Curry very justly infers, that the author of these
additions
was coeval with O'Clery.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
] LIVES 0I> THE IRISH SAINTS.
381
is, that a king of Leinster granted it, together with its inhabitants, a mill, and the adjoining district, to St. Fechin. 9^
The church of Termonfeckin,93 in the barony of Ferrard, and county of Louth, had been dedicated to this saint,94 and from him the local denomina- tion had its origin. It means " the Asylum of St. Fechin," and there the Archbishops of Armagh had a manor. 95 It is unwarrantable to have stated that a monastery was founded here in 665. 5^ The monastery of Fore was greatly celebrated. 97 It underwent many changes in the course of ages. Its wealthy endowments caused the sphere of its usefulness to be greatly extended. There miracles were often wrought through the patron's intercession. There
"
also the Bachall Fhechin, or
Staff of Fechin," which was once in his
possession, was most probably preserved, as allusion is made to it long after his time. 9^
This illustrious abbot's whole pilgrimage was spent in prayer, fasting, and in the practice of various mortifications. Sometimes he remained shut up in stone houses, sometimes he lived by the sea-shore, or in desert moun- tains. 99 Active and unceasing in his efforts of zeal and charity, St. Fechin was fond of holy meditation, and he often healed the sick, the infirm, and
'°° He is said even to have raised the dead to life. '°' Nothing tended to disturb his devotions. He was wonderfully favoured by
^°^ He took little or no now food, except
possessed persons.
God with the of spirit
prophecy.
and then a little of the plainest bread, and some water to assuage his thirst.
The miracles so great and so wonderful, that have been attributed to him, are sufficient to account for the great veneration in which his memory lives among the people, where his various foundations had been established.
This saint is the one first distinguished among those priests belonging to the third class of Irish saints. ^°3 His love for solitude and silence was remark- able. In the course of ages, his monastery at Fore became richly endowed, and it was a very noble establishment. It continued down to the period of the general suppression. '°4 If religious feeling and practices survive among the Irish people, as doubtless is the case in many favoured localities of our island, when our eyes rest on the wrecks of past ages, our thoughts naturally suggest this melancholy reflexion, that the progress of time has only too
9' A few statements and inferences of Dr.
Lanigan must here be noticed. He sup-
poses, that the holy abbot and his monks at
Fore could hardly have been poor and dis-
tressed, if they were possessed of such a
fine estate. He thinks the Tulach-Fobhuir
means a landed property belonging to Fore,
and which this monastery acquired in its
days of splendour. He likewise imagines chap, xxi. , pp. 132, 133. "The Second this grant could not have been given in the Life," chap, xxiii. , xxv. , xxviii. , xxx. , pp. time of Fechin.
kin are marked within the parish of Ter- 132, 133. "The Second Life," chap,
135, 136.
93 The town and townland of Termonfec- '°' See "The First Life," chap, xxi. , pp.
monfeckin, on "Ordnance Survey Sheets
for the County of Louth. '' Sheet 22. See
94 See '"Letters Conta'ning Information relative to the Antiquities of the County of Louth, Collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey," vol. i. , p. 64.
95 See Ussher's " Britannicarum Ecclesi-
arum Antiquitates," cap. xvii. , p. 500. bernise. " O'Sullivan Beare's "Historise
Ussher himself is said to have been the last who resided in its palace.
Catholicse Iberniae Compendium," tomus i. ,
lib. iv. , cap. xii. , p. 54.
"^See Rev. A. "Diocese of Cogan's
9* See Lewis' "
Topographical Dictionary
of Ireland," vol. ii. , p. 619.
^ See Archdall at Fore. " Monasticon
Hibernicuni," pp 711 to 715-
»* See the " Second Life," chap, xiii. ,
p. 136.
^^See "The Second Life," chap, xlvi. ,
p. 139.
'°° See "The First Life," chap. xvi. and
xxxiii. , xlv. , pp. 137, 139.
'°- "
Second I^ife," chap, xxvi. , chap.
xliv. , pp. 136, 138, 139.
'°3 Henry Fitzsimon inserts
"
Fechinus Fori, aliisque Celebris multis Ibernise locis ;" but no date is there assigned to his festival.
See "
Catalogus Aliquorum
Sanctorum Hi-
382 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20
frequently left the vestiges of fonner religious and artistic civilization behind, while unredeemed by any notable evidence of material or moral advance in society. Even yet our ecclesiastical ruins are often the most interesting objects on which we can gaze throughout remote and beautiful Irish districts.
