Bede: EHEP—Book I—Chapter 31

 The Ecclesiastical History of the English People—Book I—Chapter 31

Bede records Pope Gregory's letter advising Augustine that he should not become too proud of his ability to create miracles and that he should think about eternal rewards in heaven rather than temporal rewards for his gift.

Points Noted

• Bede must have felt that miracles are part of history and so he records them along with historical events. In 2013, reading about miracles in a book which is concerned with recording factual history seems very unusual since we now cast a skeptical eye on the supernatural. However, perhaps because of Bede's strong faith as a monk, miracles were considered fact. Considering the title, Bede's work is specifically about "ecclesiastical history," so maybe during his time it would not have been unusual to record such events in that type of work. The bible, filled with miraculous events, was also considered a historical account for the Israelites and Christians. It is a little disappointing that the letter does not include the type of miracles that Augustine performed. Bede does not go into details about the miracles either, which seems a bit unusual since anyone reading his history might want to know more about them. 

• At first, I tried to rationalize what these miracles could be and thought that maybe these miracles refer to the conversion of the Britons. However, it seems more likely that they refer to something he is doing which causes them to convert--"the souls of the English are drawn by outward miracles to inward grace." What might these "outward miracles" be--some action or event, something visual?