, commencing with "Inhac
Lucifero prselucidior : nam lucct
in ejus
Tempore vera fides, errorum nube
fugata.
Lucifero prselucidior : nam lucct
in ejus
Tempore vera fides, errorum nube
fugata.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v8
(b), ibid.
59 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," 53 See " Trias Thaumaturga," Quarta Appendix Quarta ad Acta S. Columbce,
Vita S. Columbae, n. 10, p. 386.
54 On this " subject, Dr. Lanigan adds,
We
cap. x. , p. 487.
*°
Hence we find the names and deaths of
"
Trias Thaumaturga," p. 498, et seq.
61
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 455
founder, who, perhaps, had died some years before Aidan was born. It is well known, that the great majority of the Iona monks in those days were from Ireland, and that the abbots and other superiors of that monastery, at least for five or six centuries after the death of St. Columkille, were con-
60
Seghine, government
munity lasted from a. d. 623 to 652. He thus survived his distinguished
disciple one year. In due course of time, Aedan undoubtedly, although not an abbot, was regarded as one of the superiors in the monastery of Hy. This appears, from his having had a place in the council among the elders.
According to the accounts of some of the most ancient and respectable Church Historians, Christianity had been introduced into Britain, during the
some themselves. Eusebius ha* stated among
stantly chosen from among the Irish.
lived for a considerable time in Iona Island, where many of his countrymen were monks, since the time of its foundation. It is certain he was under the rule of the Abbot 61 whose term of over that com-
time of the 62 and Apostles,
by
this as a narrative, which he may have received from the Emperor Constan-
tine63 himself, a part of whose life was spent as Roman Governor in Britain. 6* That the Emperor Tiberias6^ tolerated and even protected the Christians is
66
and, in consequence, Christianity began to spread rapidly and widely in all the Roman Provinces. 6? . Among other
68
people, it is asserted, that the Britons early obtained the gift of Divine
Faith. 60 There appear, also, to be some grounds for believing, that St.
Paul,? after he had visited Spain, brought salvation to the Islands? 1 that lie
2
in the Ocean,? and among these are supposed to be included the. British
related by ancient historians ;
Islands. 73
the abbots and other distinguished men of
Hy as regularly marked in the Irish Annals, as those of the members of any religious
Marco, the Pretorian prefect, caused him to
be suffocated with pillows, A. D. 37, in the
seventy-eighth year of his age. See the
establishment existing in Ireland.
Popular Encyclopedia, or Conversations
See notices of him, a—t the 12th of
62 "
August— the day for his feast in the present
Volume, Art. iv.
Such is the statement of Eusebius, Bishop of Cesarea, who flourished in the third and fourth centuries, and who wrote in Greek, besides his valuable Ecclesiastical History, the well-known work, Ei}<x77e\t/C77 Airddetgis, Latinized " Demonstratio Evan- gelica. " In it, he states, that besides evan- gelizing other countries which he names, in Asia and Europe, that some of the Apostles passed over the Ocean and visited the British Islands. See lib. iii. , cap. vii. ,p. 113. Nor can we believe that such a judicious and learned Church Historian could be deceived in his information; since, from the first cen- tury of the Christian era, the affairs of Britain were noticed by the Roman writers, and traditions regarding them were placed upon record both by Pagans and Christians.
63 Known as Constantine the Great, first
in his Historia Britonum. "
67 See Eusebius, "Historia Ecclesiastica,"
lib. ii. , cap. iii.
68
See what has been already written about the origin of these people in the Third Volume of this work, at the 17th day of March, Art i. The Life of St. Patrick, Apostle and Chief Patron of Ireland, chap. ii.
69 This is stated by Arnobius, in his Commentaries on the Psalms, 147, and by Theodoret.
70 The chief feast for St. Paul is on the 29thofJune. Hesufferedmartyjrdomunder the Emperor Nero, a. d. 63.
71 However,Dr. WilliamCavecautiously observes, "n—onnulla forsan Occidentis loca
"
peragravit. " Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum
Historia Literaria," vol. i. , p. 12.
72 In his Commentaries on the Psalms, by
Theodoret, of who lived in Bishop Cyrrhus,
Christian Emperor of Rome.
64 See
Britannicse, or, the Antiquities of the British Churches," chap, i. , pp. 36, 37.
65 Claudius Nero Tiberias, the third Roman Emperor, was born before Christ 42, and, on the death of Augustus, a. d. 14, he suc- ceeded. Having reigned thirty-eight years,
Bishop Stillingfleet's
"
Origines
See
"
Lexicon," vol. vi. , pp. 611, 612.
It is very probable, also, that Aidan
66
treating the events of his reign. Also Ter- tullian, in "Apologia," cap. v. , and Gildas
See the Chronicle of Eusebius, when
the fourth and fifth centuries, this is stated, in the collected edition of his works by Pere Sirmond and Gamier, and in
J. published five folio volumes at Paris, from 1642 to
1684. See tomus i. , In Psalmos, 116, p. 870.
456
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31. Several modern writers, with the aid of legends, traditions and conjectures,
6
have discovered, that St. Peter,74 Prince of the Apostles,75 St. Paul,? 8
Apostle of the Nations, St. Simon Zelotes,77 and St. James,? the son of
Zebedee, severally preached in Britain. 79 After their departure, the pious undertaking is said to have been continued, owing to the labours of
£o and
ofArimathea. 81
the adduced testimony
However,
to support these statements is altogether unreliable. 82 The early British
8 8* ecclesiastical writer, St. Gildas, 3 is silent on the subject, in those treatises
he wrote referring to the ancient state of Britain.
73 Bishop Stillingfleet presents very cogent "Liber de Patribus Utiiusque Testa-
Aristobulus,
Joseph
reasons for advancing such a proposition ;
by citing several ancient authorities in proof,
and by showing, that the circumstances of
his life permitted St. Paul to have visited
Britain, that there was encouragement and invitation enough for him to go there, and,
owing to the circumstances of the other
Apostles, he was the most likely of all to
have been in Britain. The argument is an ingenious one as drawn from probabilities. names.
