In the last article, I discussed the story of the burning of the cakes and how most academics interpret this. My concern is this examination of the story doesn’t try and see it through the eyes of the Anglo-Saxons.
Out of all the things Alfred achieved, this is the one story which is remembered in the popular conscious. This is the tale which was so important to recall. Why?
Rather than simply dismissing this as a quirk of history, I would suggest it was the moment of inspiration, where the king realised what he should do.
A key part of human religion is sacrifice. In the ancient pagan religions, they would give worship to their gods through sharing a meal. They would bring the sacrifice and the priest would separate it out. Some of it would be prepared for the worshipper to eat, the rest would be burnt in front of the idol of the god. The smoke rising as incense to the deity.
Most people think pagan religions involved sacrificing huge numbers of animals to the gods. This is misunderstanding. Archaeology has shown that majority of the time, the sacrifice was a cake or biscuit.
So in the story of King Alfred burning the cakes, we could imagine the smell would trigger memories. By absentmindedly letting the cakes burn, the acrid smell wafted through the air.
Maybe this caused him to recall experiences he had in the past, where he saw pagans worshipping their gods. Alfred was well travelled in his youth and could have seen these practices. He was well read, and may have come across reports on ancient pagan worship practices. Equally, his spies may have presented details to him about the culture of the invaders.
Through this revelation, he saw a way to bring peace, by asking his pagan enemies to reject their gods and embrace Christ. By sharing the same theological framework, they would be able to have a productive dialogue. Because they were working from the same first principles, they could communicate effectively.
Through Christ, they’d become brothers, and no longer enemies. The main problem was Guthram breaking his oaths. With him accepting Christ, it meant he was less likely to do this.
Rather than physical conflict, Alfred realised this was a spiritual one. And if Christ conquered their gods, then the people would follow and the war would be over.
The burning of the cakes may have been a mistake, but through it he found a way to solve the problem of the invaders. In our own lives, we need to be open to God’s providence. Even the most innocuous comment or event could trigger a thought which could solve our most complex problem.
Thank you for this. I write a Substack called English Voice and cover topics from an English perspective. Some are political, some are historical, some religious. I will share your substack with my readers ( I am just starting). I think that our identity is being erased and because we are not allowed to share our history or it is being re written largely. The latest is that Stonehenge was built by 'black' people.