92
Her prescience and spirit of prophecy were among the most remarkable gifts of the abbess.
Her prescience and spirit of prophecy were among the most remarkable gifts of the abbess.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v2
Giacomo
her,
with several dishes of meat and onions,"
^ By Abbate D. Giacomo Certani, he is called "vn Sansone Ibemese. "
"7 See, Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " Vita Secunda S. Brigidse, cap. xxiv. , p. 521. Vita Tertia S. Brigjidae, cap. ex. , p. 540. Vita Quarta S. Brigidae, lib. ii. , cap. Ixxv. , p. 560. In the First Metrical Life,
Lugadii
Pugilis, et ejus non extinxit vires.
"
butter,
February i. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 149
keeper to go into the cellar, and to mark it with a sign of the cross, to close it,andonherreturntopray,whileherselfenteredthechurch. 7° Aboutthe
sixth
hour,7^
the abbess called her
and " The time for said,
7^ See
Vita Quarta S. Brigidse, lib. ii. , cap. Iv. , p. 558. Vita Tertia S. Brigidas, cap. Ixxxii. , P- 537> ibi'i- Vita Sexta S. Brigidce, sect. xlix. , p. 593, ibid.
77 Most
—Edward Hayes' "Ballads of Ireland,"
vol. i. , p. 7.
79 See Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La
Santita Prodigiosa, Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. " LibroQuinto,pp. 419to421. There these herbs are called " Cauoli Ac-
quatici," in the Itahan language.
^° In reference to the different species of
herbs, mentioned in the Fourth Life of our
saint, Colgan endeavours to explain their nature in a note. "Per Biisia videtur in-
telligere genus aquatici oleris, quod Hiber- nice dicitur Biorar & Latine anasturtium
aquaticum, quo passim Eremitse istius tem- poris & Patrice vescebantur : per Sampsia,
quid intelligat, nescio, nisi forte herbam quam Latini vocant sampsychum, & aliis nominibus vocatur amartiais & niaiorana; vel aliam, quam Hiberni vocant Samhadh^
Colgan's
"Trias
Thaumaturga.
these herbs were of
store-keeper^*
go now to the cellar, 73 and liberally give
waiting on our guests has arrived ;
them, whatsoever you may find there. " Opening it, the store-keeper found
in the cellar all those different kinds of food, mentioned by St. Brigid. And these various viands lasted during seven entire days, serving as refreshments, not only for the guests, but even for the whole religious community, as also for the poor. 74 At that time, no persons living in the nunnery, save only the abbess and her store-keeper, knew whence came those provisions, nor who hadprovidedthem. 7s Aknowledgeofthismiraculousoccurrenceremained among the secrets of Divine Omnipotence. 7^
It is said, our saint was at a certain place, where there were many rivulets,
yet unprovided with water-herbs,77 that usually grow in a natural state on streams supplied by fountains. 73 While there, a band of holy virgins, be- longing to the place, came to visit and to ask her a question. They say to
:
her "Why,Omother,donotthewater-herbs,79onwhichholymenare
accustomed to live, grow in those waters ? " ^° The holy abbess, knowing that they desired a growth of such herbs there, spent the following night in vigil and prayer. ^^ On rising the succeeding morning, those religious found
7° In the Third Life, the account runs a
little differently, as follows : Brigid said to
the cook, "sweep the kitchen pavement,
houses or cells, —
probably grouped together
aroundthechurch theusualancientIrish
monastic arrangement.
T^ From the manner, in which this is re-
lated, it would seem, the sixth hour was
the time usually set apart for the dinner of
these guests ; perhaps, too, it was the hour for the conventual meal.
7=* So called in the Fourth Life of our saint, but designated "the cook" in the Third Life.
73 In the Fourth Life, we read that she was directed to this place, but in the Third Life, she was ordered to the cook-house or kitchen.
T< From this narrative and in similar ac- counts, we may well infer, how large and bountiful were the distributions of food, made to the destitute, in our early monastic institutes.
7S This miracle is recorded in Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La Santita Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. " Libro Quin- to, pp. 417 to 419.
"
fed on such herbs. And in the Sixth Life, it is said, that these holy men,
close the cook-house ; then
house, and pray in it ; I will go to the church. " Thisshows,thattheinmatesof St. Brigid's establishment lived in separate
cum
sumebant
et
go
Frigida
crispis herbis.
"
pocula
to thine own
"
the
species, known as "water- cresses. " The Latini vero, acce/osatn. ''^ N. 16, p. 566.
probably,
—
^' Seethe Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum,"
Fourth Life of our saint adds, that many saints who were accustomed to fast with extreme rigour in the western parts, usually
tomus i. , Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Bri- gidse, lib. ii. , cap. viii. , p. 167.