"
Rediens
Apostolis diversa Cosmi climata adeuntibus, nutu Dei Jacobus Hibernice oris appulsus, Verbum Dei prajdicavit intrepidus, ubi septem discipulos elegisse fertur : scilicet, Torquatum, Secundum, Indalecium, Tisephontem, Eufrasium, Ceci- ject, Baronius quotes in his Annales lium, Isichium, quorum collogio lolium Ecclesiastici," at a. d. 58. He states, that, extirparet, ac telluri aridoe et diu sterili
See "Antiquities of the British Churches," chap, i. , pp. 37 to 48.
74 According to the comments on St. Peter
and Paul, at the 29th of June, Metaphrastes, who is rather a poor authority on the sub-
"
about this period St. Peter was employed in
the West, and the particularly among
semina verbi Dei committeret. Cumque
dies — immineret, supremus, Hierosolymam
'
cum eis
Vincentius Bellovacensis, "Speculum Histo- riale," lib. viii. , cap. vii.
Britons. See tomus i. , num "
subiit.
li.
s His chief feast is on the 29th June, the
perrexit, ibique Martyrium
date for his Martyrdom.
7« St. states, that St. Although Jerome
Paul preached the Gospel in the Western
parts, no sufficient evidence remains to prove
positively that he visited Britain. See "
Catalogus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum," written about A. D. 392. However,Venantius
Fortunatus, when treating of St. Paul, in
79 See on this Ussher's subject Archbishop
" lines :—
80
In the Greek Menologies, his feast is placed at the 15th of March, and he is said to have been one of the seventy disciples. He followed St. Paul as an assistant, and by him was ordained Bishop, as is stated, to
bring the Gospel among the Britons.
81
The disciple of our Divine Savour, and whose festival is held on the 17th of March. According to the traditions of the Church at Glastonbury, he came into Britain, A. D. 63, andtherepreachedtheGospel. According to many unreliable legends, he founded the church and monastery of Glastonbury. See the citations in Archbishop Ussher's " Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates," cap. ii. , pp. 7 to 17.
his
Vita S. Martini," lib. iii. , has these
M
77
Transit et Oceanum, vel qua facit Insula Portum,
Quasque Britannus habet terras, quasqueultimaThule. "
According to Nicephorus Callistus, he brought the Gospel doctrine to the Western Ocean and to the Britannic Islands. See
ria Ecclesiastic*," lib. ii. , cap. xi.
in some of the Greek
t is set down at the 10th of May ; yet,
the Martyrologies of Bede, Ado and Usuard
relate, that he suffered Martyrdom in Persia,
on the 28th of October. It is also the date for
his feast in the Roman Martyrology and writings, Art i. Life of St. Gildas Badonicus, Breviary.
Although
Menologies,
82 " Anti- See Rev. Dr. John Lingard's
I Si chief feast is on the 25th of July.
84 The chief of these is known as the "
Historia Britonum," various editions of which have been published. Other works have been attributed to him, and among
Isidorus states that this
the Gospel to the people of Spain and in
Apostle preached
other Western places, and brought its li^ht
to the extreme Western World. See these are his treatise, "De Excidio Bry-,
menti," cap. lxii. A Pseudo-Chronicle, at- tributed to Flavins Lucius Dexter, treating
about St. James at a. d. 41, has it :
Jacobus Gallias invisit, ac Britannias, ac
Venetiarum oppida, u? >i prsedicat ; ac Hie-
rosolymanrevertitur,"etc. St. Jamesiseven
brought to Ireland, by another writer, who
asserts, that he selected seven disciples—
these notwithstanding do not bear Irish
"
" Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates," cap. i. , pp. I to 6.
quities of the Anglo-Saxon Church," chap. i. pp. 1, 2.
8i See the First Volume of this Work, at January 29, for an account of him and his
or St. Gildas the Wise.
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 457
Such accounts seem to have been unknown, as they are not related by
Venerable Bede, the father of English Ecclesiastical History, who even treats
8
of Britain's condition under the Early Roman Emperors. * But, he tells us,
86
together
religious request. ^ Then the Britons were converted through the ministry of Fugatius and Damianus, who were most successful in bringing them under the mild yoke of the Gospel. Hence these missionaries have been regarded as the Apostles of Britain. The people of that province are said to have preserved the Faith, which they had received, entire and uncorrupted, as also they practised religion in peace and tranquillity, until the time of the
1
Emperor Diocletian,9° who began his reign, a. d. 284. 9
That the Christian doctrine was publicly professed in Britain before the
close of the second century is clear, from the testimony of Tertullian92 and of Origen. 93 That conquered and half-civilized country, like the rest of the Roman Empire, gradually received the Christian religion during the second and third centuries. 94 Even then it had spread in the ranks of the Roman legions. Nor is there any good reason for doubting the general assertion of British writers, that Lucius was the person to whom the people owed such advantage. 95 He wrote, it is stated, to Elutherius, a holy Pontiff, who then presided over the Church, entreating that through the Pope's command he
whilst Eleutherus or Elutherius8? a holy man, presided over the Roman Church, and while Marcus Anonius Verus, the fourteenth from Augustus, was made Emperor, with his brother, Aurelius Commodus 88 of the
that in the the year of our Lord's Incarnation, 156,
; Lucius, King Britons, wrote to Elutherius a request, that through his command, he might become a Christian. Soon afterwards, the King obtained the object of his
mightbecomeaChristian andheobtainedthe
; object
ofhis
6
Although the old British traditions have accounts of King Lucius, who must
have been subject to the Romans, yet various conjectures have been proposed
regarding the part of Britain in which he reigned. 97 The Welsh Triads
tannise, lib. i.
, commencing with "Inhac
Lucifero prselucidior : nam lucct
in ejus
Tempore vera fides, errorum nube
fugata. "
g9 The hist of Ki Luci and the
earl> ecclesiastical affair? of Britain about his lod have been investigated in a most
lear£ed ma by Archbishop Ussher, in „ Britannicarum Ecclesiarum AutiqHuitates,"
cap> m<} iv>> v#j vij pp> IJr tQ
9° See "Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
"" Epistola quicquid;
In sui Temporis
. clerum," lib. i. , commencing with " Bry-
" tannia habet sacerdotes
"Condones Mordentes," lib. i. , commencing with "Esaias propheta dicit, uaeuob;/ "His- oriam quandam lib. i. , commencing with "Alboinus Longobardorum rex ab ; "De Immortahtate Amm* lib. i. Also, some other writings are said to have been pro-
;
cap. 11 111. , pp. 36 to 41.
Pope St. Pius I. was Sovereign Pontiff that year, having sat in the chair of St. Peter
7 Cf
Regalt.
£y
c „-T'- tt gee
• r
5
rum hb.
1
4- a
1
» lib
•
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglo-
1^
Popular Encyclopaedia,
fr 4
TJ^A ^
i
St. Elutherius only began his term of presi-
dencyA. D. WandhediedAD. 192 See
% 93 In HomiHa vi> in Lucam> Also ill
vi>> in Ezechchial.
94 See Dean H^Hart MillWs
57
h* C}}rono °gy 1S at however, as
Sir Hams Nicolas
Chronology
of His-
<«
History of Latin Christianity," vol. ii. ,
tor 20
. . .
'-
*rnv
Editio Homm&
I' P* 9' Tt
Book iv. , iii. , 226. chap, p.
ss The;e is ^ Jjust ^
for stati the
conversion of Lucius to be a mere j end as Dean Milman d
,5^ Venerable Bede>s -Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Ang&lorum," lib. i. ,
.
- "}* 1S said his original name in the old
British or Celtic Language was Lies after- wards Latmized Lucius, whether by the Romans among whom he lived or by sub- sequent writers, is not known. Gildas alludes to him, and quotes the following lines of an old British poet. They are thus rendered :-
"
orto
Antiquities
.
.
Inde patd Coylo succedit Lucius, ,
65.
. ,v
;
AngSloruin
.
i<} cap
.
iv pp> 40 4I<
»
See the ^^ or
9x
Conversations Lexicon," vol. ii. , 680. p
92 In his treatis c
jv &See'
.
Q 4I
Bishop' Stillingfleet's
of the British Churches," chap, ii. , pp. 60
to
pious request. ^
«
45*
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
have stated,*8 that Bran, the supposed grandfather of Caractacus, who flourished in the time of the Roman Emperor Claudius, had been a preacher of Christ among the Britons, but this account is manifestly fabulous.
Few particulars can be gleaned from the works of ancient writers regard- ing the subsequent history of the British Church. However, the Emperor
00
and having issued an Imperial Edict of persecution against the Christians, his subordinate in the station of Caesar, although abhorring the cruel policy
of enforcing apostacy from the Christian religion through the fear of torments, yet durst not refuse publication of that mandate, or prevent the inferior magistrates from indulging their private hatred against the enemies
Diocletian, having committed the government of Britain to Constantius,
of their 100
gods. Meanwhile,
101 he created
tion reached Britain, also, where many persons, with the constancy of martyrs, died in the confession of their faith. 102 Among these, the most celebrated was St. Alban,1Q3 the proto-martyr of Britain, a convert from paganism, owing to the holy example set before him, by a cleric, whom he had concealed in his house, and who was endeavouring thus to escape from the rage of persecution. Near the city of Verulam, called Uverlamacestir or Uverlingacestir in the time of Venerable Bede, St. Alban's martyrdom
10* on the 20th of in after times, several cures were June. There,
the
by army,
Maximian,
colleague
took
place wrought through
his intercession. 10*
Likewise,
Aaron Io6 and 10? who Julius,
when Diocletian had been elected
Emperor
in the Empire. Then Diocletian in the East and Maximian in the West carried on the Tenth General Persecution since the reign of Nero against the Christians. That was more continuous and bloody than all others pre- ceding it, having lasted for ten years, with the burning of churches, the slaughter of martyrs, and the outlawing of innocent persons. This persecu-
were citizens of Carleon, the former name for Chester, suffered for the Faith.
Many other persons of both sexes, after enduring sundry torments, yielded
their souls and bodies to earn the eternal reward. 108 The period of this persecution lias been referred to a. d. 305.
On the 25th of July, a. d. 306, Constantius died in Britain, leaving a son named Caius Flavius Valerius Aurelius Claudius Constantine, born
°»
See Triad 35.
99 He was surnamed Chlorus, owing to the
paleness of his complexion. He was born
about A. D. 250. He served with distinc-
tion under Aurelian, Probus and Diocletian.
In the year 291, he was made Caesar, and
appointed to rule the Gauls, Spain and martyrdom, the Rev. Jeremy Collier writes : Britain. He was obliged to repudiate his " As for St. Alban's miracles, being at- wife Helena, and to marry the daughter tested by authors of such antiquity and
of Maximian, the colleague of Diocletian. His rule in Britain was prudent and equi-
table. See " The English Cyclopaedia," Biography, vol. ii. , col. 367.
service regularly performed in his palace. "Ecclesiastical History of Great Britain," See Vita Constantini, cap. xxxiii. How- vol. i. , book i. , cent, iv. , p. 52.
106
ever, Pagi, in his commentaries on the His festival occurs on the 1st of July.
,0°
was a Christian, and had the Christian the Bible is to believe too little. "
According to Eusebius, Constantius
'•" ,0 Annates of Baronius, has shown the in-
7 His feast also is kept on the 1st of
correctness of such a statement, at A. D. 303.
101 This happened a. d. 286.
103 "
July.
