STB

Congratulations to our top year Johnno, Lenny and Roger who yesterday were awarded their STBs (Baccalaureates in Sacred Theology) from the University of Leuven in Belgium, a feat for them to be proud of! They must be pretty tired now I reckon, as well as learned...

A last-minute happy memorial of St Augustine of Canterbury to you all. At the desire of Pope St Gregory the Great, who saw some English slaves in the market place and remarked how they looked like Angels rather than Angles ('non angli sed angeli'), St Augustine came to England in 597 with a small group of monks to convert the English. On the way, the monks heard that the islanders were terribly fierce, and wanted to turn back. St Augustine placated them by returning himself to Rome to lay the apprehensions before the Pope, but the Pope encouraged him and sent him back, set on bringing Christ to these pagan people. The monastic band arrived in England and met King Aethelberht at Canterbury, who eventually became so impressed by Augustine and his men that he converted to Christianity, and on Christmas Day 597, more than 10,000 of his subjects were baptised (though the King forces no one to convert).

May we have the simple and courageous heart of Augustine to evangelise in the small ways that we can!