own particular mission, which was to follow later, and to be
separated from the Josephian Mission. In the preparatory stages
Aristobulus was associated with Joseph but never attached to the
mission at Avalon. He laboured in the part of Britain now known
as Wales. In those far-off centuries the whole island, now
divided into England, Scotland and Wales, was covered by the one
name - Britain. The brother of Barnabas was exclusively connected
with the most southern branch of the royal Silurians, the family
of Caractacus, in Wales. Previous to the coming of Aristobulus to
Wales, the father and grandfather of Caractacus had already
planted the Christian seed in their own particular domain. As we
have seen, when Joseph and his companions arrived in Britain,
A.D.36, Bran, the father of Caractacus, had abdicated his throne
in favour of his son in order to assume his office as Arch-Druid
of the Silures. His seat was at Trevnan, where Caractacus was
born, in the parish of Llan-Ilid, Glamorganshire. Llyr Llediath,
father of Bran, the King Lear of Shakespeare, founded the first
Christian church in Wales at Llandaff, after his conversion and
baptism by Joseph. On the merging of the Druidic with the
Christian faith all the members of the Bran-Caradoc dynasty were
converted by Joseph.
The Princess Eurgain, eldest daughter of Caractacus, was the
first to be baptized, and immediately following the order was her
grandfather, the Arch Druid Bran, her great-grandfather Llyr
Llediath, then her brother Linus, who later became the first
Bishop of Rome and then her husband Salog, Lord of Salisbury, all
at the hands of St. Joseph.
Her father Caractacus, and his son Cyllinus, who became
regent in his father's stead during the latter's captivity at
Rome, and Cynon the youngest son, were baptized in Rome by the
hands of St. Paul.
Of Cyllinus, it is interesting to note that during his reign
he is given credit for introducing into Britain the christening
of infants with Christian names. Prior to this the British
followed the old Hebrew method of naming a person by one name
only, and adding the word 'ab', meaning 'of', or 'son of.'
Tracing the lineage of a person under the old Hebrew principle
was a difficult matter.
Support for the credit given to Cyllinus is evidenced in the
following extract from the family genealogy as given by his
descendant, Jestyn ap Gwrgant, Prince of Glamorgan, in the
eleventh century:
"Cyllin ab Caradoc, a wise and just king, In his days many of the
Cymry embraced the faith in Christ through the teachings of the
saints of Cor-Eurgain, and many godly men from the countries of
Greece and Rome were in Cambria. HE FIRST of THE CYMRY GAVE
INFANTS NAMES; for before, names were not given except to adults,
and then from something characteristic in their bodies, minds or
manners."
The quotation in capitals is by the author to draw attention
to the historic fact. Incidentally, Cyllin and Caradoc are the
true Celtic names of father and son. Caractacus and Cyllinus are
the Roman versions.
All the children of Cyllinus were baptized in the faith. In
later years he also abdicated his throne, in favour of his
younger brother, Cynon. Like his grandfather, Bran, he took up
the Cross, becoming a priest in the Christian faith. In the
British Celtic Annals he is registered as St. Cyllinus.
Llyr Llediaith, the grandfather of Caractacus, was among the
group of royal captives taken to Rome, A.D.52. Shortly after the
famous trial of the British Pendragon before the Emperor Claudius
in the Roman Senate, Llyr died at Rome. His son Bran, being an
Arch Priest, was not subject to the surrender but, voluntarily,
on hearing of his father's death, offered himself as hostage in
place of the deceased Llyr. After the parole of his son,
Caractacus, he remained with the Silurian family, dwelling at the
Palace of the British in Rome. With the exception of the sons of
Caractacus, who had returned to Britain to take over the reins of
government, they were all residing in the Empire City when Paul
arrived, A.D.56. Then followed two years of instruction under St.
Paul of the royal group who were to establish his mission in
Britain. Aristobulus had journeyed to Rome from Britain to meet
Paul and plan the evangelizing commission. From years of former
service with Paul, Aristobulus was well acquainted with Paul's
intentions. He knew he was to be an important factor in this
great work among the selected Gentiles and his previous
experience in Britain had given the aged disciple a good insight
of the groundwork, most of which he personally had laid, with the
aid of Llyr, Bran and Joseph. Nevertheless Paul's mission was
designed to be distinctly separate from the Avalon Mission.