7^InthebeautifullinesofJohnFraseron "The Holy Wells," w—e have the following
appropriate
allusions
:
" The cottage hearth, the convent wall, the battlemented tower,
Grew up around the crystal springs, as well as flag and flower ;
The brooklime and the water-cress were evidence of health.
in and wealth. "
to
Abiding
those basins, free
poverty
J50 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [February i,
the rivulets filled with such herbs,^" while others grew for a considerable dis- tance around, and where they had not hitherto been seen. This abundant
growth of water-cresses^3 was granted by God to St. Brigid's prayers. ^^ The fame of our glorious virgin had already extended to very distant places. Certain men, wishing to recommend themselves to her good offices, came from afar, and brought with them many presents on horses and in waggons. ^s But, on that day, when they expected to have arrived, those travellers entered thickwoods,wherenightfelluponthem. Sodarkwereitsshades,thattheir waggons could not be driven through the forest, and they went astray in an unknown place. However, the holy Brigid had some prophetic intuition regarding their distress. Praying to God for them, she told her nuns to kindle a fire, and to warm some water, that the feet of guests she expected thisnightmightbewashed. Hernunswonderedathersaying,thatmen
were journeying through the darkness on this particular night. Meanwhile, a great light appeared to the travellers. Its glow illuminated their path, until
they arrived at St. Brigid's monastery. ^^ The holy virgin went out to meet them, when all gave thanks to God. Having accomplished the object of their visit, and after staying three days, the travellers resumed their return journey, by that same road they had previously traversed. Such was the
roughness or intricacy of their passage, that they had much difficulty, even in the day-time, to draw their empty waggons along. ^7 Yet, on account of St. Brigid's prayers, Christ himself caused the rough places to become
smooth, on the night of their journey, while miraculous light guided them on the way. ^^ This incident reads very much like that previously related
regarding Bishop Broon and his companions.
Previous to the residence of a bishop at Kildare, a priest, named Nat-
froich,^y was charged with the performance of clerical duties for the religious inmates of the nunnery. He became St. Brigid's frequent and confidential
companion. Hewasaccustomedtoreadpassagesfromsomereligiousbook, whenever the community assembled at their meals. From such circum- stances, which are recorded in different lives of our saint, it is quite probable, that this priest was spiritual director of the abbess and of her nuns ; and, we are told, that he remained with the holy woman, during his whole lifetime. Natfroich, after his ordination, became chaplain to St. Brigid and to her nuns,
'"
The Fourth Life has that the rivulets miracle is also mentioned in the Vita it,
were "supra modum illis oleribus plenos, i. e. y Brisia et caeteris oleribus abundantes. "
Sexta S. Brigidse, section 1. , p. 593, ibid. In this latter, it is said, she cured many lepers and sick, as also blind and lame
"3 The water-cress, which grows in our .
brooks and rivulets, is a well-known aquatic
plant, and it forms an excellent and a whole-
some salad. Its flowers are white, and they tomus i. , Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Bri- appear in July. See James Townsend gidee, lib. ii. , cap. viii. , p. 168.
Mackay's " Flora Hibernica, comprising the flowering Plants Ferns Characeoe Musci Hepaticae Lichenses and Algse of Ireland arranged according to the natural system, with a synopsis of the Genera, according to the Linnaean System. " Vasculares. Class I. Sub-class I. Order 6, pp. 17, 18. Dublin, 1836, 8vo.
^* The writer of the Vita S. Quarta Brigi-
dse, lib. ii. , cap. Ivi. , p. 558, adds, that there herbs of the same species did not fail to grow in his time through the blessing of God and of St. Brigid. See also, Vita
^ The Third Life says, that it appeared only to the chief man, among these travellers. In her Sixth Life, he is called "prsesul
'*
venerable bishop. "
^^ See this narrative also set forth in Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's " La Santit^ Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. "
Libro Quinto, pp. 421 to 424,
^s g^g "Trias Thaumaturga. " Colgan's
Quarta Vila S. Brigidre, lib. ii. , cap. Ivii. , pp. 158, 159, Vita Tertia S. Brigidae, cap. Ixxxiv. , pp. 537, 538, ibid.
^s See an account of this saint at the nth of December, the date set down for his
Tertia S. Brigidae, cap. Ixxxiii. , p. 537. Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " This feast.
persons.
^s See the Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum,"
venerabilis," or a
J'EBRUARV I. ] LIVES OF THE lEISH SAINTS, 151
for whom he often read the Holy Scriptures and other pious books. By appointment of St. Patrick, he attended on her during her travels, while he
frequently acted in the capacity of charioteer. Being thus engaged, the following recorded incident took place. s° On a certain day, when the pre-
sence of our saint was necessary, at a great congregation, she proceeded to the spot in a chariot, drawn by two horses. 9^ AVe are told, in St. Brigid's Third Life, that the abbess—most probably on this occasion—was proceeding to the plain of the Liffy, and that another holy virgin sat with her, in the chariot. The charioteer, who was with them, had been desired to instruct histravellingcompanions. 9» Thebettertomakehimselfheard,heturned his head over his shoulder. Then said the " Turn round that we
over the front of the chariot, and addressed his discourse to them, with his back to the horses. One of these slipped its neck from the yoke, and ran
free ; yet, so engrossed were Bridget and her companion, in the sermon of the priestly charioteer, they did not observe that the horse was loose, and that the carriage was running all on one side. 93 This happened at the edge of a very dangerous precipice. The King of Leinster is said to have witnessed the whole occurrence,? ^ from a high hill. ss Although at a distance, he knew St. Brigid's chariot. 9° Finally, breaking his traces, the animal ran through theadjoiningfields,inanaffrightedmanner. Byamanifestinterpositionof Divine Providence, however, the saint escaped danger, and she continued her journeywithonehorse; anotheraccountinformsus,theotherhorsegotonce more into the traces. 97 The saint safely reached the place for assembly. Here,Brigidexhortedthepeople,bypiousadmonitions; whiletherumour of her danger and subsequent escape having reached them, the minds of all present were filled with admiration and rejoicing.
92
Her prescience and spirit of prophecy were among the most remarkable gifts of the abbess. On a certain day, when the glorious Brigid went from her monaster)^, in the Liffy plains, towards a place some little distance re- moved from it, in a easterly direction, a young student, who was the son of Ethach,99andfromacountrycalledMulus,^°°metherontheway. When he saw our saint, this student began to race, with all the giddiness and vivacityofaschool-boy. St. Brigidtoldoneofhernunstocallhimtowards her, but scarcely could this youth, named Ninnid, be induced to approach
5° See Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La that St. Conlaid had first paid her a visit. Santita Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Then follows an account, concerning the
abbess,
may hear better, and throw down the reins. " So her chaplain cast the reins
Ibernese. " LibroQuarto,pp. 287to290.
saint'sjourneyinherchariot,accompanied
visited the house of a certain holy virgin.
See "Vita Sexta S. Brigid^," sees, xliii. ,
xliv. , pp. 591, 592. "* "Trias Thaumaturga. " 9' The Abbate D. Giacomo Certani
5' See " Trias Colgan's
some of her
Thaumaturga. " Vita Secunda S. Brigidse, cap. xviii. , p.
by
companions.
added,
520. Also
28, p. 516, ibid.
"
Vita Prima S. Brigidse," sec.
_9^ See "Vita Tertia S. Brigidse," cap. lii. , p. 532, ibid.
93 See Rev. S. Baring-Gould's " Lives of the Saints," vol. ii. , I February, p. 18.
"
5* See
cap. xxi. , pp. 552, 553. Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. "
95 Probably from one of those eminences, now known as "the Red Hills of Kildare. " 9* See the Bollandists' "Acta Sancto-
rum," tomus i,, Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Brigidas, lib. ii,, cap, iii. , p. 162.
writes
:
" Hebbe costui per Padre Eocadio,
Quarta Vita S. Brigidse," lib. ii. ,
b vero Eutichio, come alcuni scriuono, che
97
9^ In the Sixth Metrical Life, it is said,
According to the Third Life.
It is
that the miracle occurred on the return of St. Brigid to her establishment, after having
fu Figli—uolo d'Aido vno de Figliuoli di Lio-
"
gario. " La Santita Prodigiosa.
S. Brigida Ibernese. " Libro Sesto, p. 489. ^°° Colgan observes in a note, that there is an island in Albanian Scotia, which is called Mule or Mula. Ninnidius spent some time in Britain. Perhaps, he dwelt there as a permanent resident, and may be properly
designated as "de partibus Muli,"
Vita di
152
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [February i. When he did, however, she asked him, whither he was running,
the abbess.
in such haste.
dom of heaven, and towards that I ran. "
were worthy to run with you this day towards God's kingdom, but pray for me, brother, that I may enter that realm of bliss. " '°^ The scholar returned : " O saint, do you in like manner entreat the Almighty, that my course towards
He immediately repHed
:
"
It is
my duty to enter the
the heavenly kingdom be a constant one. In requital, I will pray for you, withmanyotherpersons,thatyoumayattainimmortalhappiness. " Then, St. Brigidprayedforhim. NinnidbecamefilledwiththegraceoftheHoly
Spirit,andheperformedpenance. ThisyouthwasasontoEthach,andhe wasfromthecountry,calledMulus. Hethenbeganandcontinuedtobe
a religious person to the very date of his death. ^°" He is ranked, also, among the most distinguished of our Irish saints. ^°3
To this young student, St. Brigid then said
:
" On the day of my death,
I shall receive Communion of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ,
from hand. " St. Ninnidius " Would that thou couldst live
thy replied :
until thou receivest Holy Eucharist from me. " These words he spoke,
because he wished at this time to become a pilgrim. For a long time, he desired to be absent, so that he might not soon again see the saint, and that she might live to an extreme old age. Probably, on some subsequent oc- casion, mutually bestowing a blessing on each other, and commending them- selves respectively to God, with words of religious wisdom, they separated, each of them taking a different destination. From the day Brigid spoke to him, Nennid wished to preserve from defilement that hand, which she had predicted should minister to her the august Viaticum on the day of her death. Hence, we are told, he put on it a close-fitting brass gauntlet, secured with a lock and key, so that his hand should not be able to touch his body, nor be touched by any unclean thing. Thence, his cognomen was derived ; for, in the Scotic dialect he was called, Niimidh laffiglan^^°^ which
"
in English is interpreted, Ninnidius of the clean hand. " Afterwards, the
great Father of our Irish Church caused him to be ordained, although he was humbly reluctant to assume the sacredotal office,'°5 lest he might be
called a great priest, according to the inspired writings. ^°^ This Ninnidius sailed over to the country of the Britons, wishing to become an exile from
Ireland, for a long period, as he knew St. Brigid's prediction must be ful- filled. '°7 When Ninnidius entered the ship, he is said to have cast the key
arii. Vita S. Nennidhii, n, 17, p. 115.
"^ The meaning must be, that this humble
diffidence, regarding the responsibilities at-
in his vocation.
made to Ecclesi-
'°7 The Abbate D. Giacomo Certani, with much circumlocution, has an account of the foregoing and many extraneous cir- cumstances, in "La Santiti Prodigiosa. Vita di S. I3rigida Ibernese. " Libro Sesto, pp. 488 to 502.
^^ This narrative ends with an account, that the miracles and incidents of Ninnid's closing years were to be found in an old Life of him which had been written. See Vita
*"
Bollandists' " Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. ,
See the whole of this account in the
Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Brigidce, cap. IX.
"*
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " Vita Quarta S. Brigidse, lib. ii. , cap. Ixi. , Also, Vita Ter|ia S. Brigidae, cap.
L559. ibid. viii. , p. 537,
"3 In a note to this latter
adds, he was the same St. Neilnius or Nen- nidius, whose Acts he published at the 1 8th
"
of January in Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae,"
xviii. Januarii. See Vita S. Nennidhii, seu Nennii, pp. Ill to 115.
'°'*
Colgan refers us to notes, which were appended to St. Nennidius' Acts, at the 1 8th of January, for certain observations on this derivation. The Latin form of his name is Nennidius vianus inundce. See "Acta Sanctorum Hibernise," xviii. Janu-
caused Nenni-
Life, Colgan
probably asticus, xliv. , 15.
The abbess said
:
king- " Would that I
tached to his sacred
dius to hesitate at first, until the persuasions of pious persons and his own sense of a Divine call induced him no longer to resist
heaven's
'°^ Allusion is
designs
calling,
February i. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS, 153
of his manacled hand into the deep, that it might not be recovered again for any accomplishment of its purpose. '"^ But, as the Scripture declares, no
wisdom or prudence or counsel can oppose the Almighty's designs. And so the event is said to have accorded with S^. Brigid's prediction. ^°9 How- ever, it must be observed, that some of the foregoing circumstances are manifestly the concoction of legend-mongers, and are inconsistent with a supposition, that Ninnidh could have efficiently discharged the duties of his priesthood under the conditions, which have been related.
As the Abbess Brigid's establishment increased in importance, the city of Kildare grew, likewise, in a corresponding ratio. Revolving in mind a necessity that appeared to exist, for the residence of a bishop there, to obtain the object of her desires, our saint made application to some of the Irish
prelates. Her petitions appear to have been favourably received, for, she had the nomination of Kildare's first bishop ;"° a privilege, which the other prelates might have allowed, on account of her exalted merits, and those services which she had rendered to rehgion in that portion of the province, where she presided in her capacity of abbess. "^ It is stated, also, that the bishop appointed, in conjunction with herself, exercised jurisdiction over all houses of her order, throughout Ireland. Some difficulties exist, in sup- posing the Bishop of Kildare to exercise jurisdiction over nuns, living outside his immediate bishopric ; for, although named Archbishop of the Irish
"2 it is alsowell Bishops, yet,
thattheIrish hadneverbeen Primacy
known,
transferred from Armagh to Kildare. With her usual discrimination, the
person, selected by Brigid to assume the episcopacy, was a holy man, named Conleath. "3 He lived the life of a cellule recluse, in the southern part of the Liffey plain. At what particular period this consecration of Conleath took place, we have no means for determining ;"4 yet, we must suppose, some years had elapsed, from the estabHshment of the community at Kildare, before its erection into a see, and the consequent appointment of a bishop. "^
That St. Brigid exercised a certain degree of jurisdiction over the Bishop of Kildare who was her contemporary,"^ and that the abbesses, who were her successors, retained such jurisdiction over the abbots and bishops of the see, have been supposed. This state of affairs, however, is so repugnant to the spirit of church discipline, in all ages, and even unsupported by any re- liable authorities, on the subject, that we can have no hesitation in rejecting suchsupposition. Weratherprefercoincidingwithanexplanationoffered,"^
Quarta
PP- 559. 560.
turga. "
18, p. <^66,
ibid.
—
turga. " Secunda Vita S. Brigidae. Pro-
S.
lib.
Colgan's "Trias Thauma-
"' See Rev. M. Brenan's *'Ecclesias- J.
tical History of Ireland," chap, iii. , p. 51.
^" •' Hiberniensium Epis- Archiepiscopus
Brigidce,
ii. , cap, Ixii. , Ixiii. ,
Also n.
^°5 In the Fifth Life of St. Brigid, an ac-
count given, regarding the foregoing inci- dents, is somewhat different, and interpo- lated, it would appear, with observations and interpretations, not found in more an- cient authorities. It is there said, that Ninnid. exiled himself, at the request of St. Brigid ; that he went to Rome to visit the shrines
of the holy Apostles ; and, that he spent four years as a pilgrim, when he was warned by an angel of God to return into Ireland. This order he is said to have obeyed, finding St, Brigid, at the point of death, on his ar- rival. Soon after, giving her Communion, the holy priest himself was gathered to his fathers, See Quinta Vita S, Brigidse, cap. Ivii. , Iviii. , pp. 581, 582, idid.
"° As Cogitosus remarks.
coporum. "
Colgan's
"Trias Thauma- _
logus, p. 518.
"3 See his Life at the 3rd of May.
"4 In the "Life of St. Brigid," by an
Irish Priest, it is stated, this event took place, about the year 490, and probably in the Church of Kildare. See chap, vi. , p.
74.
"^ See the Italian "Breviarium Gienen-
sis," lect. ii. , where it is said, Bishop Con- leath was appointed by her to consecrate churches, he having been taken from the desert.
"° This is an opinion, entertained by Col-
gan,
"7 p,y Dr. Lanigan. "° By Cogitosus.
!
her,
with several dishes of meat and onions,"
^ By Abbate D. Giacomo Certani, he is called "vn Sansone Ibemese. "
"7 See, Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " Vita Secunda S. Brigidse, cap. xxiv. , p. 521. Vita Tertia S. Brigjidae, cap. ex. , p. 540. Vita Quarta S. Brigidae, lib. ii. , cap. Ixxv. , p. 560. In the First Metrical Life,
Lugadii
Pugilis, et ejus non extinxit vires.
"
butter,
February i. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 149
keeper to go into the cellar, and to mark it with a sign of the cross, to close it,andonherreturntopray,whileherselfenteredthechurch. 7° Aboutthe
sixth
hour,7^
the abbess called her
and " The time for said,
7^ See
Vita Quarta S. Brigidse, lib. ii. , cap. Iv. , p. 558. Vita Tertia S. Brigidas, cap. Ixxxii. , P- 537> ibi'i- Vita Sexta S. Brigidce, sect. xlix. , p. 593, ibid.
77 Most
—Edward Hayes' "Ballads of Ireland,"
vol. i. , p. 7.
79 See Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La
Santita Prodigiosa, Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. " LibroQuinto,pp. 419to421. There these herbs are called " Cauoli Ac-
quatici," in the Itahan language.
^° In reference to the different species of
herbs, mentioned in the Fourth Life of our
saint, Colgan endeavours to explain their nature in a note. "Per Biisia videtur in-
telligere genus aquatici oleris, quod Hiber- nice dicitur Biorar & Latine anasturtium
aquaticum, quo passim Eremitse istius tem- poris & Patrice vescebantur : per Sampsia,
quid intelligat, nescio, nisi forte herbam quam Latini vocant sampsychum, & aliis nominibus vocatur amartiais & niaiorana; vel aliam, quam Hiberni vocant Samhadh^
Colgan's
"Trias
Thaumaturga.
these herbs were of
store-keeper^*
go now to the cellar, 73 and liberally give
waiting on our guests has arrived ;
them, whatsoever you may find there. " Opening it, the store-keeper found
in the cellar all those different kinds of food, mentioned by St. Brigid. And these various viands lasted during seven entire days, serving as refreshments, not only for the guests, but even for the whole religious community, as also for the poor. 74 At that time, no persons living in the nunnery, save only the abbess and her store-keeper, knew whence came those provisions, nor who hadprovidedthem. 7s Aknowledgeofthismiraculousoccurrenceremained among the secrets of Divine Omnipotence. 7^
It is said, our saint was at a certain place, where there were many rivulets,
yet unprovided with water-herbs,77 that usually grow in a natural state on streams supplied by fountains. 73 While there, a band of holy virgins, be- longing to the place, came to visit and to ask her a question. They say to
:
her "Why,Omother,donotthewater-herbs,79onwhichholymenare
accustomed to live, grow in those waters ? " ^° The holy abbess, knowing that they desired a growth of such herbs there, spent the following night in vigil and prayer. ^^ On rising the succeeding morning, those religious found
7° In the Third Life, the account runs a
little differently, as follows : Brigid said to
the cook, "sweep the kitchen pavement,
houses or cells, —
probably grouped together
aroundthechurch theusualancientIrish
monastic arrangement.
T^ From the manner, in which this is re-
lated, it would seem, the sixth hour was
the time usually set apart for the dinner of
these guests ; perhaps, too, it was the hour for the conventual meal.
7=* So called in the Fourth Life of our saint, but designated "the cook" in the Third Life.
73 In the Fourth Life, we read that she was directed to this place, but in the Third Life, she was ordered to the cook-house or kitchen.
T< From this narrative and in similar ac- counts, we may well infer, how large and bountiful were the distributions of food, made to the destitute, in our early monastic institutes.
7S This miracle is recorded in Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La Santita Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. " Libro Quin- to, pp. 417 to 419.
"
fed on such herbs. And in the Sixth Life, it is said, that these holy men,
close the cook-house ; then
house, and pray in it ; I will go to the church. " Thisshows,thattheinmatesof St. Brigid's establishment lived in separate
cum
sumebant
et
go
Frigida
crispis herbis.
"
pocula
to thine own
"
the
species, known as "water- cresses. " The Latini vero, acce/osatn. ''^ N. 16, p. 566.
probably,
—
^' Seethe Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum,"
Fourth Life of our saint adds, that many saints who were accustomed to fast with extreme rigour in the western parts, usually
tomus i. , Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Bri- gidse, lib. ii. , cap. viii. , p. 167.
7^InthebeautifullinesofJohnFraseron "The Holy Wells," w—e have the following
appropriate
allusions
:
" The cottage hearth, the convent wall, the battlemented tower,
Grew up around the crystal springs, as well as flag and flower ;
The brooklime and the water-cress were evidence of health.
in and wealth. "
to
Abiding
those basins, free
poverty
J50 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [February i,
the rivulets filled with such herbs,^" while others grew for a considerable dis- tance around, and where they had not hitherto been seen. This abundant
growth of water-cresses^3 was granted by God to St. Brigid's prayers. ^^ The fame of our glorious virgin had already extended to very distant places. Certain men, wishing to recommend themselves to her good offices, came from afar, and brought with them many presents on horses and in waggons. ^s But, on that day, when they expected to have arrived, those travellers entered thickwoods,wherenightfelluponthem. Sodarkwereitsshades,thattheir waggons could not be driven through the forest, and they went astray in an unknown place. However, the holy Brigid had some prophetic intuition regarding their distress. Praying to God for them, she told her nuns to kindle a fire, and to warm some water, that the feet of guests she expected thisnightmightbewashed. Hernunswonderedathersaying,thatmen
were journeying through the darkness on this particular night. Meanwhile, a great light appeared to the travellers. Its glow illuminated their path, until
they arrived at St. Brigid's monastery. ^^ The holy virgin went out to meet them, when all gave thanks to God. Having accomplished the object of their visit, and after staying three days, the travellers resumed their return journey, by that same road they had previously traversed. Such was the
roughness or intricacy of their passage, that they had much difficulty, even in the day-time, to draw their empty waggons along. ^7 Yet, on account of St. Brigid's prayers, Christ himself caused the rough places to become
smooth, on the night of their journey, while miraculous light guided them on the way. ^^ This incident reads very much like that previously related
regarding Bishop Broon and his companions.
Previous to the residence of a bishop at Kildare, a priest, named Nat-
froich,^y was charged with the performance of clerical duties for the religious inmates of the nunnery. He became St. Brigid's frequent and confidential
companion. Hewasaccustomedtoreadpassagesfromsomereligiousbook, whenever the community assembled at their meals. From such circum- stances, which are recorded in different lives of our saint, it is quite probable, that this priest was spiritual director of the abbess and of her nuns ; and, we are told, that he remained with the holy woman, during his whole lifetime. Natfroich, after his ordination, became chaplain to St. Brigid and to her nuns,
'"
The Fourth Life has that the rivulets miracle is also mentioned in the Vita it,
were "supra modum illis oleribus plenos, i. e. y Brisia et caeteris oleribus abundantes. "
Sexta S. Brigidse, section 1. , p. 593, ibid. In this latter, it is said, she cured many lepers and sick, as also blind and lame
"3 The water-cress, which grows in our .
brooks and rivulets, is a well-known aquatic
plant, and it forms an excellent and a whole-
some salad. Its flowers are white, and they tomus i. , Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Bri- appear in July. See James Townsend gidee, lib. ii. , cap. viii. , p. 168.
Mackay's " Flora Hibernica, comprising the flowering Plants Ferns Characeoe Musci Hepaticae Lichenses and Algse of Ireland arranged according to the natural system, with a synopsis of the Genera, according to the Linnaean System. " Vasculares. Class I. Sub-class I. Order 6, pp. 17, 18. Dublin, 1836, 8vo.
^* The writer of the Vita S. Quarta Brigi-
dse, lib. ii. , cap. Ivi. , p. 558, adds, that there herbs of the same species did not fail to grow in his time through the blessing of God and of St. Brigid. See also, Vita
^ The Third Life says, that it appeared only to the chief man, among these travellers. In her Sixth Life, he is called "prsesul
'*
venerable bishop. "
^^ See this narrative also set forth in Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's " La Santit^ Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Ibernese. "
Libro Quinto, pp. 421 to 424,
^s g^g "Trias Thaumaturga. " Colgan's
Quarta Vila S. Brigidre, lib. ii. , cap. Ivii. , pp. 158, 159, Vita Tertia S. Brigidae, cap. Ixxxiv. , pp. 537, 538, ibid.
^s See an account of this saint at the nth of December, the date set down for his
Tertia S. Brigidae, cap. Ixxxiii. , p. 537. Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " This feast.
persons.
^s See the Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum,"
venerabilis," or a
J'EBRUARV I. ] LIVES OF THE lEISH SAINTS, 151
for whom he often read the Holy Scriptures and other pious books. By appointment of St. Patrick, he attended on her during her travels, while he
frequently acted in the capacity of charioteer. Being thus engaged, the following recorded incident took place. s° On a certain day, when the pre-
sence of our saint was necessary, at a great congregation, she proceeded to the spot in a chariot, drawn by two horses. 9^ AVe are told, in St. Brigid's Third Life, that the abbess—most probably on this occasion—was proceeding to the plain of the Liffy, and that another holy virgin sat with her, in the chariot. The charioteer, who was with them, had been desired to instruct histravellingcompanions. 9» Thebettertomakehimselfheard,heturned his head over his shoulder. Then said the " Turn round that we
over the front of the chariot, and addressed his discourse to them, with his back to the horses. One of these slipped its neck from the yoke, and ran
free ; yet, so engrossed were Bridget and her companion, in the sermon of the priestly charioteer, they did not observe that the horse was loose, and that the carriage was running all on one side. 93 This happened at the edge of a very dangerous precipice. The King of Leinster is said to have witnessed the whole occurrence,? ^ from a high hill. ss Although at a distance, he knew St. Brigid's chariot. 9° Finally, breaking his traces, the animal ran through theadjoiningfields,inanaffrightedmanner. Byamanifestinterpositionof Divine Providence, however, the saint escaped danger, and she continued her journeywithonehorse; anotheraccountinformsus,theotherhorsegotonce more into the traces. 97 The saint safely reached the place for assembly. Here,Brigidexhortedthepeople,bypiousadmonitions; whiletherumour of her danger and subsequent escape having reached them, the minds of all present were filled with admiration and rejoicing.
92
Her prescience and spirit of prophecy were among the most remarkable gifts of the abbess. On a certain day, when the glorious Brigid went from her monaster)^, in the Liffy plains, towards a place some little distance re- moved from it, in a easterly direction, a young student, who was the son of Ethach,99andfromacountrycalledMulus,^°°metherontheway. When he saw our saint, this student began to race, with all the giddiness and vivacityofaschool-boy. St. Brigidtoldoneofhernunstocallhimtowards her, but scarcely could this youth, named Ninnid, be induced to approach
5° See Abbate D. Giacomo Certani's "La that St. Conlaid had first paid her a visit. Santita Prodigiosa. Vita di S. Brigida Then follows an account, concerning the
abbess,
may hear better, and throw down the reins. " So her chaplain cast the reins
Ibernese. " LibroQuarto,pp. 287to290.
saint'sjourneyinherchariot,accompanied
visited the house of a certain holy virgin.
See "Vita Sexta S. Brigid^," sees, xliii. ,
xliv. , pp. 591, 592. "* "Trias Thaumaturga. " 9' The Abbate D. Giacomo Certani
5' See " Trias Colgan's
some of her
Thaumaturga. " Vita Secunda S. Brigidse, cap. xviii. , p.
by
companions.
added,
520. Also
28, p. 516, ibid.
"
Vita Prima S. Brigidse," sec.
_9^ See "Vita Tertia S. Brigidse," cap. lii. , p. 532, ibid.
93 See Rev. S. Baring-Gould's " Lives of the Saints," vol. ii. , I February, p. 18.
"
5* See
cap. xxi. , pp. 552, 553. Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. "
95 Probably from one of those eminences, now known as "the Red Hills of Kildare. " 9* See the Bollandists' "Acta Sancto-
rum," tomus i,, Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Brigidas, lib. ii,, cap, iii. , p. 162.
writes
:
" Hebbe costui per Padre Eocadio,
Quarta Vita S. Brigidse," lib. ii. ,
b vero Eutichio, come alcuni scriuono, che
97
9^ In the Sixth Metrical Life, it is said,
According to the Third Life.
It is
that the miracle occurred on the return of St. Brigid to her establishment, after having
fu Figli—uolo d'Aido vno de Figliuoli di Lio-
"
gario. " La Santita Prodigiosa.
S. Brigida Ibernese. " Libro Sesto, p. 489. ^°° Colgan observes in a note, that there is an island in Albanian Scotia, which is called Mule or Mula. Ninnidius spent some time in Britain. Perhaps, he dwelt there as a permanent resident, and may be properly
designated as "de partibus Muli,"
Vita di
152
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [February i. When he did, however, she asked him, whither he was running,
the abbess.
in such haste.
dom of heaven, and towards that I ran. "
were worthy to run with you this day towards God's kingdom, but pray for me, brother, that I may enter that realm of bliss. " '°^ The scholar returned : " O saint, do you in like manner entreat the Almighty, that my course towards
He immediately repHed
:
"
It is
my duty to enter the
the heavenly kingdom be a constant one. In requital, I will pray for you, withmanyotherpersons,thatyoumayattainimmortalhappiness. " Then, St. Brigidprayedforhim. NinnidbecamefilledwiththegraceoftheHoly
Spirit,andheperformedpenance. ThisyouthwasasontoEthach,andhe wasfromthecountry,calledMulus. Hethenbeganandcontinuedtobe
a religious person to the very date of his death. ^°" He is ranked, also, among the most distinguished of our Irish saints. ^°3
To this young student, St. Brigid then said
:
" On the day of my death,
I shall receive Communion of the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ,
from hand. " St. Ninnidius " Would that thou couldst live
thy replied :
until thou receivest Holy Eucharist from me. " These words he spoke,
because he wished at this time to become a pilgrim. For a long time, he desired to be absent, so that he might not soon again see the saint, and that she might live to an extreme old age. Probably, on some subsequent oc- casion, mutually bestowing a blessing on each other, and commending them- selves respectively to God, with words of religious wisdom, they separated, each of them taking a different destination. From the day Brigid spoke to him, Nennid wished to preserve from defilement that hand, which she had predicted should minister to her the august Viaticum on the day of her death. Hence, we are told, he put on it a close-fitting brass gauntlet, secured with a lock and key, so that his hand should not be able to touch his body, nor be touched by any unclean thing. Thence, his cognomen was derived ; for, in the Scotic dialect he was called, Niimidh laffiglan^^°^ which
"
in English is interpreted, Ninnidius of the clean hand. " Afterwards, the
great Father of our Irish Church caused him to be ordained, although he was humbly reluctant to assume the sacredotal office,'°5 lest he might be
called a great priest, according to the inspired writings. ^°^ This Ninnidius sailed over to the country of the Britons, wishing to become an exile from
Ireland, for a long period, as he knew St. Brigid's prediction must be ful- filled. '°7 When Ninnidius entered the ship, he is said to have cast the key
arii. Vita S. Nennidhii, n, 17, p. 115.
"^ The meaning must be, that this humble
diffidence, regarding the responsibilities at-
in his vocation.
made to Ecclesi-
'°7 The Abbate D. Giacomo Certani, with much circumlocution, has an account of the foregoing and many extraneous cir- cumstances, in "La Santiti Prodigiosa. Vita di S. I3rigida Ibernese. " Libro Sesto, pp. 488 to 502.
