No More Learning

In the Arts of St. Fanchea, 16 the name of St. Darercha or Moninna is intro- duced. While St. Fanchea passed over the sea to visit her brother St. Endeus, the holy virgin Darercha was engaged in prayer beside a church and before a cross. This happened, while she dwelt in the nunnery, and at a
1 "''
place denominated Belsleibhe, ? which means the mountain gorges, accord-
8 He
tain cell. 1 ^ While thus engaged at prayer, St. Darerca had a miraculous vision regarding a brazen vessel, recovered from the sea, into which Fanchea had cast it. ao
In her Acts, it is stated, that St. Darerca exacted from her sisters such a rigorous course of fasting, that on a certain occasion they were brought almost to a condition of starvation, when a holy and compassionate man entreatedhertorelievetheirnecessities. Thissheeffected,andinamiracu- lous manner. She raised also a dead novice to life through her prayers. Various other miracles are recounted in her Lives, but it is unnecessary to specify them, as many may be relegated to the class of fables. In the Life
21 three
seem to have had a special relation with her, are named. These were Brignata or Brecnata,22 Damnoda,23 and Derlasre. 24 The first of these is
said to have been sent from her monastery to that of Rosnat, in the Island of Britain, where she was commissioned to learn the rules there practised. Like a true daughter of obedience, she hastened thither, and remained for some time in the hospice, reading the Psalms and other pious books. Having accomplished the object of her mission, Brignat returned to Slieve Cullin, after a prosperous journey. It is stated, in St. Darerca's Acts, that the Angels of God were accustomed to visit her and to hold frequent conferences with her. However, on a certain night, when the sisters were going forth to recite Matins, Darerca missed the accustomed angelic visitation, and she had a revelation, that some one among her companions must have committed a grievous sin. She invited all the sisters to examine their consciences. One of the widows acknowledged, that contrary to her rule, she had not asked per- mission from the Abbess to retain a pair of shoes, which she wore to protect her from the cold, and which she had received from a man of bad morals. Darerca suggested, that these should be thrown into a neighbouring lake, where they might not more be found, and she charged Brignat with this com- mission. The angelic messengers afterwards appeared, and the saint gave thanks to God, that the community devotions were not further interrupted
throughanysimilarcause. Theforegoingnarrativeisfollowedbyanother,that when the sisters returned to their dormitory to have a little rest before daylight,
January, in the First Volume of ihis work, Art. i.
x ? Probably a mistake in writing for Kill-
Sleibhe.
18 "
See Acta Sanctorum Hibernioe,"
i. Januarii, Vita S. Fancheaj, cap. ix. , p. 2.
19 He remarks, that it is a parish church
belonging to Armagh diocese, at the passes
of Cuillen in Ulster. See Mountain, ibid. ,
n. 19, p. 4.
30 The story which follows is too improba-
ble to deserve further notice; but, it serves to
ing
to
Colgan. *
says
it is more called Kill-sleibhe "the moun- usually
of this woman and which is holy
quoted by Colgan,
pious virgins,
who
the 25 went alone to the virgin Brigid
where the Abbess
and where she held colloquy with the Angels. When she approched that pl. ice, two swans of a snow-white colour seemed to fly away from it. This vision terrified the sister, and she fell on the ground. She soon arose, how-
chamber,
illustrate a custom prevalent at a time, whin the original Acts were written, of brazen ves>Hs having been u>e<l in Ireland bo:h for drinking and for washing pur- poses.
2I
See "Trias Thaumaturga," Quinta Ap- pendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. xxiii. , p. 270.
23 At chapter xviii. , xix.
"* At chapter xxi.
25 Whether she was a different person or
" At xiv. , xvi. chapter
prayed,
July 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 89
ever, and tremblingly knocking at her superior's door, she revealed what had occurred. Darerca told her, to sign her eyes with a sign of the cross, lest she might have had a demoniac vision, as sometimes happened to saints in the
" Now do I truly know, that the Almighty, who reveals many things in favour of the humanrace,hathenrichedtheewithhisgrace,andit is timethoushouldst profit by it, in seeking thy birth-place. Soon shalt thou want those eyes, which have seen the Angels, yet better ones shall be given thee, and which may enable thee mentally to see God. But, until I depart this life, reveal
"
thy vision to no person.
her holy superioress, and obeying her command, she went to her natal place, whichwasoneday'sjourneyremovedfromDarerca'smonastery. Thereshe found a place, suitable for the erection of a nunnery, and so long as she lived,
Brigid was deprived of corporal vision.
An old tradition has it, that Darerca through her custom of mortification
desert. However, on being told the particulars, Darerca said
:
never ate a
sufficiency,
26 and that she never took a
dinner;
while th—is habit of
living is dated from the time
2
sheworea ? abouther
The servant of Christ observed the instructions of
.
a
girdle body phrase
equivalent to the modern one of taking the veil. 28 It is certain, however,
that St. Moninna practised great austerities, and that she was most abstemious as regarded food. 2 9 We are told, that in the coarseness of her garments, she
might be regarded as a true daughter of Elias and of St. John the Baptist, while her sisters nobly emulated her example in this species of heavenly war-
fare. As a light placed on its candlestick, so did she dissipate the darkness of those northern parts. Her vigils and prayers were incessant. She was never a moment idle, and she laboured with her own hands. She wrought many miracles, and she was always victorious over the assaults of Satan. Her chastity was so admirable, that she had applied to her the term "a sister of Mary," as the highest eulogy; for, that she was a virgin even as Mary is remarked by a scholiast on the " Feilire" of St. ^Engus. 30 Her humility was very great, while she endeavoured to conceal her good actions and virtues from the know- ledgeofmen. Thefameofhergreatmeritsspreadnotwithstandingoverall parts of Ireland. Noble matrons were especially anxious to visit her, to prostrate themselves at her feet, to seek her counsel, and to gain the favour of her prayers. Besides, the number of virgins in her community increased day by day, and they came not only from her neighbourhood, but even from distant places.
As we have already stated, on the preceding day, a St. Modwenna, also called Monenna,31 went to England, and she founded no less than seven
not from Brignat may be questioned.
29 This is expressed in an old Irish rami, thus tran—slated into English by Dr. Whitley
26
This Cuimin of Connor states, in the
poem which begins, CAyvAr- pAcr\Aic puipc ITIaca, which is thus translated into English : " Patrick of Ard Madia's city loved. "—Rev. Dr. Kelly's "Calendar of Irish Saints," pp. 162, 163. This is also quoted, in a note sue- ceeding, and taken from the scholia on the Feilire of St. ^Engus.
27 The monastic girdle is frequently men- tioned in the Lives of the Irish Saints, as in those of St. Brigid at February 1st ; in those of St. Colman, at February 3rd, in those of St. Mochta, at August 9th, and in those of St. Mobhi, at October 12th.
Stokes
" She took a girdle on her body,
It is according to knowledge of her that I hear
She ate not her fill or food. Moninne of Slieve Gullion. "
—
Irish Aca- demy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of Oengus p. cxvi.
3° See " Transactions of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript Series, vol. i. , 28 See the " Martyrology of Donegal," part i. On the Calendar of Oengus. By
edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 186 to 189, and note by Dr. Reeves I, at p. 188.
Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p. cxvi.
3I See the Acts of St. Modwen, Monynna,
Moninia, Monenna, Moduenna, Modwenna,
:
"Transactions of the
Royal
9 o LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [July 6.
churchesinScotland. *2 OneofthesewasknownasChilnacase,inGalloway;
anotherwasonthesummitofthemountainofDundevenal,inLaudonia a ;
third stood on the mountain of Dunbreten ; the fourth at the Castle of Stri- ve. lin; the fifth was at Dun Eden, now Edinburgh; a sixth was on the moun- tain of Dunpelder; while the seventh was built at Lamfortin, near Dundee. 33 We think, however, she must be distinguished from the present saint ; yet, it must be observed, that all the narratives and legends, in which her ascertainable Acts abound, appear to have reference only to Moninne of SliabhCuillin. Thelatterdoesnotappear,however,tohaveleftIrelandforany more distant country, and she seems to have lived about two centuries earlier. Wherefore, we deem it quite unnecessary to introduce here, those incidents which have been recorded in the previous Life, and which have been set down at the day immediately preceding.
As mentioned in the Acts of St. Farannan,34 this St. Moninnia 3S of Cui- linn Mountain assisted in the synod held at Easdra, after St. Columba 36 had built the church of Druim Cliabh,37 in Cairbre. The exact period, when this took place, has been contested ; some think it had been before the great Apostle of the Picts and Scots left Ireland for Scotland about a. d. 563, while others suppose it happened, after the great Convention held at Druim Ceat,
8 The latter seems to us more probable
the synod of Easdra to have been held late in the sixth century, and if we admit Moninnia to have been veiled by St. Patrick, she must then have attainedanextremeoldage. AswehavedistinguishedtheSt. Modwennaof the previous day 39 from the present holy woman, and as it is generally believed she died in Scotland, and had been finally buried. in England; so we have every reason to suppose, that St. Modwenna of the present date de- parted this life, in her establishment, at Slieve Cuillinn. This is very dis- tinctly laid down, in the most authentic of her biographies, where it is stated, that when her death approached, King Eugene,40 with his chiefs and a great multitude, moved through sorrow for her anticipated departure, came to her
about a. d.
590. 3
;
while, if we allow
place,
andhe a namedHerbeus*1 toentreatherfortheircon- besought bishop
Monyma, Modovenna, Mowena, Mod- and Apostle of Caledonia, Art. i. , chap, venna, or Nodwenna, Virgin, at the 5th of and chap, xv. , at the 9th ofJune, in the Sixth
Volume of this work. 3"ThisUsshershowsfromConchubranus, 39Seeatthe5thofJuly,Art. i. , inthe
July, in the present volume, Art. i.
and she is said to have been identical with
" Ea Ecclesia in Armachano Comitatu sita Kil- sieve nomen adhuc retinet, et mons ille vici- nus Sleu-gullen; a quo morunne o fl-iab CuilieAn appellationem apud H—ibernosnos- tros Virgo ipsa est consecuta. " "Britanni- carum Ecclesiarum Antiquitates," cap. xv. ,
present volume.
*° He is called Rex
Monenna of Kill-sieve. He writes
who
Eugenius, Conay, then ruled over the provinces of Marceyne, of Cunilgoe and of Coba. It is quite evident there are errors of spelling in those proper names; but, the localities may be conjec- tured as having been at or adjoining Slieve Cuillin. We confess ourselves at a loss to
identify Marceyne ; however, Cuailgne, now Cooly, a mountainous district in the north of Louth County seems to have stood for the second mis-spelled denomination, while it may be that Ui-Eathach Cobha, the neigh- bouring people in the present baronies of Iveagh, County Down, represents Coba. For their descent and ancient history, see Rev. Dr. Reeves' "Ecclesiastical Antiqui- ties of Down, Connor and Dromore,"
Appen-
*« It is to that as the Modwenna easy see,
at July 5th had been visited by a Bishop
Ronan, under similar circumstances, and as the narrative of her death-bed scenes very
:
p. 368.
33 There she is said to have died.
See
ibid. , p. 369.
3* See his Life, in the Second Volume of
this work, at February 15th, Art. ii.
3S Her feast according to Colgan falls on
the 6th of July.
35 See his Life, in the Sixth Volume of this
work, at June 9th, Art. i.
" Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
nise," xv. Februarii, Vita S. Farannani dix, HII, pp. 348 to 352.
37 See
Colgan's
Confessoris, cap. vii. , p. 337,
and n. 18,
p. 339.
38 See the account contained in the Life of
St. Columkille or Columba, Abbot of Iona,
July 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 91
solation to remain one year more among them. However, she refused that request, preferring rather with Saints Peter and Paul—who had favoured her with a vision—to go at once into Heaven.
The day for St. Darerca's or Moninne's death is usually set down as the
6th of The of *2 at this Moninni July. Martyrology Tallagh registers day,
Sleibhi Culennquae et Darerca prius dicta est. She is also mentioned in the Calendar of Cashel,^3 in the Martyrology of Marianus O'Gorman,44 and in that
as in the Kalendar of Drummond. 51 Like other matter nearly every
45 The Carthusian 6 as also Greven's additions to Martyrology ,«
ofMuguire.
it, andlatherHenryFitzsimon,recordNonninia,virgin,atthe6thofJuly,w In the anonymous Calendar published by O'Sullevan Beare, at the same date, we find Noninna. In the posthumous Manuscript of Father O'Sheerin,*8 she is setdown,however,as''Moninna de Sliabh-Cuillium. quse et Darerca prius dicta. "49 At the same date, in the Martyrology of Donegal,s° her name appears as Moninne, virgin, of Sliabh Cuillinn. In his Universal Martyr- ology, Castellan enters the name of St. Darerca in Ireland. Among the Scottish Calendars, we find the name of St.
Moninne set down at the 6th ot
July,
regarding her doubtful, we must call into question the extremely long term
of her said to have reached one hundred and 2 Nine score lite, eighty years. s
years was her age, according to old Irish traditions ;53 but, it seems most pro- bable, her life was not extended to that extraordinary period.
This idea of longevity appears to have arisen, from the attempt to syn-
chronise various statements, that have crept into her Acts, or that had been
spread abroad, in reference to her supposed relationship with other saints, or with persons of historic celebrity, and mentioned in connexion with her. The
time assigned for her departure, by the 0'Clerys,54 is 517, in the fourteenth year of the monarch Muircheartach's reign. Some seem inclined to believe, that this was rather the date for the death of Darerca, otherwise called Monenna,thesisterofSt. Patrick. ss TheAnnalsofUlsterplaceherdeath, at a. d. 518, the year in which they state St. Coluimcille was born. s6 The same date has been assigned for her death by other writers. 57 However, if we are to credit the statements contained in her Acts, and in those of other
closelyresemblestheincidentsbrieflyalluded p. 17.
to in the text, that it becomes next to im- 52 This is stated, in an old Irish poem, "
possible adequately to apportion it among quoted by the scholiast on the Leabhar "
twodifferentsaints. Breac copyofthe"Feilire"ofSt. <Engus, 4* Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xxviii. at the 6th of July. See "Transactions of 43 Thus: " S. Moninna, virgo Sliabh the Royal Irish Academy," Irish Manuscript
Culium, quae prius Darerca, et Sarbilia '
dicta est. "
44 Thus : "Monina, munda sanctimonialis,
virgo Sieve, sive montis Cuilium. "
4= The latter gives Darerca the name of
Series, vol. i. , part i. On the Calendar of
Oengus. By Whitley Stokes, LL. D. , p. cxvi.
S3 As in this quatrain has been asserted — :
"
Sarbilia.
46 In it it, she is noted thus :
Nonninae Virginis.
4? See O'Sullevan Beare's
In Hibernia
"
Nine score years together, according to rule,
According to rule without fear, Without folly, without misdeed, with-
out danger,
Was the age of Moninne. "
Historic Catholicae Iberniae Compendium," tomus i. ,
lib. iv. , cap. xi. , xii. , pp. 50, 56.
48 These were lent to the Bollandists for
their inspection.
49 /Engus is cited, for this entry in the
text.
50 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
186 to 189.
51 Thus: "Pridie Nonas —Hiber- Apud
—"Martyrology of Donegal," edited by Rev. Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 186, 187.
S4 See, also, Archdall's " Monasticon Hi- bernicum," p. 34.
55 See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the
56
Forbes' Kalendars of Scottish Saints," nicarum Scriptores," tomus iv. , Annales
niam Sancte Virginis Moninne. " Bishop "
Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 168,
169. SeeRev. Dr. O'Conor's"RerumHiber-
92 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [July 6.
saints, we should rather refer her death to the close of the sixth century. Other accounts place her death at a much later period, but as we have already seen, these refer to another holy woman, bearing the same name, and who lived probably in the eighth century.
Long after her death, the name of St. Darerca or Moninne and venera- tion for her virtues survived, especially in that northern part of Ireland, with which she was chiefly connected. Some ruins of a church, which was dedi- cated to this saint, and near which stood a round tower, are still to be seen at Killevy or Killeavy, in the county of Armagh. A well, sacred to St. Darerca,
8
Before the death of St. Darerca, she is said to have appointed Bia 59 as Abbess to succeed her. 6° Afterwards followed one
63 Inthe
was also near her nunnery. s
named Diu. 61 The third in order is stated to have been 62 who Derlasre,
sidedoverthe
of Cill-Sleibhe is recorded, in our Annals. '*
is likely to have suffered at the hands of the Danish invaders, for we learn, that a priest of this place, named Duibhlitir, was martyred by the foreigners of CarlingfordLough,a. d. Q2i. 6s Duringthemiddleages,afemalecommunity,
presided
over
by
an Abbess of
Kilsleve,
6
had
possessions,
at this 66 place.
nunnery forty years.
year 654,
In subsequent times, Cill-Sleibhe
Ultonienses, p. 12.
57 See in the "Circle of the Seasons,"
p. 188.
workmen, after a diligent search through the forest, at last found a tree, which was suita- ble for their purpose, but it was in a place very difficult for access or removal. The tree notwithstanding was cut down, but it could
s8 A miracle relating to it, and referring
to a Bishop of venerable life called Fibartus,
and having the surname of Firnianus, has not be moved. Knowing this state of the
been attributed to the intercession of St.
Darerca. This is stated to have occurred,
while Derlasre was superioress, and it is told
in the Salamancan Life, chap, iv. , num. 45,
p. 296. This is more fully related in the
Second Life, where the Bishop is named the beam required was found where wanted, Fuibar, and having the surname of Vinuia- and near the nunnery. Then, the carpenters, mus ; while the miracle is attributed to his impelled through curiosity, went to that
meritsandtothoseofMovenna. Seechap,
viii. , num. 77, 78, pp. 311, 312.
59 In the Second Life, she is called the
daughter of Ailella, cap. viii. , num. 74, p. 311.
60
According to the First Life, cap. iv. , num. 41, p. 296.
61 We have it thus entered in the First
Life,
" deinde in but we an error Diu," suspect
place where the tree grew, but they were not able to discover there a single trace of broken branches. Thisproved,thatwhatcouldnot be accomplished through human effort, is easily done through Divine agency ; and it was believed, that the Angels bore that tree through the air, from that rough and elevated
has been here admitted. In the Second Life,
she is designated as the Third Abbess, 74. P- 3»-
and called " Dognidui, filise Mothai, filii Licac. "
6* See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 266, 267.
the iotli of November, a. d. 1477, a case of disputed right was negotiated between
Edmund Connesburgh, an Englishman chosen as Archbishop of Armagh, and Octa-
62 We do not find
saint
65 See vol. ii. , ibid. ,
this ; during her incumbency, the following miracle is re- corded, and it is attributed tothemeritsof St. Darerca. While, according to the custom of the Hibernian nation, the nuns had been
in with — a engaged erecting planed planks
church near the monastery at Ben not at Banchor as the Bollandists guess, but at Slieve Cuillinn, the word Ben—n being often
ever, they wanted a suitable kind of beam to join two of the walls, at the summit of the building, and which may be regarded as a wall-plate or a projection near the roof. The
608,
66 At the residence of the Abbess here, on
any namerecordedinourCalendars but
609.
used by the Irish for Slieve they
Historical and Associa- Archaeological
bearing
pp.
desired
it should be of elegant workmanship. How- tion of Ireland," vol. iii. , Fourth Series,
pre- thedeathofCoinceen
affair, Derlasre betook herself to prayer, and besought her patroness to obtain their great desire, which was to erect a church in the name of Darerca herself. On the day following, without the aid of man or beast,
on which it
63 The Second Life calls her "
ground
formerly grew. Diclaisre,
filia Daisrami, filii Buissidi," cap. viii. , num.
