Many a distinguished person in our annals had been
designated
only as the sonofawell-kno^vnfather; andasimilarpeculiarityisoccasionallynoticeable in our calendars, when calling holy individuals in a patronymic fashion.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v1
Colgan
only difficulty is that Telle flourished before the death, in 635, of Fintan Munnu. But St. Cera seems to have been young at the time she is said to have been there. Sup- posing that this was about 625, her having
lived until 680 contains — contradic- nothing
"
tory or unchronological. Dr. Lanigan's
"Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol.
iii. , chap, xviii. , § 12, n. 157, pp. 130, 131.
* of the houses in West- Treating religious
meath County, Archdall incorrectly states that St. Cera built an abbey at Teaghtelle some time before the year 576. See " Mo- nasticon Hibernicum," p. 728.
^ Marianus O'Gorman, in his Martyrology, and the Scholiast on St. ^ngus, are autho- rities for this account.
(i), pp. 78, 79. His feast occurs on the 2ist of October, at which day some notices regarding him
Vol. I.
No. 2.
F
is stated to have been
m that
66 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[January 5.
parish; in the county of Tipperary. ^ They lie in the middle of a very beautiful landscape and in a rich country, not far from Latteragh mountains and the hills of Templederry, being placed about three Irish miles from Nenagh. ThePoorLawGuardiansofNenaghUnionhavelatelyenclosed the graveyard with a wall. None of the old church ruins remain, except the western gable, 23 feet in extent by 20 feet in height. This gable is richly mantled with ivy. A fine old hawthorn tree, near one comer, gives a
picturesqueappearancetothesolemnscene. Thechurchseemsveryancient, and some of the old stones, which are scattered about the churchyard, are very long and broad. One of them measures 1 2 feet in length by 4 feet in width. 9 All are covered over with moss. The foundations of the old walls atKilkearypeepoverthethickgrass,andaremoss-covered. Theymeasure 72 feet in length, from the end of the gable represented in the sketch. '° This ancient burial-place contains the tombs of the D'Altons of Knuck D'Alton, and of the O'CarroUs of Ballycrenode and TuUa, a branch and sept of the O'Carrolls of Ely O'Carroll. The churchyard is kept in excellent order.
A learned writer supposes St. Cera's establishment was not formed at KilkearyuntilaftershehadleftTechTelle; butforthisopinionheassigns no valid reason. " At all events, in Kilkeary she spent many years, which
To reconcile his conjecture that St. Cera lived before the death of St. Brendan the Navi- gator," Colgan maintains that she must have attained the extraordinary age of
120 or 130 years. ^3 This holy virgin resigned her pure soul to the Creator on the 5th day of January, a. d. 679,'-* but another festival to her memory is held on the i6th of October. The " of the
were devoted to the exercises of penance and of a holy life.
"Calendar of Marianus Cashel,"
^
This description has been taken from notes written by Maurice Lenihan, Esq. , M. R. I. A. , to whom the %\Titer is specially indebted for a visit to the ruins, two distinct sketches, and the notices here embodied.
9 It lies near Lieutenant-General Sir William Parker's monument.
'° Taken on the spot by Maurice Lenihan, Esq. , M. R. I. A. , in September, 1873. The engraving is by George A. Hanion, 37 College-green, Dublin.
" Ecclesiastical His-
and the "
of
" See Dr.
that he entertained a firm conviction that not only were both saints distinct, but that
one considerably preceded the other in the order of time. Yet it seems difficult to re-
concile this matter with the long prevailing traditions of two separate dioceses ; the co-
incidence of their respective patrons being styled Abbot, and their festival ha^^ng been set down at the same day, not to mention the almost universally created opinion. founded on ancient records, that to St. Brendan of Clonfert are attributed the Acts of St. Brendan the NaNagator, said to have been a native of Kerry. For a further con- sideration of these questions the reader is referred to the i6th of May.
Lanigan's
tory of Ireland," vol. iii. , §. 12, p. 129.
O'Gorman,
Martyrology
'* He died, it is supposed, as Patron of
Clonfert and of Ardfert a. d. 576, while St.
Cera died a. d. 679. An opinion now pre-
vails, however, that St. Brendan the Navi-
gator was a distinct person from St. Brendan
of Clonfert, and identical with St. Brendan
of Ardfert, in the county of Kerry. The these years of St. Cera do not exceed the
present writer had long suspected that such might have been the case; but in July,
1871, chancing to meet a very intelligent old man, and an excellent Irish scholar, Mr.
Andrew O'Sullivan, at Cahirciveen, in the
county of Kerry, he was very positive in the
assertion that the native St. Brendan of
Ardfert was the Navigator, and that Bren- " Ciar ingen Duibhrea" is noted. In the dan of Clonfert was altogether a different
saint William K. Sullivan, M. R. I. A. ,
irrespective and independently of the infor-
mation already furnished, has assured me
Martyrology Tallagh,'"^^
'3 He adds, that as compared vA'Ca. the ex-
traordinary longe%'ity of other persons men- tioned in his "Acta Sanctorum Hibemias,"
bounds of credibility. '»"TheageofChrist679. Thesixthyear
of Finshneacta. St. Ciar, virgin, daughter of
"
Duibhrea, died on the Sth of January. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Mas-
ters," vol. i. , p. 287.
