During the Crusades, which united all Christen dom in their chief purpose, and until the middle of the fifteenth century, strong but futile attempts were made to restore the unity of the East and the West. But when the Byzantine empire went down in 1453 all serious and general efforts for union ceased.
(7) Medi mval Missions in Europe. The spread of Christianity continued steadily. Columban and Gallus from Britain were the pioneers in evange lizing the Germans, and were followed by Willi brod and Winfried, both Englishmen. Winfried, or as he is better known under his Latin name Boniface, was the great apostle of Germany, where he organized the Church about the middle of the eighth century. He was martyred among the Frisians.
From the centers in Germany and France, from Ireland, the "Holy Isle," and from England, mis sionaries co-operated in founding missions among the heathen dwelling in the remoter parts of Eu rope. The monasteries kept up a close brother hood. Monks went out from them, threaded the forests and climbed the mountains of rude and barbarous peoples, and spent their lives amid all possible dangers, in their endeavor to extend Christianity. Many of them fell by violent hands. Sometimes the rulers were the first to accept the gospel, but often it ascended from the poor and the lowly, step by step, until the throne was reached and Christianity was publicly proclaimed as the faith of the State.
Harold, king of Jutland, was aided to the throne of his fathers against his competitors by the Car lovingian emperor, Louis le Debonnaire. Harold and his queen were then baptized in the Cathedral of Mentz in 826, and ever afterwards befriended the gospel. Anskar, a monk of Corbey, accompan ied them back to Denmark, with a view to organize the Church in that country. A rebellion was ex cited against Harold, and he was obliged to flee from the country. Anskar was also driven out, but rather than give up his missionary work he turned his eyes toward the still more savage Swe den and determined to plant missions there.
In 831 Anskar, with Witmar, his brother monk, proceeded to Sweden with gifts for the king of the country. While on their voyage they were at tacked by pirates, lost all their possessions and barely escaped with their lives. They reached
Birka on the Malar Lake ; the king welcomed them, and in a short time his counsellor, Herigar, became a Christian convert.
Anskar went to Rome, was consecrated an arch bishop, and departed to preach the gospel to the northern nations. He made a second visit to Sweden in 855. He died in 865, but before his death saw Christianity taking firm hold through out Scandinavia. He was one of the most beau tiful characters of the whole mediaeval period.
The first positive accounts we have of the intro duction of the gospel into Norway is that it was carried thither by some seafaring youth. Olaf the Thick, king of Norway, called St. Olaf, was the first to organize the Church on a permanent basis in to19.
The gospel reached Iceland from Norway, and during the tenth century was fully established there by Olaf Trygvesen. From Iceland the gos pel was carried to Greenland. Even from these remote regions Rome was strenuous to gather gifts for her treasury. The Greenland Christians paid their tithes to Rome in walrus teeth.
Cyril and Methodius, two Greek monks, were the first to introduce the gospel among the Bul garians and also among the Moravians. Cyril was a theologian and Methodius a painter, and the lat ter's picture of the Day of Judgment had as much to do with the conversion of the people as the arguments of the former. They made a Slavonic version of portions of the Scriptures. During this formative period the Bulgarian Church had its re lations with Rome.
The Russian princess Olga embraced Christian ity in 955. Her son Swiatoslav was proof against all her importunities to follow her example. Her grandson Vladimir, however, accepted Christian ity and caused churches to be organized and the people to be instructed in the use of the Slavonic Scriptures and liturgy.
Poland received the gospel through Christian refugees from Moravia, when that kingdom was broken up. Hungary first became acquainted with Christianity through the instrumentality of certain of her princes while visiting Constantinople. The wild tribes of the Wends between the Saale and the Oder, after an unsuccessful attempt by Gott schalk in 1047, were brought over to the Chris tian faith in 1168 when Absalon, bishop of Roes kilde, burned the last Wendic idol.