108 See Venerable Bede's " Historia
See Venerable Bede's Hibtoria Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. vii. , pp. 44 to 53.
surnamed Herculius, his
cap. vn. , pp. 44,45,
103 The feast of this holy Martyr is kept
on the 22nd, and also on the 25th ofJune. 104 It was called, by the Saxons, Holm
Hurst, which signifies "a woody place. "
105 In relating the particulars of his
credit, I do not see why they should be
questioned. That miracles were wrought in the Church at this time of day is clear from the writings of the ancients. To suppose there are no miracles but those —in
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 459
of his first Helena,
a. d. 2 io9 Retained in the Court of Diocletian 74.
wife,
as a hostage when young, he was educated with the greatest care, After
Diocletian and Maximian had retired from the Government of the Roman Empire, Constantine fled to his father in Britain to escape the machinations of Galerius. On the death of his father, the soldiers in Britain elected him Emperor ; but, he prudently referred the nomination to Galerius, who would only acknowledge his rank as Csesar, while he was appointed governor of the provinces that had been so long administered by his father. He repelled the Frankish invasion of Gaul. Meanwhile, Maxentius, the son of Maximi- nian, raised a revolt in Rome to depose Galerius, and Maximinian re-assumed thetitleofEmperor. ThelatterproposedhisdaughterFaustaasawifefor Constantine, whom he met in Gaul. Afterwards, Constantine was acknow- ledgedasEmperoroftheWest. However,othercomplicationsarose,which caused no less than six Emperors and Caesars to contend for supremacy in the Roman Empire ; namely, Maximianus, Maxentius, Galerius, Constantine, MaximinusandLicinius. Atlength,GaleriusacknowledgedbothConstantine and Maximin as Emperors equal to himself. Maxentius contrived, however, to keep possession of Rome. Maximianus endeavoured to depose his son- in-law, Constantine, but he failed, was seized, and put to death. In the year 311, Galerius published an edict to stop the persecution of the Christians. " Soon afterwards, he died at Sardica, in Dacia. "1
Meanwhile, Maxentius, who governed Italy, was making preparations to attack the other Emperors, when in 312, Constantine moved with an army from Gaul to oppose him. Having defeated several bodies of the troops belonging to
miserably
Maxentius, and taken many Italian cities, Constantine approached Rome,
and then he had the remarkable vision of a cross in the heavens, with a
Greek inscription, which animated him in the coming battle. This took
place on the day following, the 29th of October. The troops of Maxentius under his personal command were drawn up on the right bank of
the Tiber, and a battle was fought, in which he was signally defeated. He was drowned, with many other fugitives, in seeking to escape over that river.
Afterwards, Constantine entered Rome in triumph. He was acknowledged Emperor by the Senate. In the year 313, Licinius came to Rome. Having married Constansia, the sister of Constantine, both he and Licinius were proclaimed Consuls. In July of that same year, the old Emperor Diocletian died at Salona.
Soon after his great victory at the Milvian Bridge, Constantine publicly declared himself a Christian ; and at Milan a. d. 313, in the joint names of Licinius and himself was issued a public edict of full and unlimited toleration for the exercise of the Christian as well as the Pagan worship. Moreover, the churches and property which had been confiscated, owing to the perse- cuting edicts of previous Roman Emperors, were restored, with compensation to theimperialtreasury; whentheyhadbeenalienated,thegrantswereresumed; when they had been purchased, the possessors were offered an indemnity, for their enforced and immediate surrender, from the State. The prefects were
*°9 It seems curious that by Venerable Emperors, Galerius, Constantine, and Lici-
:
Bede it is stated " Hie Constantinum filium nius. Maximinus II. who was in Asia is
ex concubina Helena creatum imperatorem not mentioned in it.
Galliarum reliquit : scribit autem Eutropius, IU See Rev. Dean Henry Hart Milman's quod Constantinus in Britannia creat—us " History of Latin Christianity, from the
Birth of Christ to the Abolition of
" Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," in the Roman Empire," vol. ii. , book ii. ,
lib. i„ cap. viii. , pp. 54, 55. chap, ix. , pp. 227, 228. "°Thisdocumentbearsthenameofthree II2 See*'TheHistoryofChristianityfrom
imperator, patri in regnum successit. "
Paganism
460
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
112
to see such restitution carried into effect without chicanery and without delay. This toleration was all sufficient to ensure the triumph of Christianity, and the
gradual decline of paganism.
No sooner had the Church been secured in its religious liberties, than
internal commotions began to excite controversies on many subjects of dogma. The Gnostic and the Manichean sects, although professing to be
disciples of Christianity, yet maintained their own separate constitutions, priesthood and ceremonial. Donatus, a Numidian bishop, raised dissensions in the Church of Africa. Meanwhile, irreconcilable differences had occurred between Licinius, who favoured Paganism in the East, and Constantine, whose laws and practice were so favourable to the Christians. Open war was at length proclaimed between them. After the battle of Hadrianople, a. d. 323, and the naval victory of Crispus, the death of Licinius followed, thus reuniting the whole Roman world under the sceptre of Constantine. About
lx 11 this time, also, the errors of Arius, 3 who denied the Divinity of Christ, *
had spread largely throughout the Christian world, 115 and especially they had infected churches in the northern countries of Europe, and had reached even
116
to those of the islands.
A heresy which disturbed even more the orthodoxy of Britain was that
of 11 ? an dialectician and scholar. He was also Pelagius, accomplished
sustained by Celestius, a Scot, and by a disciple named Agricola. The
Roman Pontiff, or the bishops of Gaul—perhaps both—commissioned St.
Germanus of 118 and St. of to over into Britain, Auxerre, Lupus"? Troyes, pass
a. d. 429, and to support there by their zeal and learning the interests of
Catholicity. A Synod was convened at Verulam, when the supporters of the Church and of Pelagianism assembled, and where a public discussion
took place. The result was a triumphant victory for the orthodox prelates ;
while the people, applauding their eloquence and arguments, zealously resolved to receive their teaching and to observe their direction. 120 Another remark-
able Synod had been convened at Brevi, a. d. 519, in Cardiganshire, Wales, 121
where St. David appeared, and refuted the heresy of Pelagius, before a
vast multitude of chieftains and 122 The prelates, clergy, kings, people.
Gallic missionaries returned to their dioceses after that successful mission ;
but, no sooner had they departed, than the exploded opinions were preached with renewed activity. In consequence of this, the Bishop of Auxerre was obliged to return and to resume his functions, with St. Severus,123 bishop of Treves,in446. Theirlabourswerethencrownedwithcompletesuccess.
