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 Saint Willibrord: 1300th Anniversary of Beginning of Missionary Work Scott 858-860 (1990) November 7 is celebrated as the memorial to the 7th and 8th century missionary, Saint Willibrord. The three-stamp set shown above was issued to commemorate the 1300th anniversary of the start of his missionary work in Europe. The stamp illustrations come from the stained-glass windows found at the Basilica of Echternach in Luxembourg. A detailed description of the artwork can be found in the UFN release in the References. Willibrord was born around the year 658 AD in Ripon, Yorkshire. He was consecrated a priest in Ireland and, in 690, along with a group of companions, went to the European mainland and established a mission in Frisia (in the present-day Netherlands). An English contemporary of his, Saint Boniface, would also evangelize in this area, as well as in Germany (Boniface was martyred in Frisia in 754). The region was under the control of pagan rulers, but with the support of the Frankish ruler Pepin of Herstal, his apostolic efforts were successful. He traveled to Rome to secure papal approval for the see, and in 695, Pope Sergius I consecrated him as the first Archbishop of Utrecht. From this base in Utrecht, Willibrord built churches and helped establish an English Christian culture on the continent. He extended his missionary efforts into Denmark and surrounding regions. In 698, he founded the Abbey of Echternach in modern-day Luxembourg. This would become the epicenter of his continuing efforts, and he would remain there for the rest of his life.  Abbey of Echternach Photo by Txllxt TxllxT From Wikimedia Commons, used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 International license Saint Willibrord died on November 7, 739, at the age of 81. He remains the patron saint of the Netherlands and Luxembourg, and he is referred to as the “Apostle of Frisia” and the “Apostle of Benelux”, the broad region over which he helped plant the seeds of Christianity. His remains rest in the Basilica of Echternach in Luxembourg where, each year, a procession and “sacred dance” (the historic Echternach dancing procession) takes place. The ceremonies, which include local bishops and members of the clergy, sustain the memory of this legendary missionary and saint. REFERENCES |