^^ This narrative ends with an account, that the miracles and incidents of Ninnid's closing years were to be found in an old Life of him which had been written. See Vita
*"
Bollandists' " Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. ,
See the whole of this account in the
Februarii. Vita Quarta S. Brigidce, cap. IX.
"*
See Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga. " Vita Quarta S. Brigidse, lib. ii. , cap. Ixi. , Also, Vita Ter|ia S. Brigidae, cap.
L559. ibid. viii. , p. 537,
"3 In a note to this latter
adds, he was the same St. Neilnius or Nen- nidius, whose Acts he published at the 1 8th
"
of January in Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae,"
xviii. Januarii. See Vita S. Nennidhii, seu Nennii, pp. Ill to 115.
'°'*
Colgan refers us to notes, which were appended to St. Nennidius' Acts, at the 1 8th of January, for certain observations on this derivation. The Latin form of his name is Nennidius vianus inundce. See "Acta Sanctorum Hibernise," xviii. Janu-
caused Nenni-
Life, Colgan
probably asticus, xliv. , 15.
The abbess said
:
king- " Would that I
tached to his sacred
dius to hesitate at first, until the persuasions of pious persons and his own sense of a Divine call induced him no longer to resist
heaven's
'°^ Allusion is
designs
calling,
February i. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS, 153
of his manacled hand into the deep, that it might not be recovered again for any accomplishment of its purpose. '"^ But, as the Scripture declares, no
wisdom or prudence or counsel can oppose the Almighty's designs. And so the event is said to have accorded with S^. Brigid's prediction. ^°9 How- ever, it must be observed, that some of the foregoing circumstances are manifestly the concoction of legend-mongers, and are inconsistent with a supposition, that Ninnidh could have efficiently discharged the duties of his priesthood under the conditions, which have been related.
As the Abbess Brigid's establishment increased in importance, the city of Kildare grew, likewise, in a corresponding ratio. Revolving in mind a necessity that appeared to exist, for the residence of a bishop there, to obtain the object of her desires, our saint made application to some of the Irish
prelates. Her petitions appear to have been favourably received, for, she had the nomination of Kildare's first bishop ;"° a privilege, which the other prelates might have allowed, on account of her exalted merits, and those services which she had rendered to rehgion in that portion of the province, where she presided in her capacity of abbess. "^ It is stated, also, that the bishop appointed, in conjunction with herself, exercised jurisdiction over all houses of her order, throughout Ireland. Some difficulties exist, in sup- posing the Bishop of Kildare to exercise jurisdiction over nuns, living outside his immediate bishopric ; for, although named Archbishop of the Irish
"2 it is alsowell Bishops, yet,
thattheIrish hadneverbeen Primacy
known,
transferred from Armagh to Kildare. With her usual discrimination, the
person, selected by Brigid to assume the episcopacy, was a holy man, named Conleath. "3 He lived the life of a cellule recluse, in the southern part of the Liffey plain. At what particular period this consecration of Conleath took place, we have no means for determining ;"4 yet, we must suppose, some years had elapsed, from the estabHshment of the community at Kildare, before its erection into a see, and the consequent appointment of a bishop. "^
That St. Brigid exercised a certain degree of jurisdiction over the Bishop of Kildare who was her contemporary,"^ and that the abbesses, who were her successors, retained such jurisdiction over the abbots and bishops of the see, have been supposed. This state of affairs, however, is so repugnant to the spirit of church discipline, in all ages, and even unsupported by any re- liable authorities, on the subject, that we can have no hesitation in rejecting suchsupposition. Weratherprefercoincidingwithanexplanationoffered,"^
Quarta
PP- 559. 560.
turga. "
18, p. <^66,
ibid.
—
turga. " Secunda Vita S. Brigidae. Pro-
S.
lib.
Colgan's "Trias Thauma-
"' See Rev. M. Brenan's *'Ecclesias- J.
tical History of Ireland," chap, iii. , p. 51.
^" •' Hiberniensium Epis- Archiepiscopus
Brigidce,
ii. , cap, Ixii. , Ixiii. ,
Also n.
^°5 In the Fifth Life of St. Brigid, an ac-
count given, regarding the foregoing inci- dents, is somewhat different, and interpo- lated, it would appear, with observations and interpretations, not found in more an- cient authorities. It is there said, that Ninnid. exiled himself, at the request of St. Brigid ; that he went to Rome to visit the shrines
of the holy Apostles ; and, that he spent four years as a pilgrim, when he was warned by an angel of God to return into Ireland. This order he is said to have obeyed, finding St, Brigid, at the point of death, on his ar- rival. Soon after, giving her Communion, the holy priest himself was gathered to his fathers, See Quinta Vita S, Brigidse, cap. Ivii. , Iviii. , pp. 581, 582, idid.
"° As Cogitosus remarks.
coporum. "
Colgan's
"Trias Thauma- _
logus, p. 518.
"3 See his Life at the 3rd of May.
"4 In the "Life of St. Brigid," by an
Irish Priest, it is stated, this event took place, about the year 490, and probably in the Church of Kildare. See chap, vi. , p.
74.
"^ See the Italian "Breviarium Gienen-
sis," lect. ii. , where it is said, Bishop Con- leath was appointed by her to consecrate churches, he having been taken from the desert.
"° This is an opinion, entertained by Col-
gan,
"7 p,y Dr. Lanigan. "° By Cogitosus.
!