59 See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," 53 See " Trias Thaumaturga," Quarta Appendix Quarta ad Acta S. Columbce,
Vita S. Columbae, n. 10, p. 386.
54 On this " subject, Dr. Lanigan adds,
We
cap. x. , p. 487.
*°
Hence we find the names and deaths of
"
Trias Thaumaturga," p. 498, et seq.
61
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 455
founder, who, perhaps, had died some years before Aidan was born. It is well known, that the great majority of the Iona monks in those days were from Ireland, and that the abbots and other superiors of that monastery, at least for five or six centuries after the death of St. Columkille, were con-
60
Seghine, government
munity lasted from a. d. 623 to 652. He thus survived his distinguished
disciple one year. In due course of time, Aedan undoubtedly, although not an abbot, was regarded as one of the superiors in the monastery of Hy. This appears, from his having had a place in the council among the elders.
According to the accounts of some of the most ancient and respectable Church Historians, Christianity had been introduced into Britain, during the
some themselves. Eusebius ha* stated among
stantly chosen from among the Irish.
lived for a considerable time in Iona Island, where many of his countrymen were monks, since the time of its foundation. It is certain he was under the rule of the Abbot 61 whose term of over that com-
time of the 62 and Apostles,
by
this as a narrative, which he may have received from the Emperor Constan-
tine63 himself, a part of whose life was spent as Roman Governor in Britain. 6* That the Emperor Tiberias6^ tolerated and even protected the Christians is
66
and, in consequence, Christianity began to spread rapidly and widely in all the Roman Provinces. 6? . Among other
68
people, it is asserted, that the Britons early obtained the gift of Divine
Faith. 60 There appear, also, to be some grounds for believing, that St.
Paul,? after he had visited Spain, brought salvation to the Islands? 1 that lie
2
in the Ocean,? and among these are supposed to be included the. British
related by ancient historians ;
Islands. 73
the abbots and other distinguished men of
Hy as regularly marked in the Irish Annals, as those of the members of any religious
Marco, the Pretorian prefect, caused him to
be suffocated with pillows, A. D. 37, in the
seventy-eighth year of his age. See the
establishment existing in Ireland.
Popular Encyclopedia, or Conversations
See notices of him, a—t the 12th of
62 "
August— the day for his feast in the present
Volume, Art. iv.
Such is the statement of Eusebius, Bishop of Cesarea, who flourished in the third and fourth centuries, and who wrote in Greek, besides his valuable Ecclesiastical History, the well-known work, Ei}<x77e\t/C77 Airddetgis, Latinized " Demonstratio Evan- gelica. " In it, he states, that besides evan- gelizing other countries which he names, in Asia and Europe, that some of the Apostles passed over the Ocean and visited the British Islands. See lib. iii. , cap. vii. ,p. 113. Nor can we believe that such a judicious and learned Church Historian could be deceived in his information; since, from the first cen- tury of the Christian era, the affairs of Britain were noticed by the Roman writers, and traditions regarding them were placed upon record both by Pagans and Christians.
63 Known as Constantine the Great, first
in his Historia Britonum. "
67 See Eusebius, "Historia Ecclesiastica,"
lib. ii. , cap. iii.
68
See what has been already written about the origin of these people in the Third Volume of this work, at the 17th day of March, Art i. The Life of St. Patrick, Apostle and Chief Patron of Ireland, chap. ii.
69 This is stated by Arnobius, in his Commentaries on the Psalms, 147, and by Theodoret.
70 The chief feast for St. Paul is on the 29thofJune. Hesufferedmartyjrdomunder the Emperor Nero, a. d. 63.
71 However,Dr. WilliamCavecautiously observes, "n—onnulla forsan Occidentis loca
"
peragravit. " Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum
Historia Literaria," vol. i. , p. 12.
72 In his Commentaries on the Psalms, by
Theodoret, of who lived in Bishop Cyrrhus,
Christian Emperor of Rome.
64 See
Britannicse, or, the Antiquities of the British Churches," chap, i. , pp. 36, 37.
65 Claudius Nero Tiberias, the third Roman Emperor, was born before Christ 42, and, on the death of Augustus, a. d. 14, he suc- ceeded. Having reigned thirty-eight years,
Bishop Stillingfleet's
"
Origines
See
"
Lexicon," vol. vi. , pp. 611, 612.
It is very probable, also, that Aidan
66
treating the events of his reign. Also Ter- tullian, in "Apologia," cap. v. , and Gildas
See the Chronicle of Eusebius, when
the fourth and fifth centuries, this is stated, in the collected edition of his works by Pere Sirmond and Gamier, and in
J. published five folio volumes at Paris, from 1642 to
1684. See tomus i. , In Psalmos, 116, p. 870.
456
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31. Several modern writers, with the aid of legends, traditions and conjectures,
6
have discovered, that St. Peter,74 Prince of the Apostles,75 St. Paul,? 8
Apostle of the Nations, St. Simon Zelotes,77 and St. James,? the son of
Zebedee, severally preached in Britain. 79 After their departure, the pious undertaking is said to have been continued, owing to the labours of
£o and
ofArimathea. 81
the adduced testimony
However,
to support these statements is altogether unreliable. 82 The early British
8 8* ecclesiastical writer, St. Gildas, 3 is silent on the subject, in those treatises
he wrote referring to the ancient state of Britain.
73 Bishop Stillingfleet presents very cogent "Liber de Patribus Utiiusque Testa-
Aristobulus,
Joseph
reasons for advancing such a proposition ;
by citing several ancient authorities in proof,
and by showing, that the circumstances of
his life permitted St. Paul to have visited
Britain, that there was encouragement and invitation enough for him to go there, and,
owing to the circumstances of the other
Apostles, he was the most likely of all to
have been in Britain. The argument is an ingenious one as drawn from probabilities. names.
