He was a
relation
of St.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
466.
This, however, appears to
be a groundless conjecture. The Joseph there noted cannot be proved identical with this saint.
* See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters" at A. D. 780, 789, 811, 828, 839. 899, 936, 963, 1022.
Art. v.
'
9 See Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , part i. , pp. 128, 129.
" See "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. "
as
had only been written in a previous line.
"
See I. O. S. Records, p. 130. These are now preserved in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, p. 7. •* Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi.
s in it the name is written <Vipinx)Ain.
'^ See O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four "
Masters, vol. i. , pp. 458 to 460, and n. (b). ^^ Clauin-uais ; the same as Cluain-Eois,
now Clones, county of Monaghan.
'•* "The Great Wood. " This is the place in the county Monaghan, whence Lord Ros-
"
in the Annals of Clonmacnoise. These also call him an—anchorite,
See " Star of Bethlehem. " In a note Dr. Todd says at the word, Arenanus, " This name is inserted in a more recent hand, and not in Irish characters. "
It is possible, in my opinion, that the writer may have intended it, t—o supply the omission of the name Airendan to wh—ich the afore-
said name bears a resemblance
gee "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , parti. , pp. 102, 103. Thfs is the date for his death
"^
Maccoige
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 73
^I'rt]^ Bap of Sanuarp*
ARTICLE I. —ST. DIMAN, DIMAUS, OR DIMA, DUBH, BISHOP OF CONNOR.
[SIXTH AND SEVENTH CENTURIES. ^
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION. —ST. DIMAN'S OR DIMA's DESCENT—EDUCATED BY ST. COLMAN ELO— EARLY STUDIES AND VIRTUES—ANECDOTE REGARDING ST. CRONAN's BOOK OF GOSPELS—ST. DIMAN BECOMES AN ABBOT—AFTERWARDS CALLED TO GOVERN THE CHURCH AND DIOCESE OF CONNOR.
Divine Lord, who was the Prince of Peace, blessed all those who
OUR them as the children of God. ^
promoted peace, regarding Through
our
Redeemer, Jesus Christ, St. Paul admonished the faithful to have peace with
God^, and again to be perfect, to take exhortation, to have one mind, and to be at peace, so that the God of peace and of love should be with them. 3 The same illustrious Apostle desired his flock, that they should be careful to keeptheunityofthespiritinthebondofpeace* ThusareChristianssure to be joined in a fraternity of faith and hope, believing in one Lord, one Baptism, while serving one God, the common Father of all created beings. s
This holy man was born in the sixth, and he flourished in Ireland after the
beginning of the seventh century. ^ St. Dirnan, or as he is sometime called, Dima,
wassonto^ngus. Thepedigreeproveshisrespectableoriginandconnexions. He descended from the royal line of the Dalcassian family. ? Diman was
born, probably, during the latter half of the sixth century. Owing to the "
colourofhishairorcomplexionhehadbeendenominated,Dubh,or black. "^
Art. I. —Chap. i. —'St. Matt. v. * The of of Maria- 9. Martyrologies Tallagh,
"Rom. V. I. 3 2 Cor. xiii. ii. Ephes. nus O'Gorman, of Charles Maguire, or the
iv. 3.
^
^^
Ibid. , 4, 5, 6.
This may be collected from the Life of
commentator on ^ngus, treat about saints having such name, at the ist and 20th of January ; at the 9th and 22nd of March ; at the 12th of May; at the 27thofJune; at the 3rd, 9th, and i6th of November ; and atthelothofDecember. Although,some- times, there is a distinction in Irish, between the words Dima and in Latin
St. Colman Elo, whose disciple he was, and who died a. d. 6io. St. Diman Dubh died
in the year 658, at a very advanced age. Wherefore, if he attained this very old age, he must have flourished at a period indicated in the text. See " Acta Sanctorum
n. 2, p. 16.
7 The Menologic Genealogy at chap. 35, thus makes out a pedigree for our saint : St. Dima Dubh, son of ^ngus, son to Cairthenn Finn, son of Blod, son to Cass. From this latter hero, the Dalcassian family had its name and origin. Cas was the son of Conall Eachluath. He belonged to the race of Cormac Cas, son to Oilioll Oluim. See Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition of "The Mar- tyrology of Donegal," pp. 6, 7.
Diman, yet Hibernise," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani. they are usually confounded. Whence he is
Colgan's
"
tory of England," lib. iii. , cap. 21, Diuina;
called by Bede in his
Ecclesiastical His-
"
cap. 46, Dimas and Diurna. By the writers
Florince of W^orcester, and Henry of Huntingdon, this saint is named Diuina; but by other authors he is more correctly styled, at one time, Dima, and again Dimanus. See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," vi. Januarii, n. 3, p. 17.
and by Wion, in
Lignum Vitse," lib. ii. ,
74
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 6.
