Some Notes on St. Boniface (ca. 675-754):
The date of St. Boniface’s birth is debated. He was named Wynfreth by his noble parents and born probably near Exeter, Devon. He studied in a Benedictine school and later became a Benedictine monk, excelling in sanctity and knowledge, in the understanding of Scriptures.
He gained prominence as a teacher, diplomat, and preacher. In his early 40s, he left to do mission work after years of seclusion, studying, teaching, and praying. His first efforts in Frisia (now the Netherlands) did not succeed. He went to Rome to seek advice from Pope Gregory II, who renamed him Boniface (“He who does good”), and sent him to Germany.
In 719, he set out for Germany. He made converts by the thousands. In 722, he returned to Rome to be consecrated by the Pope as Bishop for all of Germany. On his return to Germany, he worked first in Hesse and then farther to the east of Thuringia, organizing and reforming sometimes heretical groups of Christian churches.
For 30 years, Boniface worked to organize and reform the Church, linking the various communities firmly with Rome. He enlisted English monks and nuns to preach to the people, strengthen the faith, and assure their allegiance to the Pope.
Reforming the Frankish Church, he held a series of synods between 742 and 744.
In 744, he was closely involved in founding the monastery of Fulda, now the yearly meeting place of German bishops. About 746, Boniface was appointed Archbishop of Mainz, as head of the German churches. Over the years, he kept up an extensive correspondence, asking directives from the Popes, giving information about the many Christian communities, and relaying to the people the Popes’ wishes.
His impact on pagans was illustrated by the legend of his cutting down the Donnar Oak, much revered by pagans. While cutting down the tree, a strong wind toppled it and cut it down in four pieces, while he remained unharmed. Awed by this miraculous incident, many pagans were converted.
In his late 70s and still filled with his characteristic zeal, Boniface went back to Frisia. In 754, he and 52 companions were waylaid by a group of savage locals near the town of Dokkum and put to death. His remains were later taken to Fulda, where he was revered as a Christian martyr.
After the rise of Protestantism and the plundering of the Dokkumer abbey in I572 and its abolition in 1582, the relics of St. Boniface were scattered. Some of the relics eventually emerged and were returned to Dokkum. Some of the primary relics were given to the Boniface Church in Fulda.
To him has been attributed the evangelization of much of the land to the east of Rhine: Hesse, Thuringia, and even parts of Bavaria. He is known as the “Apostle to the Germans.”
Prayer: May the Martyr St. Boniface be our advocate, O Lord, that we may firmly hold the faith he taught with his lips and sealed with his blood and confidently profess it by our deeds, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