Article III. —St. Aenna or Oenu Ua Laighsigh, Abbot of Clon-
MACNOiSE, King's County. {Sixth Century. '] The utiUty of ancient mon- astic orders is not disputed at the present day by the most adverse writers,
or by the most erratic philosophers. It is very generally allowed, that the monks admirably paid the debt, owed by them to society at large, and that they became chief agents for social happiness, the moralists, and the civilizers ofbarbaroushabits,especiallyduringthefifthandsixthcenturies. ' Amanof
ability,^ but unhappily thinking differently from Christians, has yet acknow- ledged, that he who admires civilization, at those periods, should be with the Church and with the monks, who were her defenders. A festival in honour of Oenu mac h. Laigse, Abbot of Cluana mac Nois, is set down in the Martyrology of Tallagh,3 at the 20th of January. A later calendar adds a few additional particulars, to distinguish this saint. From the Martyrology of Donegalt we learn, that veneration was given this day to Aenna Ua Laigh- sigh, successor to Ciaran of Cluain-mic-Nois. He belonged to the race of LaeighseachLeann-mhor,sonofConallCeamach. Thissaintflourishedin the sixth century, the contemporary of St. Ita of Killeedy. s It has been remarked, according to the Annals of the Four Masters, of Clonmacnoise, etc. , both St. Ita and St. Eneas died within the same year, a. d. 569. And n—ot this alone, but, it is stated, both saints died within a week of each other
St. Ita having departed on the 1 5th of January, and St. Eneas five days afterwards, or on the 20th of this same month, according to the Martyrologies of . ^ngus, Tallagh, and Marianus Gorman. ^ These concurring circum-
stances, in a remarkable manner, tend to establish the credibility of those statements contained in St. Ita's life, and to show that its author was a trustworthy chronicler of events, which he imdertook to place upon record. ^
Article IV. —Feast of St. -^ngus, or Macnessius, Patron and FIRSTBishopovertheDioceseofConnor,CountyofAntrim. {M/th
and Sixth Centuries. '] It had been Colgan's intention apparently to have given someaccountofthiscelebratedsaint,atthepresentday. ' IntheMartyrology of Tallagh, he is thought to have been called ^nus. ' Again, Marianus
Meath, Ancient and Modem," vol. i. , chap. X. , pp. 65, 66, 67.
s See her life already given at the 15th of
Article hi.
—'Le Vicomte Hersart de
January, chap. v. ""
la " La et Villemarque's Legende Celtique
®The Kalendarium Drummondiense has the feast " Genii " at this date. See
la Poesie des Cloitres en
en Cam-
Forbes' ' ' Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 3.
7 See "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," xv.
n. — Januarii, 28, p. 72.
Article iv. 'See "Trias Thauma- turga," Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, ii. , n. 194, p. 182. But, on referring to this day, in the "Acta Sanctorum Hibemiae," we find no mention of this saint.
of
Martyrology Donegal," within brackets; but to the writer this seems to be a mistake of the in-
terpolator.
Irlande,
brie, et en Bretagne. " Introduction, pp.
French Institute, has contributed very re-
markable articles for the month of Septem-
ber, November, December, 1862, and for
January, 1863, reviewing M. le Comte de Montalembert's " Les Moines d'Occident. " 3 Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xiii. The Franciscan copy has Oenutfi n tAigfi Ab. cL * Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
24> 25.
Bishop
xi. , xii. ' M.
in " Le
vants. " This writer, a member of the
Littre,
Journal
Des Sa-
*Soit is stated inthe'*
January 20. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 383
O'Gorman and Maguire refer to him at the 20th day of January. We find
entered in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 on this day, ^nghus, Bishop of Coindeire,'^ whose Hfe we are told was extant. His common appellation was St. Mac Nisi or Macnissius, taking a surname from his mother Neas. s He was descended from the race of Eochaidh, son to Muireadh, who is of the line of Heremon. In a note to a table, postfixed to the Donegal Martyr- ology, he is said to have been of Connor, i. e. , Mac Nisi,^ whom the Felire of Aongus the Celd De calls Oenu, or Oenus. Further particulars regarding him are reserved. The acts of St. Macnissius, Bishop of Connor, will be seen at the 3rd of September, where the chief known facts relating to him will be found.
Article V. —St. Lugna, Priest of Cill-Tarsna. \Possibly in the Sixth Century. '] This holy priest served his Master with burning zeal in this life, and now he is reaping the fruition of his hopes, those well-earned delights, his successful mission, his glorious example, his in- valuable services, and his devout aspirations have procured him. A
"
festival in honour of Lugna Cruinithir,
tioned in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 20th of January. This holy priest was doubtless very dear to the great High Priest, our Lord Jesus Christ. A conjecture has been offered, that he may be identified with a certain Lugneus, surnamed Mocu Blai, or " the son of Blai," who is men- tioned in the Life of St. Columkille,^ and who is found enumerated among his disciples. 3 At a time when Columba sat writing in his little cell, his face
was
andhe exclaimed " Two vehemently : Help, help. "
suddenly changed,
brothers, who stood at the door, namely, Colgan Mack-ealluigh,* and Lugneus Mocublai,5 demanded the cause for that sudden exclamation. To whom the
:
venerable abbot made this answer " I commanded an angel of our Lord,
who stood with you, to succour one of our brothers, falling do^vn fi-om the top ofagreathouse,thatisnowbuildinginDurrow. "^ Thesaintaddedfurther: "Very admirable, indeed, and scarcely conceivable, is the quickness of angelical motion, and like, as I imagine it, to the lightning's rapidity. For
Edited by Drs, Todd and Reeves, pp. Breac died on the 14th of September, A. D.
