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Life of St Wilfrid
Eddius Stephanus, tr. Colgrave, 1927
11. How Wilfrid Was Elected to the Bishopric
After an interval the kings had a consultation with the counsellors of the realm as to whom they should elect to the vacant see, one willing to accept the discipline of the Apostolic See and to teach it to others, a man of high character, acceptable to God and beloved of men. They all answered with one consent, “We consider that none of our fellow-countrymen is better and more worthy than Wilfrid, priest and abbot, for we have seen that he is wise in all matters and such a man as the Apostle Paul writing to Titus described: ‘For the bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God, not self-willed, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not quarrelsome, not greedy of filthy lucre, but a lover of hospitality, kind, sober, just, holy, temperate, holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and to convince gainsayers.’ All these qualities according to the judgment of the Apostle this man possesses. And so we elect him in the prime of his manhood to teach God’s law.”
Now this man was elected like John the forerunner of the Lord and the prophet Ezekiel, when thirty years of age. The kings and all the people agreed to this election and the whole gathering bade St Wilfrid the priest accept the rank of bishop in the name of the Lord. At first he refused, excusing himself on the plea of unworthiness, but at last he became obedient and did not desire to flee from the blessing of God.
Their opinion of him in those days did not differ from that of us who are still alive. His discourse was pure and frank, full of gravity and virtue, full of sweetness and grace, dealing with the mystery of the law, the teaching of faith, the virtue of temperance or the practice of righteousness. To each one he gave varied advice suitable to his character, because he always knew beforehand what advice to give to any man, and when and how it should be given. Before everything it was his special care to take part in fastings, prayers and vigils. He read the Scriptures and had a wonderful memory for their text. He studied the canons of the Church too and imitated the example of the saints, fulfilling the duty of peace towards his brethren: he practised humility and that charity which is greater than all gifts and without which every other virtue is nothing worth. He cared for the poor, fed the hungry, clothed the naked, took in strangers, redeemed captives and protected widows and orphans, that he might merit the reward of eternal life amid the choirs of angels in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ.