, is found recorded, in the
Martyrology
of Tallagh,^ at the 25 th of February.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v2
37 When the saint saw Cailtan, he spoke in the manner following : —" O Cailtan, you have done
very well, in hastening to me so obediently ; rest you a litde. Loving you as a friend, I invited you to come, that you might finish the course of your mortal life here, under my care, and in true obedience. Before this week comes to an end, you shall render your soul in peace to God. " Then Cailtan, giving thanks to the Almighty, kissed Saint Columba, with tears in his eyes. Receiving his benediction, Cailtan went to the guest-room and fell sick that night. 3^ Notwithstanding the foregoing account, and his own references, Dempster states, that he flourished a. d. 606. 39 Cailtan de-
parted, on the seventh day, to a better life. 4° It is observed, that the """ "
form, Caol," Cail,'' or Coel," in Irish, has the meaning of thin," or
"
lean," in English, and that by usage it passed into a proper name : it also has two distinct derivatives, Caolan, Cailan, or Coelan, and Cailten or Coelten, which are diminutives in the foregoing sense. But, Colgan is not able to find the place of this Cailtan, in our Irish Calendars. -^^
Article IV. —Festival of St. Burchard, Bishop of Wurtzburg,
Germany. [Eighth Century. '] Galesinus, Wion and Bucelin are quoted by the Bollandists^ for a festival of St. Buchard, Bishop of Wurtzburg, at the 25 th of February. His feast is said to have been celebrated in this city, on
have the entry : Miilti Pictores dimersi stmt i Slaind Abac. This may have reference to the lake mentioned in the text. Its identi- fication, however, like much of Scotland's ancient topography, owing to the total absence of ancient Gaelic records, is subject as yet to painful uncertainty. See Rev. William Reeves' Adamnan's "Life of St. Columba," n. (1)), p. 60.
33 In his usual absurd manner, Dempster
has him down, as the author of a Book of "
Diuni of Adamnan's text.
37 Dr. Lanigan thinks, that Diuni was the
immediate successor of his brotlier, Cailtan, at this place. See " Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. ii. , chap, xi. , sect, xv. , n. 176, p. 174.
Meditations. See Historia Ecclesiastica
Gentis Scotorum," tomus i. , lib. iii. , num. p. 163.
277, p. 163.
3* In his Appendix to " The Life of St.
Columba," Smith enumerates, as among his
See
p. 157-
35 See Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's
40 tjee Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's " Life of St. Columba," lib. i,, cap. 31, pp. 60, 61.
i, 2, 3, p. 597. —Ibid.
and " St. Cailten contemporaries,
^i See "Trias
Vita S. Columba, lib. i. , cap. xxxi. , n. 76,
disciples
of Kill-Diun or Dimha, at Loch-ava. "
'
Thaumaturga. " Quarta p. 379. Also, Sexta Vita S. Brigidoe, nn.
"Life of St. Columba," n, (b), p. 60. 3** "
'
See Origines Parochiales Scotioe," vol. ii,, parti. , p. 120. Rev. Dr. Reeves thinks, it may have its origin in the Cella
3« See the- account of these transactions in Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " O'Don- nell's or Vita Quinta S. Columbze, lib. ii. , cap. xliv. , p. 417.
39 See " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Scotorum," tomus i,, lib. iii,, num. 277,
Article iv.
tomus iii. , Februarii xxv. Among the pre- termitted saints, p. 486.
See "Acta
Sanctorum,"
February 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 705
the Thursday after the festival of Saints Dionysius, Rusticius and Eleutherius. At the 14th of October, his Acts are more fully given by the Bollandists. ^ At the same date, the reader is referred to our Life of him. Dempster3 commemorates, at the 25th of February, the Elevation of St. Kilian's Re- mainSj-^ with those of his companions, by Bishop Burchard at Herbipolis. s According to Dempster, the latter died on the 2nd day of February, a. d. 791. ^
Article V. —Festival of the Finding of the Apostle St. Paul's
and of the Martyr Teolis. In the "
the 25th of February, we find the following stanza,' referring to—this double
Head,
festival, as having had an early celebration in the Irish Church
5. 11. kl. -po ^i\ic>i ceAiTo poit 4fpul, I11 AncmjeT) ciAet)l<M5 ;
1 -peiL in pi\ cVimrnMg,
Ueolif u|\niin cpe-onAig.
The head of the Apostle Paul was found,^
The surpassing pious champion ;
On the feast of the fettered martyred man,
3
Teolis, the brave, the abstinent.
Article VI. —St. Croine, Virgin, of Tallagh, County of Dublin.
The earliest notice we have, regarding Tamlacht, or Tallaght, is an account of a plague or pestilence, recorded to have taken place a. m. 2820,^ which swept off Parthalon's colony there, and it is thought this tradition is some- what verified, by a great number of burial mounds, stone circles, cairns and othertracesofearlyinterments,scatteredovertheTallaghhills. Tombsand
kistvaens and of an old cinerary urns,
type,
Virgin, of Tamhlacht, is mentioned in the Martyrologies of Tallagh3 and of
Donegal,'^ on this day. A community of holy women seems to have been establishedatherplace,inthecountyofDublin. s Thisvirgin'snameisnot found, elsewhere, in history.
Article VII. —St. Caimsea or St. Caomhsa, Virgin. According to
the Martyrologies of Tallagh^ and of Donegal,^' Caimsea, or Caomhsa, a Virgin, had her festival celebrated, on this day.
'
See ibid. Tomus vi. , Octobris xiv. , pp.
at this date. — Article vi.
557 to 594.
3 See "Menologium Scoticum. "
4 See the Life of St. Kilian, at the 8th of
2
5 See Bishop Forbes' "Kalendars of Domville Handcock's "History and Anti-
Scottish Saints," p. 193. quities of Tallaght, County Dublin," pp. ^"
July.
-
See an interesting local work, William
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis 10. 9,
Scotorum," tomus i. , p. 80.
lib. ii. ,
num. 141,
3 Edited by Dr. Kelly, p. xvi.
4 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
56, 57.
s Among the Ordnance Survey Extracts
for this county, now preserved in the Royal Irish Academy, is a notice of this feast. See
Article v. —^
with its English translation, by Professor O'Looney. = The BoUandists have allusion to such a feast at this day, but they refer to the 29th of June, for a fuller notice. They quote the
Communicated,
Aquicinctinian Martyrology.
Sanctorum," tomus iii. , Februarii xxv. Kelly, p. xvi.
the
3 No notice of this saint, nor ot his festival,
is to be found i—n the Boilandist collection, Vol. II. No. 12.
^ Edited 56, 57.
Drs. Todd and
Among
pretermitted festivals, p. 486.
by
Reeves, pp.
2 z
8, 9, and n. (c).
Festilogy
have been found. =^
Croine,
p. 130. —
See "Acta ARTICLE VII. ^Edited by Rev. Dr.
'
See Dr. O'Donovan's *' Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , pp.
" of St. at ^ngus,
:
7o6 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [February26.
Article VIII. —Feast of the Translation of St. Fursey's Relics. Colgan says, that a second Translation of St. Fursey's relics took place, on thisday. ^ i'hisheendeavourstoshowfromvariousauthors,'andhequotes Galesinus, Maurolycius, Wion, Ferrarius, Menard, and Molanus, in his additions, at the 25th of February. But, he states, it is not possible to find when, or through whom, such a translation took place. The Bollandists,^ likewise, notice this feast, and quote, in addition to Colgan's authorities, the CatalogueofFerrarius,andtheMartyrologyofWilson. Someanonymous writer has this celebration, at the 6th of February,'^ but incorrectly, as Bolan- dus observes. 5 We also find entered, the Translation of the Abbot Fursey's
Remains, at Perrone, by Dempster,^ at the 25th ot February. ?
Article IX. —Reputed Feast of Ciaran, Si. The name, Ciaran, Si.
, is found recorded, in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 25 th of February. However, we may doubt, if some mistake, coupled with a double entry of the same name—Ciarani, for rect'e Cienani—might not account for the present in- sertion.
Ctoent|)'^i>ti) JBap of Jebruarj)*
ARTICLE I. —ST. ENNA OR ENNIUS, ALSO CALLED MO-ENNA OR MOEN, BISHOP.
\_SIXTH CENTURY. I
brief and unsatisfactory memoranda, regarding this holy personage,
are set down by Colgan, at the 26th of February. ^ Harris, having SOME
followed his account, adds some unreliable matter to Ware's more correct state- ments regarding Moena. He says, this saint's real name was Nennio, and then he tells the reader, that Colgan has published his Life. But the greatest part of this so-called Life or of his Acts, as the Rev. Dr. Lanigan supposes, belongs, not to Bishop Moena, but to the Abbot, Monennus,^ who was a very different
From a Manuscript Martyrology of Marianus O'Gorman, the Bollandists insert the name, Mainna, as seeming to be intended for a Virgin, atthissamedate. ^ Variousdenominationalformshavebeenappliedtothis
saint, and it has been conjectured, that he was originally called Ena, Enna, or Ennius. Thence it was probably resolved into Mo-Ena, Mo-Enna, or
person. 3
Article vin. —' His Life will be found at the i6lh of January
^ See Bishop Forbes' "Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 192.
Article ix. Januarii. Vita S. Fursoei. Appendix, Kelly, p. xvi. —^
'Edited Rev. Dr. by
= See "Acta Sanctorum Hibernice,"xvi.
cap. X. , p. 98.
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomusiii. , Feb-
ruarii xxv. Among the pretermitted saints,
p. 484.
4 iSee ournotices, at that date.
s See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
Article
i.
See "Acta Sanctorum
nii^," xvi. Januarii. Vita S. Fursoei, Ap- p. 36.
pendix, cap. x. , p. 98. Also, at xxv. Feb- 'See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus iii. , ruarii, De S. Furstei Abbatis Translatioue, Februarii xxvi. Among the pretermitted
p. 413.
"See Menologium Scoticum. " See Colgan's Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
"^"
—
Hiberniie," xxvi. Februarii. De S. Moeno
Episcopo, pp. 413, 414.
^
His feast occurs, at the 1st of March.
^ See "Ecclesiastical History of Ire- land," vol. ii. , chap, x. , sect, vii. , n. 116,
saints, p. 625.
February 26. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 707
Mo-Ennius. HehasalsobeencalledMoeniisandMainiis. Amongtheold Irish oe and at had a like sound, and Mo is merely a prefix, which indicates some special affection. s This saint is also called Moinne, Moune, Muinni,^ or Moen. He is said to have been a Briton, who accompanied St. Pjrenuan7 of Clonfert, on his return to Ireland, after that celebrated seven yea-s' navi- gation of the ocean, during which he visited the great Western Island, or Continent, and after he had lived some time in Armoric Britain. *^ In the Island of Inis-mac-Hy Chuinn,9 both master and disciple are said to have dwelt. ^° Whether or not, Mbena had been elevated to the episcopal dignity, before leaving the country of his birth, may be questioned ; but, when seventy-seven years old, St. Brendan is said to have founded Clonfert. " St. Moen lived with him, and during his sojourn there, a certain youth, who had
come with his parents, died. Three days after this occurrence, and when the body was quite rigid, St. Brendan said to Bishop Moena, " Place my staff on the body of the dead brother. " Obeying this command, the youth came to
hfe, and thus miraculously preserved, that brother, confirmed in the faith, was sent home to his native country in Britain. ^' Cdlgan makes St. Brendan
thefounderandfirst of Bishop
aboutthe '3 andhe
year 553, says,
Clonfert,
that St. 'Brendan -abdicated, having placed St. Moena in his room. Other
writers 'niake' St. " Moena the first bishop, over this see. ^^ A great pestilence, called in the Irish language, Samthrusc,'^ Samthrose,^^ or Sawthrusc,^7 pre-
vailed, in the year 551 or 553, according to various Irish Annals, and it is
generally resolved into a Lepra or Leprosy. It might have been that disease, which carried off the youth already mentioned. As to the etymology of
""
Clonfert, it signifies, a wonderful Den," or a place of Retirement,'' accord-
ing to Harris'^ and the Rev. Dr Lanigan. However, the etymology given for it, by Dr. O'Donovan, is "the Lawn, Meadow, or Bog-Island of the Grave ;" ^9 and, he identifies it, as being now Clonfert, in the barony of Long-
=^^
ford, and county of Galway.
It is very probable, that our St. Enna or Moen was Bishop of Clonfert.
Yet, a difficulty occurs, from his festival having been marked, not at the ist •of March, but at the 26th of February. From the circumstances of name, time and place, Colgan thinks,""^ he may have been not different from a Mainus, who was abbot in Armoric Britain, in the sixth century,^^ but whose
nije," xxvi. Februarii. D. S. Moeno Epis-
copo, n. i,, p. 414.
^ See the '* Book of Obits, and Martyr-
ology of Christ's Church, Dublin," edited by Rev. Dr. James Henthorn Todd and John Clarke Crosthwaite, p. 62.
7 His festival occurs, on the i6th of May.
also in another Life of this saint, taken from the Book of the Island.
'3 See Dr. O'Donovan's ** Annals of the
Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 190, 191. Other authorities place the foundation in 557, 562
and 564. See ibid. , n. (n).
"* See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , "Bishops of
^
Three different Lives of St. Brendan Clonfert," p. 638.
state, that he lived seven years in Britain, viz. : the Irish Life, chap. Iviii. , one found
in the Book of Kilkenny, chap, lii,, as also one met with in the Book of the Island of All Saints.
'S Codex Clarendon, Tom. 49. ^^ "
9
in the Book of Kilkenny, chap. lii.
553, '^
A. D. ^^
See the Annales Ultonienses," A. D. edited by Dr. O'Conor.
See the "Annals of Clonmacnoise,"
551.
See Harris' vol. " of Ware, i. , Bishops
According
to St. Brendan's
Life,
'° See
Colgan's
Clonfert," p. 638.
'^ See "Annals of the Four
vol. i. , n. (n), p. 190.
-°
Masters,"
found " Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
DeS. Moeno Epis-
Irish. Life of St. Brendan, chap. Iviii. , as " Albert le Grande, in "De Sanctis Bri«
niae," xxvi. Februarii.
copo, p. 413.
Through an oversight, Dr. O'Donovan places Clonfert in the county of Longford.
" See Rt. Rev.
Moran's
" Acta S. Brendani. " Vita
=' See "Acta Sanctorum
xxvi. Februarii. De S. Moeno Episcopo,
Patrick F.
&c. , cap. xxi. ,
p. 19.
" The foregoing account is found in an p. 414, and n. 9.
Hibernian,"
7o8 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS'. [February26.
festival there has been assigned to a different day. Whether Moen or Moen- nius were the same person or not, neither of them is to be confounded with the Abbot MainiiSj^'s or Main,^''^ who is said to have Hved and died in Britanny, and whose festival occurs on the 15th of January. ^s He is com- memorated, in the English Martyrology, as a disciple of St. Samson,'^ at Dol, and afterwards he was abbot of a monastery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist. He died about a. d. 590, and he was there buried. The BoUandists, at the present date, do not wish to determine this question of identity, but Dromise to do so at the i6th of May, when giving St. Brendan's Acts. There, however, the matter is not even noticed. ^7
A mistake has been admitted,^^ in thinking that this St. Moen was the
same as the Abbot, Monennus, or Nennio, master over Tigernacli,^'^ Bishop of Clones. 30 In the " Annals of the Four Masters,"3i in the third year of Aedh, Monarch of Ireland, we find the death of St. Maeineann, Bishop of Cluain-fearta-Breanainn, recorded at a. d. 570, and it is said to have occurred, on the ist of March. We find, in the Ulster Annals, under a. d. 571, the
*'
Moena, Bishop Clon- fert-Brenain,32 went to rest. " 33 St. Brendan, it is stated, was then alive, and this agrees with most of our Annalistic accounts. The Annals of Tigher- nach state, at a. d.
very well, in hastening to me so obediently ; rest you a litde. Loving you as a friend, I invited you to come, that you might finish the course of your mortal life here, under my care, and in true obedience. Before this week comes to an end, you shall render your soul in peace to God. " Then Cailtan, giving thanks to the Almighty, kissed Saint Columba, with tears in his eyes. Receiving his benediction, Cailtan went to the guest-room and fell sick that night. 3^ Notwithstanding the foregoing account, and his own references, Dempster states, that he flourished a. d. 606. 39 Cailtan de-
parted, on the seventh day, to a better life. 4° It is observed, that the """ "
form, Caol," Cail,'' or Coel," in Irish, has the meaning of thin," or
"
lean," in English, and that by usage it passed into a proper name : it also has two distinct derivatives, Caolan, Cailan, or Coelan, and Cailten or Coelten, which are diminutives in the foregoing sense. But, Colgan is not able to find the place of this Cailtan, in our Irish Calendars. -^^
Article IV. —Festival of St. Burchard, Bishop of Wurtzburg,
Germany. [Eighth Century. '] Galesinus, Wion and Bucelin are quoted by the Bollandists^ for a festival of St. Buchard, Bishop of Wurtzburg, at the 25 th of February. His feast is said to have been celebrated in this city, on
have the entry : Miilti Pictores dimersi stmt i Slaind Abac. This may have reference to the lake mentioned in the text. Its identi- fication, however, like much of Scotland's ancient topography, owing to the total absence of ancient Gaelic records, is subject as yet to painful uncertainty. See Rev. William Reeves' Adamnan's "Life of St. Columba," n. (1)), p. 60.
33 In his usual absurd manner, Dempster
has him down, as the author of a Book of "
Diuni of Adamnan's text.
37 Dr. Lanigan thinks, that Diuni was the
immediate successor of his brotlier, Cailtan, at this place. See " Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. ii. , chap, xi. , sect, xv. , n. 176, p. 174.
Meditations. See Historia Ecclesiastica
Gentis Scotorum," tomus i. , lib. iii. , num. p. 163.
277, p. 163.
3* In his Appendix to " The Life of St.
Columba," Smith enumerates, as among his
See
p. 157-
35 See Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's
40 tjee Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's " Life of St. Columba," lib. i,, cap. 31, pp. 60, 61.
i, 2, 3, p. 597. —Ibid.
and " St. Cailten contemporaries,
^i See "Trias
Vita S. Columba, lib. i. , cap. xxxi. , n. 76,
disciples
of Kill-Diun or Dimha, at Loch-ava. "
'
Thaumaturga. " Quarta p. 379. Also, Sexta Vita S. Brigidoe, nn.
"Life of St. Columba," n, (b), p. 60. 3** "
'
See Origines Parochiales Scotioe," vol. ii,, parti. , p. 120. Rev. Dr. Reeves thinks, it may have its origin in the Cella
3« See the- account of these transactions in Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " O'Don- nell's or Vita Quinta S. Columbze, lib. ii. , cap. xliv. , p. 417.
39 See " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Scotorum," tomus i,, lib. iii,, num. 277,
Article iv.
tomus iii. , Februarii xxv. Among the pre- termitted saints, p. 486.
See "Acta
Sanctorum,"
February 25. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 705
the Thursday after the festival of Saints Dionysius, Rusticius and Eleutherius. At the 14th of October, his Acts are more fully given by the Bollandists. ^ At the same date, the reader is referred to our Life of him. Dempster3 commemorates, at the 25th of February, the Elevation of St. Kilian's Re- mainSj-^ with those of his companions, by Bishop Burchard at Herbipolis. s According to Dempster, the latter died on the 2nd day of February, a. d. 791. ^
Article V. —Festival of the Finding of the Apostle St. Paul's
and of the Martyr Teolis. In the "
the 25th of February, we find the following stanza,' referring to—this double
Head,
festival, as having had an early celebration in the Irish Church
5. 11. kl. -po ^i\ic>i ceAiTo poit 4fpul, I11 AncmjeT) ciAet)l<M5 ;
1 -peiL in pi\ cVimrnMg,
Ueolif u|\niin cpe-onAig.
The head of the Apostle Paul was found,^
The surpassing pious champion ;
On the feast of the fettered martyred man,
3
Teolis, the brave, the abstinent.
Article VI. —St. Croine, Virgin, of Tallagh, County of Dublin.
The earliest notice we have, regarding Tamlacht, or Tallaght, is an account of a plague or pestilence, recorded to have taken place a. m. 2820,^ which swept off Parthalon's colony there, and it is thought this tradition is some- what verified, by a great number of burial mounds, stone circles, cairns and othertracesofearlyinterments,scatteredovertheTallaghhills. Tombsand
kistvaens and of an old cinerary urns,
type,
Virgin, of Tamhlacht, is mentioned in the Martyrologies of Tallagh3 and of
Donegal,'^ on this day. A community of holy women seems to have been establishedatherplace,inthecountyofDublin. s Thisvirgin'snameisnot found, elsewhere, in history.
Article VII. —St. Caimsea or St. Caomhsa, Virgin. According to
the Martyrologies of Tallagh^ and of Donegal,^' Caimsea, or Caomhsa, a Virgin, had her festival celebrated, on this day.
'
See ibid. Tomus vi. , Octobris xiv. , pp.
at this date. — Article vi.
557 to 594.
3 See "Menologium Scoticum. "
4 See the Life of St. Kilian, at the 8th of
2
5 See Bishop Forbes' "Kalendars of Domville Handcock's "History and Anti-
Scottish Saints," p. 193. quities of Tallaght, County Dublin," pp. ^"
July.
-
See an interesting local work, William
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis 10. 9,
Scotorum," tomus i. , p. 80.
lib. ii. ,
num. 141,
3 Edited by Dr. Kelly, p. xvi.
4 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
56, 57.
s Among the Ordnance Survey Extracts
for this county, now preserved in the Royal Irish Academy, is a notice of this feast. See
Article v. —^
with its English translation, by Professor O'Looney. = The BoUandists have allusion to such a feast at this day, but they refer to the 29th of June, for a fuller notice. They quote the
Communicated,
Aquicinctinian Martyrology.
Sanctorum," tomus iii. , Februarii xxv. Kelly, p. xvi.
the
3 No notice of this saint, nor ot his festival,
is to be found i—n the Boilandist collection, Vol. II. No. 12.
^ Edited 56, 57.
Drs. Todd and
Among
pretermitted festivals, p. 486.
by
Reeves, pp.
2 z
8, 9, and n. (c).
Festilogy
have been found. =^
Croine,
p. 130. —
See "Acta ARTICLE VII. ^Edited by Rev. Dr.
'
See Dr. O'Donovan's *' Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , pp.
" of St. at ^ngus,
:
7o6 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS. [February26.
Article VIII. —Feast of the Translation of St. Fursey's Relics. Colgan says, that a second Translation of St. Fursey's relics took place, on thisday. ^ i'hisheendeavourstoshowfromvariousauthors,'andhequotes Galesinus, Maurolycius, Wion, Ferrarius, Menard, and Molanus, in his additions, at the 25th of February. But, he states, it is not possible to find when, or through whom, such a translation took place. The Bollandists,^ likewise, notice this feast, and quote, in addition to Colgan's authorities, the CatalogueofFerrarius,andtheMartyrologyofWilson. Someanonymous writer has this celebration, at the 6th of February,'^ but incorrectly, as Bolan- dus observes. 5 We also find entered, the Translation of the Abbot Fursey's
Remains, at Perrone, by Dempster,^ at the 25th ot February. ?
Article IX. —Reputed Feast of Ciaran, Si. The name, Ciaran, Si.
, is found recorded, in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 25 th of February. However, we may doubt, if some mistake, coupled with a double entry of the same name—Ciarani, for rect'e Cienani—might not account for the present in- sertion.
Ctoent|)'^i>ti) JBap of Jebruarj)*
ARTICLE I. —ST. ENNA OR ENNIUS, ALSO CALLED MO-ENNA OR MOEN, BISHOP.
