Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 2.djvu/139

 took the  king's  right  hand  with  much  joy,

and cried  out  with  faith,  thus  saying  to  him;

'May this  blessed  right  hand  never  rot  in  corruption.'

And it  happened  to  him,  even  as  Aldan  prayed  for  him,

that his  right  hand  is  sound until  this  day.

'Then Oswald's  kingdom  became  greatly  enlarged,

so that  four  peoples  received  him  as  lord,

Picts, Britons,  Scots,  and  Angles,

even as  the  Almighty  God  united  them  for  the  purpose,

because of  Oswald's  merits,  who  ever  honoured  Him.

He completed  in  York  the  noble  minster

which his  kinsman  Edwin  had  before  begun,

and laboured  for  the  heavenly  kingdom  with  continual  prayers,

much more  than  he  cared  how  he  might  preserve

the transitory  dignities  in  the  world,  which  he  little  loved.

He would  very  often  pray  after  matins,

and stand  in  the  church  apart  in  prayer

from the  time  of  sun-rise  with  great  fervour;

and wheresoever  he  was  he  ever  worshipped  God

with the  palms  of  his  hands  uplifted  heavenward,.

At that  same  time  also  a  certain  bishop

came from  the  city  of Rome,  called  Birinus,

to the  king  of  the  West  Saxons,  called  Cynegils,

who was  yet  a  heathen,  as  was  all  the  land  of  the  "West  Saxons.

Birinus indeed  came  from  Rome

by desire  of  the  Pope,  who  was  then  in  Rome,

and promised  that  he  would  execute  God's  will

and preach  to  the  heathen  the  Saviour's  name

and the  true  faith  in  far  lands.

Then he  came  to  Wessex,  which  was  as  yet  heathen,

and converted  to  God  the  king  Cynegils