Wulfstan of Worchester (Jan
10th), was born to Anglo-Saxon parents in 1008 in England. He was educated
in Benedictine monasteries and afterwards put himself under me direction of the
Bishop of Worcester to become a priest. Shortly after his ordination, he became
a monk at the Worcester monastery where his talents and personal sanctity
quickly caught notice. He reorganized the monastery's instruction of children,
led singing for liturgies, and served as the church treasurer, while maintaining
the strict rule of prayer throughout the day. He was known to spend entire
nights in meditation in the church.
Against his strong resistance,
he was made Prior of the monastery. In that office, he was noted for his
pastoral activity, even while his administrative leadership strongly advanced
the monastery's financial abilities as well as its spiritual discipline. In
1062, he became Bishop of Worcester. Just four years later, William the
Conqueror won the English throne and replaced every bishop with one of his own
appointments—except for Wulfstan. As bishop, Wulfstan had become loved for his
pastoral care and his preaching, as well as for his great generosity to the
poor. He somehow ended the slave trade between the city of Bristol and
Viking-controlled Ireland. He built many new parish churches and founded a new
monastery, all the while maintaining his own monastic discipline and
responsibilities. After serving thirty-two years as bishop, Wulfstan died in
1095, and the case for his canonization as a saint began almost immediately. |