\_SIXTH CENTURY. I
brief and unsatisfactory memoranda, regarding this holy personage,
are set down by Colgan, at the 26th of February. ^ Harris, having SOME
followed his account, adds some unreliable matter to Ware's more correct state- ments regarding Moena. He says, this saint's real name was Nennio, and then he tells the reader, that Colgan has published his Life. But the greatest part of this so-called Life or of his Acts, as the Rev. Dr. Lanigan supposes, belongs, not to Bishop Moena, but to the Abbot, Monennus,^ who was a very different
From a Manuscript Martyrology of Marianus O'Gorman, the Bollandists insert the name, Mainna, as seeming to be intended for a Virgin, atthissamedate. ^ Variousdenominationalformshavebeenappliedtothis
saint, and it has been conjectured, that he was originally called Ena, Enna, or Ennius. Thence it was probably resolved into Mo-Ena, Mo-Enna, or
person. 3
Article vin. —' His Life will be found at the i6lh of January
^ See Bishop Forbes' "Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 192.
Article ix. Januarii. Vita S. Fursoei. Appendix, Kelly, p. xvi. —^
'Edited Rev. Dr. by
= See "Acta Sanctorum Hibernice,"xvi.
cap. X. , p. 98.
3 See "Acta Sanctorum," tomusiii. , Feb-
ruarii xxv. Among the pretermitted saints,
p. 484.
4 iSee ournotices, at that date.
s See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
Article
i.
See "Acta Sanctorum
nii^," xvi. Januarii. Vita S. Fursoei, Ap- p. 36.
pendix, cap. x. , p. 98. Also, at xxv. Feb- 'See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus iii. , ruarii, De S. Furstei Abbatis Translatioue, Februarii xxvi. Among the pretermitted
p. 413.
"See Menologium Scoticum. " See Colgan's Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
"^"
—
Hiberniie," xxvi. Februarii. De S. Moeno
Episcopo, pp. 413, 414.
^
His feast occurs, at the 1st of March.
^ See "Ecclesiastical History of Ire- land," vol. ii. , chap, x. , sect, vii. , n. 116,
saints, p. 625.
February 26. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 707
Mo-Ennius. HehasalsobeencalledMoeniisandMainiis. Amongtheold Irish oe and at had a like sound, and Mo is merely a prefix, which indicates some special affection. s This saint is also called Moinne, Moune, Muinni,^ or Moen. He is said to have been a Briton, who accompanied St. Pjrenuan7 of Clonfert, on his return to Ireland, after that celebrated seven yea-s' navi- gation of the ocean, during which he visited the great Western Island, or Continent, and after he had lived some time in Armoric Britain. *^ In the Island of Inis-mac-Hy Chuinn,9 both master and disciple are said to have dwelt. ^° Whether or not, Mbena had been elevated to the episcopal dignity, before leaving the country of his birth, may be questioned ; but, when seventy-seven years old, St. Brendan is said to have founded Clonfert. " St. Moen lived with him, and during his sojourn there, a certain youth, who had
come with his parents, died. Three days after this occurrence, and when the body was quite rigid, St. Brendan said to Bishop Moena, " Place my staff on the body of the dead brother. " Obeying this command, the youth came to
hfe, and thus miraculously preserved, that brother, confirmed in the faith, was sent home to his native country in Britain. ^' Cdlgan makes St. Brendan
thefounderandfirst of Bishop
aboutthe '3 andhe
year 553, says,
Clonfert,
that St. 'Brendan -abdicated, having placed St. Moena in his room. Other
writers 'niake' St. " Moena the first bishop, over this see. ^^ A great pestilence, called in the Irish language, Samthrusc,'^ Samthrose,^^ or Sawthrusc,^7 pre-
vailed, in the year 551 or 553, according to various Irish Annals, and it is
generally resolved into a Lepra or Leprosy. It might have been that disease, which carried off the youth already mentioned. As to the etymology of
""
Clonfert, it signifies, a wonderful Den," or a place of Retirement,'' accord-
ing to Harris'^ and the Rev. Dr Lanigan. However, the etymology given for it, by Dr. O'Donovan, is "the Lawn, Meadow, or Bog-Island of the Grave ;" ^9 and, he identifies it, as being now Clonfert, in the barony of Long-
=^^
ford, and county of Galway.