'^ in the ^ition of Dr. Kelly, p. II,
copy belonging to the Franciscan Library
Cioii\ ingeti 'Ouibi\eA itifulA is read at the Nones or 5th of January. It is difficult to
account for the adjunct, Inful-A.
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 67
Donegal,"'^ commemorate a Ceara on both these days. This latter feast, however, may have reference to a different saint of the name, for we find her
called Ceara, of Maghascadh. ^7 Yet it is expressly stated by Marianus O'Gorman and Charles Maguire that the present St. Cera's body was buried in the Church of Magh-ascadh. It seems doubtful enough if this can be
"" identical with the Church of Kill-chere, where the Calendar of Cashel
and other authorities state that her remains repose. Some confusion seems
to have arisen, for there are different saints of this name represented as having
been assigned to various days in our Menologies. '^ It is conjectured by
that the of ^° must have been her or the date 5th January natalis,^'
Colgan'9
for St. Cera's death f^ while the i6th of October must refer to some other
commemoration or solemnity, probably to a translation of her relics.
Altogether independently of that periodical delight the phenomena and vicissitudes of the year convey to the mind of a naturalist, the return of festive days and various rites and ceremonies connected with them have a special interest for every Christian people. ^3 Those antiquities relating to the days of the calendar are like landmarks on the great road of life. They remind a palmer of progress he is making, at the same time, they point out what is to be done on the way. They become salutary mementoes of mor- tality, and useful excitements to vigilance. Year by year as they pass, fewer are the opportunities afforded for making our election secure.
Article II. —St. Ciaran Mac Aeda, or Son of Aedh. It would
seem that Colgan fell into an error in identifying by a possible conjecture the present saint \vith St. Kieran, son of Tulchan, thus making him the brother of St. Fintan Munnu, and of St. Conchenna. ^ This saint is entered in the Mart5Tology of Tallagh^ as Ciaran mac Aedh ; while in the Martyrology of Donegal,3atthissameday,hisnameisenteredasCiaran,sonofAedh. His
'*
In a note Dr. Todd says, at this word, In the margin is this note in
'
Cill Cree, nomen per corruptionem ;' but this note is incorrect, for the church is still called Kilkeare. "
lUd.
'7 See the "Martyrology of Donegal," edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 278,
279.
'^We'leam, besides the present St. Cera,
that St. ^ngus, the Martyrologies of Tal- lagh and Marianus O'Gorman state a St. Cera, at Rath Mointich, was venerated on
mentator on St. ^ngus, the Calendars of
Tallagh, of Cashel, and of Donegal have her feast at this date,
name at the 5th of January. The English translat—ion on the opposite page reads as
See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves' edi-
tion, pp. 6, 7.
"
a more recent hand, i. e. ,
follows ["Ciar and Lassar, virgins, pa- trons of the parish church of Domhnach- moin, of the diocese of Clochar, in the country of Mac Mathghamhna. "] See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves' edition, pp. 376, 377.
the 5th of February another St. ;
'" Thaumaturga,
vir- gin, at the 8th of February ; besides a third at the 9th of September. I do not find this latter entered in Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition of the "Martyrology of Donegal"
Cera,
the entry of thirteen foreign saints in the
Franciscan copy of the Tallagh Martyrology,
we have five distinct entries of Irish saints, ''See "Acta Sanctorum Hibemise," § 4, at the Nones, or 5th of January. These and n. 14, pp. 15, 16. commence with CiA]\<\n mAC-<\eT)A. In the ^ The Festilogy of ^ngus, the Com- published copy we find, Colman Mac Each-
at that date ; but an additional St. Ceara, of Magh-ascadh occurs at the i6th of October.
^^ In the table to the " appended
copy.
3 See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves'
pp. 6, 7.
Martyr- ology of Donegal," within brackets, some notes are written in Irish under this saint's
edition,
^The Irish Annals support this state- ment.
^3 See "Circles of the Seasons," preface,
p. 6. This work, published anonymously, appears to be the work of a devout Catho-
lie. —
Art. II. See "Trias
Quarta Appendix ad Acta S. Columbse, cap. iii. , p. 482.
^
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi. After
tach joined with the foregoing, at this day ; but there is no such entry in the Franciscan
68 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[January 5.
place and the period when he flourished are ahke unknowTi to the writer. Allusion is made to a certain Kieran, in the Acts of St. Fintan, Abbot of Clonenagh. 4 This ^\^ll not solve the question, however, in reference to his being identical with the present saint. In the published Martyrology of Tal- lagh, Colman mac Eachtach has his name joined incorrectly with that of St. Ciaran, and at this same day. s There is a manifest error, occasioned through the misapprehension of a copyist, who confounds the present saint's father with the progenitor of a holy man, whose commemoration we have next to record.