22, 23.
614, according to the Annals of the Four
*At this word — Dr. Todd re- Masters. See O'Donovan's Coindere,
marks in a note: "The words within 238,239. —
edition,
Rev. Dr.
vol.
Kelly,
brackets are written in what has hitherto been called "the more recent hand. " The words which follow to the end of the para- graph are in Michael O'Clery's hand, and are written over the addition in brackets. Hence Mr.
Curry very justly infers, that the author of these additions was coeval with O'Clery. It follows, also, that the additions made by this author were seen and approved by O'Clery, and, therefore, must be regarded as of equal authority with
Article v.
' Edited
by
Colgano, filio Kellachi, pp. 381, 382.
s Colgan is in doubt, whether he should be identified with the present saint, or with a Lugna of Leter, venerated on the 25th of April, or with a Lugna, a deacon comme- morated on the 31st of December. See Mac Nisi called also Aongus, and Caomhan "Trias Thaumaturga," n. 18, p. 331, and
the text, . ^nus, is for jfEnghus, the as-
" Bishops of ^ The writer adds :" I am in great doubt.
pirated gh being omitted in pronunciation.
s See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , Connor," p. 217.
"
Brec, is on the 3rd of September. See nn. 17, 18, p. 386.
ibid. , pp. 358, 359. But, St. Coemah * In the northern part of the present Breac of Roseach, appears to have been a King's County,
different person from our saint. Coeman
priest," of Chill-tarsna, is men-
p. xiii. In the Franciscan copy the reading
is tujriA c^utnchip o Citt CA^xpiA.
*
See his Life at the 9th of June,
"
^ gee "Trias Thaumaturga.
Quarta ad Acta S. Columbse, cap. x. , p. 491.
* Colgan has some notices of him at the 20th of February, in the " Acta Sanctorum Hibemiae," xx. Februarii, De B. Colgo sive
Appendix
i. ,
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20.
that heavenly dweller, who flew away from us, when yonder man began to fall, reached him, as it were, in the twinkling of an eye, and prevented him before he touched the earth. Neither did the man that fell feel any bruise
or pain. Oh, how stupendous is this most speedy and opportune subvention, that could so speedily he performed, such a distance by sea and land inter- vening. "7 ThesameSt. Lugneus,whoinonepassageiscalled"thesoldier of Christ," appears to have been on terms of great intimacy with his illus- trious master. ^ He was the witness of various miraculous occurrences and visions, connected with St. Columkille, whom he seems to have survived. 9 Yet, we are unable to state, whether before or after the death of Columba, he had been in any manner connected with Cill-Tarsna, although it seems likely enough he had been a priest. We find occurring in the Martyrology of Donegal,'" on this day, Lughna, priest, of Cill-tarsna. There is a Bally- tarsna in the parish of Ballysheehan, in the barony of Middlethird, in the county of Tipperary, and an old church is on that townland. " This is also
Ballytarsna Church Ruins, County Tipperary.
called Templebeg. Its two gables are destroyed down to the height of its side-walls. " It measures 47 feet 8 inches in length, by 19 feet and 10 inches in width. Its walls are 3 feet thick and 10 feet high. They are built of large limestones, apparently not quarried, but gathered off the field surfaces.
«'
7 See ibid. , Secunda Vita S. Columbse," "Its exact site is indicated within the
"
cap. xxii. , p. 327, and
Columbae,'" lib. iii. , cap. xv. , p. 367. Also House. See " Ordnance Survey Townland
Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's Life of St. Columba, lib. iii. , cap. xv. , pp. 215 to 217, with the accompanying notes.
^ See Rev Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's Life
of St. Columba, lib. i. , cap. 4. 3, and nn. pp. 80 to 85.
'See ibid. , lib. iii. , cap. 22, pp. 227, 228.
graved by Mr. Gregor Grey, Dublin, from a hitherto unpublished sketch of George Du
''
" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 22, 23.
Noyer, preserved among the rary," vol. i. , sketch 38.
Quarta Vita S. ornamental grounds surrounding Ballytarsna
Maps for the County of Tipperary. " Sheet 53-
" The accompanying engraving of Bally- tarsna old church has been drawn and en-
Ordnance Survey Sketches for the County of Tippe-
January 20. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. ;85
Those stones are irregularly laid, but well tcmcnti. d. 1 iiis church was lighted by two windows on the south, and by two on the north wall ; these,
howe\er, excepting one,'^ were all destroyed in 1840. '^ '1 here was a breach in the north wall, and ex. ending 15 feci from a ^sinoow, in ;he direction of the west gable. A doorway was in the souih wa. l, at a disunce of 15 feet from this western gable, but it has been clishgured. ' Thcri,' was a small graveyard attached to this church, and it is still much used as a cemetery.