This designation distinguished him from many others saints similarly named. Having given indications of being called to a life of grace, and having been renowned for his many virtues, he became a monk under the direction of St. Colman Elo. 9 At that time, or afterwards, the latter is said to have been Apostolic Legate for the whole of Ireland. '"
At his school, the saint made great progress in science and ecclesiastical
learning ; while his virtues gave edification, as well to all his fellow-disciples as to his master. This latter renowned saint predicted his pupil's future great-
ness, promising Diman, moreover, a long life, which should be devoted to penitential and holy exercises. The master declared, likewise, that Dima's services should be employed in the interests of the Irish Church. " St.
Colman-Elo required his disciple to partake of generous food, whilst under his care and direction. " This was enjoined, with a view to strengthen his con- stitution for those labours in which he was afterwards desti—ned to engage. "
A—n anecdote is related regarding our saint. He
is said how- incorrectly,
ever, to have been required by St. Cronan, Abbot of Roscrea,^3 to transcribe
for him a book of Gospels. This manuscript had been preserved in a brass
box, richly plated with silver. Thady O'CarroU, chief of Ely O'Carroll, who lived about the middle of the twelfth century, caused it to be gilt. Donald
O'Cuanain, afterwards Bishop of Killaloe, and who is called O'Kenedy by Sir James Ware, renovated this most interesting relic about the year 1220, The MS. and box were preserved in the Abbey of Roscrea, until the dissolution of monasteries took place. Then they came into lay hands. At length they were bought by Henry Monck Mason, Esq. , LL. D. , M. R. I. A. , from Dr. Har- rison, of Nenagh, in Tipperary. From Mr. Mason, Sir William Betham pur- chased them. Mr. Mason exhibited them before the Society of Antiquaries inLondon. Afterwards,onthe24thofMay,1819,helaidthembeforethe Royal Irish Academy. ^^ The scribe Dimma complied with St. Cronan's re- quest, and he fulfilled it after the lapse of forty days. During thi—s time, it is
But,
the writer took neither f—
ood nor rest. this narrative in its cir-
stated,
cumstances sufficiently dubious would appear to have been applicable to some other scribe, 's bearing a similar name to that of our saint. '^
While the compiler of St. Cronan's Life attributes this miracle to the effi- cacy of the merits possessed by the subject of his memoir ; assuming our
9 See notices of this saint at the 26th of
September.
'° In the 19th chapter of St. Colman Elo's
which — to atthe Acts, Colgan promised give
"
the title —" of a rich following : Description
and antient box containing a Latin copy of
the Gospels, which was found in a mountain
in the of andis nowin county Tippei-ary,
—October hemusthavemeant the
Monck
Henry Mason, Esq. ,
26th of
tember our saint is said to have been his
of
LL. D. , M. R. I. A. " This Essay was after-
Sep-
possession
disciple. St. Adamnan, in his
Columba," lib. i. , cap, 5, alhides to this
Colman-Elo. See Dr. Reeves' edition, p.
29. He is there called Columbanus. Joce-
lin, in his Life of St. Patrick, also says that
this same Colman-Elo was Apostolic Legate.
See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae,"
vi. Januarii, n. 6, p. 17. And "Trias author of this work "signs his name at the
Thaumaturga. xcvi. , p. 87.
'^
" Sexta Vita S. Patricii,
cap.
end of the ^ Dimma Mac
book, Nathi,'
Dimma the son of Nathi.
He was a relation of St. Cronan, whose grandfather was also named Nathi. "
For these statements, Colgan cites the nineteenth chapter of Colman-EIo's Acts.
" Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nige," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani, cap. i. ,
ii. , iii. , p. 16.
'3 See his Life at the 28th of April.
't OnthisoccasionhereadanEssay,under
"^ Such is Dr. correct
"See
Colgan's
Lanigan's
Life of St.
wards published in the transactions of the
Academy. See Sir William Betham's "Irish "
Antiquarian Researches, vol. i. , pp. 43, 44. For some yac-j'/w? '/*' illustrations of this book, the reader is referred to succeeding pages of the work quoted.
'5 According to Sir William Betham, the
tion in his
"
supposi- Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," vol. ii. , chap, xv. , sec. xi. , n. 91, p. 412.