Article III. —St. Mac Coge or Maccoige of Rosinver, County OFLeitrim. agreatdealofmisunderstanding,inreferencetotheidentifi- cation of the present saintly personage, has been exhibited by some of the best authorities on Irish history. With St. Moedoc, the great Patron of Ferns, he has been confounded by Colgan,' Dudley Mac Firbis,^ Dr. 0'Donovan,3 and various other native \\Titers. Although the parentage of the present saint, called Mac Ogi, mac Eachdach, in the published Martyrology of Tal- lagh,-* and noticed as Maccoige, son of Eochaidh, in the published Mar- tyrology of Donegal,5 be sufficiently confused ; yet, all the genealogies and his acts agree in calling St. Moedoc of Ferns, the son of Setna or Sedna.
Many a distinguished person in our annals had been designated only as the sonofawell-kno^vnfather; andasimilarpeculiarityisoccasionallynoticeable in our calendars, when calling holy individuals in a patronymic fashion. By Colgan,^thedenominationMaccoigehasbeenconvertedintoMaidoc. The latter may have been this present saint's peculiar name, and he might be re- garded as the son of Coge or Coige. However it seems altogether as likely that Maccoige was his proper appellation. The different modes of spelling his father's name must prove somewhat embarrassing to those who under- take to resolve his genealogy. This present saint may be identified with St. Aidan Mogue, or Moeg, who is said to have been the patron of a once famous abbey church, now in ruins, at Rossinver. 7 Anciently it was
written Rosinbhir, near Lough Melghe, now Lough Melvin. It is a
parish in the barony of Rossclogher and in the county of Leitrim. This foundation of St. Mogue dates from the sixth century, as supposed. A
16. p. 354.
Colgan's
" Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
* See
niae," xvii. Februarii. Vita S. Fintani, n.
3 See "Annals of the Four
Masters,"
vol. i. , n. (p), p. 247.
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi. At
the 5th of January, we there find recorded, Airendan, mac Ogi, mac Eachdach. It is
bemise," xxxi. Januarii. Vita S. Maidoci.
Appendix, cap. v. , p. 223. Yet in a pre- introduced, under this single entry. In the
5 See Rev. —Dr. Kelly's edition, p. xi.
"
Art. III. See Acta Sanctorum Hi-
'
vious cap. i. , p. 221, Colgan clearly dis- tinguished St. Maidoc of Fems, from the
present saint, called Maidoc, son of Eochod, who was venerated at Lough Melge, in Con-
naught, on the 5th ofJanuary.
^ See " Leabhar Genealach Mhie Fhir-
Franciscan copy •Ai^Mn'OAin is kept quite dis- tinct from X\\&c Coje mAC ec]\Ach, as %\Titten down at the Nones of January,
s Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
6. 7.
^ See "Acta Sanctorum Hibemice," xxxi.
bhisich. " Professor O'Curry's copy, trans- Januarii. Appendix ad Acta S. Maidoci, scribed in 1837 from the original manuscript cap. i. , pp. 220, 221.
in possession of the Earl of Roden. ' Thus ^ Here Red Hugh O'Donnell encamped
we read : ITIao'ooJ o V^ajmia 11101^ o for one night in the month of April, a. d.
o " Maodoc of Ropnbe|\, "OiNUnnteAfcAii.
FemsMor, of Rosinver, and of Drumlane," p. 714. R. I. A.
1 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of 595,
the Four Masters," vol. vi. , pp. 1964, 1965.
easy to perceive, that duplicated saints are
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 69
metrical composition has this statement. It probably conveys the pith of local traditions.
"
Heretemplesroseandidolsfell; inislandsgreenthepealing
Was listened of the Sabbath-bell, while hosts to Heaven were kneeling. In smiling vale of silver streams (the ruins still respected),
St. Moeg's holy abbey gleams, by angel hands erected. "^
— is to have built a church—the time has not been ascer- Mogue thought
St.
removed, there ds another well dedicated to St. Caillin. "
tained atthisplace butintheIrishOrdnance ;
thefounder is incorrectly supposed to have been identical with Mogue, the Patron Saint of Ferns. 9 Near the church there is a well called afterj^him. '° And not far
^feSf^^^^^T'****^^*'
Rossinver Church Ruins, county of Leitrim.
A considerable portion of Rossinvefs crumbling pile, as altered or rebuilt during the middle ages, yet remains. It constitutes a very picturesque ruin. The style was " Decorated ;" however, at present, little work of an ornamental character may there be found. A part of the west end seems intended to have been used for a dwelling. Within the churchyard bounds some curious headstones appear. A very early leac or flag-stone, bearing an ancient Irish cross, and perhaps referable to St. Moeg's time, may be observed. At a little distance from the church, near its south-eastern angle,'^ this object will be found.
ing the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1836. " p. 249,
'^
doran," &c. Third Excursion, pp. 88, 89.
9 Venerated on the 31st of January, where by George A. Hanlon is copied from a
^
and published in that admirable Guide Book
See lines, written by Mr. P. Magenniss,
" See ibid. This must have been the killen, Balleek, Ballyshannon, and Bun- patron saint of Fenagh.
of W. F. Wakeman, "Lough Erne, Ennis-
his life will be found.
'° "
See Letters containing information re-
lative to the Antiquities of the Counties of Cavan and Leitrim (Breifny), collected dur-
drawing on wood by William F. Wakeman, \A'ho took a careful and correct drawing, on
the spot, in October, 1873.