Perhaps herein lay the weakness, for Paul's mission to Gentile
Rome was not to endure.
While the royal house of Caractacus sponsored the mission,
it was Eurgain, the eldest daughter of Caractacus, who actually
was the chief sponsor, endowing the mission with munificent gifts
and lands.
In the year A.D.58 the Paulian mission was ready to leave
Rome
......
1 St. Prydain's Genealogy, which refers to Eurgain as the first
female saint of Britain.
......
to begin their work in Britain, in the territorial section known
as Cambria, the ancient name of the Caradoc domain now known as
Wales.
Only Caractacus was subject to the seven-year parole, the
rest of the British royal hostages were free to leave at any time
they wished. The record states that Bran, after being consecrated
by St. Paul at Rome, left one year before his son Caradoc, whose
parole did not expire until the following year, A.D.59. With Bran
went Aristobulus, who had been consecrated the first Bishop of
Britain by St. Paul, his sons Manaw, Brennus, Ilid and Cyndaw as
supporting missionaries. The last two named were Judeans. With
them was Eurgain and her husband Salog, Lord of Caer Salog, or
old Sarum, Salisbury. He is described as being a Roman patrician
who had married the daughter of Caractacus prior to the disaster
at Clune, A.D.52. Again we see a mingling of the Roman
aristocracy with the royal British.
They arrived at Llanilid (meaning 'consecrated enclosure'),
Glamorganshire, erecting a church as a memorial.
Eurgain is recorded as the Patroness of the Paulian Mission
at Llanilid, and for that reason it became more commonly known as
the Cor-Eurgain Mission. There she founded the first Cor, or
choir, and from that time onward it was considered the finest
choir in the world. This magnificent tradition has been continued
over the centuries in unbroken sequence by the Welsh, being the
basis of the world-famous Eisteddfod held every year by the
Druidical Order of Wales, when they congregate in Druidic costume
and ceremony to renew the glorious past with the present. There
the famous choirs can be heard singing by the descendants of
those courageous noble Christians. In the annual choir contests
held throughout the world the Welsh Eisteddfod has never lost
pride of place.
Once yearly, the famous Welsh choir visits the United States
and Canada where, in a series of recitals, their magnificent
voices delight and thrill all who hear them. Yet how little is it
known by the audiences that this wonderful choir is a distinct
link with St. Paul's mission to Britain nearly two thousand years
ago.
Aristobulus was installed as the first Bishop at Llanilid,
with Bran remaining as chief High Priest of Siluria at Llandaff.
In the Cymric language Aristobulus is known as Arwystli-Hen and
Arwystli-Senex. Hen is Celtic for aged, just as Senex is the
Roman term. 1
......
1 Triads, Mryuyrian Arch., vol.2.
......
Unfortunately, the aged Aristobulus was to meet with a
tragic end within a year of his return to Britain with his royal
companion. Unlike the Paulian Mission, which had come direct from
Rome, the Josephian Mission had come direct from Jerusalem. It
had no contact with Rome. Joseph also had the advantage of being
well known to the British by his former interests in the tin
mining of Cornwall and Devon. He was so well received by them
that he was considered as one of them. On the other hand, the
inveterate hatred of the British for Rome, and anything
associated with it, persisted with an unrelenting detestation.
Anything tinged with the Roman stigma was cause for grave
suspicion. The Blessed Bran, writing in his journals, said they
were hard put to induce the British to accept anyone or anything
that came from Rome. It was only their love for the devout Bran
and the lovely Eurgain, and their proud loyalty to Caractacus,
that made them willing to meet half-way the Roman religious
delegates. Aristobulus was well respected by the Silurians; he
had come to them from Jerusalem, through Spain, and was known to
be loved by Joseph and the Avalon band.
