Sts. Ewald the Dark and Ewald the Fair

Ewald and his brother of the same name, natives of Northumbria, England, were both priests. They came to be distinguished from one another by the color of their hair as “Ewald the Dark” and “Ewald the Fair.” Stirred by a shared love of God and religious zeal, the two brothers journeyed to Germany with the intent of preaching the Gospel there. Upon reaching the German region of Westphalia, the two brothers lodged for several days with a magistrate who served a lord they were hoping to meet. As they waited, the Ewalds spent each day in prayer together, reciting psalms and celebrating Mass at a consecrated altar they had brought with them, along with the requisite sacred vessels. The Ewalds’ piety aroused fear among the pagans that the two brothers would succeed in converting their lord to the Christian faith. Determined to sabotage the Christianization of their land, the pagans seized both brothers and slaughtered them. Ewald the Fair was slain with a sword. Ewald the Dark was subjected to a prolonged torture, suffering death by dismemberment.