Survey Records,
See ibid. The accompanying engraving
70 LIVES OF JHE IRISH SAINTS. [January 5.
In Killybeg townland, about three miles inland from Garrison, and in a
wild district, unapproachable to all but a pedestrian, there was formerly
anotherfoundationofSt. Moeg. Here,accordingtoColgan,asnoticedby "
theRev. Dr. Reeves,therewasa miraculousstone,"whichhadbeencalled Lac-Maodhoc, or " Moedoc's stone. " Unless this can be identified mth a curi- ous oboliscal dallan, which stands upon an eminence near the centre of the townland, no trace of the monument at present remains. The neighbouring peasantry call it " Fion Mac Cumhal's Finger-stone. "
and not to have been the Lac-Moedhog of Colgan. '3
Dr. O'Donovan says the western part of Rossinver parish was dedi-
cated to St. Mogue, whose coarbs were the 0'Ferguses. '+ One of this family living there in 1836 was said to have had in his possession a Life of St. Mogue. This information, however, Avas found to have been incorrect ; but a Mr. Ward then dwelling near Lough Melvin had a modem copy of it, from an old manuscript. A native of Fermanagh, James Maguire, Avrote a more ancient copy. This was in possession of Myles John O'Reilly, Esq. , who lent it to Dr. O'Donovan. From this curious legend, many historical facts may be inferred. Besides the veneration paid to the present saint, at these places already mentioned, it would appear that his memory had been respected in another locality. Solitude and beauty were to be found connected with the various localities. Under the head of Lis-Gabhail, Duald Mac Firbis enters,
tion of "
siurounds it. That object is
W. F. Wakeman. Heconsidersittohaveformedapurelypaganmonument,
giant's graves"
minutely
described
by
from onLoch for '^ This Lis-Gobhail,^5 Erne, January 5th.
Aedh, bishop,
Aedh seems to have been identical with the present saint. The illustrious St.
Bernard said to the monks of Citeaux, that they might find something far greater in the woods, than they could find in books. Stones and trees might teach them that which they could never learn from masters. " Think you
he " not," says,
from the
can suck
rock ? Do not the mountains drop sweetness, the hills run Avith milk and
honey, and the valleys stand thick with com ? "'? Such pious resignation in a life of solitude, and such a communing with the great Creator's works, led the contemplative to the real object of his heart's desire.
Article IV. —St. Joseph, Bishop of Tallagh, County of Dublin. Many old scenes of monastic life in Ireland are yet venerable and still endeared to popular recollection. Within the walled and enclosed graveyard of Tallagh, where, on a gentle eminence, stands the present Protestant church, the tall tower of a more ancient religious edifice may be seen. This formed the west entrance and porch to the more ancient church, the very foundations of which are now quite obliterated ; although early in the present century the building itself had been used for Protestant services. ' The tower contains in in the second story a bell ; but above it are opes, in which probably a peal of
you
honey
rock,
and oil from the
flinty
'3 See ibid. p. 90. There is an interesting
"
Topo- graphical Dictionary of Ireland," vol. ii. , pp. 536, 537. On the eastern shore of Lough
? telvin are the ruins of Rossinver's ancient church.
'• "Ordnance Survey Letters for the
County of Leitrim," pp. 227, b. 228.
'5 Now Lisgoole, in the county of Ferma- nagh, as identified by William M. Hennessy,
M. R. LA.
'* "
See Proceedings of the Royal Irish
Academy" Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , parti. , pp. 118,119.
^^ S. Bemardi "Opera Omnia. " Epis- tola, 106. —' —
description of Rossinver in Lewis'
An interesting collec-
Art. IV. The sexton not a very old
man in May, 1873—told the writer, structing the new one.
he recol- lected the pulling down of the old church, the materials of which were used in con-
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 71
three small bells had formerly been placed. It is connected by a covered passage with the Protestant church, the vestry of which is the under-part of this old tower. 2 Not far from the site of the obliterated church, and on the southern side of the cemetery, is shown the pedestal of an old stone cross, bedded in the earth, and at the head of a high grave are the arms of an old granite cross, which at one time surmounted the plinth. The intermediate shaft seems to have been broken, nor are its fragments discoverable. Here, it is said, St. Melruan,3 the patron of Tallagh, lies interred. Every year, on the 7th of July, at Tallagh, and from time immemorial, the inhabitants have been accustomed to walk from the adjoining village in procession, bearing a long pole, crowned with natural flowers, to the site of St, Melruan's grave. The
"
a walking circuit around the grave : then all the processionists return to the
standard-bearer carries what is locally called
the garland," seven times in
Old Tower of St. Melruan's Church, Tallagh.
village, after prayers have been said at the spot. The pole is carefully set aside, until required for floral decoration the following year. This custom is probably but the remnant of an ancient processional and solemn religious serviceinmemoryofSt. Melruan. Thesiteofhisgraveisheldtobesacred, and no person is allowed to be interred there. The people are accustomed to measure their family places of interment, as being so many feet or so many yards from the grave of Tallagh's holy patron. '*
Few other antique monuments are now to be seen, although there is a
^ The accompanying engraving by Mrs. Millard is copied from a sketch taken by the
author in July, 1855.
only difficulty is that Telle flourished before the death, in 635, of Fintan Munnu. But St. Cera seems to have been young at the time she is said to have been there. Sup- posing that this was about 625, her having
lived until 680 contains — contradic- nothing
"
tory or unchronological. Dr. Lanigan's
"Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol.
iii. , chap, xviii. , § 12, n. 157, pp. 130, 131.
* of the houses in West- Treating religious
meath County, Archdall incorrectly states that St. Cera built an abbey at Teaghtelle some time before the year 576. See " Mo- nasticon Hibernicum," p. 728.
^ Marianus O'Gorman, in his Martyrology, and the Scholiast on St. ^ngus, are autho- rities for this account.
(i), pp. 78, 79. His feast occurs on the 2ist of October, at which day some notices regarding him
Vol. I.
No. 2.
F
is stated to have been
m that
66 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[January 5.
parish; in the county of Tipperary. ^ They lie in the middle of a very beautiful landscape and in a rich country, not far from Latteragh mountains and the hills of Templederry, being placed about three Irish miles from Nenagh. ThePoorLawGuardiansofNenaghUnionhavelatelyenclosed the graveyard with a wall. None of the old church ruins remain, except the western gable, 23 feet in extent by 20 feet in height. This gable is richly mantled with ivy. A fine old hawthorn tree, near one comer, gives a
picturesqueappearancetothesolemnscene. Thechurchseemsveryancient, and some of the old stones, which are scattered about the churchyard, are very long and broad. One of them measures 1 2 feet in length by 4 feet in width. 9 All are covered over with moss. The foundations of the old walls atKilkearypeepoverthethickgrass,andaremoss-covered. Theymeasure 72 feet in length, from the end of the gable represented in the sketch. '° This ancient burial-place contains the tombs of the D'Altons of Knuck D'Alton, and of the O'CarroUs of Ballycrenode and TuUa, a branch and sept of the O'Carrolls of Ely O'Carroll. The churchyard is kept in excellent order.
A learned writer supposes St. Cera's establishment was not formed at KilkearyuntilaftershehadleftTechTelle; butforthisopinionheassigns no valid reason. " At all events, in Kilkeary she spent many years, which
To reconcile his conjecture that St. Cera lived before the death of St. Brendan the Navi- gator," Colgan maintains that she must have attained the extraordinary age of
120 or 130 years. ^3 This holy virgin resigned her pure soul to the Creator on the 5th day of January, a. d. 679,'-* but another festival to her memory is held on the i6th of October. The " of the
were devoted to the exercises of penance and of a holy life.
"Calendar of Marianus Cashel,"
^
This description has been taken from notes written by Maurice Lenihan, Esq. , M. R. I. A. , to whom the %\Titer is specially indebted for a visit to the ruins, two distinct sketches, and the notices here embodied.
9 It lies near Lieutenant-General Sir William Parker's monument.
'° Taken on the spot by Maurice Lenihan, Esq. , M. R. I. A. , in September, 1873. The engraving is by George A. Hanion, 37 College-green, Dublin.
" Ecclesiastical His-
and the "
of
" See Dr.
that he entertained a firm conviction that not only were both saints distinct, but that
one considerably preceded the other in the order of time. Yet it seems difficult to re-
concile this matter with the long prevailing traditions of two separate dioceses ; the co-
incidence of their respective patrons being styled Abbot, and their festival ha^^ng been set down at the same day, not to mention the almost universally created opinion. founded on ancient records, that to St. Brendan of Clonfert are attributed the Acts of St. Brendan the NaNagator, said to have been a native of Kerry. For a further con- sideration of these questions the reader is referred to the i6th of May.
Lanigan's
tory of Ireland," vol. iii. , §. 12, p. 129.
O'Gorman,
Martyrology
'* He died, it is supposed, as Patron of
Clonfert and of Ardfert a. d. 576, while St.
Cera died a. d. 679. An opinion now pre-
vails, however, that St. Brendan the Navi-
gator was a distinct person from St. Brendan
of Clonfert, and identical with St. Brendan
of Ardfert, in the county of Kerry. The these years of St. Cera do not exceed the
present writer had long suspected that such might have been the case; but in July,
1871, chancing to meet a very intelligent old man, and an excellent Irish scholar, Mr.
Andrew O'Sullivan, at Cahirciveen, in the
county of Kerry, he was very positive in the
assertion that the native St. Brendan of
Ardfert was the Navigator, and that Bren- " Ciar ingen Duibhrea" is noted. In the dan of Clonfert was altogether a different
saint William K. Sullivan, M. R. I. A. ,
irrespective and independently of the infor-
mation already furnished, has assured me
Martyrology Tallagh,'"^^
'3 He adds, that as compared vA'Ca. the ex-
traordinary longe%'ity of other persons men- tioned in his "Acta Sanctorum Hibemias,"
bounds of credibility. '»"TheageofChrist679. Thesixthyear
of Finshneacta. St. Ciar, virgin, daughter of
"
Duibhrea, died on the Sth of January. O'Donovan's "Annals of the Four Mas-
ters," vol. i. , p. 287.
