THE Saint David is David of Wales (March 1). Nonetheless, if you know any Scottish Davids, wish them a Happy St. David's Day. He was, after all, the greatest king of Scotland.
Nothing especially miraculous is attributed to David in most of the available short biographies. I suspect his life was too public and too well documented for any unsubstantiated claims to be put forward. But he was an able administrator who elevated the standing of his nation to a European leader, even if it slipped back into England's shadow after his death.
David was educated at the Anglo-Norman court of Henry I. He was deeply and inevitably enmeshed in English politics, holding an earldom in England and marrying the daughter of a fellow English earl. Henry I backed David against Malcolm (son of David's brother Alexander), placing him in debt to the English king. After Henry's death, as war for the English throne erupted, he sought Scotland's advantage (and his own) by grabbing Northumberland while fighting for Henry's daughter, the Empress Mathilda. By the time of the compromise that brought Henry II to the throne, David's territory extended well into present-day England.
David reorganized the Scottish legal, political, and ecclesiastical institutions. He established many new bishoprics, strengthened ties with the Vatican, and worked to get Scotland out of the oversight of Canterbury. I suppose this interest in strengthening the Church qualifies him for sainthood, though it looks like plain nationalism to me. Perhaps his personal piety, especially at the time of his death, is most saintly.
They say that his attendants advised him to rest after Viaticum (receiving Communion as part of the last rites). He answered, "Allow me rather to think about the things of God, so that my soul may be strengthened... when I stand before God's judgment-seat, none of you shall answer for me, none of you protect me or deliver me from his hand." That alone is worth meditating on.
Oh, if you're wondering about the English north, David's acquisitions didn't last long. His son predeceased him so his grandson, Malcolm IV, succeeded him on the throne. The insatiably imperialistic Henry II quickly chased the Scots from English territory and began work on controlling Scotland itself. Henry II was one greedy SOB; ain't no one calling him a saint.
No comments:
Post a Comment