Guthlake (a person, not a body of water) lived during the late 600s and into the 700s, in what is now the eastern section of England. He was born into a noble family and, as a matter of course, served in the army of King Ethelred.

Then something happened to Guthlake when he was around 23 years old: taking stock of what it meant to be in Ethelred’s army, Guthlake concluded, according to Butler, “how dangerous a thing it is to the soul to serve in wars, which too often have no other motive than the passions of men and the vanities of the world”! Thereupon Guthlake quit the army. He found that being a warrior was incompatible with following the Prince of Peace.

So Guthlake changed course and spent his next two years at a monastery learning what there was to learn there. Once he had had his fill, he, along with two others, he left the monastery and traveled by boat a small island where Guthlake lived out the remainder of his life as a holy hermit. So not only did he eschew the life of a soldier, Guthlake also chose not to return to a life of nobility and ease. Whilst on that island, Guthlake received visitors, offered wise counsel, and foretold events to those seeking him out. Simplicity and kindness marked his days to the end.

It is hard to shake off Guthlake’s insights into the nature of wars–that they so often are animated by “the passions of men and the vanities of the world.” Wars really never are acts of holiness, and are in no way rooted in the teachings or way of Jesus of Nazareth. Just as challenging, Guthlake’s life demonstrates that each of us must make our own decisions about the morality of participation in group ventures–be it an army, a job, a church, a family, a nation, a political party, a profession, or even a coffee klatch. We do not cease being responsible moral agents when we become part of a group–even a group that has people we like and who may be doing some very worthwhile things.

Guthlake may be the most challenging saint yet for me.