Feast day of St John of Beverley

(Asiatic globeflower, Trollius asiaticus, is today's plant, dedicated to this saint.)

Famed Beverly Hills and those named Beverley or Beverly owe their names to the humble European Beaver in Britain – before they were hunted to extinction in that nation in the 16th century (sadly, only a few thousand remain in continental Europe).

John of Beverley (c. 640 - May 7, 721) was Bishop of Hexham, England and subsequently Archbishop of York, and the famous Catholic historian, the Venerable Bede was a pupil of his. John of Beverley was said to possess healing gifts. He founded Beverley Minster: there his shrine was a favourite resort of pilgrims.

Born at Harpham, England (Yorkshire), John preferred solitude and contemplation to the public life. He lived in a cell in midst of woods near a stream in which beavers lived, called in Anglo-Saxon (Old English) Beofor-leagh, or lea (field, or grove) of beavers – a name that changed over years to Beverley ...

Categories: saint, england