Article VI. —St. Ecca Vlkc H-17ca, of Lethcatx. In both the
published' and the unpublished^ copies of the I'allagh [Nlartyrology, Ave find notices of a St. l^cca, . Mac H-L'cae, or Chae, of Lethcain. If tiiis . -aint be
not identical widi St. Acca, Bi-hop of Hagulstad, or Hexham, in the kingdom
of ' and of Candida Casa, or in we must Xorthumbria, AVhitliorn, Scodand,-^
confess our inability to identify him with any of the other known saints in our calendars. Camerarius^ has a notice of this saint, and so likewise has Bishop Forbes. ^ Lethcain may possibly ha\e been intended for Leathcuinn, which denomination was used to indicate the northern half division of Ire- land. Again, there was a place called Leithi-cam of Magh-Enir, in the parish of Kilmore,7 and about three miles to the east of Armagh, in the county of the same name. ^ The family, period, and place of thisSt. Ecca cannot be safely determined. Indeed, it seems not very clear, after all, if this Ecca be not rendered into Moecca, who, as we have already seen, has been identitied, by some of our calendarists, but in an unsatisfactory manner, with St. Fechin of Fore. 9
ArticleVII. —St. Sarax. Withoutostentation,thesaintshavealways contrivedtoeffectgreatgoodintheirrelationswithmen. Havingnofurther designation, we meet Saran's name simply entered in the Martyrology of
'5Thisis
wutside, wlierc it is eoii. Ttructctl of cut linie-
'. one, 2 feci 5 inches in heiglit, and ia width 3^ inulies at lop, with 4^ at tiie Ijottoni.
' in his " Scoti- Dempster, Mcnologinm
cum," has placed his festival at the 6th of
August, as bishop at Candida Casa, in
Gallowa)'.
quadrangular, measuring
unthe
'•• The
by Jolin OT)onovan in
information relative to the Antiquities of Cainerarins,'' we read " J^-atus Accas,
description
in the text was funiislicd
5 At the of the 13th January, among
the County of 'J'lpperary, collected during the progre-s of the Ordnance Survey in
AcUis, Areas, 1-lpisCopus Ilagulstadiensisin Anglix" el Canduhe Casa; in . '^cotia. "
"
Letters containing
". Scottish Entries in the Kalendar of David :
1840,'' vol. i. , pip. 2iS, 2oy. ''See ^ About 20 jjcichcs to the north-west of 261.
Kalendars of Scottish Saints,'' p.
this chureii, there is an old ca. ^ile, still in
fine presi. r\aiiun. An admirable sketch ol
it is given by George Du . \oycr, in liie
'
Cill-mor-Maighe-
"
Ordnance . Siir\ey >l<i:tLhes for the C_(ninty
'See Dr. (. /Donovan's " Ar. iials of the Four Ma-ters," vo'. i , n. (b), p. 43S.
'' 1 n a curiou> coinment on the fciliyf, in the Leakh. ir breac, at the ;oth ot January, a story is lold, that St. Riei. m ol C lorir. ac- noise haii . ^t. feieliin I'louijit briek to his nujii. istery, wluii the latter altemp'ed to es- cape lioni It. because of this retrogression, he i^ said to ha\e been named by Kieran. " So this man is /(. "• I-\ccad (i. e. , in retro- gression), said Ciaran, et indc Moficca no- men accepit. '—Fol. 80. Professor O Loo-
ney, wlio has furnished the extract, adds —
:
'
Tlie / in Mcfura admits of aspiration, and becomes bankrupt, by its influence. Thus the name Moecca, as in the text and note of the Felire, is obtained. "
2C
of Tipperary," preserved in the R. 1. A. ,
Skelcii 39. Aki 1CM-: VI.
p. . xiii.
—
I'Alitcd by Rev. Dr. Kcily,
-
\\\ the f'ranciscan copy, after tlie entry
of iwer. ty hjreign saints at thistlay. we have the first recorded domestic sanit, Ccca ni. h. Ch^e LacH chAin.
' Colgan nassome notices of this I'inglish
saint—connected h. owever with Ireland in
missionary duty—at the 19th of Februar)-, to which day the reader is referred for more
"
special information. See Acta Sanctorum
Hibemiae," xix. Februarii. Vita S. Acca;
Episcopi, p. —374. Vol. I. No. 7.
"
known as Emhir, or Cdl-niorT'inir.
Fcjrmerly
386 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20.
