Among the
pretermitted
saints, p.
O'Hanlon - Lives of the Irish Saints - v3
County Mayo," 14, 15, 21,
On the latter Sheet is the townland of Ancient Alban," vol. ii. , chap, vii. , pp. 311
Moyne, near the mouth of the River Moy.
to 317.
3 See " Kalendars of Scottish Saints," pp.
266 to 268.
4 Pars Hyemalis, f. Ixii.
s See also the "Chronicles of the Picts
Here are ruins of a former abbey. "
9 See Acta Sanctorum Hibernias," Martii iv. , p. 457.
'° The passage reads: " Venit Patricius
ad Ecclesiara de — ubi est Domnach-mor,
Episcopus Mucna. " Colgan's "Trias Thau- maturga. " Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars. ii. , cap. Ixxxiii. , p. 141.
and ^
Scots," p. 423.
In the Bollandists' account, the number
_" See Rev. Dr. Lanigan's " Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, v. , sect. xii. , pp. 253, 254. , and n. 119, p. 255.
of martyred companions is thirty-three, and we are told the most ancient Martyrologies,
as also the Roman Martyrology, edited by Baronius, are of accord. See "Acta Sane- torum," tomus i. , Martii iv. Among the
pretermitted saints, p. 300.
"> " Apud Nicomediam natale beati Ad«
" Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xvii.
'3 See the Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum. "
112 LIVES OE THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 4.
Gagius,7 who seems to correspond with Gayus of tlie Aberdeen Breviary, at the same date. For iUustration of what we are about to convey, the reader is requested to give some little consideration to the notices of Saints Mannan and Tiaan, of Aredh-Suird or Airiudh h-Uird, at the 23rd of February. ^ In addition we may observe, that the Breviary of Aberdeen contains an account, that St. Adrian was born in the province of Pannonia in Hungary ; that he was of royal descent and of episcopal rank ; his diligence in the sacred order being testified, by the many clerics and seculars, who were his companions. Inflamed with missionary zeal, it is said he betook himself to the eastern and Pictish parts of Scotia. The incredible number of 6,606 companions, in- cluding Glodian,9 Gaius,^° Monan," Stolbrand, and others not specially named. AlthoughcalledBishopofSt. Andrew's,St. Adrianissupposedto have been a bishop, yet without a fixed see. ^^ But, it seems most probable, that the present holy man, and his companion martyrs, came from Ireland j since, Boece states, that they were of the Scots and Angles. '3 It has been supposed, by a learned and critical Scottish historian,^-* that the Angles may have represented the church of Acca,^5 who, driven from Northumberland, had founded a bishopric among the Picts, in a. d. 732, while the Scotti or Irish may have represented the church of Adrian, who, in some of the lists, is placed at the head of the bishops of St Andrew's. '^ A conjecture has been hazarded, that the Irish contingent had been forced out of Ireland, owing to the Danish invasions, which prevailed, especially during the ninth century. It is thought, that when Kenneth MacAlpin had established his sway over the Picts, and when his son Constantine II. reigned, the holy Irish emigrants arrived, and acquired a habitation in the Firth of Forth. '? The martyrdom of St. Adrian, and of his companions, is referred to about a. d. 875, and in the IslandofMay,wheretheyweremassacredbytheDanes. Fordunmakes outthenumberofthosemartyred,tobeonehundred. Thelegendhasthis measure of corroboration, that a fight occurred, a. d. 875, between the Scots and Danes, when many of the former were slaughtered. '^ There was anciently a monastery of fair-coursed masonry, in the Island of May ; but, it was destroyed by the English. There, too, was a celebrated cemetery, where the bodies of these mart}Ts repose,'? and on this hallowed spot, various miracles were wrought, in favour of pious pilgrims, who frequented it. Gaius or Gayus is noted, as one of those martyrs, who suffered with St. Adrian, on the 4th of March. '"^ Near Lochleven, in Fife, was the land of Kylemagage. ^' Ganinius is also noticed, as one of these sufferers ; yet, he
riani cum aliis viginti tribus qui omnes sub rias, a Prima Gentis Origine," fol. ccxiii. Diocletianopostmultasuppliciacrurifragio 'WilliamF. Skene. SeeNotesofEarly martyrium consummaverunt. Ipso die Ecclesiastical Settlements at S. Andrew's.