"
Rediens
Apostolis diversa Cosmi climata adeuntibus, nutu Dei Jacobus Hibernice oris appulsus, Verbum Dei prajdicavit intrepidus, ubi septem discipulos elegisse fertur : scilicet, Torquatum, Secundum, Indalecium, Tisephontem, Eufrasium, Ceci- ject, Baronius quotes in his Annales lium, Isichium, quorum collogio lolium Ecclesiastici," at a. d. 58. He states, that, extirparet, ac telluri aridoe et diu sterili
See "Antiquities of the British Churches," chap, i. , pp. 37 to 48.
74 According to the comments on St. Peter
and Paul, at the 29th of June, Metaphrastes, who is rather a poor authority on the sub-
"
about this period St. Peter was employed in
the West, and the particularly among
semina verbi Dei committeret. Cumque
dies — immineret, supremus, Hierosolymam
'
cum eis
Vincentius Bellovacensis, "Speculum Histo- riale," lib. viii. , cap. vii.
Britons. See tomus i. , num "
subiit.
li.
s His chief feast is on the 29th June, the
perrexit, ibique Martyrium
date for his Martyrdom.
7« St. states, that St. Although Jerome
Paul preached the Gospel in the Western
parts, no sufficient evidence remains to prove
positively that he visited Britain. See "
Catalogus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum," written about A. D. 392. However,Venantius
Fortunatus, when treating of St. Paul, in
79 See on this Ussher's subject Archbishop
" lines :—
80
In the Greek Menologies, his feast is placed at the 15th of March, and he is said to have been one of the seventy disciples. He followed St. Paul as an assistant, and by him was ordained Bishop, as is stated, to
bring the Gospel among the Britons.
81
The disciple of our Divine Savour, and whose festival is held on the 17th of March. According to the traditions of the Church at Glastonbury, he came into Britain, A. D. 63, andtherepreachedtheGospel. According to many unreliable legends, he founded the church and monastery of Glastonbury. See the citations in Archbishop Ussher's " Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates," cap. ii. , pp. 7 to 17.
his
Vita S. Martini," lib. iii. , has these
M
77
Transit et Oceanum, vel qua facit Insula Portum,
Quasque Britannus habet terras, quasqueultimaThule. "
According to Nicephorus Callistus, he brought the Gospel doctrine to the Western Ocean and to the Britannic Islands. See
ria Ecclesiastic*," lib. ii. , cap. xi.
in some of the Greek
t is set down at the 10th of May ; yet,
the Martyrologies of Bede, Ado and Usuard
relate, that he suffered Martyrdom in Persia,
on the 28th of October. It is also the date for
his feast in the Roman Martyrology and writings, Art i. Life of St. Gildas Badonicus, Breviary.
Although
Menologies,
82 " Anti- See Rev. Dr. John Lingard's
I Si chief feast is on the 25th of July.
84 The chief of these is known as the "
Historia Britonum," various editions of which have been published. Other works have been attributed to him, and among
Isidorus states that this
the Gospel to the people of Spain and in
Apostle preached
other Western places, and brought its li^ht
to the extreme Western World. See these are his treatise, "De Excidio Bry-,
menti," cap. lxii. A Pseudo-Chronicle, at- tributed to Flavins Lucius Dexter, treating
about St. James at a. d. 41, has it :
Jacobus Gallias invisit, ac Britannias, ac
Venetiarum oppida, u? >i prsedicat ; ac Hie-
rosolymanrevertitur,"etc. St. Jamesiseven
brought to Ireland, by another writer, who
asserts, that he selected seven disciples—
these notwithstanding do not bear Irish
"
" Britannicarum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates," cap. i. , pp. I to 6.
quities of the Anglo-Saxon Church," chap. i. pp. 1, 2.
8i See the First Volume of this Work, at January 29, for an account of him and his
or St. Gildas the Wise.
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 457
Such accounts seem to have been unknown, as they are not related by
Venerable Bede, the father of English Ecclesiastical History, who even treats
8
of Britain's condition under the Early Roman Emperors. * But, he tells us,
86
together
religious request. ^ Then the Britons were converted through the ministry of Fugatius and Damianus, who were most successful in bringing them under the mild yoke of the Gospel. Hence these missionaries have been regarded as the Apostles of Britain. The people of that province are said to have preserved the Faith, which they had received, entire and uncorrupted, as also they practised religion in peace and tranquillity, until the time of the
1
Emperor Diocletian,9° who began his reign, a. d. 284. 9
That the Christian doctrine was publicly professed in Britain before the
close of the second century is clear, from the testimony of Tertullian92 and of Origen. 93 That conquered and half-civilized country, like the rest of the Roman Empire, gradually received the Christian religion during the second and third centuries. 94 Even then it had spread in the ranks of the Roman legions. Nor is there any good reason for doubting the general assertion of British writers, that Lucius was the person to whom the people owed such advantage. 95 He wrote, it is stated, to Elutherius, a holy Pontiff, who then presided over the Church, entreating that through the Pope's command he
whilst Eleutherus or Elutherius8? a holy man, presided over the Roman Church, and while Marcus Anonius Verus, the fourteenth from Augustus, was made Emperor, with his brother, Aurelius Commodus 88 of the
that in the the year of our Lord's Incarnation, 156,
; Lucius, King Britons, wrote to Elutherius a request, that through his command, he might become a Christian. Soon afterwards, the King obtained the object of his
mightbecomeaChristian andheobtainedthe
; object
ofhis
6
Although the old British traditions have accounts of King Lucius, who must
have been subject to the Romans, yet various conjectures have been proposed
regarding the part of Britain in which he reigned. 97 The Welsh Triads
tannise, lib. i.
, commencing with "Inhac
Lucifero prselucidior : nam lucct
in ejus
Tempore vera fides, errorum nube
fugata. "
g9 The hist of Ki Luci and the
earl> ecclesiastical affair? of Britain about his lod have been investigated in a most
lear£ed ma by Archbishop Ussher, in „ Britannicarum Ecclesiarum AutiqHuitates,"
cap> m<} iv>> v#j vij pp> IJr tQ
9° See "Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis
"" Epistola quicquid;
In sui Temporis
. clerum," lib. i. , commencing with " Bry-
" tannia habet sacerdotes
"Condones Mordentes," lib. i. , commencing with "Esaias propheta dicit, uaeuob;/ "His- oriam quandam lib. i. , commencing with "Alboinus Longobardorum rex ab ; "De Immortahtate Amm* lib. i. Also, some other writings are said to have been pro-
;
cap. 11 111. , pp. 36 to 41.
