St. Dunstan is one of the foundational saints for the English Church; many of England’s oldest churches are named after him and, throughout the centuries, the British people have written many stories about his holiness.

St. Dunstan was born sometime between 910 and 924, most historians think it was around the year 910. Dunstan’s mother was a Saxon noblewoman. An early legend of Dunstan’s life indicates that his spiritual status in the Church was foretold from the very beginning.

When his mother was pregnant with Dunstan she was in the church of St Mary on Candleday (the feast of “Candlemas,” the Presentation of the Lord), and all the lights were suddenly extinguished in the church. But the candle held by Dunstan’s mother, Cynethryth, was just as suddenly relighted. Everyone in the church approached her and lit their own candles from the miraculous flame of Cynethryth, thus foreshadowing that the boy “would be the minister of eternal light” to the Church of England

After Dunstan was born, he was sent to Glastonbury Abbey, an ancient, revered English abbey, where Dunstan was educated in the liberal arts. He was sent to the court of the king, but his stint at court was far from blissful. The other courtiers were wildly jealous of Dunstan, and they attacked him and tortured him, even throwing him into a cesspool. But Dunstan escaped to Winchester, where his uncle, who was a powerful bishop, convinced him to become a monk.

After some initial reluctance, Dunstan joined the monastery of Glastonbury. Eventually, he was asked to become abbot of the community. Dunstan used this powerful position to institute a series of reforms in Glastonbury. He instituted the Benedictine rule in Glastonbury, rebuilt the cloister, and preserved the monastic enclosure, keeping the monks devoted on the work of the community rather than too much involvement with the town outside. But Dunstan did not ignore the needs of the community. He opened a school for local children, which became a famous monastic school throughout England.

Falling out with the new king, Dunstan fled to Cluny, the center of monastic reform in France. As kings came and went with more rapidity in 10th century England, Dunstan was recalled from exile and received a boost in status as he was appointed the Bishop of London. In 960, Dunstan received the pallium of the episcopacy for his new diocese. Several churches in London still bear his name.

After serving England’s capital city for almost twenty years, Dunstan retired to Canterbury, where he lived for the remainder of his life until he died on May 19, 988. He was canonized in 1029, and is the patron saint of silversmiths, goldsmiths, bellringers, and Canada.

St. Dunstan, abbot, bishop, and cornerstone of the Church in England—pray for us!

Photo Credit: Stained Glass of Dunstan located in Holy Cross Monastery, West Park, New York (circa 1920) Photo by Randy OHC via Flickr (CC BY 2.0)