Aristobulus in his preaching zeal journeyed far beyond the
territory of the Silurian shield into the lands of the British
Ordovices, whose hatred for the Romans was bitter and black. This
blinded them to the facts, and he was unknown to them. Aware of
the many abuses the Romans had instigated against the Britons in
order to trick them into submission, they allied the presence of
the aged elder brother of Barnabas to some form of Roman
political treachery, in which religion played an hypocritical
part of the scheme. They rose and slew him, given as the year
A.D.58 or A.D.59, according to present reckoning. 1
Aristobulus was the first British bishop and the only one
martyred by them. St. Alban, however, was regarded by Rome as the
first British martyr at what was ancient Verulamium, still to be
seen thanks to archaeological restoration. A church existed in
Alban's time and, after his martyrdom, Offa, king of the
Mercians, founded the Monastery of St. Albans, to his memory, in
A.D.793, Roman bricks from ancient Verulamium being used in its
structure. The pre-Roman Belgae foundations, and the early
Christian witness, instituted a continuous worship in this spot.
Centuries later the Romish church criticized the British for
their great lack of martyrs as compared to their own record. The
leaders of the British church informed them that the disciples of
the British church lived to preach and teach the Gospel and not
die for it
......
1 Alford, Regia Fides, p.41.
unnecessarily. If their life had to be the only sacrifice, that
they would gladly give. We know they gave it abundantly, but at
the hands of the enemy and not by the hands of their own
countrymen except in this one tragic circumstance. It was well
known that the priests of the Roman church viewed martyrdom as a
notable, worthwhile gesture to such an extent they became
frantic. Many deliberately sought martyrdom before they had
achieved anything worth while.
There is another popular claimant to the honour of being the
first Christian martyr in Britain identified with the church of
St. Albans. It is a Christianized Roman soldier, named Alban,
during the Diocletian persecution in Britain two hundred and
fifty years later, who aided a hunted British priest to escape by
wearing his robe, drawing pursuit to himself. On being
recognized, the Roman officer ordered a soldier standing nearby
to execute the culprit. The soldier refused, admitting that he,
too, was a Christian, with the result that both soldiers were
immediately beheaded. Tradition claims they were buried together
on the spot where they were killed and a church erected on the
site was named St. Albans.
Alban was the first Christian Roman soldier martyred in
Britain by the Romans, but by no means the first Christian martyr
in Britain. All authentic records, including The Genealogies of
the Saints in Britain, name Aristobulus as the first of our
Lord's disciples martyred in Britain, with Simon Zelotes being a
second martyr shortly after. 1
The first church erected on the site of St. Albans was
built, as stated earlier, by the remorseful Ordovices to the
memory of Aristobulus. Following the death of the Roman soldier
Alban and his companion two hundred and fifty years later, the
old church was reconstructed, enlarged and renamed St. Albans, by
which it is known to this day.
Of the aged, beloved friend of St. Paul and father-in-law of
St. Peter, Aristobulus, there exists an abundance of authentic
records from which the following are quotations from the
original.
Cardinal Alford, who ranks second only to the erudite
Cardinal Baronius as an authoritative historian of the Vatican,
was one of the very few British ecclesiastics to achieve high
position in the Roman Catholic Church. He was a native-born
Briton whose original name was Griffiths. He changed his name to
Alford on joining the Jesuit Order. In fact one can look in vain
for the name of a British Pope during the years when the two
churches were
......
1 Dorotheus, Synod de Apostol.
......
somewhat in agreement. None would accept the office, definitely
refuting any mortal claim to being Christ's appointed Head of the
Church. Only He was the Headstone.
Alford writes:
"It is perfectly certain that before St. Paul had come to Rome,
Aristobulus was absent in Britain."
In the Martyrologies of the Greek Church we read:
"Aristobulus was one of the seventy disciples and a follower of
St. Paul the Apostle, along with whom he preached the Gospel to
the whole world, and ministered to them. He was chosen by St.
Paul to be the missionary bishop to the land of Britain. He was
there martyred after he had built churches and ordained deacons
and priests on the island."
Dorotheus, Bishop of Tyre, writes A.D.303:
"Aristobulus who is mentioned by the Apostle in his Epistle to
the Romans, was made Bishop in Britain."
Haleca, Bishop of Augusta, adds:
"The memory of many martyrs is celebrated by the Britons,
especially that of St. Aristobulus, one of the seventy
disciples."
In the Adonis Martyrologia we read:
"March 15. Natal day of Aristobulus, Bishop of Britain, brother
of St. Barnabas the Apostle, by whom he was ordained Bishop. He
was sent to Britain where, after preaching the truth of Christ
and forming a church, he received martyrdom."
