ON ST. THEORITGIDA, VIRGIN, AT BARKING IN ENGLAND.
Seventh century.
PrefaceTheoritgida, Virgin in England (St.)
[1] Barking, called Berecing by Bede, and Berchingium by others, commonly Barking, on the left bank of the Thames where the river Roding flows into it, the monastery of Barking, in the province of Essex, or of the East Saxons, eight miles below London, as Malmesbury writes, was once a celebrated monastery; founded by St. Erkenwald, Bishop of London -- before his episcopate, however -- for his sister Ethelburga, around the year 670. Of this more fully in the Life of the same holy Bishop on April 30, and in St. Ethelburga's on October 11.
[2] Here, under the discipline of St. Ethelburga, Theoritgida led a most holy life, whom Harpsfield in the seventh century, chapter 14, calls Tergitha, Capgrave Tortgitha, and others Theorgitha. Ferrari records her feast day on January 26, feast day of St. Theoritgida, as does the English Martyrology; and we follow them, because we have found it nowhere else noted with a certain indicator. For Menard records her on January 22; the New English Martyrology on January 23; Molanus in his additions to Usuard, first edition, and Canisius, and again Ferrari on December 24. Wion relegated her to an appendix, with the other Saints whose feast days he did not know. All who have written about the deeds of St. Ethelburga, or Edilburga, mention her; among them the Venerable Bede is of chief authority, who writes the following in book 4 of the English History, chapter 9.
LIFE FROM BEDE, book 4, chapter 9.
Theoritgida, Virgin in England (St.)
From Bede.
[1] Theoritgida, helper of St. Edilburga. When the devout Mother of the congregation dedicated to God, Edilburga herself, was to be snatched from the world, a wonderful vision appeared to one of the Sisters, whose name was Thorithgid; she had already lived many years in the same monastery, and herself always strove to serve God in all humility and sincerity, and took care to be an assistant to the same Mother in regular discipline, by teaching and correcting the younger ones. So that her virtue, according to the Apostle, might be perfected in weakness, she was suddenly struck with a most grievous bodily illness, and for nine years was greatly afflicted she is ill for nine years by the merciful providence of our Redeemer, that whatever impurity of defiling vice had long settled among her virtues through ignorance or negligence, the furnace of long tribulation might refine away entirely. 2 Cor. 12:9.
[2] She learns by divine revelation that someone will die soon. On a certain night, at the beginning of twilight, she went out of the chamber where she was staying and clearly saw something like a human body, brighter than the sun, wrapped in a linen cloth, being carried aloft -- lifted, that is, from the house where the Sisters used to rest. And when she looked more carefully to see by what drawing this appearance of a glorious body was being raised upward, she saw that it was being lifted to the heights, as if by cords brighter than gold, until, having been introduced through the opening heavens, it could no longer be seen by her. Nor did any doubt remain to the one thinking about the vision, that someone from that congregation was soon to die, whose soul was to be lifted to the heavens, as it were by golden cords, through the good works she had done. And indeed it so came to pass. For after not many days had intervened, that was Edilburga, the God-beloved Mother of the congregation itself was led forth from the prison of the flesh, and her life is known to have been such that no one who knew her should doubt that on her departure from this life the entrance of the heavenly homeland lay open to her.
[3] In the same monastery there was also a certain nun, noble in the dignity of this world and nobler in the love of the world to come, who for many years had been so deprived of all bodily function Another obtains death through the merits of St. Edilburga that she could not move even a single limb. When she learned that the body of the venerable Abbess had been brought into the church to be kept until burial, she asked to be carried there and to be bowed toward it in the manner of one praying. When this was done, she addressed her as if she were alive and asked her to obtain from the mercy of the merciful Creator that she be released from such great and prolonged torments. Nor was she heard much later; for after twelve days she too was led forth from the flesh and exchanged her temporal afflictions for an eternal reward.
[4] When the aforesaid handmaid of Christ, Thorithgid, was still held in this life for three more years after the death of her Lady, Theoritgida is invited to heaven by St. Edilburga, she was so refined by the infirmity we have described that she scarcely clung to her bones; and at last, when the time of her dissolution was at hand, she was deprived of the use not only of her other limbs but also of her tongue. When this had gone on for three days and as many nights, she was suddenly refreshed by a spiritual vision, and opened her mouth and eyes, and looking up to heaven, she began to speak thus to the vision she beheld: "Your coming is very welcome to me, and you have come well." And having said this, she was silent for a little while, as though waiting for the reply of the one she saw and to whom she was speaking; and then, as though slightly indignant, she added: "By no means can I bear this gladly." And again, after a brief silence, she said a third time: "If it can by no means happen today, I beseech you, let not the interval be long." And after a brief pause as before, she concluded her speech thus: "If it is absolutely so decreed and this sentence cannot be changed, I beseech you, let no more than this one coming night alone intervene." When she was asked by those sitting around her with whom she was speaking, she replied: "With my dearest Mother Edilburga." From which they understood that Edilburga had come to announce to her the approaching time of her departure. For so it was, she dies the next day, as she had asked: after one day and one night had passed, released from the bonds of the flesh and of her illness alike, she entered into the eternal joys of salvation.