Stelle Temptavit quoque idem vir Dei ultra...; (Vita Willibrordi archiepiscopi Traiectensis (796 - 800), ch. 9 (p. 123-124)) [62]

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ID 62
Text Vita Willibrordi archiepiscopi Traiectensis (796 - 800) Alcuin of York
Quotation Temptavit quoque idem vir Dei ultra Francorum regni fines caelestis doctrinae flumina dirivare. Nam tunc temporis regem Fresonum Rabbodum cum sua gente paganum non timuit adire et, quocumque perrexerat, verbum Dei cum omni fiducia loquebatur. Sed praefatus Fresonum rex virum Dei humilitatis gratia benigne suscipiens, nullis tamen vitae fomentis saxeum eius cor emollire potuit. Et dum apud eum vir Dei fructificare non posse agnovit, ad ferocissimos Danorum populos iter euangelizandi convertit. Ibi tamen, ut fertur, regnabat Ongendus, homo omni fera crudelior et omni lapide durior, qui tamen, iubente Deo, veritatis praeconum honorifice tractabat. Qui dum obduratam moribus et idolatriae deditam et nullam melioris vitae spem habentem offendit, acceptis tunc triginta eiusdem patriae pueris, ad electos a Deo populos regni Francorum revertere festinavit.
Translation The man of God tried also to propagate the Gospel teaching outside the boundaries of the Frankish kingdom. He had the boldness to present himself at the court of Radbod, at that time King of the Frisians and like his subjects, a pagan. Wherever he travelled he proclaimed the Word of God without fear; but though the Frisian king received the man of God in a kind and humble spirit, his heart was hardened against the Word of Life. So when the man of God saw that his efforts were of no avail he turned his missionary course towards the fierce tribes of the Danes. At that time, so we are told, the Danish ruler was Ongendus,[l] a man more savage than any wild beast and harder than stone, who nevertheless, through divine intervention, received tbe herald of truth with every mark of honour. But when the latter found that the people were steeped in evil practices, abandoned to idolatry and indifferent to any hope of a better life, he chose thirty boys from among them and hastily returned with them to the chosen people of the Franks. (Trans. Grieve)
Quotation source ch. 9 (p. 123-124)
Temporal Coverage 700 - 719
Associated use case(s)
Spatial Coverage Objects
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