The reference in the above to the ordination of Aristobulus
as Bishop by his younger brother Barnabas, was a much earlier
appointment and did not apply to Britain. Following this
ordination he first went into Britain, with Barnabas, as an
exploratory agent of St. Paul. The consecration conferred on
Aristobulus at Rome, as Bishop of Britain, came much later, A.D.
58.
Some may surmise that St. Paul's appointment of the aged
disciple was in conflict with St. Joseph's office and mission.
This is not so. Joseph is never referred to as Bishop of Britain.
His title is more outstanding as the Apostle of Britain. His
mission preceded the Paulian Mission under Aristobulus by
twenty-two years. The year following the demise of Aristobulus,
St. Philip reconsecrated Joseph as Chief Priest in Britain, A.D.
60.
The title, Bishop of Britain, was not again conferred on any
missionary who followed after Aristobulus.
Of his coming to Britain, the British Achau, or Genealogies
of the Saints, has this to say:
"There came with Bran the Blessed from Rome to Britain, Arwystli
Hen (Senex-old) Ilid. Cyndaw, men of Israel, and Maw, or Manaw,
son of Arwystli."
A district on the River Severn, in Montgomeryshire, from
time immemorial perpetuates the presence and name of Aristobulus
in the original Cymric vernacular - Arwystli.
The Greek Menology also gives March 15 as the day of the
martyrdom of Aristobulus.
Thus is established in brief form the positive evidence that
Aristobulus actually laboured and was slain in Britain,
corroborating the contention that St. Paul did establish a
working Christian mission in Britain.
The year of the death of the Bishop of Britain was the same
year that saw the end of the parole of Caractacus at Rome, A.D.
59. He said his farewell to his beloved youngest daughter,
Gladys, now Claudia Pudens, and to her noble husband, Rufus, and
their four children. The parting with his eldest son, Linus, now
the first Bishop of Rome, must have been sad, for war was still
raging in Britain, with his cousin, the valorous Arviragus,
carrying the assault against the greatest commanders in Roman
military history. The rest of his family had all returned to
Britain. The famed Palace of the British at Rome would no longer
house him. He had given it as a dowry to his daughter at her
marriage to Rufus Pudens, along with its magnificent estate and
baths. There is no record that he ever returned to Rome. That was
hardly possible. He had taken oath never to lift arms against the
Romans as long as he lived. This oath he kept, but he was still a
dominant figure in British authority and it is understandable
that any visits he may have wished to make to Rome may have been
misconstrued by either side. The mad Nero had succeeded the
Emperor Claudius in the Roman hierarchy, and Christian
persecution was blazing with renewed malice.
On his return to his native land he built a castle at Aber
Gweryd, now St. Donat's Major, in Glamorganshire. Unlike his
father, his grandfather, or his children, he did not take any
religious vows or office. It appears he aided his sons in
governing his people and strongly supported the Christian
movement without jeopardizing his oath. He ended his days
peaceably, dying a natural death. This noble Briton, who had
shaken Imperial foundations, was laid to rest by his wife, his
father Bran, and grandfather Llyr, in the Cor of Ilid in Siluria,
where later were to be gathered Cyllinus, Cynon, Eurgain and
Salog, all heroes in Christ, all of whom died a natural death in
the light and joy of their Lord.
Following the death of Aristobulus, the Princess Eurgain
became the chief influence in the Paulian Mission. The famous
Iolo MS. states that Eurgain founded twelve colleges of Christian
Druids for Culdee initiates at Caer Urgan, or Cor Eurgain. These
colleges she endowed bountifully, developing them to the highest
estate in theological learning. The greatness of Cor-Eurgain
endured for centuries after her death, the only great memorial to
endure to the testimony of St. Paul's Mission in Britain. From
here many of the greatest teachers and most able missionaries
flowed out in a constant stream, on into the tenth century. Her
love for music and excellent talent created the first Christian
choirs. Eurgain was as talented as her younger sister, Claudia,
and her famed aunt, Pomponia, writing hymns and anthems that rang
throughout the land in chants of praise and glory. Her attention
to the education of the young in the many schools she provided is
a noble record. The beautiful Princess Eurgain devoted her entire
wealth and life in the service of Christ. The records state that
she was the most beloved woman in Britain. Eurgain was the first
female convert in Britain and the first Christian female saint.