Pope St. Pius I. was Sovereign Pontiff that year, having sat in the chair of St. Peter
7 Cf
Regalt.
£y
c „-T'- tt gee
• r
5
rum hb.
1
4- a
1
» lib
•
Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglo-
1^
Popular Encyclopaedia,
fr 4
TJ^A ^
i
St. Elutherius only began his term of presi-
dencyA. D. WandhediedAD. 192 See
% 93 In HomiHa vi> in Lucam> Also ill
vi>> in Ezechchial.
94 See Dean H^Hart MillWs
57
h* C}}rono °gy 1S at however, as
Sir Hams Nicolas
Chronology
of His-
<«
History of Latin Christianity," vol. ii. ,
tor 20
. . .
'-
*rnv
Editio Homm&
I' P* 9' Tt
Book iv. , iii. , 226. chap, p.
ss The;e is ^ Jjust ^
for stati the
conversion of Lucius to be a mere j end as Dean Milman d
,5^ Venerable Bede>s -Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Ang&lorum," lib. i. ,
.
- "}* 1S said his original name in the old
British or Celtic Language was Lies after- wards Latmized Lucius, whether by the Romans among whom he lived or by sub- sequent writers, is not known. Gildas alludes to him, and quotes the following lines of an old British poet. They are thus rendered :-
"
orto
Antiquities
.
.
Inde patd Coylo succedit Lucius, ,
65.
. ,v
;
AngSloruin
.
i<} cap
.
iv pp> 40 4I<
»
See the ^^ or
9x
Conversations Lexicon," vol. ii. , 680. p
92 In his treatis c
jv &See'
.
Q 4I
Bishop' Stillingfleet's
of the British Churches," chap, ii. , pp. 60
to
pious request. ^
«
45*
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
have stated,*8 that Bran, the supposed grandfather of Caractacus, who flourished in the time of the Roman Emperor Claudius, had been a preacher of Christ among the Britons, but this account is manifestly fabulous.
Few particulars can be gleaned from the works of ancient writers regard- ing the subsequent history of the British Church. However, the Emperor
00
and having issued an Imperial Edict of persecution against the Christians, his subordinate in the station of Caesar, although abhorring the cruel policy
of enforcing apostacy from the Christian religion through the fear of torments, yet durst not refuse publication of that mandate, or prevent the inferior magistrates from indulging their private hatred against the enemies
Diocletian, having committed the government of Britain to Constantius,
of their 100
gods. Meanwhile,
101 he created
tion reached Britain, also, where many persons, with the constancy of martyrs, died in the confession of their faith. 102 Among these, the most celebrated was St. Alban,1Q3 the proto-martyr of Britain, a convert from paganism, owing to the holy example set before him, by a cleric, whom he had concealed in his house, and who was endeavouring thus to escape from the rage of persecution. Near the city of Verulam, called Uverlamacestir or Uverlingacestir in the time of Venerable Bede, St. Alban's martyrdom
10* on the 20th of in after times, several cures were June. There,
the
by army,
Maximian,
colleague
took
place wrought through
his intercession. 10*
Likewise,
Aaron Io6 and 10? who Julius,
when Diocletian had been elected
Emperor
in the Empire. Then Diocletian in the East and Maximian in the West carried on the Tenth General Persecution since the reign of Nero against the Christians. That was more continuous and bloody than all others pre- ceding it, having lasted for ten years, with the burning of churches, the slaughter of martyrs, and the outlawing of innocent persons. This persecu-
were citizens of Carleon, the former name for Chester, suffered for the Faith.
Many other persons of both sexes, after enduring sundry torments, yielded
their souls and bodies to earn the eternal reward. 108 The period of this persecution lias been referred to a. d. 305.
On the 25th of July, a. d. 306, Constantius died in Britain, leaving a son named Caius Flavius Valerius Aurelius Claudius Constantine, born
°»
See Triad 35.
99 He was surnamed Chlorus, owing to the
paleness of his complexion. He was born
about A. D. 250. He served with distinc-
tion under Aurelian, Probus and Diocletian.
In the year 291, he was made Caesar, and
appointed to rule the Gauls, Spain and martyrdom, the Rev. Jeremy Collier writes : Britain. He was obliged to repudiate his " As for St. Alban's miracles, being at- wife Helena, and to marry the daughter tested by authors of such antiquity and
of Maximian, the colleague of Diocletian. His rule in Britain was prudent and equi-
table. See " The English Cyclopaedia," Biography, vol. ii. , col. 367.
service regularly performed in his palace. "Ecclesiastical History of Great Britain," See Vita Constantini, cap. xxxiii. How- vol. i. , book i. , cent, iv. , p. 52.
106
ever, Pagi, in his commentaries on the His festival occurs on the 1st of July.
,0°
was a Christian, and had the Christian the Bible is to believe too little. "
According to Eusebius, Constantius
'•" ,0 Annates of Baronius, has shown the in-
7 His feast also is kept on the 1st of
correctness of such a statement, at A. D. 303.
101 This happened a. d. 286.
103 "
July.