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 75
saint to be the writer, Colgan says he is inclined to refer its performance to those virtues and divine favours enjoyed by the Abbot of Roscrea, conjointly withSt. DimanDubh,BishopofConnor. '? Buthetotallyfailsinidentifying the scribe Dimnia with this holy prelate. '^ Nor is it likely he was the Dima towhomSt. Declan'9wassenttobeeducated. ^" Afterasufficienttimespent in the exercise of subordinate monastic duties, our saint was appointed to preside as abbot over a religious establishment. This duty he discharged, with his usual prudence, piety, and learning, as also to the great spiritual pro- gressofhiscommunity. Afterthispromotion,Dimanwascalledtogovern the church and diocese of Connor. St. Lughaidh, Bishop of this See, died A. D. 537,^' but the present holy man does not seem to have become his immediate successor,
4
CHAPTER 11.
THE PASCHAL CONTROVERSY—SUCCESSION OF SOVEREIGN PONTIFFS AT ROME—LETTER
OF THE ROMAN DIGNITARIES TO THE IRISH ECCLESIASTICS—TRUE DATE AND
SUBJECT OF THIS EPISTLE—ADDRESSED, AMONG OTHERS, TO DIMAN, BISHOP, IDENTICAL WITH THE PRESENT SAINT.
During the epoch of this saint, grave controversies had been excited among the Irish, regarding the right date for celebrating' Easter. ' After the death of Pope Honorius I. , a. d. 638,^ the secular powers had created great disturbances at Rome, and the consecration of Pope Severin had been delayed until the 29thofMay,A. D. 640. ThisvirtuousandamiablePontiffgovernedtheChurch only for the brief term of two months and four days. 3 During his Pontificate, however, a letter from the Scottish or Irish ecclesiastics had apparently come under his observation. But as Pope John IV. 4 did not succeed Pope Severin until the month of December 640,5 the duty of replying to it devolved on the Roman clerics, Hilarus, the Archpresbyter, who seems to have been then the Vicar-Capitular, in trust of the Apostolic See, and holding the place for John,
'7 Colgan thinks that Dimma mentioned in St. Cronan's Life must have been identi- cal with our saint, for these following reasons. First. Because St. Cronan and St. Diman
O'Clerys, who quote the Life of St. Declan, chap. 5, for confirmation of it. See " The '
Martyrology of Donegal," pp. 6, 7. Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition.
Dubh were about the contemporaries
^' See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 178, 179.
year 620. Secondly. Because both these saints lived
Chap. II. —^ About the year 630, a Synod
in parts of the country bordering on Meath and Ely O'Carroll ; and besides, St. Diman —Dubh was descended from a Munster family
Ely also belonging to the southern pro-
vince. Thirdly. The character of singular
learning and wisdom attributed to St. Diman
Dubh, is thought to indicate a skill in writ-
ing equal to that ascribed to the St. Dimma
mentioned in St. Cronan's Life. The Life
of this latter saint, he promised to give, at
the 28th of April. See "Acta Sanctorum
Hibemise," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani, toire Universelle de I'Eglise Catholique,"
cap. iv. , p. 16, and n. 9, p. 17.
'^ His reasons are by no means conclusive,
and they are still further invalidated by our
learning the patronymics of both persons. For a fuller account of this incident here alluded to, the reader is referred to the Life of St. Cronan, Abbot of Roscrea, at the 28th of April.
'9 See the Life of St. Declan at the 24th
of July.
tome x. , liv. , xlviii. , p. 173.
'» Rohrbacherstateshewasconsecratedon
the 24th of December. See ibid. Others have the 31st of December.
^°
This is a groundless conjecture of the
:
had been assembled at Old Leighlin, when
it had become the chief subject for discus-
sion. An account of the proceedings there
will be found under the Life of St. Laserian,
at the i8th of April.
^
See Sir Harris Nicholas' "Chronology of History," p. 209.
3 He was interred, it is said, at St. Peter's, on the 2nd day of August, a. d. 640. He died on the ist. See Rohrbacher's " His-
s He died on the nth of
October,
a. d.
642. See Berti's
"
Ecclesiasticse HistoriEe
Breviarium. " pars prima, vii. ssec, cap. i. ,
p. 171. Rohrbacher has. the 12th of Octo-
ber. See " Histoire Universelle de Catholique," tome x,, liv. , xlix. , p. 185.
I'Eglise
76 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 6.
then a deacon, and elected to fill the office of Sovereign Pontiff. Allied with
him was the latter, who is called Primicerius,^ and holding his position of being el^ct to the Apostolic See, together with another John, Consilarius of the same holy and Apostolic See. 7 According to Ussher, this letter was written about the year 639 f the true date for its writing, however, was the latter part of the year 640.
