Boniface, Saint, English missionary monk and martyr

Boniface, Saint (bŏn`ĭfəs, –fās), c.675–754?, English missionary monk and martyr, called the Apostle of Germany, b. Devonshire, England. His English name was Winfrid. He was educated in the monastery of Nursling, near Winchester. In 716 he made his first trip to Friesland to aid the mission of St. Willibrord, but unsettled conditions forced his return to England. In 718 he left England for Rome where Pope Gregory II encouraged his missionary zeal and gave him the name Boniface. Under the protection of the Frankish ruler Charles Martel, Boniface and his companions made many converts in Thuringia, Hesse, Franconia, and Bavaria. His chopping down of Thor's famed sacred oak at Fritzlar symbolized the advance of Christianity in pagan Germany. He established an orderly Christianity there closely tied to the papacy. He became regionary bishop (722) and metropolitan of Germany (731), creating new bishoprics under the supervision of his English disciples. He founded monasteries at Reichenau (724), Murbach (728), and Fulda Fulda (f

l`dä), city (1994 pop.
..... Click the link for more information. (744), which became important centers of learning. As papal legate he reformed (c.745) the decaying Frankish Church. He was consecrated (745) archbishop of Mainz Mainz (mīnts), city (1994 pop.
..... Click the link for more information. . He was martyred by pagans in Friesland. Feast: June 5.

Bibliography

See his correspondence tr. by E. Kylie (1966).

Boniface, Saint, German missionary

Boniface, Saint, d. 1009, German missionary, known also by his lay name, Bruno of Querfurt. He evangelized the Balts and died a martyr. He is known as the Apostle of the Prussians. Feast: June 19.

Boniface, Saint

(born 675, Wessex, Eng.—died June 5, 754, Dokkum, Frisia; feast day June 5) English missionary and reformer. Originally named Wynfrith, he became a Benedictine monk and then a priest. He made two attempts to convert the Frisian Saxons; in 718 he journeyed to Rome, where Pope Gregory II entrusted him with a mission to the pagans east of the Rhine and gave him the name Boniface. In 722 at Hesse he founded the first of many Benedictine monasteries. He was active for 10 years (725–735) in Thuringia. He established four bishoprics in Bavaria, paving the way for its incorporation into the Carolingian empire. He convened five synods (740–745) to reform the Frankish clergy and Irish missionaries and a council (747) to reform the entire Frankish kingdom. He was killed by a band of Frisians while reading the Bible to recent converts.