"
passio S. Gagii Palatini—in mare mersi et
Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries
aliorum viginti septem. "
SoUer's edition of Usuard, p. 138, printed at Antwerp A. D.
of vol. Scotland,"
February, and at the 20th of October. * '*
1714.
See vol. ii. , of this work. Art. iv. See "Records of the Priory of the Isle of
5 See Bishop Forbes' ** Kalendars of May," edited by John Stuart, LL. D. , A. D.
Scottish Saints," p. 357.
'° See ibid. , p. 354.
" The reader is referred to the particulars
already given, in this work, vol. ii. , at Feb-
1 868.
'7 See William F. Skene's " Celtic Scot-
land : A History of Ancient Alban," vol.
Saints Mannan and Tiaan, of Aredh-suird or Airiudh h-Uird.
ii. , chap, vii. , pp. 312 to 315.
'^ "
Art. ruary 23rd, iv. ,
It is
Scoti co Achcochlam. " nicle. "
"
Occisi sunt "Pictish Chro-
See Dr. Todd's "St. Patrick. Apostle
of Ireland," Introductory Dissertation, pp.
36 to 87.
'3 "
''See the "Chronicles of the Picts and
He says, they were— ex Scotis Anglis- See Pars Hyemalis, f. Ixii,
" *'
que gregarie collectis. " Scotorum Hysto- Retours of Fife, 173.
iv. , p. 316.
'^ See an account of him, at the 19th of
Scots," p. 423. ='°
at that— stated, year,
March 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 113
may not be different from the preceding, in the opinion of Bishop Forbes. '^ Wyntoun gives a minute account of the incidents connected with this mar- tyrdom,inhisquaintlyrhymed"Chronicon/'^3 TheholyAdrianandhis companions, martyrs, are venerated on the 4th of March, as we find in the Calendar of the Breviary of Aberdeen, and they had an office of nine Lessons. ^4 In Adam King's Kalendar, at March 4th, we read : S. Adriane bisch. of S. Andrew mart, m scotl. be ye dannes vnder King Constantine ye 2. ^5 Again, in the Island of May, it is stated, St. Adrian a distinguished bishop of the Scots was martyred, and, with many thousands of both sexes
went to Heaven. ^^
Die Martii, enters, St. Adrian or Hadrian Archbishop of St. Andrew's and
Martyr. ^7 It must be acknowledged, our Irish Calendars have no correspond- ing notices.
ArticleHI. —St. Phillip,Bishop,ofCluainBainbh. Thissaintis
merely named, in the Irish Martyrologies and Calendars, as being a bishop of Cluain Bainbh. ' Colgan was unable to discover the age, in which he flourished. He hazards a conjecture, however, that Philip might have been identical with a reputed saint, to whom a feast has been assigned, at the 4th of March. Thus, in the Carthusian Martyrology, it is stated, that a Saint Moggrudo, a Bishop and Confessor, was venerated in Ireland, on this day f but, nothing is contained, in our home Martyrologies or Annals, regarding him, at this, or at any other, date. Perhaps, he only distinguished himself, on a foreign mission. 3 On this day, the Martyrology of Tallagh+ comuiemo- rates the Natalis of a certain holy bishop, whose name is suppressed. ^ How- ever, he is called Bishop of Clocharbainni, probably another name for Cluain- Bainbh. ^ Under another form of insertion, Colgan thinks the former an erroneous one, and that it should accord with that in the Martyrologies of Mananus O'Gorman and of Donegal,? where we find, on this day, recorded, Philip, Bishop, of Cluain Bainbh. The BoUandists have their doubtful notices of Philip and of Moggrudo. ^ Again, under the head of Cluain-bambh, and Clochar, Duald Mac Firbis enters, Philip, Bishop of Cluain bainbh, a holy bishop of Clogher, at March 4th. 9 Besides this, m the anonymous Catalogue of Irish Saints, published by OSuUevan Beare, at the 4th of March,wemeetwithMogrudo. OntheauthorityoftheCarthusianMartyr-
and of order every
slain,
Also,
David Camerarius, at
4
354.
" S.
" See " Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p.
's Thus he writes — :
"And upon Haly Thurysday Saynt Adriane thai shoe in May
Wyth mony off hys cumpany ; In to that haly lie thai ly. "
Episcopi et Confessoris. " And Herman Greuen finds in a MS. Carthusian Martyr-
3 Colgan here remarks, that unless some
error has been introduced, in writing the name, this saint must have lived and died out of Ireland.