The beginning of this epistle seems to warn the Irish ecclesiastics against the efforts of some of their countrymen advocating the Jewish method for celebrating this great festival. Towards its conclusion the Irish ecclesiastics
are admonished regarding the Pelagian heresy. 9 This epistle specially ad- dressed Dimaus, a probable form of our saint's name among the Bishops, Abbots, and Priests or Doctors of Ireland, in reference to the important Paschal controversy. The Irish, and more especially those belonging to the northern province, were strenuous advocates for the celebration of Easter, on the Sunday which occurred, according to their calculation, between the 14th and 20th day of the moon. A defender of such practice appears to have been our saint, with those other ecclesiastics, specially named, in this letter.
CHAPTER III.
BRIEF DISSERTATION ON THE 'APPLICABILITY OF THIS ROMAN EPISTLE TO THE IRISH SCOTS AND TO THE IRISH CLERICS MENTIONED IN IT—STATEMENT OF THE MATTER IN DISPUTE—THE IRISH ECCLESIASTICS NAMED WERE CONTEMPORARIES— TESTIMONIES OF BEDE AND BARONIUS—ST. DIMAN'S AUSTERITIES CONTINUED TOWARDS THE END OF HIS LIFE—THE DATE OF HIS DEATH. —CONCLUSION.
Two matters must be established, regarding which there is a divergence of opinion. First, that this epistle in question was addressed to the Irish, or to the Scots of Ireland; and not to the Scots of Albania. ^ Secondly, that the Diman, mentioned in this epistle, was the same person as our saint. The first matter is proved from the Ecclesiastical History of Venerable Bede. For Pope John wrote this letter to^the same Scots to whom Archbishop Laurence wrote another epistle, mentioned by Bede in his Ecclesiastical History of the English Church. ^ Otherwise,thisvenerablehistorianwouldhaveusedmostintricate equivocation in pointing out the authors of a difference, between the Scots and Romans, in the celebration of Easter ; and again, those, to whom Lau- rence wrote, were the principal authors of this difference. That Laurence directed to Scots inhabiting Ireland appears, when speaking of St. Laurence and his epistle already mentioned, Bede says,3 that Laurence not only devoted
*
This word means the chiefperson in any
Ussher.
8
Ussher most probably followed the same computation as Baronius. See his "Annales Ecclesiastici" tomus viii. , A. D. 639, where this epistle is mentioned. Sees, v. , vi. , vii. , pp. 229, 300.
9 In Wilkins' "Concilia Magnse Britan- nise et Hibernige," vol. i. , p. 36, its date is
640. Reg. Saxon. Edbald, 24. Imperat.
place or office.
7 This letter is partly given by Ussher in
his Veterum Epistolarutn Hibernicaruni Syl- loge. £pist. \x. , pp. 22, 22,. It is directed,
"Doctissimis et Sanctissimis, Tomiano, Co- Imnbano, Cromano, Dimao, et Baithano, Episcopis ; Cromano, Ernianoque, Lais- trano, Scellano, et Segeno presbyteris ; Sa- rano, ceterisque doctoribus sen Abbatibus Scotis : Hilarus archipresbyter et servans locum sanctae sedis Apostolicse, Johannes diaconus et in Dei nomine electus, item Johannes primicerius et servans locum sanctse Sedis Apostolicse, et Johannes servus Dei Consiliarius ejusdemApostolicas Sedis. " We must regret the omissions in this im- portant historical document as published by
"
Archiep. Cantuar. Honorii 15. Anno Christi
thus given :
Papse Rom. Johannes IV. 2
Heracl. 30. "' — Chap. III.
'
This position some Scottish writers incorrectly maintain,
^ See " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Ang-
lorum," lib. ii. , cap. 4, p. 1 18, Cambridge Edition of 1644. fol.
3 Ibid,
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 77
his pastoral solicitude to the Angli and ancient British congregations, but even to the Scots, who inhabited the Island of Hibernia, near Britain. In con- junction with his co-episcopates, Laurence wrote an admonitory letter. He besought the Irish Scots to preserve unity and peace in observing, with other
Catholic churches throughout the world, the Easter festival, as generally kept, and not on that Sunday, which intervened between the 14th and the 20th day ofthemoon. Tothislatterpracticeandtosomeotherdisapprovedmatters of discipline, the Irish and the Britons were addicted.
Here it may clearly be seen, that the same island is called by the names, Hibernia and Scotia.
be a groundless conjecture. The Joseph there noted cannot be proved identical with this saint.