108 See Venerable Bede's " Historia
See Venerable Bede's Hibtoria Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," lib. i. , cap. vii. , pp. 44 to 53.
surnamed Herculius, his
cap. vn. , pp. 44,45,
103 The feast of this holy Martyr is kept
on the 22nd, and also on the 25th ofJune. 104 It was called, by the Saxons, Holm
Hurst, which signifies "a woody place. "
105 In relating the particulars of his
credit, I do not see why they should be
questioned. That miracles were wrought in the Church at this time of day is clear from the writings of the ancients. To suppose there are no miracles but those —in
August 31. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 459
of his first Helena,
a. d. 2 io9 Retained in the Court of Diocletian 74.
wife,
as a hostage when young, he was educated with the greatest care, After
Diocletian and Maximian had retired from the Government of the Roman Empire, Constantine fled to his father in Britain to escape the machinations of Galerius. On the death of his father, the soldiers in Britain elected him Emperor ; but, he prudently referred the nomination to Galerius, who would only acknowledge his rank as Csesar, while he was appointed governor of the provinces that had been so long administered by his father. He repelled the Frankish invasion of Gaul. Meanwhile, Maxentius, the son of Maximi- nian, raised a revolt in Rome to depose Galerius, and Maximinian re-assumed thetitleofEmperor. ThelatterproposedhisdaughterFaustaasawifefor Constantine, whom he met in Gaul. Afterwards, Constantine was acknow- ledgedasEmperoroftheWest. However,othercomplicationsarose,which caused no less than six Emperors and Caesars to contend for supremacy in the Roman Empire ; namely, Maximianus, Maxentius, Galerius, Constantine, MaximinusandLicinius. Atlength,GaleriusacknowledgedbothConstantine and Maximin as Emperors equal to himself. Maxentius contrived, however, to keep possession of Rome. Maximianus endeavoured to depose his son- in-law, Constantine, but he failed, was seized, and put to death. In the year 311, Galerius published an edict to stop the persecution of the Christians. " Soon afterwards, he died at Sardica, in Dacia. "1
Meanwhile, Maxentius, who governed Italy, was making preparations to attack the other Emperors, when in 312, Constantine moved with an army from Gaul to oppose him. Having defeated several bodies of the troops belonging to
miserably
Maxentius, and taken many Italian cities, Constantine approached Rome,
and then he had the remarkable vision of a cross in the heavens, with a
Greek inscription, which animated him in the coming battle. This took
place on the day following, the 29th of October. The troops of Maxentius under his personal command were drawn up on the right bank of
the Tiber, and a battle was fought, in which he was signally defeated. He was drowned, with many other fugitives, in seeking to escape over that river.
Afterwards, Constantine entered Rome in triumph. He was acknowledged Emperor by the Senate. In the year 313, Licinius came to Rome. Having married Constansia, the sister of Constantine, both he and Licinius were proclaimed Consuls. In July of that same year, the old Emperor Diocletian died at Salona.
Soon after his great victory at the Milvian Bridge, Constantine publicly declared himself a Christian ; and at Milan a. d. 313, in the joint names of Licinius and himself was issued a public edict of full and unlimited toleration for the exercise of the Christian as well as the Pagan worship. Moreover, the churches and property which had been confiscated, owing to the perse- cuting edicts of previous Roman Emperors, were restored, with compensation to theimperialtreasury; whentheyhadbeenalienated,thegrantswereresumed; when they had been purchased, the possessors were offered an indemnity, for their enforced and immediate surrender, from the State. The prefects were
*°9 It seems curious that by Venerable Emperors, Galerius, Constantine, and Lici-
:
Bede it is stated " Hie Constantinum filium nius. Maximinus II. who was in Asia is
ex concubina Helena creatum imperatorem not mentioned in it.
Galliarum reliquit : scribit autem Eutropius, IU See Rev. Dean Henry Hart Milman's quod Constantinus in Britannia creat—us " History of Latin Christianity, from the
Birth of Christ to the Abolition of
" Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Anglorum," in the Roman Empire," vol. ii. , book ii. ,
lib. i„ cap. viii. , pp. 54, 55. chap, ix. , pp. 227, 228. "°Thisdocumentbearsthenameofthree II2 See*'TheHistoryofChristianityfrom
imperator, patri in regnum successit. "
Paganism
460
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [August 31.
112
to see such restitution carried into effect without chicanery and without delay. This toleration was all sufficient to ensure the triumph of Christianity, and the
gradual decline of paganism.
No sooner had the Church been secured in its religious liberties, than
internal commotions began to excite controversies on many subjects of dogma. The Gnostic and the Manichean sects, although professing to be
disciples of Christianity, yet maintained their own separate constitutions, priesthood and ceremonial. Donatus, a Numidian bishop, raised dissensions in the Church of Africa. Meanwhile, irreconcilable differences had occurred between Licinius, who favoured Paganism in the East, and Constantine, whose laws and practice were so favourable to the Christians. Open war was at length proclaimed between them. After the battle of Hadrianople, a. d. 323, and the naval victory of Crispus, the death of Licinius followed, thus reuniting the whole Roman world under the sceptre of Constantine. About
lx 11 this time, also, the errors of Arius, 3 who denied the Divinity of Christ, *
had spread largely throughout the Christian world, 115 and especially they had infected churches in the northern countries of Europe, and had reached even
116
to those of the islands.
A heresy which disturbed even more the orthodoxy of Britain was that
of 11 ? an dialectician and scholar. He was also Pelagius, accomplished
sustained by Celestius, a Scot, and by a disciple named Agricola. The
Roman Pontiff, or the bishops of Gaul—perhaps both—commissioned St.
Germanus of 118 and St. of to over into Britain, Auxerre, Lupus"? Troyes, pass
a. d. 429, and to support there by their zeal and learning the interests of
Catholicity. A Synod was convened at Verulam, when the supporters of the Church and of Pelagianism assembled, and where a public discussion
took place. The result was a triumphant victory for the orthodox prelates ;
while the people, applauding their eloquence and arguments, zealously resolved to receive their teaching and to observe their direction. 120 Another remark-
able Synod had been convened at Brevi, a. d. 519, in Cardiganshire, Wales, 121
where St. David appeared, and refuted the heresy of Pelagius, before a
vast multitude of chieftains and 122 The prelates, clergy, kings, people.
Gallic missionaries returned to their dioceses after that successful mission ;
but, no sooner had they departed, than the exploded opinions were preached with renewed activity. In consequence of this, the Bishop of Auxerre was obliged to return and to resume his functions, with St. Severus,123 bishop of Treves,in446. Theirlabourswerethencrownedwithcompletesuccess.
