Homily: June 5 - St. Boniface, bishop and martyr - Chopping down pagan oaks

Today we celebrate the feast of Saint Boniface, who is known as the apostle to the Germans.  This English Benedictine monk devoted his life to the evangelization of the Germanic tribes.  He made his first missionary journey to Germany in 719 at the request of Pope Gregory II.

One writer wrote, “St. Boniface had it all: natural brilliance, formidable powers of persuasion, and unstoppable energy and resolve.  He could have had a great career and high status in society, but this saintly man wanted something very different: nothing for himself and everything for Christ and His Church.”

His is one of my favorite stories from the lives of the saints. He found the land full of Pagans and many of the Christians there had also lapsed into error, even many of the clergy.  The Germanic tribes worshipped gods of Norse Mythology: Odin and Thor and the like.  And many were resisting belief in Christ.  Boniface learned of a giant oak tree where the Pagans gathered to offer false worship to the God Thor.  So Boniface, took an axe and began chopping down the tree.  The pagans cursed Boniface and waited for him to be struck dead by their gods for his sacrilege.  The story says that just when Boniface had chopped a small notch into the tree, the tree was blast apart from above.  And the pagans who had before cursed Boniface now began to believe.  And moreover, Boniface took from the wood of the tree and built an oratory in honor of Saint Peter. 

This is why you’ll often see stained glass windows and statues with St. Boniface in his bishops attire, holding an axe, standing on a tree trunk.

Of course, Boniface would be arrested for violating the first amendment in our own country, so we might not want to follow his example literally.  But we are still called to preach the truth of the Gospel and engage the culture by exposing its moral and philosophical errors to the light of Christ, and witnessing to the Gospel with our lives.

Pagan oaks of error, superstition, and false teaching seem to be sprouting up like weeds these days.  Opposing them seems like daunting work, but remember that Boniface only needed to take those first courageous swings with the axe before God did the rest of the work.

In his 80^th year, Boniface was preparing candidates for confirmation when they were attacked by barbarians and massacred, martyred for the faith.

In a letter written to a Benedictine abbess, Saint Boniface wrote: “Let us stand fast in what is right and prepare our souls for trial…let us be neither dogs that do not bark, nor silent onlookers, nor paid servants who run away before the wolf.”

As we prayed in the opening prayer: “may the Martyr Saint Boniface, be our advocate that we may firmly hold the faith he taught with his lips and sealed in his blood and confidently profess it by our deeds” for the glory of God and salvation of souls.