* See Dr. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Masters" at A. D. 780, 789, 811, 828, 839. 899, 936, 963, 1022.
Art. v.
'
9 See Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , part i. , pp. 128, 129.
" See "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. "
as
had only been written in a previous line.
"
See I. O. S. Records, p. 130. These are now preserved in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy.
3 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, p. 7. •* Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi.
s in it the name is written <Vipinx)Ain.
'^ See O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four "
Masters, vol. i. , pp. 458 to 460, and n. (b). ^^ Clauin-uais ; the same as Cluain-Eois,
now Clones, county of Monaghan.
'•* "The Great Wood. " This is the place in the county Monaghan, whence Lord Ros-
"
in the Annals of Clonmacnoise. These also call him an—anchorite,
See " Star of Bethlehem. " In a note Dr. Todd says at the word, Arenanus, " This name is inserted in a more recent hand, and not in Irish characters. "
It is possible, in my opinion, that the writer may have intended it, t—o supply the omission of the name Airendan to wh—ich the afore-
said name bears a resemblance
gee "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , parti. , pp. 102, 103. Thfs is the date for his death
"^
Maccoige
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 73
^I'rt]^ Bap of Sanuarp*
ARTICLE I. —ST. DIMAN, DIMAUS, OR DIMA, DUBH, BISHOP OF CONNOR.
[SIXTH AND SEVENTH CENTURIES. ^
CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION. —ST. DIMAN'S OR DIMA's DESCENT—EDUCATED BY ST. COLMAN ELO— EARLY STUDIES AND VIRTUES—ANECDOTE REGARDING ST. CRONAN's BOOK OF GOSPELS—ST. DIMAN BECOMES AN ABBOT—AFTERWARDS CALLED TO GOVERN THE CHURCH AND DIOCESE OF CONNOR.
Divine Lord, who was the Prince of Peace, blessed all those who
OUR them as the children of God. ^
promoted peace, regarding Through
our
Redeemer, Jesus Christ, St. Paul admonished the faithful to have peace with
God^, and again to be perfect, to take exhortation, to have one mind, and to be at peace, so that the God of peace and of love should be with them. 3 The same illustrious Apostle desired his flock, that they should be careful to keeptheunityofthespiritinthebondofpeace* ThusareChristianssure to be joined in a fraternity of faith and hope, believing in one Lord, one Baptism, while serving one God, the common Father of all created beings. s
This holy man was born in the sixth, and he flourished in Ireland after the
beginning of the seventh century. ^ St. Dirnan, or as he is sometime called, Dima,
wassonto^ngus. Thepedigreeproveshisrespectableoriginandconnexions. He descended from the royal line of the Dalcassian family. ? Diman was
born, probably, during the latter half of the sixth century. Owing to the "
colourofhishairorcomplexionhehadbeendenominated,Dubh,or black. "^
Art. I. —Chap. i. —'St. Matt. v. * The of of Maria- 9. Martyrologies Tallagh,
"Rom. V. I. 3 2 Cor. xiii. ii. Ephes. nus O'Gorman, of Charles Maguire, or the
iv. 3.
^
^^
Ibid. , 4, 5, 6.
This may be collected from the Life of
commentator on ^ngus, treat about saints having such name, at the ist and 20th of January ; at the 9th and 22nd of March ; at the 12th of May; at the 27thofJune; at the 3rd, 9th, and i6th of November ; and atthelothofDecember. Although,some- times, there is a distinction in Irish, between the words Dima and in Latin
St. Colman Elo, whose disciple he was, and who died a. d. 6io. St. Diman Dubh died
in the year 658, at a very advanced age. Wherefore, if he attained this very old age, he must have flourished at a period indicated in the text. See " Acta Sanctorum
n. 2, p. 16.
7 The Menologic Genealogy at chap. 35, thus makes out a pedigree for our saint : St. Dima Dubh, son of ^ngus, son to Cairthenn Finn, son of Blod, son to Cass. From this latter hero, the Dalcassian family had its name and origin. Cas was the son of Conall Eachluath. He belonged to the race of Cormac Cas, son to Oilioll Oluim. See Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition of "The Mar- tyrology of Donegal," pp. 6, 7.
Diman, yet Hibernise," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani. they are usually confounded. Whence he is
Colgan's
"
tory of England," lib. iii. , cap. 21, Diuina;
called by Bede in his
Ecclesiastical His-
"
cap. 46, Dimas and Diurna. By the writers
Florince of W^orcester, and Henry of Huntingdon, this saint is named Diuina; but by other authors he is more correctly styled, at one time, Dima, and again Dimanus. See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," vi. Januarii, n. 3, p. 17.
and by Wion, in
Lignum Vitse," lib. ii. ,
74
LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 6.
This designation distinguished him from many others saints similarly named. Having given indications of being called to a life of grace, and having been renowned for his many virtues, he became a monk under the direction of St. Colman Elo. 9 At that time, or afterwards, the latter is said to have been Apostolic Legate for the whole of Ireland. '"
At his school, the saint made great progress in science and ecclesiastical
learning ; while his virtues gave edification, as well to all his fellow-disciples as to his master. This latter renowned saint predicted his pupil's future great-
ness, promising Diman, moreover, a long life, which should be devoted to penitential and holy exercises. The master declared, likewise, that Dima's services should be employed in the interests of the Irish Church. " St.
Colman-Elo required his disciple to partake of generous food, whilst under his care and direction. " This was enjoined, with a view to strengthen his con- stitution for those labours in which he was afterwards desti—ned to engage. "
A—n anecdote is related regarding our saint. He
is said how- incorrectly,
ever, to have been required by St. Cronan, Abbot of Roscrea,^3 to transcribe
for him a book of Gospels. This manuscript had been preserved in a brass
box, richly plated with silver. Thady O'CarroU, chief of Ely O'Carroll, who lived about the middle of the twelfth century, caused it to be gilt. Donald
O'Cuanain, afterwards Bishop of Killaloe, and who is called O'Kenedy by Sir James Ware, renovated this most interesting relic about the year 1220, The MS. and box were preserved in the Abbey of Roscrea, until the dissolution of monasteries took place. Then they came into lay hands. At length they were bought by Henry Monck Mason, Esq. , LL. D. , M. R. I. A. , from Dr. Har- rison, of Nenagh, in Tipperary. From Mr. Mason, Sir William Betham pur- chased them. Mr. Mason exhibited them before the Society of Antiquaries inLondon. Afterwards,onthe24thofMay,1819,helaidthembeforethe Royal Irish Academy. ^^ The scribe Dimma complied with St. Cronan's re- quest, and he fulfilled it after the lapse of forty days. During thi—s time, it is
But,
the writer took neither f—
ood nor rest. this narrative in its cir-
stated,
cumstances sufficiently dubious would appear to have been applicable to some other scribe, 's bearing a similar name to that of our saint. '^
While the compiler of St. Cronan's Life attributes this miracle to the effi- cacy of the merits possessed by the subject of his memoir ; assuming our
9 See notices of this saint at the 26th of
September.
'° In the 19th chapter of St. Colman Elo's
which — to atthe Acts, Colgan promised give
"
the title —" of a rich following : Description
and antient box containing a Latin copy of
the Gospels, which was found in a mountain
in the of andis nowin county Tippei-ary,
—October hemusthavemeant the
Monck
Henry Mason, Esq. ,
26th of
tember our saint is said to have been his
of
LL. D. , M. R. I. A. " This Essay was after-
Sep-
possession
disciple. St. Adamnan, in his
Columba," lib. i. , cap, 5, alhides to this
Colman-Elo. See Dr. Reeves' edition, p.
29. He is there called Columbanus. Joce-
lin, in his Life of St. Patrick, also says that
this same Colman-Elo was Apostolic Legate.
See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae,"
vi. Januarii, n. 6, p. 17. And "Trias author of this work "signs his name at the
Thaumaturga. xcvi. , p. 87.
'^
" Sexta Vita S. Patricii,
cap.
end of the ^ Dimma Mac
book, Nathi,'
Dimma the son of Nathi.
He was a relation of St. Cronan, whose grandfather was also named Nathi. "
For these statements, Colgan cites the nineteenth chapter of Colman-EIo's Acts.
" Acta Sanctorum Hiber- nige," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani, cap. i. ,
ii. , iii. , p. 16.
'3 See his Life at the 28th of April.
't OnthisoccasionhereadanEssay,under
"^ Such is Dr. correct
"See
Colgan's
Lanigan's
Life of St.
wards published in the transactions of the
Academy. See Sir William Betham's "Irish "
Antiquarian Researches, vol. i. , pp. 43, 44. For some yac-j'/w? '/*' illustrations of this book, the reader is referred to succeeding pages of the work quoted.
'5 According to Sir William Betham, the
tion in his
"
supposi- Ecclesiastical History of Ire-
land," vol. ii. , chap, xv. , sec. xi. , n. 91, p. 412.
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 75
saint to be the writer, Colgan says he is inclined to refer its performance to those virtues and divine favours enjoyed by the Abbot of Roscrea, conjointly withSt. DimanDubh,BishopofConnor. '? Buthetotallyfailsinidentifying the scribe Dimnia with this holy prelate. '^ Nor is it likely he was the Dima towhomSt. Declan'9wassenttobeeducated. ^" Afterasufficienttimespent in the exercise of subordinate monastic duties, our saint was appointed to preside as abbot over a religious establishment. This duty he discharged, with his usual prudence, piety, and learning, as also to the great spiritual pro- gressofhiscommunity. Afterthispromotion,Dimanwascalledtogovern the church and diocese of Connor. St. Lughaidh, Bishop of this See, died A. D. 537,^' but the present holy man does not seem to have become his immediate successor,
4
CHAPTER 11.
THE PASCHAL CONTROVERSY—SUCCESSION OF SOVEREIGN PONTIFFS AT ROME—LETTER
OF THE ROMAN DIGNITARIES TO THE IRISH ECCLESIASTICS—TRUE DATE AND
SUBJECT OF THIS EPISTLE—ADDRESSED, AMONG OTHERS, TO DIMAN, BISHOP, IDENTICAL WITH THE PRESENT SAINT.
During the epoch of this saint, grave controversies had been excited among the Irish, regarding the right date for celebrating' Easter. ' After the death of Pope Honorius I. , a. d. 638,^ the secular powers had created great disturbances at Rome, and the consecration of Pope Severin had been delayed until the 29thofMay,A. D. 640. ThisvirtuousandamiablePontiffgovernedtheChurch only for the brief term of two months and four days. 3 During his Pontificate, however, a letter from the Scottish or Irish ecclesiastics had apparently come under his observation. But as Pope John IV. 4 did not succeed Pope Severin until the month of December 640,5 the duty of replying to it devolved on the Roman clerics, Hilarus, the Archpresbyter, who seems to have been then the Vicar-Capitular, in trust of the Apostolic See, and holding the place for John,
'7 Colgan thinks that Dimma mentioned in St. Cronan's Life must have been identi- cal with our saint, for these following reasons. First. Because St. Cronan and St. Diman
O'Clerys, who quote the Life of St. Declan, chap. 5, for confirmation of it. See " The '
Martyrology of Donegal," pp. 6, 7. Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition.
Dubh were about the contemporaries
^' See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of the Four Masters," vol. i. , pp. 178, 179.
year 620. Secondly. Because both these saints lived
Chap. II. —^ About the year 630, a Synod
in parts of the country bordering on Meath and Ely O'Carroll ; and besides, St. Diman —Dubh was descended from a Munster family
Ely also belonging to the southern pro-
vince. Thirdly. The character of singular
learning and wisdom attributed to St. Diman
Dubh, is thought to indicate a skill in writ-
ing equal to that ascribed to the St. Dimma
mentioned in St. Cronan's Life. The Life
of this latter saint, he promised to give, at
the 28th of April. See "Acta Sanctorum
Hibemise," vi. Januarii. Vita S. Dimani, toire Universelle de I'Eglise Catholique,"
cap. iv. , p. 16, and n. 9, p. 17.
'^ His reasons are by no means conclusive,
and they are still further invalidated by our
learning the patronymics of both persons. For a fuller account of this incident here alluded to, the reader is referred to the Life of St. Cronan, Abbot of Roscrea, at the 28th of April.
'9 See the Life of St. Declan at the 24th
of July.
tome x. , liv. , xlviii. , p. 173.
'» Rohrbacherstateshewasconsecratedon
the 24th of December. See ibid. Others have the 31st of December.
^°
This is a groundless conjecture of the
:
had been assembled at Old Leighlin, when
it had become the chief subject for discus-
sion. An account of the proceedings there
will be found under the Life of St. Laserian,
at the i8th of April.
^
See Sir Harris Nicholas' "Chronology of History," p. 209.
3 He was interred, it is said, at St. Peter's, on the 2nd day of August, a. d. 640. He died on the ist. See Rohrbacher's " His-
s He died on the nth of
October,
a. d.
642. See Berti's
"
Ecclesiasticse HistoriEe
Breviarium. " pars prima, vii. ssec, cap. i. ,
p. 171. Rohrbacher has. the 12th of Octo-
ber. See " Histoire Universelle de Catholique," tome x,, liv. , xlix. , p. 185.
I'Eglise
76 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [January 6.
then a deacon, and elected to fill the office of Sovereign Pontiff. Allied with
him was the latter, who is called Primicerius,^ and holding his position of being el^ct to the Apostolic See, together with another John, Consilarius of the same holy and Apostolic See. 7 According to Ussher, this letter was written about the year 639 f the true date for its writing, however, was the latter part of the year 640.