Her illustrious life is chronicled in the Genealogy of the Saints
in Britain, a beautiful woman, a noble princess, a shining star
in the diadem of Christ.
On the death of Aristobulus, Ilid, 'a man of Israel', who
had gone with Bran and Aristobulus to Cambria, took charge until
Paul arrived. Prior to his membership in the Paulian Mission
little is known of him except he was a Judean convert out of
Rome. In the Cymric Triads he is shown as a very capable,
energetic leader. His devout, efficient administration endeared
him to the Silures. He spent many years of his life in Cambria,
espousing the original plan St. Paul had conceived with the aged
Bran and Aristobulus. Financed by the royal Silurian family, and
by the personal efforts of the Princess Eurgain and her brother,
the abdicated Cyllinus, there was built a magnificent church and
university and many new schools in Cambria. The Iolo MS. says:
"He afterwards went to Glastonbury, where he died and was buried,
and Ina, king of that country, raised a large church over his
grave."
King Ina's church at Glastonbury Abbey, built A.D.700, was
excavated in recent years. By neglect it has since been covered.
It is interesting to note that he is numbered first on the long
list of Cambrian saints, listed in the Genealogy of the Saints in
Britain.
In some of the ancient records Ilid is claimed to have been
a son of the Decurian Joseph of Arimathea, the Apostle of the
British. The loss of his aged friend was a grievous blow to St.
Paul. He had sent his salutations to his friends at Rome,
including "the household of Aristobulus."
It is claimed that Paul landed at what is now a suburb of
the great naval port of Portsmouth, known over the ages and to
present time as 'Paul's Grove'. From there he evidently made his
way into Cambria, where it is claimed he founded the famous Abbey
of Bangor. The doctrine and administration of the Abbey was known
as Pauli Regula - 'The Rule of Paul'. Over each of its four gates
was inscribed his motto: 'If a man will not work, neither let him
eat.' All the Abbots that followed considered themselves as the
direct successors of Paul. Each was specially elected, was
usually of royal descent. It later developed into a monastery and
is named by St. Hilary and St. Benedict as the 'Mother of
Monasteries'. Its educational curriculum was of the highest
order, attracting thousands of scholars. Its membership is stated
by Bede to have risen to two thousand one hundred. Its twentieth
Abbot was the famous Pelagius who fought so strenuously against
the novel papal teachings. They described his defence of the
ancient British simple faith as the Pelagian Heresy.
It is doubtful if Paul stayed long enough in Britain to see
the famous Abbey of Bangor completed. He knew his time was short
and he sought to make the best use of it in his fervent
evangelizing mission, chief of which was his special attention to
his British Mission. While there he left his impress in writing
his rule for a godly Christian life, recorded in Ancient British
Triads, as 'The Triads of Paul the Apostle'. Nowhere else are
they recorded and nowhere else is the term 'Triads' employed
outside Britain, which favours acceptance of their Pauline
origin. They are as follows:
TRIADS OF PAUL THE APOSTLE
"There are three sorts of men: The man of God, who renders good
for evil; the man of men, who renders good for good and evil for
evil; and the man of the devil, who renders evil for good."
"Three kinds of men are the delights of God: The meek; the lovers
of peace; the lovers of mercy."
"There are three marks of the children of God: Gentle deportment;
a pure conscience; patient suffering of injuries."
......
1 Morgan, "St. Paul in Britain," p.177.
......
"There are three chief duties demanded by God: Justice to every
man; love; humility."
"In three places will be found the most of God: Where He is
mostly sought; where He is mostly loved; where there is least of
self."
"There are three things following faith in God: A conscience at
peace; union with heaven; what is necessary for life."
"Three ways a Christian punishes an enemy: By forgiving him; by
not divulging his wickedness; by doing him all the good in his
power."
"The three chief considerations of a Christian: Lest he should
displease God; lest he should be stumbling-block to man; lest his
love to all that is good should wax cold."
"The three luxuries of a Christian feast: What God has prepared;
what can be obtained with justice to all; what love to all may
venture to use."
