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ST. WALSTAN OF TAVERHAM

Our holy Father Walstan was born in East Anglia, either at Bawburgh in Norfolk or

at Blythburgh in Suffolk, during the reign of King Ethelred, in the late tenth century.

e was said to ha!e been of noble lineage and related to the king"s son, Ed#und$ronside. Walstan"s father is recorded as ha!ing been called Benedict, and his #other

was Blide %or Blythe&' the St. Blide who was buried and honoured at (arsha#.

At the age of )*, Walstan renounced his +atri#ony, left ho#e and tra!elled to

a!erha#, -ust north of Norwich, where he sought e#+loy#ent as a far# labourer. e

was hired by a local far#er, who +ut hi# to work in the fields and woodland in the

surrounding area near ostessey.. here he laboured with great de!otion and

obedience, co#bining his toil with constant +rayer and fre/uent fasting. e also took

a !ow of celibacy although he ne!er recei!ed #onastic tonsure. All the ti#e he ke+t

his true identity %as a noble#an& a secret. e was so charitable that he fre/uently ga!e

his #eagre rations to the +oor, and so#eti#es e!en his shoes, going barefoot as a

result. On one occasion he was se!erely +unished by his e#+loyer"s wife for what she

had co#e to regard as his foolishness.

E!entually, the far#er wished to ado+t St. Walstan as his heir. he saint refused

this honour. $nstead he asked that, at his death, he be gi!en two o0en to draw his body

where!er they wanted to its +lace of burial. his re/uest was granted and two white

o0 cal!es were set aside for this e!entuality.

hree days before his death, St. Walstan recei!ed an angelic !isitation, witnessed

by a co#+anion, forewarning hi# of his death and translation to hea!en. he +riest ofa!erha# church who ca#e to gi!e hi# oly o##union o#itted to bring water

with hi# to #i0 with the wine.. At the +rayers of the saint a well1s+ring #iraculously

s+rang u+. he site of this well can still be seen to this day.

St. Walstan died in a field, +raying for all the sick and for cattle, at noon. is body

was +laced on a rough cart and was drawn by the two white o0en, who wended their

way through ostessy Woods, across the 2i!er Wensu# until they reached to what is

now ostessey 3ark. At this +oint the o0en rested for a while, a sacred s+ring arising

there. hen they set off again towards Bawburgh church, whose north wall

#iraculously o+ened u+ allowing the o0en, cart and body, together with all those

acco#+anied it, into the church, after which the wall closed and beca#e whole again.$nside, Bisho+ Aelfgar of El#ha# with forty #onks carried out the funeral ser!ice.

%Bisho+ Aelfgar, known as 4the al#sgi!er5, had been a disci+le of St. 6unstan, and

died during (attins on hrist#as 6ay, )7*).&

his took +lace on (ay 87, )7)9 %or )7):&.

he saint"s shrine beca#e a +o+ular +lace of +ilgri#age down the centuries, and

#any #ireacles were wrought there. hus through the +rayers of the saint a #an who

had lain drowned in a +ond for two days was resuscitated. (any of his #iracles relate

to the healing of ani#als and the abundance of cro+s, and in ):;: he was declared

43atron Saint of British Food and Far#ing5.

)

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$n the general destruction of the 2efor#ation, the shrine was de#olished and St.

Walstan"s relics were burnt and scattered. he wells were gi!en o!er to secular and

su+erstitious use. he wells at a!erha# and ostessy e!entually dried u+, but the

one at Bawburgh sur!i!ed. owe!er, there is now a re!i!al of interest in, andde!otion to, St. Walstan.

Although Walstan"s na#e does not a++ear on any Anglo1Sa0on calendar, the

!eneration of hi# in East Anglia has been strong and +ersistent since Orthodo0 ti#es.

%Sources< Fr. Elias =ones, 4he >ife of our Father a#ong the Saints, 2ighteous

Walstan the ?enerous of a!erha#5, Orthodo0 News, !ol. )*, no. ), Eastertide, )::;,

++. ),@' he English Saints< East Anglia, anterbury< Norwich 3ress, ):::, ++. ):1

);' he Anglo1Sa0on hronicle, 6, )7*)' 6a!id Far#er, he O0ford 6ictionary of

Saints, O0ford< larendon 3ress, ):;, ++. 8:18:;&

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