Tallagh' at the 20th of January. The compilers of a later calendar offer a conjectureregardinghim; butweareunableotherwisetoconfirmtheirstate- ments.
is, that a king of Leinster granted it, together with its inhabitants, a mill, and the adjoining district, to St. Fechin. 9^
The church of Termonfeckin,93 in the barony of Ferrard, and county of Louth, had been dedicated to this saint,94 and from him the local denomina- tion had its origin. It means " the Asylum of St. Fechin," and there the Archbishops of Armagh had a manor. 95 It is unwarrantable to have stated that a monastery was founded here in 665. 5^ The monastery of Fore was greatly celebrated. 97 It underwent many changes in the course of ages. Its wealthy endowments caused the sphere of its usefulness to be greatly extended. There miracles were often wrought through the patron's intercession. There
"
also the Bachall Fhechin, or
Staff of Fechin," which was once in his
possession, was most probably preserved, as allusion is made to it long after his time. 9^
This illustrious abbot's whole pilgrimage was spent in prayer, fasting, and in the practice of various mortifications. Sometimes he remained shut up in stone houses, sometimes he lived by the sea-shore, or in desert moun- tains. 99 Active and unceasing in his efforts of zeal and charity, St. Fechin was fond of holy meditation, and he often healed the sick, the infirm, and
'°° He is said even to have raised the dead to life. '°' Nothing tended to disturb his devotions. He was wonderfully favoured by
^°^ He took little or no now food, except
possessed persons.
God with the of spirit
prophecy.
and then a little of the plainest bread, and some water to assuage his thirst.
The miracles so great and so wonderful, that have been attributed to him, are sufficient to account for the great veneration in which his memory lives among the people, where his various foundations had been established.
This saint is the one first distinguished among those priests belonging to the third class of Irish saints. ^°3 His love for solitude and silence was remark- able. In the course of ages, his monastery at Fore became richly endowed, and it was a very noble establishment. It continued down to the period of the general suppression. '°4 If religious feeling and practices survive among the Irish people, as doubtless is the case in many favoured localities of our island, when our eyes rest on the wrecks of past ages, our thoughts naturally suggest this melancholy reflexion, that the progress of time has only too
9' A few statements and inferences of Dr.
Lanigan must here be noticed. He sup-
poses, that the holy abbot and his monks at
Fore could hardly have been poor and dis-
tressed, if they were possessed of such a
fine estate. He thinks the Tulach-Fobhuir
means a landed property belonging to Fore,
and which this monastery acquired in its
days of splendour. He likewise imagines chap, xxi. , pp. 132, 133. "The Second this grant could not have been given in the Life," chap, xxiii. , xxv. , xxviii. , xxx. , pp. time of Fechin.
kin are marked within the parish of Ter- 132, 133. "The Second Life," chap,
135, 136.
93 The town and townland of Termonfec- '°' See "The First Life," chap, xxi. , pp.
monfeckin, on "Ordnance Survey Sheets
for the County of Louth. '' Sheet 22. See
94 See '"Letters Conta'ning Information relative to the Antiquities of the County of Louth, Collected during the Progress of the Ordnance Survey," vol. i. , p. 64.
95 See Ussher's " Britannicarum Ecclesi-
arum Antiquitates," cap. xvii. , p. 500. bernise. " O'Sullivan Beare's "Historise
Ussher himself is said to have been the last who resided in its palace.
Catholicse Iberniae Compendium," tomus i. ,
lib. iv. , cap. xii. , p. 54.
"^See Rev. A. "Diocese of Cogan's
9* See Lewis' "
Topographical Dictionary
of Ireland," vol. ii. , p. 619.
^ See Archdall at Fore. " Monasticon
Hibernicuni," pp 711 to 715-
»* See the " Second Life," chap, xiii. ,
p. 136.
^^See "The Second Life," chap, xlvi. ,
p. 139.
'°° See "The First Life," chap. xvi. and
xxxiii. , xlv. , pp. 137, 139.
'°- "
Second I^ife," chap, xxvi. , chap.
xliv. , pp. 136, 138, 139.
'°3 Henry Fitzsimon inserts
"
Fechinus Fori, aliisque Celebris multis Ibernise locis ;" but no date is there assigned to his festival.
See "
Catalogus Aliquorum
Sanctorum Hi-
382 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20
frequently left the vestiges of fonner religious and artistic civilization behind, while unredeemed by any notable evidence of material or moral advance in society. Even yet our ecclesiastical ruins are often the most interesting objects on which we can gaze throughout remote and beautiful Irish districts.
Article III. —St. Aenna or Oenu Ua Laighsigh, Abbot of Clon-
MACNOiSE, King's County. {Sixth Century. '] The utiUty of ancient mon- astic orders is not disputed at the present day by the most adverse writers,
or by the most erratic philosophers. It is very generally allowed, that the monks admirably paid the debt, owed by them to society at large, and that they became chief agents for social happiness, the moralists, and the civilizers ofbarbaroushabits,especiallyduringthefifthandsixthcenturies. ' Amanof
ability,^ but unhappily thinking differently from Christians, has yet acknow- ledged, that he who admires civilization, at those periods, should be with the Church and with the monks, who were her defenders. A festival in honour of Oenu mac h. Laigse, Abbot of Cluana mac Nois, is set down in the Martyrology of Tallagh,3 at the 20th of January. A later calendar adds a few additional particulars, to distinguish this saint. From the Martyrology of Donegalt we learn, that veneration was given this day to Aenna Ua Laigh- sigh, successor to Ciaran of Cluain-mic-Nois. He belonged to the race of LaeighseachLeann-mhor,sonofConallCeamach. Thissaintflourishedin the sixth century, the contemporary of St. Ita of Killeedy. s It has been remarked, according to the Annals of the Four Masters, of Clonmacnoise, etc. , both St. Ita and St. Eneas died within the same year, a. d. 569. And n—ot this alone, but, it is stated, both saints died within a week of each other
St. Ita having departed on the 1 5th of January, and St. Eneas five days afterwards, or on the 20th of this same month, according to the Martyrologies of . ^ngus, Tallagh, and Marianus Gorman. ^ These concurring circum-
stances, in a remarkable manner, tend to establish the credibility of those statements contained in St. Ita's life, and to show that its author was a trustworthy chronicler of events, which he imdertook to place upon record. ^
Article IV. —Feast of St. -^ngus, or Macnessius, Patron and FIRSTBishopovertheDioceseofConnor,CountyofAntrim. {M/th
and Sixth Centuries. '] It had been Colgan's intention apparently to have given someaccountofthiscelebratedsaint,atthepresentday. ' IntheMartyrology of Tallagh, he is thought to have been called ^nus. ' Again, Marianus
Meath, Ancient and Modem," vol. i. , chap. X. , pp. 65, 66, 67.
s See her life already given at the 15th of
Article hi.
—'Le Vicomte Hersart de
January, chap. v. ""
la " La et Villemarque's Legende Celtique
®The Kalendarium Drummondiense has the feast " Genii " at this date. See
la Poesie des Cloitres en
en Cam-
Forbes' ' ' Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p. 3.
7 See "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," xv.
n. — Januarii, 28, p. 72.
Article iv. 'See "Trias Thauma- turga," Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars, ii. , n. 194, p. 182. But, on referring to this day, in the "Acta Sanctorum Hibemiae," we find no mention of this saint.
of
Martyrology Donegal," within brackets; but to the writer this seems to be a mistake of the in-
terpolator.
Irlande,
brie, et en Bretagne. " Introduction, pp.
French Institute, has contributed very re-
markable articles for the month of Septem-
ber, November, December, 1862, and for
January, 1863, reviewing M. le Comte de Montalembert's " Les Moines d'Occident. " 3 Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xiii. The Franciscan copy has Oenutfi n tAigfi Ab. cL * Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
24> 25.
Bishop
xi. , xii. ' M.
in " Le
vants. " This writer, a member of the
Littre,
Journal
Des Sa-
*Soit is stated inthe'*
January 20. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 383
O'Gorman and Maguire refer to him at the 20th day of January. We find
entered in the Martyrology of Donegal,3 on this day, ^nghus, Bishop of Coindeire,'^ whose Hfe we are told was extant. His common appellation was St. Mac Nisi or Macnissius, taking a surname from his mother Neas. s He was descended from the race of Eochaidh, son to Muireadh, who is of the line of Heremon. In a note to a table, postfixed to the Donegal Martyr- ology, he is said to have been of Connor, i. e. , Mac Nisi,^ whom the Felire of Aongus the Celd De calls Oenu, or Oenus. Further particulars regarding him are reserved. The acts of St. Macnissius, Bishop of Connor, will be seen at the 3rd of September, where the chief known facts relating to him will be found.
Article V. —St. Lugna, Priest of Cill-Tarsna. \Possibly in the Sixth Century. '] This holy priest served his Master with burning zeal in this life, and now he is reaping the fruition of his hopes, those well-earned delights, his successful mission, his glorious example, his in- valuable services, and his devout aspirations have procured him. A
"
festival in honour of Lugna Cruinithir,
tioned in the Martyrology of Tallagh,^ at the 20th of January. This holy priest was doubtless very dear to the great High Priest, our Lord Jesus Christ. A conjecture has been offered, that he may be identified with a certain Lugneus, surnamed Mocu Blai, or " the son of Blai," who is men- tioned in the Life of St. Columkille,^ and who is found enumerated among his disciples. 3 At a time when Columba sat writing in his little cell, his face
was
andhe exclaimed " Two vehemently : Help, help. "
suddenly changed,
brothers, who stood at the door, namely, Colgan Mack-ealluigh,* and Lugneus Mocublai,5 demanded the cause for that sudden exclamation. To whom the
:
venerable abbot made this answer " I commanded an angel of our Lord,
who stood with you, to succour one of our brothers, falling do^vn fi-om the top ofagreathouse,thatisnowbuildinginDurrow. "^ Thesaintaddedfurther: "Very admirable, indeed, and scarcely conceivable, is the quickness of angelical motion, and like, as I imagine it, to the lightning's rapidity. For
Edited by Drs, Todd and Reeves, pp. Breac died on the 14th of September, A. D.