"Three persons have the claims and privileges of brothers and
sisters: The widow; the orphan; the stranger"
The preservation of the Triads of Paul the Apostle is due to
the Cor of Ilid, of which Ilid, the 'man of Israel', was chief
architect and chief priest.
In Merton College, Oxford, there is an ancient MS. which
purports to contain a series of letters between St. Paul and
Seneca. In them are several allusions to St. Paul's residence in
Siluria. It is known as the Paulian MS. Bishop Burgess writes:
"Of Paul's journey to Britain we have as satisfactory proof as
any historical question can demand."
A casual study of the life and works of St. Paul, after his
arrival at Rome, shows blank periods which Scripture does not
explain. They total a silence of six years. The general opinion,
supported by the secular records, is that those years were spent
in Gaul, and principally in Britain. We know he returned to Rome
from Cambria, A.D.61, and was imprisoned there. Again he returned
to Britain and Gaul. Edouard de Bazelaire traces the path of
Paul's travel, circa A.D.62, along the Aurelian Way from Rome to
Arles, in Gaul. With him was Trophimus, one of the original
Josephian band, previously referred to, and Crescens, whom he
sent to Vienne, where he found the church at Mayence, being the
first Bishop there. Scriptural records support this in which Paul
refers to the sickness of one of his disciples whom he was
obliged to leave in Gaul.
The Rev. R. W. Morgan writes:
"There are six years of St. Paul's life to be accounted for,
between his liberation from his first imprisonment and his
martyrdom at Aquae Salviae in the Ostian Road, near Rome. Part
certainly, the greater part perhaps, of this period was spent in
Britain, in Siluria or Cambria, beyond the bounds of the Roman
Empire; and hence the silence of the Greek and Latin writers upon
it."
In Wales, as in Gaul, the memory of Paul's work among them
is almost entirely lost. The only enduring memorials to Paul's
presence in Britain, of note, are to be found in England.
Llandin - London is referred to as the 'Areopagus' of Britain,
arising out of the instance that St. Paul preached from the
summit of Ludgate Hill. The famous St. Paul's Cathedral is
erected on the site, and the ancient St. Paul's Cross may well
mark the spot where St. Paul stood as he preached the Gospel to
the British.
This, and much more, is confirmed in the Long Lost Chapter
of the Acts of the Apostles (The Sonnini MS.).
The presence and preachings of St. Paul in London became so
deeply associated with that city that he was made the Patron
Saint of London, and his emblem, the sword of martyrdom, is
incorporated in the coat of arms of this great metropolis.
A common question often arises in discussions of the ability
of the Apostles to preach understandably to the people of
different tongues. In what language did St. Paul address the
British? Did he speak the Celtic tongue or Latin? It is an
interesting but difficult question to answer.
Philologists have pointed out the great similarity of the
ancient Celtic language with the ancient Hebrew, in which case
it would not have been difficult for Paul to have preached to the
British in the Cymric language. We know that the ancient British
on a large scale were familiar with Greek, which was as common an
international language of those days as English is today. Paul
wrote all his epistles in Greek, and for a long time after the
apostolic age Greek was the language of the Church of Rome. Among
the educated, Latin was well known. Caractacus addressed the
Roman Senate at his famous trial in Latin; therefore neither side
would experience any difficulty in speaking or hearing.
Moreover it was the common practice of Christians from the
beginning to read the Scriptures in the vulgar tongue. It had
ever
......
1 Morgan, "St. Paul in Britain," p.175.
......
been the Druidic custom to speak in the vernacular. According to
I Corinthians 14:9, the Word of God forbids praying and preaching
in an unknown tongue. Paul emphasized this in the canon he laid
down for the Corinthian Church. He says:
"If I know not the meaning of the voice, I shall be unto him that
speaketh a barbarian, and he that speaketh shall be a barbarian
unto me.... I had rather in the church speak five words with my
understanding ... than ten thousand words in an unknown tongue."
It was not till the reign of Charlemagne that Latin became
the language of the church services. Latin as the language of
prayer and worship was also imposed by Pope Gregory I in the year
A.D.600.
The British church ever opposed this practice and were the
first to demand its abolition, and the first to print and preach
the Bible in their own language.
