No More Learning

3^ Her festival does not seem to have
been ascertained.
3^9 Colgan conjectures her feast to have
been, at the lotli of February.
39° Her feast has not been determined.
39' She is said, to have been a sister to
Saints Benignus and Cethech. Colgan thinks it probable, she was the St. Conna, venerated on the 3rd of ISIarch.
39= Her festival is not known.
393 Her feast is not known.
394 Her feast is not known.
395 Her festival is held, on the 9th of Feb-
ruary, and on the nth of August.
396 These are called the daughters of Gle-
rann, but their feast has not been noted.
397 Their festival is said to occur, on the
6th of July.
398 Thought to have been a variation ot
name for Cuthuberis, or Aedhmair, vene- rated on the 1 8th of Januaiy.
359 Their festival is at the 9th of Decem- ber.
*°° Colgan thinks her feast fell on the 7th
of January.
'*°' Her feast is not to the found, in our
Calendars.
'*°' Her festival is placed, at the 2Sth of
January, by Colgan, but rather should it be
at the 23rd of February.
'•°3 Her feast is held, on the 1st of Ja-
nuary.
^'"t His feast is on the aist of March.
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 771
nia or Darerca,405 Abbess of Kill-Slebhe ; Damoda,4°6 Virgin ; Brecnata or Brignata,4°7 Virgin ; Derlasse,'*°s Virgin ; Briga,'*°9 Virgin ; Lasrea or Las-
sara,4'° Virgin ; also, Derlugdacha,+" Virgin. *'^ Although classed among St. Patrick's disciples, several of the foregoing holy women are not alluded to,
however, in his particular Lives.
CHAPTER XXV.
PRESUMED CONNEXION OF THE IRISH APOSTLE WITH THE MONASTERY AT GLASTONBURY EXAMINED—ST. PATRICK'S CONFESSION—THE VARIOUS PROSE TRACTS AND IRISH POEMS ATTRIBUTED TO HIM, OR HAVING REFERENCE TO HIS HISTORY.
Ill-informed writers, treating on the Antiquities of Glastonbury, have con- founded our St. Patrick, with another Sen-Patrick,^ who lived long after the time of our Irish Apostle. ^ Again, Richard Stanihurst thinks,3 there is no distinction between St. Patrick, Archbishop of Armagh, and the Abbot Patrick, who is related to have founded the Purgatory, on Lough Derg. It has been asserted, the British writers desired it to be understood, by calling their Patrick the Senior,'' that he was the great one, among many other Irish saints, bearing such a revered name. s A Glastonian poetaster, having men- tioned three Patricks,^ adds, that after he who had been the Primate over
*°5 Her feast is at the 6th of July.
4°<5 She is noticed^ in the Life of St. Mo- ninnie, chap, xviii. , xix.
''°^ Ibid. , chap, xiv. , xvi.
'•'^
chap. XXX.
'*'° Ibid. , chap. xliv.
been determined.
*" Ibid. , chap, cxxxii.
the 1st of February.
naught," for the death of old Patrick.
" In Ussher's " Primordia," cap. xvii. , p. 892, and following pages, the author quotes
Yet,
ment, referring
xxi. "•^ Her feast is at the
a great many passages to this purpose.
3 this same writer a docu-
Ibid. , chap.
quotes
of March. She is noticed, in St. Ultan's Life of St. Brigid,
in the to three distinct Patricks
*" See " Trias
Colgan's Thaumaturga,"
Hibernise Is primus postea Abbas Glastonias,
Natus Britannia prseclaro genere : Vt sua vita declarat optime. "
—"De Vita S. Hibemiae Patricii,
Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap. iv. , pp. 224 to 231, and cap. xxiii. , pp. 264 to 270. For an account of St. Patrick's disciples, the reader is referred to Father
"
Joachim Lorenzo Villanueva's Sancti Pa-
tricii, Ibernorum Apostoli, Synodi, Canones, Opuscula," &c. Appendix VI,, pp. 370 to 396.