'^ in the ^ition of Dr. Kelly, p. II,
copy belonging to the Franciscan Library
Cioii\ ingeti 'Ouibi\eA itifulA is read at the Nones or 5th of January. It is difficult to
account for the adjunct, Inful-A.
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 67
Donegal,"'^ commemorate a Ceara on both these days. This latter feast, however, may have reference to a different saint of the name, for we find her
called Ceara, of Maghascadh. ^7 Yet it is expressly stated by Marianus O'Gorman and Charles Maguire that the present St. Cera's body was buried in the Church of Magh-ascadh. It seems doubtful enough if this can be
"" identical with the Church of Kill-chere, where the Calendar of Cashel
and other authorities state that her remains repose. Some confusion seems
to have arisen, for there are different saints of this name represented as having
been assigned to various days in our Menologies. '^ It is conjectured by
that the of ^° must have been her or the date 5th January natalis,^'
Colgan'9
for St. Cera's death f^ while the i6th of October must refer to some other
commemoration or solemnity, probably to a translation of her relics.
Altogether independently of that periodical delight the phenomena and vicissitudes of the year convey to the mind of a naturalist, the return of festive days and various rites and ceremonies connected with them have a special interest for every Christian people. ^3 Those antiquities relating to the days of the calendar are like landmarks on the great road of life. They remind a palmer of progress he is making, at the same time, they point out what is to be done on the way. They become salutary mementoes of mor- tality, and useful excitements to vigilance. Year by year as they pass, fewer are the opportunities afforded for making our election secure.
Article II. —St. Ciaran Mac Aeda, or Son of Aedh. It would
seem that Colgan fell into an error in identifying by a possible conjecture the present saint \vith St. Kieran, son of Tulchan, thus making him the brother of St. Fintan Munnu, and of St. Conchenna. ^ This saint is entered in the Mart5Tology of Tallagh^ as Ciaran mac Aedh ; while in the Martyrology of Donegal,3atthissameday,hisnameisenteredasCiaran,sonofAedh. His
'*
In a note Dr. Todd says, at this word, In the margin is this note in
'
Cill Cree, nomen per corruptionem ;' but this note is incorrect, for the church is still called Kilkeare. "
lUd.
'7 See the "Martyrology of Donegal," edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp. 278,
279.
'^We'leam, besides the present St. Cera,
that St. ^ngus, the Martyrologies of Tal- lagh and Marianus O'Gorman state a St. Cera, at Rath Mointich, was venerated on
mentator on St. ^ngus, the Calendars of
Tallagh, of Cashel, and of Donegal have her feast at this date,
name at the 5th of January. The English translat—ion on the opposite page reads as
See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves' edi-
tion, pp. 6, 7.
"
a more recent hand, i. e. ,
follows ["Ciar and Lassar, virgins, pa- trons of the parish church of Domhnach- moin, of the diocese of Clochar, in the country of Mac Mathghamhna. "] See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves' edition, pp. 376, 377.
the 5th of February another St. ;
'" Thaumaturga,
vir- gin, at the 8th of February ; besides a third at the 9th of September. I do not find this latter entered in Drs. Todd's and Reeves' edition of the "Martyrology of Donegal"
Cera,
the entry of thirteen foreign saints in the
Franciscan copy of the Tallagh Martyrology,
we have five distinct entries of Irish saints, ''See "Acta Sanctorum Hibemise," § 4, at the Nones, or 5th of January. These and n. 14, pp. 15, 16. commence with CiA]\<\n mAC-<\eT)A. In the ^ The Festilogy of ^ngus, the Com- published copy we find, Colman Mac Each-
at that date ; but an additional St. Ceara, of Magh-ascadh occurs at the i6th of October.
^^ In the table to the " appended
copy.
3 See Dr. Todd's and Dr. Reeves'
pp. 6, 7.
Martyr- ology of Donegal," within brackets, some notes are written in Irish under this saint's
edition,
^The Irish Annals support this state- ment.
^3 See "Circles of the Seasons," preface,
p. 6. This work, published anonymously, appears to be the work of a devout Catho-
lie. —
Art. II. See "Trias
Quarta Appendix ad Acta S. Columbse, cap. iii. , p. 482.
^
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi. After
tach joined with the foregoing, at this day ; but there is no such entry in the Franciscan
68 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[January 5.
place and the period when he flourished are ahke unknowTi to the writer. Allusion is made to a certain Kieran, in the Acts of St. Fintan, Abbot of Clonenagh. 4 This ^\^ll not solve the question, however, in reference to his being identical with the present saint. In the published Martyrology of Tal- lagh, Colman mac Eachtach has his name joined incorrectly with that of St. Ciaran, and at this same day. s There is a manifest error, occasioned through the misapprehension of a copyist, who confounds the present saint's father with the progenitor of a holy man, whose commemoration we have next to record.
Article III. —St. Mac Coge or Maccoige of Rosinver, County OFLeitrim. agreatdealofmisunderstanding,inreferencetotheidentifi- cation of the present saintly personage, has been exhibited by some of the best authorities on Irish history. With St. Moedoc, the great Patron of Ferns, he has been confounded by Colgan,' Dudley Mac Firbis,^ Dr. 0'Donovan,3 and various other native \\Titers. Although the parentage of the present saint, called Mac Ogi, mac Eachdach, in the published Martyrology of Tal- lagh,-* and noticed as Maccoige, son of Eochaidh, in the published Mar- tyrology of Donegal,5 be sufficiently confused ; yet, all the genealogies and his acts agree in calling St. Moedoc of Ferns, the son of Setna or Sedna.