Bishop Ussher, in his "Historia Dogmatica," writes:
"No two causes contributed so much to the declension of
Christianity and the progress of Mohammedanism, as the
suppression by the Church of Rome of the vernacular scriptures,
and her adoption of image worship."
Worship of images and relics was first introduced in the
Roman Church Council by Pope Hadrian I, A.D.788. In the Bible
this is called idolatry and is severely condemned (Exodus 20:4,5;
Deut.27:15; Psa.115).
Probably the place where Paul is most commemorated is Malta,
where he was shipwrecked. At Valleta stands the beautiful church
of St. Paul Shipwrecked, erected to his memory and rescue from
the sea.
It is certain that, if it had not been for the vigorous
support of the Paulian Mission in Cambria by the Princess Eurgain
and her relatives, his efforts would have completely failed. We
cannot help but feel regret that so little was perpetuated, even
during the activity of the Cor Eurgain, to his memory and those
faithful workers who issued through Rome. It can be well said
that the success of his mission during its existence and presence
in Cambria was due to the magnificent efforts of the Caradoc
Silurian family and had a profound influence in the promotion of
Christianity in Wales. Following the death of Paul the Cambrian
church renewed its close ties with Avalon. The deep affection
Eurgain and her relatives held for Joseph who first converted and
baptized many of them always remained. Among the common people
their allegiance never deviated from Joseph or the Mother Church
at Avalon. They could not or would not accept that which came
from Rome, In this alone is found the answer. Yet they could not
and did not fail to recognize the deep affection Paul held for
the children of Caractacus and the children of Claudia. It was
too evident. His love for Linus was unbounded. We see this
preserved in an unusual relic in the Vatican Museum. It is in the
form of a glass medallion depicting a contemporary portrait of
the heads of Linus and Paul, proclaiming their undying friendship
and close association during those drama-packed years.
Paul fulfilled the mission of his Saviour, Jesus Christ, to
go 'far hence unto the Gentiles', the merit of which has throbbed
and thrived for two thousand years, and will continue to live
firm in the hope of the great promise, till He shall come again.
Eloquently St. Clement sums up the magnitude of the
achievements of the Apostle to the Gentiles. Being one of the
original Bethany band that dwelt at Avalon with Joseph, he knew
St. Paul intimately and long before he followed in the office of
his beloved friend Linus, as Bishop of Rome. He writes:
"To leave the examples of antiquity, and to come to the most
recent, let us take the noble examples of our own times. Let us
place before our eyes the good Apostle, Peter, through unjust
odium, underwent not one or two, but many sufferings; and having
undergone his martyrdom, he went to the place of glory to which
he was entitled. Paul, also, having seven times worn chains, and
been hunted and stoned, received the prize of such endurance. For
he was the herald of the Gospel in the West as well as in the
East, and enjoyed the illustrious reputation of the faith in
teaching the whole world to be righteous. And after he had been
in the extremity of the West, he suffered martyrdom before the
sovereigns of mankind; and thus delivered from this world, he
went to his holy place, the most brilliant example of
stedfastness that we possess."
"Extremity of the West" was the term used to indicate Britain.
Capellus, in "History of the Apostles," writes:
"I know scarcely of one author from the time of the Fathers
downward who does not maintain that St. Paul, after his
liberation, preached in every country of the West, in Europe,
Britain included."
Theodoret, fourth century, writes:
"St. Paul brought salvation to the Isles in the ocean."
Ventanius, sixth century, Patriarch of Jerusalem, speaks
very definitely of St. Paul's visit and work in Britain, as does
Irenaeus, A.D.125-189; Tertullian, A.D.122-166; Origen, A.D.
185-254; Mello, A.D.256; Eusebius, A.D.315; Athanasius, A.D.353;
and many other chroniclers of church history.
If further confirmation is needed it is supplied in the
records of the Roman, Eastern, Gallic and Spanish churches, all
of which attest to the fact that St. Paul evangelized in Gaul and
Britain.
.................
NOTE:
Oh how history has been covered over in the past centuries, but
the historical records are there, and many today are finding the
truth of the matter, and true history is being re-written; as the
example of the people and nations of North America before the
Vikings and Columbus came. Gradually true history is being
proclaimed and published and acknowledged.
To be continued with "King Lucius Nationalizes the Faith"
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