22, 23.
614, according to the Annals of the Four
*At this word — Dr. Todd re- Masters. See O'Donovan's Coindere,
marks in a note: "The words within 238,239. —
edition,
Rev. Dr.
vol.
Kelly,
brackets are written in what has hitherto been called "the more recent hand. " The words which follow to the end of the para- graph are in Michael O'Clery's hand, and are written over the addition in brackets. Hence Mr.
Curry very justly infers, that the author of these additions was coeval with O'Clery. It follows, also, that the additions made by this author were seen and approved by O'Clery, and, therefore, must be regarded as of equal authority with
Article v.
' Edited
by
Colgano, filio Kellachi, pp. 381, 382.
s Colgan is in doubt, whether he should be identified with the present saint, or with a Lugna of Leter, venerated on the 25th of April, or with a Lugna, a deacon comme- morated on the 31st of December. See Mac Nisi called also Aongus, and Caomhan "Trias Thaumaturga," n. 18, p. 331, and
the text, . ^nus, is for jfEnghus, the as-
" Bishops of ^ The writer adds :" I am in great doubt.
pirated gh being omitted in pronunciation.
s See Harris' Ware, vol. i. , Connor," p. 217.
"
Brec, is on the 3rd of September. See nn. 17, 18, p. 386.
ibid. , pp. 358, 359. But, St. Coemah * In the northern part of the present Breac of Roseach, appears to have been a King's County,
different person from our saint. Coeman
priest," of Chill-tarsna, is men-
p. xiii. In the Franciscan copy the reading
is tujriA c^utnchip o Citt CA^xpiA.
*
See his Life at the 9th of June,
"
^ gee "Trias Thaumaturga.
Quarta ad Acta S. Columbse, cap. x. , p. 491.
* Colgan has some notices of him at the 20th of February, in the " Acta Sanctorum Hibemiae," xx. Februarii, De B. Colgo sive
Appendix
i. ,
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20.
that heavenly dweller, who flew away from us, when yonder man began to fall, reached him, as it were, in the twinkling of an eye, and prevented him before he touched the earth. Neither did the man that fell feel any bruise
or pain. Oh, how stupendous is this most speedy and opportune subvention, that could so speedily he performed, such a distance by sea and land inter- vening. "7 ThesameSt. Lugneus,whoinonepassageiscalled"thesoldier of Christ," appears to have been on terms of great intimacy with his illus- trious master. ^ He was the witness of various miraculous occurrences and visions, connected with St. Columkille, whom he seems to have survived. 9 Yet, we are unable to state, whether before or after the death of Columba, he had been in any manner connected with Cill-Tarsna, although it seems likely enough he had been a priest. We find occurring in the Martyrology of Donegal,'" on this day, Lughna, priest, of Cill-tarsna. There is a Bally- tarsna in the parish of Ballysheehan, in the barony of Middlethird, in the county of Tipperary, and an old church is on that townland. " This is also
Ballytarsna Church Ruins, County Tipperary.
called Templebeg. Its two gables are destroyed down to the height of its side-walls. " It measures 47 feet 8 inches in length, by 19 feet and 10 inches in width. Its walls are 3 feet thick and 10 feet high. They are built of large limestones, apparently not quarried, but gathered off the field surfaces.
«'
7 See ibid. , Secunda Vita S. Columbse," "Its exact site is indicated within the
"
cap. xxii. , p. 327, and
Columbae,'" lib. iii. , cap. xv. , p. 367. Also House. See " Ordnance Survey Townland
Rev. Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's Life of St. Columba, lib. iii. , cap. xv. , pp. 215 to 217, with the accompanying notes.
^ See Rev Dr. Reeves' Adamnan's Life
of St. Columba, lib. i. , cap. 4. 3, and nn. pp. 80 to 85.
'See ibid. , lib. iii. , cap. 22, pp. 227, 228.
graved by Mr. Gregor Grey, Dublin, from a hitherto unpublished sketch of George Du
''
" Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 22, 23.
Noyer, preserved among the rary," vol. i. , sketch 38.
Quarta Vita S. ornamental grounds surrounding Ballytarsna
Maps for the County of Tipperary. " Sheet 53-
" The accompanying engraving of Bally- tarsna old church has been drawn and en-
Ordnance Survey Sketches for the County of Tippe-
January 20. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. ;85
Those stones are irregularly laid, but well tcmcnti. d. 1 iiis church was lighted by two windows on the south, and by two on the north wall ; these,
howe\er, excepting one,'^ were all destroyed in 1840. '^ '1 here was a breach in the north wall, and ex. ending 15 feci from a ^sinoow, in ;he direction of the west gable. A doorway was in the souih wa. l, at a disunce of 15 feet from this western gable, but it has been clishgured. ' Thcri,' was a small graveyard attached to this church, and it is still much used as a cemetery.