'• EditedbyRev. Dr. Kelly,p. xvii.
it is entered in this form, in the work as
—Book vi. , chap. viii.
s
Forbes' " ''S See ibid. , p. 146.
"
"* See
Scottish . Saints," p. 113.
Kalendars of
Noeb, Eps.
o Clochair
Bishop
published : boinni. "
'* See Dempster's " cum," Ibid. , p. 193.
'^ See ibid. , p. 235.
Menologium
Scoti-
* I am unable to discover the location of Cluain-Bainbh.
7 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
62, 63.
* See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. ,
Martii iv.
Among the pretermitted saints, p. 299.
9 See "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish MSS. Series, vol. i,, part i. , pp. 98, 99, lOO, loi.
Article hi. —' See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," iv. Martii. De S. Muggrudone, Episcopo et Confessore. Item de S. Philippo Episcopo, p. 457.
'The Carthusian Martyrology, at the 4th
" ofMarch, says :
In Hibernia Moggrudonis
of
copi et Confessoris in Hiijernia. "
ology
Cologne :
Moggrudonis Epis-
H
J 14 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 4.
ology, at the same date, he appears, in Henry Fitzsimon's list, as, Mogrado,
a '° The reader is referred to what we have to on the succeed- bishop. state,
ing day.
Article IV. —St. Owen or Owini, Monk, at Lichfield, England. [Seventh Cenhity. '] Several Calendarists place the festival of this holy man, at the present date, when. the Bollandists give his Acts. ^ He must have survived St. Cedda or Chad, his master, and Bishop of Lichfield,^ who is thought to have departed, about 672. There are good reasons for supposing Owini or Owen to have been an Irishman. 3 It is said, a church was dedi- cated to him, in the city of Gloucester, on the River Severn, and in the Kingdom of the West Angles. His other Acts will be found recorded, with those of St. Cedda or Chad, Bishop of Lichfield. ^
Article V. —First Deposition of St. Fursey's Relics.
\Smenth
Century,^ From various sources, Colgan collects the inference, that the first
deposition of St. Fursey's relics took place, at the present date. ' It is
related, in the old Acts of St. Fursey, that his body lay unburied, within,
and, not after, thirty days. Venerable Bede states, that it lay unburied for
twenty-sixdays;' but,Colgansuggests,thattwenty-threeshouldprobablybe the correct rendering. Hence, he considers, that Trithemius^ and others, whomakethisthedayofSt. Fursey'sdeath,oughtratherregardit, asthat for his first interment. The life of this great servant of God has been akeady given, at the i6th of January, while his death by many ^^Tite^3 has beenassigned,eithertothatdate,ortothe9thofFebruary. Supposingthis lattertobethecorrectdateforit, Colganthinksthepresentdayshouldbe marked in the Calendars, for the first deposition of his relics. *
Article VI. —Feast of St. Lucius, Pope and Martyr. \Third Century^ At the 4th of March, the Irish Church celebrated the festival of St. Lucius. ' He was the son of Porphyrius, and of a distinguished Roman
family. He was the twenty-second Pope, but he only ruled over the Church for a brief period, and suffered martyrdom, during the second consulate of Volusianus,onMarch4th,a. d. 253. ' Heiscommemorated,onthisday,in
"See O'SuUevan Beare's "Historiae
CatholicseIberniasCompendium,"tomusi. ,
lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 49, and cap. xii. , p. 56.
Article IV. —'See "Acta
tomus i. , Martii iv. De S. Owino Monacho been
Lichfeldias in Anglia Commentarius histori- cus, pp. 212, 213.
'
See his Life, at the 2nd of March.
3 His Life is included in Jerome Porter's "Flowers of the Lives of the most ilkistrious
Saints of England, Scotland and Ireland. "
* See an account of him in "A Memorial
of Ancient Briti—sh Piety," p. 46.
Article v. 'See "Acta Sanctorum
Hiberniae," iv. Martii. S. Fursei Abbatis
furnished,
by Professor O'Looney
Depositio, pp. 456, 457. *"
5. 1111. n.
*
Stuiiro ce^-An in epouic
1 i\UAini yvig'OA coitroLech Co fluAg Aobul Ainglech tuciuf ieff U)inni\ecli.
