Letter 10

From: Alcuin of York, scholar and court theologian To: Charlemagne, King of the Franks Date: ~798 AD Context: Alcuin writes to Charlemagne continuing his argument against forced baptism, with specific reference to the ongoing treatment of the newly conquered Saxon peoples. To the most devout King Charles, from Alcuin his servant and friend, I return to the question of the Saxons because I believe the current approach is producing exactly the outcome I warned against: a large population that has been baptized but not formed, that calls itself Christian but does not live as Christians, and that will pass this nominal faith to their children along with a deep and justified resentment of the manner in which it was imposed. The compulsory tithe among a people who have received no formation in the meaning of the tithe is a particularly acute problem. When you ask someone to pay for an institution they do not understand and did not choose to belong to, you are guaranteed to produce resentment. That resentment then attaches to the church as an instrument of political oppression, which is exactly the opposite of what the church should be. I am not asking for leniency toward those who actively resist Christianity. I am asking for a fundamental rethinking of what successful mission looks like. It does not look like a large number of baptized persons who hate the faith they have been enrolled in. It looks like a smaller number of genuinely converted persons who live the faith and pass it on freely to their children. I press this because I believe it matters for the long-term health of the church in the territories the king governs. Alcuin