Saint Birinus
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Birinus (also ''Berin'', ''Birin'';  – 3 December 649 or 650) was the first Bishop of Dorchester and was known as the "
Apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...
to the
West Saxons la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons , common_name = Wessex , image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg , map_caption = S ...
" for his conversion of the Kingdom of Wessex to Christianity. He is venerated as a saint by the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, the
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...
, and Anglican churches.


Life and ministry

After Augustine of Canterbury performed the initial conversions in England, Birinus, a
Frank Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Curr ...
, came to the kingdom of
Wessex la, Regnum Occidentalium Saxonum , conventional_long_name = Kingdom of the West Saxons , common_name = Wessex , image_map = Southern British Isles 9th century.svg , map_caption = S ...
in 634, landing at the port of ''
Hamwic Southampton is a city in Hampshire, England. The area has been settled since the Stone Age. Its history has been affected by its geographical location, on a major estuary on the English Channel coast with an unusual double high-tide, and by its pr ...
'', now in the St Mary's area of
Southampton Southampton () is a port city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. It is located approximately south-west of London and west of Portsmouth. The city forms part of the South Hampshire built-up area, which also covers Po ...
. During Birinus's brief time at Hamwic, St Mary's Church was founded. A
Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
monk, Birinus had been made bishop by Asterius in
Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...
, and
Pope Honorius I Pope Honorius I (died 12 October 638) was the bishop of Rome from 27 October 625 to his death. He was active in spreading Christianity among Anglo-Saxons and attempted to convince the Celts to calculate Easter in the Roman fashion. He is chief ...
created the commission to convert the West Saxons. In 635, he persuaded the West Saxon king
Cynegils Cynegils () was King of Wessex from c. 611 to c. 642. Cynegils is traditionally considered to have been King of Wessex, but the familiar kingdoms of the so-called Heptarchy had not yet formed from the patchwork of smaller kingdoms in his life ...
to allow him to preach. Cynegils was trying to create an alliance with Oswald of Northumbria, with whom he intended to fight the
Mercia la, Merciorum regnum , conventional_long_name=Kingdom of Mercia , common_name=Mercia , status=Kingdom , status_text=Independent kingdom (527–879) Client state of Wessex () , life_span=527–918 , era= Heptarchy , event_start= , date_start= , ...
ns. At the final talks between kings, the sticking point was that Oswald, a Christian, would not ally himself with a pagan. Cynegils then converted and was
baptised Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost inv ...
. He gave Birinus
Dorchester-on-Thames Dorchester on Thames (or Dorchester-on-Thames) is a village and civil parish in Oxfordshire, about northwest of Wallingford and southeast of Oxford. The town is a few hundred yards from the confluence of the River Thames and River Thame. A c ...
for his episcopal see. Birinus's original commission entailed preaching to parts of Britain where no missionary efforts had reached and may have included instructions to reach the Mercians. But he ultimately remained in Wessex. Birinus is said to have been active in establishing churches in Wessex. Birinus supposedly laid the foundations for St Mary's in
Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...
, and other churches such as the church of St Peter and St Paul, Checkendon, near Reading. Tradition has it that Birinus built the first church at Ipsden, as a small chapel on Berins Hill, about two miles east of the present church. Birinus baptised Cynegils's son Cwichelm (died 636) in 636 and grandson Cuthred (died 661) in 639, to whom he stood as godfather. Birinus died in Dorchester on 3 December in 649 or 650.


Veneration

Birinus' feast day is 3 December in the
Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Eastern Orthodox Church The Eastern Orthodox Church, also called the Orthodox Church, is the second-largest Christian church, with approximately 220 million baptized members. It operates as a communion of autocephalous churches, each governed by its bishops vi ...
, but some churches celebrate his feast on 5 December. His feast was added to the ''
Roman Martyrology The ''Roman Martyrology'' ( la, Martyrologium Romanum) is the official martyrology of the Catholic Church. Its use is obligatory in matters regarding the Roman Rite liturgy, but dioceses, countries and religious institutes may add duly approved ...
'' in the late 16th century. In the
Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...
, his feast day falls on 4 September and has the status of a
commemoration Commemoration may refer to: *Commemoration (Anglicanism), a religious observance in Churches of the Anglican Communion *Commemoration (liturgy) In the Latin liturgical rites of the Catholic Church, a commemoration is the recital, within the Li ...
. His relics were eventually translated to Winchester after his death. A small number of Church of England parish churches are dedicated to Birinus, including those at
Berinsfield Berinsfield is an English village and civil parish in South Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the parish population as 2,806. History Palaeolithic and Roman artefacts were found during 20th century excavations t ...
in Oxfordshire and Redlynch in
Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...
. The Catholic church in Dorchester, one of the first built after the restoration of the hierarchy by Pope Pius IX, is also dedicated to Birinus.


See also

* Church of St Birinus, Morgan's Vale * St Birinus School (Didcot) *
Lantfred Lantfred of Fleury ( la, Lantfredus; ang, Landfrið; goh, Landfred), also known as Lantfred of Winchester, was a 10th and 11th century Anglo-Saxon monk who lived in Winchester, Hampshire, England. He was originally from the French town of Fleur ...
wrote a ''vita''


References


Citations


Works cited

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Further reading

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Birinus 600 births 649 deaths 7th-century Frankish bishops 7th-century Frankish saints Bishops of Dorchester (Wessex) 7th-century English bishops People from Berkshire West Saxon saints Colombanian saints Anglican saints