Born in Italy in the 6th century, his legacy would derive, not from what he did in Rome, but England. 

Near the start of the 7th century, St. Pope Gregory the Great sent Augustine and about 40 other monks on a mission to convert the Anglo-Saxons in England. 

When they arrived at the English Channel, they lost heart. There had been too many stories about how difficult the channel was to cross and how brutal their reception would be if and when they arrived in England. 

But, when they returned to Rome St. Pope Gregory VII calmed their fears, encouraged and prayed for them, and then sent them back. 

On their second attempt, they succeeded and were welcomed by King Ethelbert who was a pagan but married to a Christian, Bertha. 

Just one year after they arrived, King Ethelbert was baptized by Augustine on Pentecost Sunday. 

Augustine went to France to be installed officially as the first archbishop of Canterbury and returned to England to grow the faith. 

He constructed a monastery and built a church, later replaced in 1070 by the current Cathedral, and with great success, his evangelization efforts succeeded, though not without trials and considerable effort. 

But Augustine never relented and eventually Rochester and London were established as dioceses. 

One thing he could not do during his lifetime was reunite the original British Christians with those he was leading. 

In the years before Augustine had arrived from Rome, they had been attacked and persecuted by the Anglo-Saxons and driven into western England. 

Though he tried many times, Augustine could not get them to join the official Church but neither did he condemn them and, eight years after his death in 604, they did come into The Church, finishing Augustine’s conversion of England. 

St. Augustine of Canterbury, please pray for us.