Celebrate the passion of the"
bishop,
In Rome, the kingly, the lumi-
nous,
With a mighty angelic host, Lucius the brilliant torch.
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis An- glorum," lib. iii. , cap. xix.
3 See " De Viris Illustribus Ordinis Bene- dictini," lib. iii. , cap. Ixxxvi.
Sanctoram,"
See Bertl's "Ecclesiastics Historise * See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Breviavium. " Pars Prima. Skc. iii. , cap.
nine," xvi. Januarii. Appandix ad Vitam S.
i. , p. 96.
Fursaei, cap. x. , p. 98.
—
stanza, in the "Feilire" of St. ^ngus, and
'
found in the " Leabhar Breac " has copy,
with the —
EngUsh translation,
:
Article vi.
The
following
Irish
March 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 115
the Roman Breviary. 3 His Acts, by the Monk Guaiferius, are set forth in the great Bollandist collection, with some preceding commentaries. *
jfittf) I3ap of ilaitl)*
ARTICLE L—ST. KIERAN, OR CIARAN, FIRST BISHOP OF SAIGIR KING'S COUNTY, AND PATRON OF THE DIOCESE OF OSSORY.
[FIFTH AND SIXTH CENTURIES. } CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION—THE ACTS OF ST, KIERAN—FAMILY AND BIRTH—HIS DESIRE TO BECOME A CHRISTIAN, AND TO VISIT ROME.
guiding to the light of Faith those who have been immersed for a
have weight, with the unconverted. They perform superstitious practices, frequent their' temples, and, on certain days, have absurd rites and cere-
monies, merely in conformity with prevailing national usages. Their parents were superstitious, their friends and neighbours are likewise so. With diffi- culty can they make up their minds to break that chain which strictly binds them to all these things : it would be a breach of filial or natural piety, to recede from the customs of their forefathers. Considerations like these keep back a great many honest-minded pagans, from embracing the pure Faith, whichleadstothemostadmirablecodeofmorahty. Lefttothemselves,the people are not generally hostile to Christianity. Were they but free in their movements, they would follow the attraction of what they see and under- stand. This would be all the easier, since their trust in spells and idols is of the faintest kind. Yet, those vested interests, which tend to sustain the tottering fabric of unsound and impious institutions, are with difficulty counteracted, because fanaticism and deep-rooted prejudices combine, to
IN timein
long pagan darkness,
conversionswouldbenumerousandmore easily effected, if it were only possible, to remove the moral and material obstacles which obstruct their way. Traditions and ties of race and family
prevent truth from appearing lovely to human minds. For a long time, our "
ancestors were sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death," until the people became the Lord's portion and the lot of his inheritance. ' However, Christianity was not unknown, in parts of Ireland, during those years preced-
ing the arrival of St. Patrick,^ according to many respectable authorities. 3 After Ireland's early reign of Druidismand Heathendom, the land, that was desolate and impassable, was to be made glad; the wilderness was to rejoice and flourish like a lily ; the eyes of the blind were to be opened, and the ears of the deaf were to be unstopped ; waters were to break out in the desert, and streams in the wilderness ; the dry land was to become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water ; the redeemed of the Lord were to come into Sionwithgreatpraise,everlastingjoywastobeupontheirheads; theywere to obtain joy and gladness; sorrow and mourning were to flee away ;+ while
3ParsVerna. Dieiv.
* See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. , iv.
et
nomy. xxxii. , 9.
= See his Life, at the 17th of March.
3 See "Chronicon," at A. D. Sigebert's
432. This writer died, A. D. 1 1 12. * See Isaias, xxxv.
Martii. De S. Lucio
Papa
Article i. —Chapter i. —. ' Deutero-
301 to 3p8.
Martyre, pp.
11 6 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[March 5.
the light of the Gospel was destined to arise and to beam with effulgence over the land.
