One of the most famous swords in history is on display at the Louvre Museum in Paris. It’s called the Sword of Joyeuse and is reported to have belonged to Charlemagne. The irony is not lost on me that joyeuse in French means joyful, not a word I would normally associate with a sword. Charlemagne’s weapon was emblematic of his militaristic reign in the eighth century over vast portions of western Europe. He wielded the sword to bring Italy, France, Germany, Austria, and the Low Countries into his ever-expanding empire. He sought to make Christianity the official religion of his empire, such that anyone who refused baptism would die by the sword. Not exactly what Jesus had in mind.
Enter Alcuin of York (ca.735-804) into Charlemagne’s life. Alcuin was generally regarded as the “the most learned man anywhere to be found.” Alcuin met Charlemagne in 881 after a trip to Rome and Charlemagne urged him to join his court as a master teacher. He accepted the offer and introduced a liberal arts curriculum of seven subjects to Charlemagne’s sons and noble families.
Alcuin was a devout Christian who had served the church in various leadership roles and took exception with the emperor’s policy of forcing Christianity on people. Genuine faith, he said, cannot be achieved with a sword. He wrote a strongly worded letter to Charlemagne in 796, “Faith is a free act of the will, not a forced act. We must appeal to the conscience, not compel it by violence. You can force people to be baptized but you cannot force them to believe.” His argument convinced Charlemagne to abolish the death penalty for unbelievers in 798.
Alcuin is also remembered for developing a more legible style of handwriting and inventing the question mark. He leads us in a prayer of confession and trust: