Born in Northumbria, England; died October 26, 664; feast day formerly
celebrated on January 7. Cedd was raised together with his brother
Saint Chad (f.d. March 2).
He became a monk at Lindisfarne and in 653
was sent with three other priests to evangelize the Middle Angles when
their King Peada was baptized by
Saint Finan of Lindisfarne (f.d. February 17)
in 653 at the court of his father-in-law, Oswy of
Northumbria.
After working in that field for a time he was called to harvest a new
one in East Anglia (Essex), when King Sigebert was converted and
baptized by Finan. He and another priest travelled throughout the
midlands to evaluate the situation. Then Cedd returned to Lindisfarne
to confer with Finan, who consecrated him bishop of the East Saxons in
654. Cedd returned to Essex and spent the rest of his life with the
Saxons--building churches, founding monasteries (at Bradwell-on-the-Sea
(Ythancaestir, Othona), Tilbury, and Lastingham), and ordaining priests
and deacons to continue the work of evangelization.
Lastingham, originally called Laestingaeu, was built in 658 on a tract
of inaccessible land in Yorkshire donated by King Ethelwald of Deira.
Here Cedd spent 40 days in prayer and fasting to consecrate the place to
God according to the custom of Lindisfarne, derived from
Saint Columba
(f.d. June 9).
All three of the monasteries he built were destroyed by
the Danes and never restored.
He attended the Synod of Whitby in 664, where he accepted the Roman
observances, and died of the plague at Lastingham, Yorkshire. At the
news of his death, 30 of his brethren among the East Saxons came to
Lastingham to consecrate their lives where their holy father in faith
had ended his. But they, too, were all killed by the same plague,
except one unbaptized boy, who lived to become a priest and zealous
missionary
(
Delaney,
Walsh).
Saint Cedd is depicted in art as a bishop with a chalice and an abbatial
staff. Sometimes he is shown with his brother Saint Chad of Lichfield,
other times with Saint Diuma, bishop of the Middle English. He is
venerated at Charlbury, Oxon, England
(
Roeder).
Icon of Saint Cedd:
http://web.archive.org/web/20031230171255/http://www.nireland.com/orthodox/CEDD.JPG
Tiny URL
http://tinyurl.com/d99w2
