Part 2- Story of the Knight’s journey up the coastline of Cumbria
The ceremony lacked the expected level of union for his liking. Godfrei felt depleted in the effort to give their companion and teacher due solemnity and observed rites of parity. He could sense the weight of disappointment.
The Chapel now felt empty. It might have been fatigue, or the grief that hit them so unexpectedly. They wouldn’t have been surprised if their elder had passed away in his sleep in Spain, but he had regained his strength and resolve before their last voyage, determined to lead them to deliver their charge.
The brother of this chapel stepped forward, they could not linger here. The all-night rituals had been conducted at the expense of rest and nourishment. It was now time to depart. The brethren spent the entire night coordinating their plans with the changing tides. The brothers, overwhelmed and jaded, agreed to trust their long-held friendship with the villagers. Other boats awaited to take them a short journey up the coast then inland, so they pressed on to Beetham.
The Lord of the Mosses received notification yesterday and subsequently prepared the new resting place under his protection. Although the Church was cold and damp, the setting sun streamed through the high windows. Provisions, including food, wine, and bedding, were offered and a safe place to pray before they rested.
The lay sisters convened to perform the Liturgy of the Hours, as they prayed and rested. They remained cognizant of the villagers’ efforts of heightened security surrounded by daily activities. The reasons for these measures begged further inquiry, but the hymns soothed their tiredness to sleep.
When Godfrei awoke from his bedding mat on the ground he felt inspired by his brothers’ actions. He saw two of them praying in the Lady chapel and decided to join them. He seemed to drift easily into the liminal space of Sanctuary. The singing of the sisters, the soft light of the candles, the sweet smell of the cooked loaf and the warmth of his new clothes lulled him inwards.
Word finally came in the evening light. A soft rap on the wooden door, then voices, stirred him from the cushion on the chapel floor. Had he drifted back into sleep? No, he had gained his direction from his curled position, but it was not sleep. He had finally been able to rest, eat, and gain enough strength to enter the realm of guidance.
He got up and approached the doorway, dubiously not from fear but the strangeness of the light. He knew before he entered in the conversation, passage north was possible. But the conversation brought more difficulties to the journey ahead. Dacre’s man had brought word. Safety for their vessels was always paramount and raiders where in the waters around the coastline. The route was now over land. They were so close to the Abbey, but this meant the Abbey was also at risk.
The delay now appeared intentional. The death of their Elder, the overnight Rituals, the stay at the church were all keeping them hidden from the coastal route. All these delays were divinely guided.
This was the very quest undertaken by their predecessors, and now it was their turn.
St. Michael and All Angels Beetham Church
The church is on the south border of Cumbria into Lancashire just off the A6 at Milnthorpe. The tower is an old Anglo-Saxon structure, with extended church aisles dating from the 12th century and full restorations in the 18oos. There are many interesting features to the exterior including a sundial to the right of the priest’s doorway.
The church was first dedicated to Saint Lioba, the 7th century Benedictine nun from Wessex. The daughter of a noble family and related to St. Boniface. She was educated at Wimborne Minster, probably skilled in the fine ornamenting of scriptures and needlework that created the embroidery of wall hangings of Europe’s great houses. She is well known in Germany as an Abbess in the convents of St. Boniface. She was known to frequent the royal courts of Charlemagne and to have performed miracles. Miracles that the Monk Rudolf of Fulda claimed continued to work from her grave tomb.(Wikipedia). I found the anchoress’s cell up the road from the church the most honourable dedication to one of England’s saints the most precious sight in our times. The stain glass windows within the church depict Lioba with Wessex royal Saints Ethelburga. She was the 7th century daughter of King Æthelberht of Kent and Queen Bertha. In 625, she married Edwin of Northumbria as his second wife. A condition of their marriage was Edwin’s conversion to Christianity. Here she is pictured also with Saint Osyth. She was born in Quarrendon in Buckinghamshire. Her father was Frithwald a Mercian sub-king of Surrey and her mother was Wilburga, daughter of King Penda of Mercia.
The stain glass windows to early Christian saints are delightful in the church. They are full of vibrant colour and contain the apostles including Mary Magdalene.
There are fragments of medieval glass in the Lady Chapel. These depict King Henry IV, fragments of Christ the King, coats of arms thought of the Stanley family, who were given lands of Westmorland, including Beetham, after the Battle of Bosworth.
(thanks to the websites of Beetham Church and Wikipedia)
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