It is very probable, that our St. Enna or Moen was Bishop of Clonfert.
Yet, a difficulty occurs, from his festival having been marked, not at the ist •of March, but at the 26th of February. From the circumstances of name, time and place, Colgan thinks,""^ he may have been not different from a Mainus, who was abbot in Armoric Britain, in the sixth century,^^ but whose
nije," xxvi. Februarii. D. S. Moeno Epis-
copo, n. i,, p. 414.
^ See the '* Book of Obits, and Martyr-
ology of Christ's Church, Dublin," edited by Rev. Dr. James Henthorn Todd and John Clarke Crosthwaite, p. 62.
7 His festival occurs, on the i6th of May.
also in another Life of this saint, taken from the Book of the Island.
'3 See Dr. O'Donovan's ** Annals of the
Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 190, 191. Other authorities place the foundation in 557, 562
and 564. See ibid. , n. (n).
"* See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , "Bishops of
^
Three different Lives of St. Brendan Clonfert," p. 638.
state, that he lived seven years in Britain, viz. : the Irish Life, chap. Iviii. , one found
in the Book of Kilkenny, chap, lii,, as also one met with in the Book of the Island of All Saints.
'S Codex Clarendon, Tom. 49. ^^ "
9
in the Book of Kilkenny, chap. lii.
553, '^
A. D. ^^
See the Annales Ultonienses," A. D. edited by Dr. O'Conor.
See the "Annals of Clonmacnoise,"
551.
See Harris' vol. " of Ware, i. , Bishops
According
to St. Brendan's
Life,
'° See
Colgan's
Clonfert," p. 638.
'^ See "Annals of the Four
vol. i. , n. (n), p. 190.
-°
Masters,"
found " Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
DeS. Moeno Epis-
Irish. Life of St. Brendan, chap. Iviii. , as " Albert le Grande, in "De Sanctis Bri«
niae," xxvi. Februarii.
copo, p. 413.
Through an oversight, Dr. O'Donovan places Clonfert in the county of Longford.
" See Rt. Rev.
Moran's
" Acta S. Brendani. " Vita
=' See "Acta Sanctorum
xxvi. Februarii. De S. Moeno Episcopo,
Patrick F.
&c. , cap. xxi. ,
p. 19.
" The foregoing account is found in an p. 414, and n. 9.
Hibernian,"
7o8 LIVESOFTHEIRISHSAINTS'. [February26.
festival there has been assigned to a different day. Whether Moen or Moen- nius were the same person or not, neither of them is to be confounded with the Abbot MainiiSj^'s or Main,^''^ who is said to have Hved and died in Britanny, and whose festival occurs on the 15th of January. ^s He is com- memorated, in the English Martyrology, as a disciple of St. Samson,'^ at Dol, and afterwards he was abbot of a monastery, dedicated to St. John the Baptist. He died about a. d. 590, and he was there buried. The BoUandists, at the present date, do not wish to determine this question of identity, but Dromise to do so at the i6th of May, when giving St. Brendan's Acts. There, however, the matter is not even noticed. ^7
A mistake has been admitted,^^ in thinking that this St. Moen was the
same as the Abbot, Monennus, or Nennio, master over Tigernacli,^'^ Bishop of Clones. 30 In the " Annals of the Four Masters,"3i in the third year of Aedh, Monarch of Ireland, we find the death of St. Maeineann, Bishop of Cluain-fearta-Breanainn, recorded at a. d. 570, and it is said to have occurred, on the ist of March. We find, in the Ulster Annals, under a. d. 571, the
*'
Moena, Bishop Clon- fert-Brenain,32 went to rest. " 33 St. Brendan, it is stated, was then alive, and this agrees with most of our Annalistic accounts. The Annals of Tigher- nach state, at a. d.