Apos-
"
Chapter xxv. —' In Dr. O'Donovan's
grini praedictum locum Glastoniae, sicut at caeterae fidelium turbae magno colebant affectu; etmaximeobbeatiPatriciiSe- NiORis honorem, qui faustus ibidem in Do-
Annals of the Four Masters," the death of Sen-Patrick is placed, at A. D. 457. See
9th
— Latin lines following
:
Her feast has not Her feast is at
*' Sunt hujus nominis, tene certissime Tres Sancti Praesules : primus Hibernice Archiepiscopus : alter Auerniae :
Qua natus fuerat temus Hibernise.
vol. i. , pp. 142, 143. Dr. Lanigan main- mino quievisse narratur. "
tains, he was no other than the great Irish
Apostle. The Ulster Annals have remark-
able words, at the said year, relating to the
rest of old Patrick. They state, that other
books refer the time of St. Patrick's death
to that year. Dr. Lanigan remarks, that in
some books, the time was differently noted
from a vulgar opinion, which prevailed in the days of the compilers, about his death
occurringintheyear493. Itmaybe,how-
ever, that an allusion was there made to
s Fiech's Scholiast has Patrick senex, or
senior, distinguished from the great Irish Apostle. This is also in accordance with
""
an account, in the Feilire of St. yEngus,
A. D. 454, as found in the
"
Annals of Con-
chief," and "the amiable preceptor of our
Patron. "
*
His verses are those already quoted, by RichardStanihurst. ToFaganandDuvian are attributed the early establishment of Christianity and a foundation, in Glaston-
Archiepiscopus primus
:
toli," lib. ii. , p. 71. * One writer has
:
" Hibemensium pere-
the Culdee, at the 24th day of August, ''
where Sen-Patrick is called a battle
772 LIVES Of TFTM iRlSIt SAINTS. [March 17.
Ireland, afterwards he became Abbot overGlastonbury. 7 Notwithstanding, the commencement of the house and school at Glastonbury cannot probably be placed, before the seventh century,^ when numbers of holy and learned men went over from Ireland^ to Great Britain, for the purpose of founding schools
Abbot of Glastonbury, is quite apocryphal. It is thought, that neither he, nor any other Patrick—a contemporary with him—had been buried there ;
although, no doubt, the Irish residents of Glastonbury had some confused
traditions, regarding their great Apostle having been a superior in the place. We have now to treat, about the chief writings,'^ ascribed to St. Patrick. Among these, the best known is intituled his Confession. It is thought to
^° as also to convert and instruct those new Christian in that settlers,
there,
country. " Yet,thatpoet,towhomwehavealluded,wasangrywiththose, who would not allow St. Patrick's remains to have rested, at Glastonbury. " Indeed, there can be little doubt, the foundation at Glastonbury existed,'^ in an early part of the seventh century. ^4 The first establishment, there, could not have been formed, so early as the times of St. Patrick. Nor could it have been prior to the general conversion of the Irish nation. ^s Thus, it seems now very clear, what has been said, about St. Patrick having been
'^ as a
of his mission. '? Excellent critics^° have considered it to be genuine.
bury. Their period is set down, at A. D. W^est Saxons, the reader is referred to clxxxvi. in Matthew of Westminster's William Bernard MacCabe's "Catholic
have been when he was written,
old,^?
and near his
death,
testimony
"
preserved, is given in William of Malmes-
bury's tract, "De Antiquitate Ecclesiae
Glastoniensis," as published in Gale's
"
Historise Britannicse, Saxonicas, Anglo-
Flores Historiarum. "
7 Even a deed, ascribed to him, and there
History of England," vol. i. , chap, viii. , pp. 471 to 574.
" " De hoc Patricio, Columba, Brigida, Delirat plurimiim Chester in Chro-
nica ;
Scribens in Duno qu6d horum cor-
pora
Sunt uno tumulo. "
'3 A grant was made in its favour A. D.
670, by Kenelwach, or Cenwalla, a king of the West Saxons.
'* See Ussher's " Primordia," cap. vi. , p. 112.
Danicse Scriptores XV. ," tom. iii. , pp. 296,
297. It has been published, among the *' "
Opuscula S. Patricii by Ware, as also in
Sir William Dugdale's " Monasticon Angli-
canum," tom. i. , num. v. , p. 25. London
edition, 181 7, fol.
"
Although William of Malmesbury re-
presents its church, as being the most
ancient in in his *' De Anti- England, tract,
quitate Glastoniensis Ecclesise," published from a Manuscript, belonging to Trinity College, Cambridge, in Thomas Gale's " Historia£ Britannicae, Saxonicje, Anglo- Danicse, Scriptores XV. ," vol. iii. , pp. 291
8 Glastonburyseemstohavebeenfounded,
if not entirely, at least chiefly, by religious men from Ireland. These were mostly maintained at the royal expense.
'S It was subsequent, at least, to a partial conversion of the Anglo-Saxons, which hap- pened about the beginning of the seventh cen- tury. Those princes, who encouraged religious teachers at Glastonbury, belonged to that nation. See Rev. Dr. " Eccle-
to
on a close inquiry, that its real antiquity does not ascend higher, than about the period mentioned.
335. Notwithstanding,
Lanigan's
siastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, vii. , sect, ii. , pp. 324, and nn. 17, 18, 19,
'° See Camden's " 79. Gibson's edition.
vol. col. i. ,
to See, 310.
Britarmia,"
ii. , chap, i. , pp. 307
likewise, Colgan's "Trias Thaumaturga," Appendix Quarta ad Acta St. Patricii," pars, ii. , pp. 214, 215.
" Hence, it was called Glastonbury of the Irish. Again, that old church, which existed before the reign of King Ina, was called the "church of the Blessed Virgin Mary and of St. Patrick. " Owing to these circumstances, it was no difficult matter, to deduce—in the ninth or tenth century—that St. Patrick had been there in person. For an account of the reign of Ina, King of the
^'"Quatenus modo ipse appeto in se-
it will be found,
pp. 328, 329.
*^ On this subject, the reader is recom-
mended to consult the following works : Ware's "Opuscula S. Patricii. " Also.
Harris' Ware, vol. ii. ,
book
"
Irish Writers,"
nectute mea. "— Patricii," "Confessio S.
p. 4.
" He concluded it with these words :
"Et hasc est Confessio mea antequam moriar.
"
*9 Ware in his " Annotations " at p. loS,
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
in
Others,'^ indeed, doubt, if it be the production of St. Patrick. =" Various
manuscript copies of St. Patrick's Confession are extant,=^3 and it has been
printed, likewise, in many well-known works. '* Most certainly, it is a tract
of very great antiquity ; for, a copy, found in the Book of Armagh,2S was
transcribed, about the year 800, and it is said to have been taken from St.
Patrick's own autograph, then partly illegible. It is not an easy matter to
imagine, by whom, or for what purpose, it could have been forged. ^^ The question of the real age, attributable to the Book of Armagh, is discussed in
a paper, published some years ago, by the Rev. Charles Graves, then a Fellow of the University of Dublin. =^7 The Latinity in St. Patrick's Confessio is
rude f^ this Tract quotes the ante-Hieronymian Vulgate ; moreover, it con- tains nothing inconsistent with the century, in which it is said to have been
written. '9 Besides,thatoldestknowncopyofSt. Patrick'sConfession,inthe Book of Armagh, there are several Manuscript versions, exhibiting undoubted
age,inEngland. TwooftheseManuscriptsaretobefoundatSalisbury; there are two others in the Cotton Library ; there is another Manuscript at
Cambridge ; and still another, which is a very interesting and valuable copy. 3° This latter was used by the Bollandists, while printing their edition of the Confession. 3^
says, "Verba hasc innuere videntur ilium, non diu ante obitum suum, earn literis man- dasse. "
^ Among these may be named Tillemont,
Rev. Dr. Lanigan, Rev. Dr. Todd, &c.
" Such as Sir Thomas Duffus Hardy.
Manuscript, from which he had been tran-
scribing his own copy. Yet, the same notes, the character of his handwriting, besides a reference to the contemporaneous Irish Pri- mate—under whose authority the transcribed work had been undertaken—leave no manner of doubt, that this transcript was executed by a scribe, named Ferdomnach. He lived, during the primacy of Archbishop Torbach, and at a date, not later than A. D.
'^
It has been very incorrectly assumed,
that the pretended Confession of St. Patrick
seems to have been borrowed from St.
Augustine. Even, Ryves and Ledwich called
our saint's existence in question ; and, a
chivalrous German, C. G. Schoell, has lately
''
ficta sunt quae Patricii feruntur scripta, falsa quae Vitis traduntur. Incer- tum est vel Prosperi testimonium. "—" De Ecclesiasticas Britonum Scotorumque His-
807.
'^ "
asserted,
ApostleofIreland; hisLifeandMission,"
chap, ii. , pp. 346, 347.
^ Afterwards, he became Protestant
Bishop of Limerick.
" ^^ toriasFontibus isthetitleofhiswork.
For this he apologizes, and he wishes it
^3 Among these are enumerated : I. Con- fessio Sancti Patricii MS. Cott, Nero. E. I. ff. 167-172 b, veil. fol. xi. cent. II. MS. Bodl. Fell. I. ff. 7-13. veil. fol. xi. cent.
to be understood, that his habit of speaking,
and perhaps of writing in the Irish language, should account for idioms, which more practised and perfect scholars would not be
III. MS. Bodl. Fell. 3. ff. 158-166. veil, """
fol. xi. cent. IV. The Confessio in MS. Bodl. Fell. V. Confessio S. Patricii MS. S. Vedasti apud Atrebat. 3. 16. veil, folio.
** It was published by Messingham, in
—"
his "
is printed, with St. Patrick's Life, in the " Acta Sanctorum," tom. ii. Martii xvii. , at pp. 533 to 538, with notes. There, it is
Con- fessio S. Patricii," p. 4. He writes, as be- queathing to his Gallic and Irish co-operators in the work of the Gospel, those many followed, by St. Patrick's Epistle, "Ad thousands of Christians then in Ireland. See
Florilegium
Insulse Sanctorum. " It
translata est in alienam. " linguam
Christianos Corotici tyranni subditos," pp. ibid. , p. 6.
538 to 540. The conclusion of "The *9 See Alexander G. Richey's Lectures Legends of St. Patrick " contains Aubrey on the History of Ireland, down to A. D. De Vere's blank-verse rendering of "The 1534," lect. ii. , pp. 33, 34. ^ , , „ Confession of St. Patrick. " See pp. 215 to
235-
*s This version, which is preserved, in the Library of Trinity College, Dublin, was a copy transcribed from one still older, in the opinion of the Rev. Charles Graves. The scribe's marginal notes show, that he found
it difficult, in many places, to read that
any trace, regarding the original and missing Manuscript of St. Patrick's Confession ; but,
this is not surprising, after the lapse of so
many centuries, and the ravages, to which
Armagh had been exposed.
3' It existed, until the time of the Revolu-
See Rev. Dr. Todd's St. Patrick,
very likely to use. He remarks, how he was differently circumstanced from others, qui sermonem illorum ex infantia nunquam
mutaverunt, sed magis ad perfectum semper addiderunt ; nam sermo et loquela nostra
3° We are told, by Mr. John Cashel Hoey,
that among the foregoing, he could not find
"
774 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
As this well-known Tract serves greatly to illustrate the character and acts of the illustrious Apostle of Ireland, we shall here present a brief analysis of its most salient points. St. Patrick first alludes to his origin, parentage
and country, and then he proceeds to reveal, in a general way, the ignorance and errors of his early days. Therefore is he the more anxious to proclaim
God's singular mercies, on behalf of himself, and regarding that people, whom he had brought to the true faith. He especially wished to justify his
motives—whileproclaimingwithtruehumilityhisimperfections—whenleaving his brethren and kindred, in order to extend the kingdom of Christ. s^ For these favours, he expresses his heartfelt gratitude towards the Lord. The saint had now ordained clerics, in various places,33 and he had preached, in the most remote parts of Hibernio,34 or—Ireland. 35 Above all, he had over vast numbers^^ if not the
succee
—ded in
of the Irish people fromtheerrorsofidolatry,andfromtheworshipofuncleanthings, to embrace the Christian faith. 37 He declares, that he had escaped from twelve great dangers, that threatened him with loss of life, not to speak of many plots, intended for his injury. He acknowledges, that the Almighty hadblessedhisministrywithsignsandwonders. s^ But,whatherelates,re- garding his supernatural works, seems most natural and unaffected ; the many extraordinary miracles, related by his later biographers, appear, in a great degree, to have been the growth of exaggerated traditional credulity. In a country like Ireland, where society was based on the clan system, marriage alliances were much in vogue. However, St. Patrick alludes to the many noble daughters, who embraced a life of virginity, but not, indeed, ac-
bringing
majority
cording to the wishes of their parents ; yea, rather from them, did they suffer
reproaches, threats, terrors, and persecutions, unjustly ; and, nevertheless, their number daily increased, so that he could hardly keep an account of those, who belonged to Christ, not to speak of those, who remained widows and un- married. But, the Lord gave this great grace, to many of His handmaids ; for, notwithstanding prohibition, they courageously imitated the example set by so many others. From the context, in which this passage occurs, it appears, St. Patrick's object was to show, that not only very many of the humble people, in Ireland, had became Christians, but likewise some persons among the ruling classes. Next, we shall advert to the pious generosity of those holy women, who presented to our saint their voluntary offerings, for his use, and who laid them upon the altar. 3? There, in all probability, he
officiated often in the Divine service, at which he poured forth an affecting prayer
tion, in St. Vedastus' famous French monas- tery. Fragments, belonging to the precious
Manuscripts of that learned congregation, are still scattered, among the libraries of Arras, Saint Omer, Boulogne, and Douai. The present writer believes, from enquiries made, when visiting some of those cities, in the summer of 1863, that various MSB. , illustrating Irish Ecclesiastical History, are yet preserved in their public libraries.
name Hiberionaces. This comes from Hi- berione, his name for Ireland. In the same Confession, he seems to distinguish the Scots from the Hiberniones, according to the Bol- landists, Tillemont, Junes and Rev. Dr.
Lanigan.
35 He says, "etiam usque ad exteras
partes. " Ibid. ,^. 19.
36 He speaks of bequeathing consolation
to his brethren and to his children, whom he
had baptized in the Lord, and consisting of so many thousand men.
3* See Sir James Ware's edition of
"
Con-
fessio S. Patricii," p. 3.
33 He remarks, " Ut clerici ubique illis
37 See ? '(^/</. , p. 16. " 38"
ordinarentur. Ibid. , p. 14.
34 By this term he means the Irish nation.
This usage accords with that well-known
idiom, when naming a country for its Patricii," p. 91.
—" Confessio S.
He says: Ego non silebo neque ab- scondam signa et mirabilia, qu^ mihi a
such as France for 39 He " I have endeavoured to by mentioning says,
people,
the French nation. Speaking of the great mass of the Irish nation, our saint uses the
pre- serve myself for my Christian brethren, and for the Christian virgins, and for those holy
Domino ministrata sunt. "
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. lis
for the everlasting welfare of his people. 4° But, our holy Patrick had made it a rule, not to accept of presents, at least such as were of any considerable value. This he did, lest he might give occasion for incredulous persons to defame his ministry. ^i He desired rather to be poor, after the example of Christ, for whom he is anxious to suffer anything, even martyrdom itself, being assured of the glory, which was laid up for him in making such a sacrifice. ^^
Some other writings have been attributed to the Irish Apostle, by various
authors. Their authenticity, however, has been questioned ; and, in many instances, it may be held, with good reason. '«3 From some earlier sources, no doubt, the Protestant Bishop of Ossory, John Bale,44 has an account of our Apostle, Patricius, whom he distinguishes by the earlier name of Svccetvs. He also furnishes the following list of St. Patrick's writings : De Antiquitate Aualo- nica, lib. i. ''^ Intinerarium Confessionis, lib. i. '**^ Odceporicon Hibernige, lib. '\^^ Historiam Hiberniaj ex Ruano, lib. i. -*^ De tribus habitaculis, lib. i. , "Tria sunt habitacula, coeli. "49 De futura electorum vita, lib. i. s° Abiec- toria qusedam 366, lib. i. s^ Sermones quoq, lib.