Many a distinguished person in our annals had been designated only as the sonofawell-kno^vnfather; andasimilarpeculiarityisoccasionallynoticeable in our calendars, when calling holy individuals in a patronymic fashion. By Colgan,^thedenominationMaccoigehasbeenconvertedintoMaidoc. The latter may have been this present saint's peculiar name, and he might be re- garded as the son of Coge or Coige. However it seems altogether as likely that Maccoige was his proper appellation. The different modes of spelling his father's name must prove somewhat embarrassing to those who under- take to resolve his genealogy. This present saint may be identified with St. Aidan Mogue, or Moeg, who is said to have been the patron of a once famous abbey church, now in ruins, at Rossinver. 7 Anciently it was
written Rosinbhir, near Lough Melghe, now Lough Melvin. It is a
parish in the barony of Rossclogher and in the county of Leitrim. This foundation of St. Mogue dates from the sixth century, as supposed. A
16. p. 354.
Colgan's
" Acta Sanctorum Hiber-
* See
niae," xvii. Februarii. Vita S. Fintani, n.
3 See "Annals of the Four
Masters,"
vol. i. , n. (p), p. 247.
Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xi. At
the 5th of January, we there find recorded, Airendan, mac Ogi, mac Eachdach. It is
bemise," xxxi. Januarii. Vita S. Maidoci.
Appendix, cap. v. , p. 223. Yet in a pre- introduced, under this single entry. In the
5 See Rev. —Dr. Kelly's edition, p. xi.
"
Art. III. See Acta Sanctorum Hi-
'
vious cap. i. , p. 221, Colgan clearly dis- tinguished St. Maidoc of Fems, from the
present saint, called Maidoc, son of Eochod, who was venerated at Lough Melge, in Con-
naught, on the 5th ofJanuary.
^ See " Leabhar Genealach Mhie Fhir-
Franciscan copy •Ai^Mn'OAin is kept quite dis- tinct from X\\&c Coje mAC ec]\Ach, as %\Titten down at the Nones of January,
s Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
6. 7.
^ See "Acta Sanctorum Hibemice," xxxi.
bhisich. " Professor O'Curry's copy, trans- Januarii. Appendix ad Acta S. Maidoci, scribed in 1837 from the original manuscript cap. i. , pp. 220, 221.
in possession of the Earl of Roden. ' Thus ^ Here Red Hugh O'Donnell encamped
we read : ITIao'ooJ o V^ajmia 11101^ o for one night in the month of April, a. d.
o " Maodoc of Ropnbe|\, "OiNUnnteAfcAii.
FemsMor, of Rosinver, and of Drumlane," p. 714. R. I. A.
1 See Dr. O'Donovan's " Annals of 595,
the Four Masters," vol. vi. , pp. 1964, 1965.
easy to perceive, that duplicated saints are
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 69
metrical composition has this statement. It probably conveys the pith of local traditions.
"
Heretemplesroseandidolsfell; inislandsgreenthepealing
Was listened of the Sabbath-bell, while hosts to Heaven were kneeling. In smiling vale of silver streams (the ruins still respected),
St. Moeg's holy abbey gleams, by angel hands erected. "^
— is to have built a church—the time has not been ascer- Mogue thought
St.
removed, there ds another well dedicated to St. Caillin. "
tained atthisplace butintheIrishOrdnance ;
thefounder is incorrectly supposed to have been identical with Mogue, the Patron Saint of Ferns. 9 Near the church there is a well called afterj^him. '° And not far
^feSf^^^^^T'****^^*'
Rossinver Church Ruins, county of Leitrim.
A considerable portion of Rossinvefs crumbling pile, as altered or rebuilt during the middle ages, yet remains. It constitutes a very picturesque ruin. The style was " Decorated ;" however, at present, little work of an ornamental character may there be found. A part of the west end seems intended to have been used for a dwelling. Within the churchyard bounds some curious headstones appear. A very early leac or flag-stone, bearing an ancient Irish cross, and perhaps referable to St. Moeg's time, may be observed. At a little distance from the church, near its south-eastern angle,'^ this object will be found.
ing the progress of the Ordnance Survey in 1836. " p. 249,
'^
doran," &c. Third Excursion, pp. 88, 89.
9 Venerated on the 31st of January, where by George A. Hanlon is copied from a
^
and published in that admirable Guide Book
See lines, written by Mr. P. Magenniss,
" See ibid. This must have been the killen, Balleek, Ballyshannon, and Bun- patron saint of Fenagh.
of W. F. Wakeman, "Lough Erne, Ennis-
his life will be found.
'° "
See Letters containing information re-
lative to the Antiquities of the Counties of Cavan and Leitrim (Breifny), collected dur-
drawing on wood by William F. Wakeman, \A'ho took a careful and correct drawing, on
the spot, in October, 1873.
