qf Ecclesiastics.
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Chap. 13.]
duties. “ In that faraous colledg, our monasterie of Bangor, in which therewere S100 Christian philosophers, that served for the profit of the peoplein Christ, living by the labor of their hands, according to St. Paul ’s doc-trine.” a This was in the 5th Century, when JPelagius belonged. to thesame monastery. In the 7th, “almost all monks were addicted to manualarts,” and according to St. Benedict , such only as lived by their own la-bor, “were truly monks.” b “They made andsold their wares to strangers,for the use [benefit] of their monasterie, yet somewhat cheaper than otherssold.” c Many of these men naturally became expert workmen, especiallyin the metals—a branch of the arts that seems to have been a favorite onewith them; hence, the best gold and silver smiths of the times were oftenfound in cloisters; and the rieh ‘boles, cups, chalices, basens, lavatoriesof silver and gold, and other precious furniture’ of the churches, weremade by the priests themselves:—It may be a question, whether theywere not right in thus combining mental and physical employments; asa compound being, manual labor seems necessary to the full developmentof man’s intellect, and to its healthy and vigorous exercise. Dunstan ,Archbishop of Canterbury in the lOth Century, was skilled in metallurgicaloperations—he was a working jeweler, and a brass founder. Two largebelis for the church at Abingdon were cast by him. He is said to havebeen the inventor of the Eolian harp, an instrument whose spontaneousmusic induced the people at that dark age, to consider him a conjurer—hence the old lines—
St. Dunstan ’s harp, fast by the wall,
Upon a pin did hang—a;
The harp itself, with ty and all,
Untouched by hand did twang—a.
The genius of some led them to cultivate architecture. Cathedrals andother buildings yet extant, attest their skill. Of celebrated architects inthe llth Century, were Mauritius , bishop of London , and G-undulphus,bishop of Rochester . The latter visited the Holy Land previous to thecrusades, and is said to have been one of the greatest builders, and themost eminent castle architect of his age. In the Towers of London andRochester , he left specimens of his art. At page 62, we referred to theremains of a castle built by him, and to his mode of protecting the well,and raising the water to the different floors. In the 12th Century, thesereverend artists were numerous. In England, were Roger, bishop ofSalisbury , and Ernulf, his successor—Alexander of Lincoln—Henry De Blois of Winchester, and Roger, of York; all of whom left remarkableproofs of their proficiency as builders. In France , ‘in sundry times theecclesiastics performed carving, smelting, painting, and mosaic.' Leo,bishop of Tours in the 6th Century, ‘was a great artist, especially in car-pentry.’ St. Eloy was at first a sadler , then a goldsmith, and at lastbishop of Noyan ; he built a monastery near Limoges , but he was mostnoted for shrines of gold, silver, and precious stones. He died in 668.The church of Notre Dame des Unes, in Flanders, was begun by Pierre,the 7th abbot, and completed in 1262, by Theodoric . ‘ The whole churchwas built by the monks themselves, assisted by the lay brothers and theirservants.’ d
Luther was accustomed to turning, and kept a lathe in his house, ‘inOrder to gain his livelihood by his hands, if the word of God failed toSupport him.’
“Monastichon Britannicum, Lon. 1655. p. 40. b Ib. 268. ' Ib. 301
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