Died 619. Laurence was one of the monks who had accompanied St. Augustine
on his mission to the Kingdom of Kent and, once King Ethelbert was
baptised and the Christian Faith was firmly established in his kingdom,
he became the Archbishop's chief assistant. Augustine was worried that
in the event of his death the new converts might return to paganism and
so he
consecrated Laurence as his coadjutor bishop to succeed him when he
died.
Laurence was industrious when he became Archbishop and renewed
Augustine's efforts to win over the Celtic Church to the customs of the
Roman, but the mission suffered a severe setback, for with the death of
Ethelbert the people of Kent began to fall away from their new faith.
This was largely due to Eadbald, the new king, who had not followed his
father in becoming a Christian and had offended against Church law by
marrying his stepmother. The remonstrations by the Archbishop only
served to make the king more determined in his heathen practices and
Laurence began to despair, deciding with his fellow bishops, Mellitus of
London and Justus of Rochester, to abandon the English nation as beyond
redemption.
Mellitus and Justus left the country and Laurence was to follow them on
the next day. For his last night he had a bed prepared in the abbey
church before the High Altar, and after he had said his prayers he went
to sleep. At the dead of night he was awoken by a vision in which the
Apostle Peter scourged him with a great whip, asking him the reason for
his desertion. Why do you forsake the flock committed to you?
he
asked. To what shepherds are you leaving Christ's sheep, who are among
wolves? Have you forgotten my example, who for the sake of these little
ones that Christ gave me as a token of His affection, suffered at the
hands of unbelievers chains, beatings, imprisonment, tortures and
finally crucifixion that I might be crowned with Him?
In the morning Laurence went to Eadbald and showed him the scars of the
beating that he had received, and the King was horrified to learn that
hands had been laid upon such a holy man, demanding to know who had
presumed to use him so. When the Archbishop told him, the King was
greatly impressed and, renouncing his marriage, was baptised into the
Christian Faith. Mellitus and Justus returned, and St. Laurence
continued to build up the Church of Christ in England. When he died his
body was interred in the abbey church, where he had had his vision, and
he was remembered by a hospital in the Old Dover Road, which is part of
Watling Street, now replaced by the County Cricket Ground still bearing
his name.