Survey Records,
See ibid. The accompanying engraving
70 LIVES OF JHE IRISH SAINTS. [January 5.
In Killybeg townland, about three miles inland from Garrison, and in a
wild district, unapproachable to all but a pedestrian, there was formerly
anotherfoundationofSt. Moeg. Here,accordingtoColgan,asnoticedby "
theRev. Dr. Reeves,therewasa miraculousstone,"whichhadbeencalled Lac-Maodhoc, or " Moedoc's stone. " Unless this can be identified mth a curi- ous oboliscal dallan, which stands upon an eminence near the centre of the townland, no trace of the monument at present remains. The neighbouring peasantry call it " Fion Mac Cumhal's Finger-stone. "
and not to have been the Lac-Moedhog of Colgan. '3
Dr. O'Donovan says the western part of Rossinver parish was dedi-
cated to St. Mogue, whose coarbs were the 0'Ferguses. '+ One of this family living there in 1836 was said to have had in his possession a Life of St. Mogue. This information, however, Avas found to have been incorrect ; but a Mr. Ward then dwelling near Lough Melvin had a modem copy of it, from an old manuscript. A native of Fermanagh, James Maguire, Avrote a more ancient copy. This was in possession of Myles John O'Reilly, Esq. , who lent it to Dr. O'Donovan. From this curious legend, many historical facts may be inferred. Besides the veneration paid to the present saint, at these places already mentioned, it would appear that his memory had been respected in another locality. Solitude and beauty were to be found connected with the various localities. Under the head of Lis-Gabhail, Duald Mac Firbis enters,
tion of "
siurounds it. That object is
W. F. Wakeman. Heconsidersittohaveformedapurelypaganmonument,
giant's graves"
minutely
described
by
from onLoch for '^ This Lis-Gobhail,^5 Erne, January 5th.
Aedh, bishop,
Aedh seems to have been identical with the present saint. The illustrious St.
Bernard said to the monks of Citeaux, that they might find something far greater in the woods, than they could find in books. Stones and trees might teach them that which they could never learn from masters. " Think you
he " not," says,
from the
can suck
rock ? Do not the mountains drop sweetness, the hills run Avith milk and
honey, and the valleys stand thick with com ? "'? Such pious resignation in a life of solitude, and such a communing with the great Creator's works, led the contemplative to the real object of his heart's desire.
Article IV. —St. Joseph, Bishop of Tallagh, County of Dublin. Many old scenes of monastic life in Ireland are yet venerable and still endeared to popular recollection. Within the walled and enclosed graveyard of Tallagh, where, on a gentle eminence, stands the present Protestant church, the tall tower of a more ancient religious edifice may be seen. This formed the west entrance and porch to the more ancient church, the very foundations of which are now quite obliterated ; although early in the present century the building itself had been used for Protestant services. ' The tower contains in in the second story a bell ; but above it are opes, in which probably a peal of
you
honey
rock,
and oil from the
flinty
'3 See ibid. p. 90. There is an interesting
"
Topo- graphical Dictionary of Ireland," vol. ii. , pp. 536, 537. On the eastern shore of Lough
? telvin are the ruins of Rossinver's ancient church.
'• "Ordnance Survey Letters for the
County of Leitrim," pp. 227, b. 228.
'5 Now Lisgoole, in the county of Ferma- nagh, as identified by William M. Hennessy,
M. R. LA.
'* "
See Proceedings of the Royal Irish
Academy" Irish MSS. Series, vol. i. , parti. , pp. 118,119.
^^ S. Bemardi "Opera Omnia. " Epis- tola, 106. —' —
description of Rossinver in Lewis'
An interesting collec-
Art. IV. The sexton not a very old
man in May, 1873—told the writer, structing the new one.
he recol- lected the pulling down of the old church, the materials of which were used in con-
January 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 71
three small bells had formerly been placed. It is connected by a covered passage with the Protestant church, the vestry of which is the under-part of this old tower. 2 Not far from the site of the obliterated church, and on the southern side of the cemetery, is shown the pedestal of an old stone cross, bedded in the earth, and at the head of a high grave are the arms of an old granite cross, which at one time surmounted the plinth. The intermediate shaft seems to have been broken, nor are its fragments discoverable. Here, it is said, St. Melruan,3 the patron of Tallagh, lies interred. Every year, on the 7th of July, at Tallagh, and from time immemorial, the inhabitants have been accustomed to walk from the adjoining village in procession, bearing a long pole, crowned with natural flowers, to the site of St, Melruan's grave. The
"
a walking circuit around the grave : then all the processionists return to the
standard-bearer carries what is locally called
the garland," seven times in
Old Tower of St. Melruan's Church, Tallagh.
village, after prayers have been said at the spot. The pole is carefully set aside, until required for floral decoration the following year. This custom is probably but the remnant of an ancient processional and solemn religious serviceinmemoryofSt. Melruan. Thesiteofhisgraveisheldtobesacred, and no person is allowed to be interred there. The people are accustomed to measure their family places of interment, as being so many feet or so many yards from the grave of Tallagh's holy patron. '*
Few other antique monuments are now to be seen, although there is a
^ The accompanying engraving by Mrs. Millard is copied from a sketch taken by the
author in July, 1855.
