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George Herbert (February 27th) is easily one of the most attractive figures in all of Anglican history—a saintly parish priest, a moving poet, a skilled musician, a deep scholar, an elegant gentleman, and a happy
family-man devoted to his wife and the three nieces he adopted as his own children. His unchallenged reputation as the exemplar of a Christian life that is fulfilled by worship of God and content in service to others can, however, be deceptive. He experienced intense inner struggles before he actually became that exemplar. Indeed, he described his poems (published after his death as a book called The Temple) as "a picture of the many spiritual conflicts that have passed betwixt God and my soul, before I could submit mine to the will of Jesus my Master; in whose service I have found perfect freedom."
Born in 1593 to a highly prestigious aristocratic family in southern England, he went to Cambridge intending to study for the priesthood. His conspicuous successes kept him at the University and then marked him for a career in the King's Court. Herbert pursued this prospect (in spite of an uneasy conscience), but his chances were lost upon the death of King James I. He then continued his studies in divinity and was ordained a deacon in 1626. After more agonizing (vividly shown in his poem "The Collar"), he was finally ordained a priest in 1630 after accepting appointment as Rector of Bemerton, a tiny rural parish near Salisbury. Any reservations vanished in his unwavering devotion to his flock and duties. The very ideal of the faithful priest, Herbert spelled out this life in his book The Country Parson. Sadly, he died of tuberculosis on March 1, 1633, only forty-years old. He was buried under the floor of his church. His words "Nothing is little in God's service" are his testament. |