Nuncio in Ireland. See the Very Rev. Dean Reeves'
vianus del Palacio, the
Pope's
"
Archbishop of Armagh," in "Journal of the
January, 1875, No. 21, pp. 344. 345-
67 See Bishop Forbes' "Kalendars of
paper, intituled
Octavianus del Palacio,
Royal
Scottish Saints, pp. 396, 406. 68 "
In 1243, according to Registrum
July 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 93
InScotland,thechurchofScooniewasdedicatedtoaSt. Memme67—who may have been the same as Modwenna—by David de Bernham, on the fourth
68
is a well, and in popular remembrance dedicated to a St. Mannan, whiLe
of the June Kalends.
In the parish of Kilmannan, county of Wexford, there
69 Could this name be a
tion of St. Moninne? The feast of St. Mannan—held on this day—is cer- tified, also, by a local resident. 7° There is a legend, likewise, which states, that St. Munnu of Taghmon visited this St. Mann—an, and that a bell? 1 fell
there a was held on the 6th of patron
from He
"
locally
stone
July.
—aven, at the time, on a where a rock spot,
projects over the surface of a field.
corrup-
"
called the bell
The present holy virgin gave the greatest edification during a long life, which was spent in the service of God, and in the practice of most rigorous
penance. She was exact in the performance of every virtue. Why will the hardened sinner blush to confess those sins he committed, when a pious and tender woman can relish mortifications without repining? He refuses to pay a just penalty for the commission of evil, while he did not blush to stain his own soul. This saint was pure, and yet she practised penance. She was always generous in those self-sacrifices, which the Almighty rewards, most abundantly; and her memory remains, to remind sinners of the many trans-
gressions for which they have not sufficiently atoned, although constantly warned about the danger of delay.
Article III. —St. Mac Earc, Bishop of Donoughmore.
[Fifth
This manwasthesonof 1 andheissaidtohavebeen holy Bronach,
Century. ']
brother to other celebrated saints. His original name does not seem to be
known; but,wemayprobablyinferthenameofhisfather,fromthepatrony-
mic Mac Earc, or " the son of Earc," bestowed on him. In that Tract attri-
buted to St. and intituled " De Matribus Sanctorum 2 JEngus, Hibernise,"
the present St. Mac Earc is said incorrectly to have been the brother of St. Mochae,3 ofAendrum; ofComraireofUisneach; ofManchanofLiath-
Prioratus S. Andree," p. 348. eppuic meic ej\cA o TJorrmAch mop mulgi 69 See "Letters containing Information re- Coda. Ocuf "OAirmACAn flebe OecViAo. lative to the Antiquities of the County Ocur- jTu-pr-A cnaibcec 111 pAnonA in 5aI-
of Wexford, collected the of during Progress
the Ordnance Survey in 1840," vol. ii. John O'Donovan's letter, pp. 74 to 77.
7° Mr. Michael Browne, of Bridgetown, county of Wexford, in a letter to the writer, dated from that place, December 18th, 1872.
71 This bell is said to have been in the
possession of the Harveys of Mount Plea-
Via. " The — has been thus trans- foregoing
sant, in the earli—er part of this century. x
Article hi. There is a holy virgin of
Colman Muilinn of Daire Chaechain
this name, venerated at the 2nd of April, and
who is noticed, in the Fourth Volume of
this work, at that date, Art. i. It seems
clear, therefore, that she could not have been
mother to the present saint.
2
: mother'ssideisthusgiven "OnonACinjion
milconcotn-bAepAcj\Aic1 n-'OAijvimACAip
tnochAe n<Ven*oj\omA o ii-<\en'ojvomA tocA
CuAn. Ocuf Com^Aipe o UifneAch mroi.
Ocuf tttAnc'riAii o LiAuh tYlAncViAm 1 n- Sixth Volume of the present work, Art. i. "OeAibnAbeAc^A. Ocur-ColmAnmuilint> * See Ecclesiastical Antiquities of Down, o "OAine ChAechAin 1 tTOAt THaua. Ocup Connor and Dromore, "Appendix LL. , p. 379.
The pedigree of o—ur saint, on the Parona [Peronne], in Gaul. " See Rev. Dr.