Lindisfarne and Hexham

The Holy Island of Lindisfarne

Another fascinating and historically rich place was Lindisfarne or Holy Island. This island is on the north east coast of England. In about 635 AD King Oswald requested that St. Aidan come to Northumbria as a missionary. St. Aidan set up a monastery at Lindisfarne as a base for the evangelization of this area of England. A short time alter St. Cuthbert became Bishop of Lindisfarne and is recognized as one of the most important saints of medieval England. After the Viking raids which began in 791 St. Cuthbert's remains went on a long journey which ended in Durham where his remains rest in Durham Cathedral. Below is the island where Cuthbert spent much of his time in seclusion and spiritual preparation for his very influential ministry. Linda and Nathanael in the ruins of the Abbey at Lindisfarne.

A short history of the island.

A monument to the journey the monks took to remove Saint Cuthbert's remains form Lindisfarne after the Viking Raids.
The Ancient Town of Hexham

Hexham Abbey was founded in 674 AD by Saint Wilfrid. It's a beautiful church that dates back to about 1200 with a small crypt under the sanctuary where Christians worshiped when the abbey was founded. It was a humbling experience to stand in the very place where some of the earliest English Christians worshipped. The next four pictures are of the Abbey.

The paintings in this picture are of the Apostles and were painted in medieval times. As I looked at these paintings in this impressive place of worship there was a sense of the profound majesty of our Lord's Church and it's amazing history.

This is a picture of part of the crypt where worship took place in the 600's. Around the Abbey were some very impressive gardens and a site I had not seen yet; lawn bowling. It was interesting to watch these teams of men bowl and try to figure out how the game is played.

Linda, Nathanael and I strolling through the gardens of the Abbey. Nathanael thuoght it was great stuff to ride with grandma in the wheelchair (If you didn't know Linda fell and broke her leg during our stay in England. As I write this her cast is off and she is almost fully mended.)