Legend about St. Boniface:
Most of the legends of Saint Boniface on the Island relate to events after his
death, yet there are stories about his visits, most of which take place around
the area of Bonchurch. It is from there that he is supposed to have preached to
the Island fishermen, from what is still known as Pulpit Rock.
One of which concerns a time when he was having doubts about his faith, and
walked along the coast near what is now Bonchurch. There he sat down, asking for
a sign from God to help him through his doubts. As he was there, a boy who had
dug a hole in the sand picked up a shell, filled it with sea water, and then
emptied it into his hole. He did this several times, before throwing away the
shell in anger and crying.
Wynfryth asked him why he was crying, to which he replied, 'I wanted to empty
the sea into the hole I dug, but I can't!'
Boniface replied, enlightened, 'That is the same cause of my doubts - I have
been trying to fit the infinite inside my finite mind!' and went off, confirmed
in his faith.
Another lengend about St. Boniface:
Most of the legends of Saint Boniface on the Island relate to events after his
death, yet there are stories about his visits, most of which take place around
the area of Bonchurch. It is from there that he is supposed to have preached to
the Island fishermen, from what is still known as Pulpit Rock.
One of which concerns a time when he was having doubts about his faith, and
walked along the coast near what is now Bonchurch. There he sat down, asking for
a sign from God to help him through his doubts. As he was there, a boy who had
dug a hole in the sand picked up a shell, filled it with sea water, and then
emptied it into his hole. He did this several times, before throwing away the
shell in anger and crying.
Wynfryth asked him why he was crying, to which he replied, 'I wanted to empty
the sea into the hole I dug, but I can't!'
Boniface replied, enlightened, 'That is the same cause of my doubts - I have
been trying to fit the infinite inside my finite mind!' and went off, confirmed
in his faith.
And one more:
Another story related to St. Boniface Down is how a Bishop, riding the slopes of
Boniface Down on a wild, stormy night, lost his way and was in danger of falling
down a precipice, into the rocks below. The Bishop, fearing for his life, let go
of the reigns and prayed to the spiritual guidance of Saint Boniface, promising
to give the Saint's church an acre of land as a reward. The horse then guided
him safely and directly to Saint Boniface's Well. As a result, the bishop kept
his word, and Bishop's Acre survives today.
Shan <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/alien.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />
