St. Bede the Venerable

St. Bede the Venerable was born around 672 in the kingdom of Northumbria in northern England, and died on 26 May 735 at the monastery of Jarrow. Entrusted to the twin monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow as a boy of seven, he spent virtually his entire life within its walls as a Benedictine monk, devoted to prayer, study, teaching, and writing, and was ordained a priest. He was celebrated for his learning and his gentle, holy character.

His masterpiece, the Ecclesiastical History of the English People, is the primary source for the early history of Christianity in England and earned him the title 'the Father of English History'; he also helped popularize the practice of dating years from the birth of Christ. A tireless scholar of Scripture, chronology, and science, he was working on a translation of St. John's Gospel into English on the day he died. He was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1899, the only Englishman to hold that title.