The primitive form of Irish society appears to have been based, on the clan or sept system ; the chief was regarded as the patriarch, father and defender of an extended family, whose members were generally united by ties of relationship and kindred. s However, there was an Ard-Righ, or chief monarch over Ireland, and under him were subordinate princes, whose powers were well defined, and subject to the chief monarch. One of these ruled over each considerable province or district. The chief was a petty sovereign, within his own territory. Notwithstanding, the chieftains acknow- ledged a qualified allegiance, either directly or indirectly, to the monarch of the Island, According to a very general opinion of our historians, Ireland was governed by a sort of pentarchy, as the chief ruler's authority was supposed to immediately and directly affect four other powerful kings, his suzerains. There can be little doubt, that from a community thus constituted at Saigher, the first preachers of Christianity went forth, among the rude and turbulent tribes of ancient Ossory. Nor is it at all improbable, that on this spot was also erected one of the earliest Christian churches in Ireland. A date, anterior to the advent of St. Patrick, is very generally assigned for the founding of the cell at Saigher, by St. Kieran, or Chiarain, the son of Lug- haidh. ^ Several matters, connected with his transactions and period, have been questioned, notwithstanding, and it shall be our object to give these the fairest consideration, we are able to afford, consistenly with the involved diffi- culties of our theme.
Some Irish Lives of the holy man, who has been so affectionately styled,
" Primogenitus Sanctorum Hibernise," 7 are yet preserved in manuscript. Among these, a Life of St. Kieran of Saigir, in Irish, has been transcribed by Brother Michael O'Clery. ^ Among the Messrs. Hodges and Smith's collec- tion of Irish Manuscripts, in the Royal Irish Academy, is a Lite of St. Kiaran of Saighir. 9 Jn Marsh's Library, Dublin, in the manuscript, called "Codex Kilkenniensis," there is a Lite of St. Kieranus (Ossoriensis). '** Thereis an '* VitaS.
"in a
among Messrs. Hodges and Smith's MSS. , No. 12,'3 in the Royal Irish Academy. Another is to be found, in the Bodleian Library, at Oxtord,'* and it is a vellum folio of the fourteenth century. Colgan furnishes two Lives of this celebrated saint. 's One of these is taken from the manuscript described
Kierani,"
belonging to Trinity College, Dublin. " A Life of St. Kieran is contained,
imperfect
5 See Goldwin Smith's " Irbh History and Irish Character," p. 15.
fol. 139. Again in vol. xxii. , Nos, 7672 to 7674, we find a Vita S. Kierani, fol. 197.
' it is numbered 150, a 410 paper MS,
"Fol, 107 to 110.
" It only gives a few sentences, however, beginning at fol. 71, the succeeding lolios to 91 being defective.
" This is classed E. 3. 11.
'3 A small 4to paper MS.
'* It is classed, Rawl.
On the latter Sheet is the townland of Ancient Alban," vol. ii. , chap, vii. , pp. 311
Moyne, near the mouth of the River Moy.
to 317.
3 See " Kalendars of Scottish Saints," pp.
266 to 268.
4 Pars Hyemalis, f. Ixii.
s See also the "Chronicles of the Picts
Here are ruins of a former abbey. "
9 See Acta Sanctorum Hibernias," Martii iv. , p. 457.
'° The passage reads: " Venit Patricius
ad Ecclesiara de — ubi est Domnach-mor,
Episcopus Mucna. " Colgan's "Trias Thau- maturga. " Septima Vita S. Patricii, pars. ii. , cap. Ixxxiii. , p. 141.
and ^
Scots," p. 423.
In the Bollandists' account, the number
_" See Rev. Dr. Lanigan's " Ecclesiastical History of Ireland," vol. i. , chap, v. , sect. xii. , pp. 253, 254. , and n. 119, p. 255.
of martyred companions is thirty-three, and we are told the most ancient Martyrologies,
as also the Roman Martyrology, edited by Baronius, are of accord. See "Acta Sane- torum," tomus i. , Martii iv. Among the
pretermitted saints, p. 300.
"> " Apud Nicomediam natale beati Ad«
" Edited by Rev. Dr. Kelly, p. xvii.
'3 See the Bollandists' "Acta Sanctorum. "