The beginning of this epistle seems to warn the Irish ecclesiastics against the efforts of some of their countrymen advocating the Jewish method for celebrating this great festival. Towards its conclusion the Irish ecclesiastics
are admonished regarding the Pelagian heresy. 9 This epistle specially ad- dressed Dimaus, a probable form of our saint's name among the Bishops, Abbots, and Priests or Doctors of Ireland, in reference to the important Paschal controversy. The Irish, and more especially those belonging to the northern province, were strenuous advocates for the celebration of Easter, on the Sunday which occurred, according to their calculation, between the 14th and 20th day of the moon. A defender of such practice appears to have been our saint, with those other ecclesiastics, specially named, in this letter.
CHAPTER III.
BRIEF DISSERTATION ON THE 'APPLICABILITY OF THIS ROMAN EPISTLE TO THE IRISH SCOTS AND TO THE IRISH CLERICS MENTIONED IN IT—STATEMENT OF THE MATTER IN DISPUTE—THE IRISH ECCLESIASTICS NAMED WERE CONTEMPORARIES— TESTIMONIES OF BEDE AND BARONIUS—ST. DIMAN'S AUSTERITIES CONTINUED TOWARDS THE END OF HIS LIFE—THE DATE OF HIS DEATH. —CONCLUSION.
Two matters must be established, regarding which there is a divergence of opinion. First, that this epistle in question was addressed to the Irish, or to the Scots of Ireland; and not to the Scots of Albania. ^ Secondly, that the Diman, mentioned in this epistle, was the same person as our saint. The first matter is proved from the Ecclesiastical History of Venerable Bede. For Pope John wrote this letter to^the same Scots to whom Archbishop Laurence wrote another epistle, mentioned by Bede in his Ecclesiastical History of the English Church. ^ Otherwise,thisvenerablehistorianwouldhaveusedmostintricate equivocation in pointing out the authors of a difference, between the Scots and Romans, in the celebration of Easter ; and again, those, to whom Lau- rence wrote, were the principal authors of this difference. That Laurence directed to Scots inhabiting Ireland appears, when speaking of St. Laurence and his epistle already mentioned, Bede says,3 that Laurence not only devoted
*
This word means the chiefperson in any
Ussher.
8
Ussher most probably followed the same computation as Baronius. See his "Annales Ecclesiastici" tomus viii. , A. D. 639, where this epistle is mentioned. Sees, v. , vi. , vii. , pp. 229, 300.
9 In Wilkins' "Concilia Magnse Britan- nise et Hibernige," vol. i. , p. 36, its date is
640. Reg. Saxon. Edbald, 24. Imperat.
place or office.
7 This letter is partly given by Ussher in
his Veterum Epistolarutn Hibernicaruni Syl- loge. £pist. \x. , pp. 22, 22,. It is directed,
"Doctissimis et Sanctissimis, Tomiano, Co- Imnbano, Cromano, Dimao, et Baithano, Episcopis ; Cromano, Ernianoque, Lais- trano, Scellano, et Segeno presbyteris ; Sa- rano, ceterisque doctoribus sen Abbatibus Scotis : Hilarus archipresbyter et servans locum sanctae sedis Apostolicse, Johannes diaconus et in Dei nomine electus, item Johannes primicerius et servans locum sanctse Sedis Apostolicse, et Johannes servus Dei Consiliarius ejusdemApostolicas Sedis. " We must regret the omissions in this im- portant historical document as published by
"
Archiep. Cantuar. Honorii 15. Anno Christi
thus given :
Papse Rom. Johannes IV. 2
Heracl. 30. "' — Chap. III.
'
This position some Scottish writers incorrectly maintain,
^ See " Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis Ang-
lorum," lib. ii. , cap. 4, p. 1 18, Cambridge Edition of 1644. fol.
3 Ibid,
January 6. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 77
his pastoral solicitude to the Angli and ancient British congregations, but even to the Scots, who inhabited the Island of Hibernia, near Britain. In con- junction with his co-episcopates, Laurence wrote an admonitory letter. He besought the Irish Scots to preserve unity and peace in observing, with other
Catholic churches throughout the world, the Easter festival, as generally kept, and not on that Sunday, which intervened between the 14th and the 20th day ofthemoon. Tothislatterpracticeandtosomeotherdisapprovedmatters of discipline, the Irish and the Britons were addicted.
Here it may clearly be seen, that the same island is called by the names, Hibernia and Scotia.