Article VI. —St. Ecca Vlkc H-17ca, of Lethcatx. In both the
published' and the unpublished^ copies of the I'allagh [Nlartyrology, Ave find notices of a St. l^cca, . Mac H-L'cae, or Chae, of Lethcain. If tiiis . -aint be
not identical widi St. Acca, Bi-hop of Hagulstad, or Hexham, in the kingdom
of ' and of Candida Casa, or in we must Xorthumbria, AVhitliorn, Scodand,-^
confess our inability to identify him with any of the other known saints in our calendars. Camerarius^ has a notice of this saint, and so likewise has Bishop Forbes. ^ Lethcain may possibly ha\e been intended for Leathcuinn, which denomination was used to indicate the northern half division of Ire- land. Again, there was a place called Leithi-cam of Magh-Enir, in the parish of Kilmore,7 and about three miles to the east of Armagh, in the county of the same name. ^ The family, period, and place of thisSt. Ecca cannot be safely determined. Indeed, it seems not very clear, after all, if this Ecca be not rendered into Moecca, who, as we have already seen, has been identitied, by some of our calendarists, but in an unsatisfactory manner, with St. Fechin of Fore. 9
ArticleVII. —St. Sarax. Withoutostentation,thesaintshavealways contrivedtoeffectgreatgoodintheirrelationswithmen. Havingnofurther designation, we meet Saran's name simply entered in the Martyrology of
'5Thisis
wutside, wlierc it is eoii. Ttructctl of cut linie-
'. one, 2 feci 5 inches in heiglit, and ia width 3^ inulies at lop, with 4^ at tiie Ijottoni.
' in his " Scoti- Dempster, Mcnologinm
cum," has placed his festival at the 6th of
August, as bishop at Candida Casa, in
Gallowa)'.
quadrangular, measuring
unthe
'•• The
by Jolin OT)onovan in
information relative to the Antiquities of Cainerarins,'' we read " J^-atus Accas,
description
in the text was funiislicd
5 At the of the 13th January, among
the County of 'J'lpperary, collected during the progre-s of the Ordnance Survey in
AcUis, Areas, 1-lpisCopus Ilagulstadiensisin Anglix" el Canduhe Casa; in . '^cotia. "
"
Letters containing
". Scottish Entries in the Kalendar of David :
1840,'' vol. i. , pip. 2iS, 2oy. ''See ^ About 20 jjcichcs to the north-west of 261.
Kalendars of Scottish Saints,'' p.
this chureii, there is an old ca. ^ile, still in
fine presi. r\aiiun. An admirable sketch ol
it is given by George Du . \oycr, in liie
'
Cill-mor-Maighe-
"
Ordnance . Siir\ey >l<i:tLhes for the C_(ninty
'See Dr. (. /Donovan's " Ar. iials of the Four Ma-ters," vo'. i , n. (b), p. 43S.
'' 1 n a curiou> coinment on the fciliyf, in the Leakh. ir breac, at the ;oth ot January, a story is lold, that St. Riei. m ol C lorir. ac- noise haii . ^t. feieliin I'louijit briek to his nujii. istery, wluii the latter altemp'ed to es- cape lioni It. because of this retrogression, he i^ said to ha\e been named by Kieran. " So this man is /(. "• I-\ccad (i. e. , in retro- gression), said Ciaran, et indc Moficca no- men accepit. '—Fol. 80. Professor O Loo-
ney, wlio has furnished the extract, adds —
:
'
Tlie / in Mcfura admits of aspiration, and becomes bankrupt, by its influence. Thus the name Moecca, as in the text and note of the Felire, is obtained. "
2C
of Tipperary," preserved in the R. 1. A. ,
Skelcii 39. Aki 1CM-: VI.
p. . xiii.
—
I'Alitcd by Rev. Dr. Kcily,
-
\\\ the f'ranciscan copy, after tlie entry
of iwer. ty hjreign saints at thistlay. we have the first recorded domestic sanit, Ccca ni. h. Ch^e LacH chAin.
' Colgan nassome notices of this I'inglish
saint—connected h. owever with Ireland in
missionary duty—at the 19th of Februar)-, to which day the reader is referred for more
"
special information. See Acta Sanctorum
Hibemiae," xix. Februarii. Vita S. Acca;
Episcopi, p. —374. Vol. I. No. 7.
"
known as Emhir, or Cdl-niorT'inir.
Fcjrmerly
386 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 20.
Tallagh' at the 20th of January. The compilers of a later calendar offer a conjectureregardinghim; butweareunableotherwisetoconfirmtheirstate- ments.