112 LIVES OE THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 4.
Gagius,7 who seems to correspond with Gayus of tlie Aberdeen Breviary, at the same date. For iUustration of what we are about to convey, the reader is requested to give some little consideration to the notices of Saints Mannan and Tiaan, of Aredh-Suird or Airiudh h-Uird, at the 23rd of February. ^ In addition we may observe, that the Breviary of Aberdeen contains an account, that St. Adrian was born in the province of Pannonia in Hungary ; that he was of royal descent and of episcopal rank ; his diligence in the sacred order being testified, by the many clerics and seculars, who were his companions. Inflamed with missionary zeal, it is said he betook himself to the eastern and Pictish parts of Scotia. The incredible number of 6,606 companions, in- cluding Glodian,9 Gaius,^° Monan," Stolbrand, and others not specially named. AlthoughcalledBishopofSt. Andrew's,St. Adrianissupposedto have been a bishop, yet without a fixed see. ^^ But, it seems most probable, that the present holy man, and his companion martyrs, came from Ireland j since, Boece states, that they were of the Scots and Angles. '3 It has been supposed, by a learned and critical Scottish historian,^-* that the Angles may have represented the church of Acca,^5 who, driven from Northumberland, had founded a bishopric among the Picts, in a. d. 732, while the Scotti or Irish may have represented the church of Adrian, who, in some of the lists, is placed at the head of the bishops of St Andrew's. '^ A conjecture has been hazarded, that the Irish contingent had been forced out of Ireland, owing to the Danish invasions, which prevailed, especially during the ninth century. It is thought, that when Kenneth MacAlpin had established his sway over the Picts, and when his son Constantine II. reigned, the holy Irish emigrants arrived, and acquired a habitation in the Firth of Forth. '? The martyrdom of St. Adrian, and of his companions, is referred to about a. d. 875, and in the IslandofMay,wheretheyweremassacredbytheDanes. Fordunmakes outthenumberofthosemartyred,tobeonehundred. Thelegendhasthis measure of corroboration, that a fight occurred, a. d. 875, between the Scots and Danes, when many of the former were slaughtered. '^ There was anciently a monastery of fair-coursed masonry, in the Island of May ; but, it was destroyed by the English. There, too, was a celebrated cemetery, where the bodies of these mart}Ts repose,'? and on this hallowed spot, various miracles were wrought, in favour of pious pilgrims, who frequented it. Gaius or Gayus is noted, as one of those martyrs, who suffered with St. Adrian, on the 4th of March. '"^ Near Lochleven, in Fife, was the land of Kylemagage. ^' Ganinius is also noticed, as one of these sufferers ; yet, he
riani cum aliis viginti tribus qui omnes sub rias, a Prima Gentis Origine," fol. ccxiii. Diocletianopostmultasuppliciacrurifragio 'WilliamF. Skene. SeeNotesofEarly martyrium consummaverunt. Ipso die Ecclesiastical Settlements at S. Andrew's.
"
passio S. Gagii Palatini—in mare mersi et
Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries
aliorum viginti septem. "
SoUer's edition of Usuard, p. 138, printed at Antwerp A. D.
of vol. Scotland,"
February, and at the 20th of October. * '*
1714.
See vol. ii. , of this work. Art. iv. See "Records of the Priory of the Isle of
5 See Bishop Forbes' ** Kalendars of May," edited by John Stuart, LL. D. , A. D.
Scottish Saints," p. 357.
'° See ibid. , p. 354.
" The reader is referred to the particulars
already given, in this work, vol. ii. , at Feb-
1 868.
'7 See William F. Skene's " Celtic Scot-
land : A History of Ancient Alban," vol.
Saints Mannan and Tiaan, of Aredh-suird or Airiudh h-Uird.
ii. , chap, vii. , pp. 312 to 315.
'^ "
Art. ruary 23rd, iv. ,
It is
Scoti co Achcochlam. " nicle. "
"
Occisi sunt "Pictish Chro-
See Dr. Todd's "St. Patrick. Apostle
of Ireland," Introductory Dissertation, pp.
36 to 87.
'3 "
''See the "Chronicles of the Picts and
He says, they were— ex Scotis Anglis- See Pars Hyemalis, f. Ixii,
" *'
que gregarie collectis. " Scotorum Hysto- Retours of Fife, 173.
iv. , p. 316.
'^ See an account of him, at the 19th of
Scots," p. 423. ='°
at that— stated, year,
March 4. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 113
may not be different from the preceding, in the opinion of Bishop Forbes. '^ Wyntoun gives a minute account of the incidents connected with this mar- tyrdom,inhisquaintlyrhymed"Chronicon/'^3 TheholyAdrianandhis companions, martyrs, are venerated on the 4th of March, as we find in the Calendar of the Breviary of Aberdeen, and they had an office of nine Lessons. ^4 In Adam King's Kalendar, at March 4th, we read : S. Adriane bisch. of S. Andrew mart, m scotl. be ye dannes vnder King Constantine ye 2. ^5 Again, in the Island of May, it is stated, St. Adrian a distinguished bishop of the Scots was martyred, and, with many thousands of both sexes
went to Heaven. ^^
Die Martii, enters, St. Adrian or Hadrian Archbishop of St. Andrew's and
Martyr. ^7 It must be acknowledged, our Irish Calendars have no correspond- ing notices.
ArticleHI. —St. Phillip,Bishop,ofCluainBainbh. Thissaintis
merely named, in the Irish Martyrologies and Calendars, as being a bishop of Cluain Bainbh. ' Colgan was unable to discover the age, in which he flourished. He hazards a conjecture, however, that Philip might have been identical with a reputed saint, to whom a feast has been assigned, at the 4th of March. Thus, in the Carthusian Martyrology, it is stated, that a Saint Moggrudo, a Bishop and Confessor, was venerated in Ireland, on this day f but, nothing is contained, in our home Martyrologies or Annals, regarding him, at this, or at any other, date. Perhaps, he only distinguished himself, on a foreign mission. 3 On this day, the Martyrology of Tallagh+ comuiemo- rates the Natalis of a certain holy bishop, whose name is suppressed. ^ How- ever, he is called Bishop of Clocharbainni, probably another name for Cluain- Bainbh. ^ Under another form of insertion, Colgan thinks the former an erroneous one, and that it should accord with that in the Martyrologies of Mananus O'Gorman and of Donegal,? where we find, on this day, recorded, Philip, Bishop, of Cluain Bainbh. The BoUandists have their doubtful notices of Philip and of Moggrudo. ^ Again, under the head of Cluain-bambh, and Clochar, Duald Mac Firbis enters, Philip, Bishop of Cluain bainbh, a holy bishop of Clogher, at March 4th. 9 Besides this, m the anonymous Catalogue of Irish Saints, published by OSuUevan Beare, at the 4th of March,wemeetwithMogrudo. OntheauthorityoftheCarthusianMartyr-
and of order every
slain,
Also,
David Camerarius, at
4
354.
" S.
" See " Kalendars of Scottish Saints," p.
's Thus he writes — :
"And upon Haly Thurysday Saynt Adriane thai shoe in May
Wyth mony off hys cumpany ; In to that haly lie thai ly. "
Episcopi et Confessoris. " And Herman Greuen finds in a MS. Carthusian Martyr-
3 Colgan here remarks, that unless some
error has been introduced, in writing the name, this saint must have lived and died out of Ireland.
'• EditedbyRev. Dr. Kelly,p. xvii.
it is entered in this form, in the work as
—Book vi. , chap. viii.
s
Forbes' " ''S See ibid. , p. 146.
"
"* See
Scottish . Saints," p. 113.
Kalendars of
Noeb, Eps.
o Clochair
Bishop
published : boinni. "
'* See Dempster's " cum," Ibid. , p. 193.
'^ See ibid. , p. 235.
Menologium
Scoti-
* I am unable to discover the location of Cluain-Bainbh.
7 Edited by Drs. Todd and Reeves, pp.
62, 63.
* See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. ,
Martii iv.
Among the pretermitted saints, p. 299.
9 See "Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy," Irish MSS. Series, vol. i,, part i. , pp. 98, 99, lOO, loi.
Article hi. —' See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae," iv. Martii. De S. Muggrudone, Episcopo et Confessore. Item de S. Philippo Episcopo, p. 457.
'The Carthusian Martyrology, at the 4th
" ofMarch, says :
In Hibernia Moggrudonis
of
copi et Confessoris in Hiijernia. "
ology
Cologne :
Moggrudonis Epis-
H
J 14 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 4.
ology, at the same date, he appears, in Henry Fitzsimon's list, as, Mogrado,
a '° The reader is referred to what we have to on the succeed- bishop. state,
ing day.
Article IV. —St. Owen or Owini, Monk, at Lichfield, England. [Seventh Cenhity. '] Several Calendarists place the festival of this holy man, at the present date, when. the Bollandists give his Acts. ^ He must have survived St. Cedda or Chad, his master, and Bishop of Lichfield,^ who is thought to have departed, about 672. There are good reasons for supposing Owini or Owen to have been an Irishman. 3 It is said, a church was dedi- cated to him, in the city of Gloucester, on the River Severn, and in the Kingdom of the West Angles. His other Acts will be found recorded, with those of St. Cedda or Chad, Bishop of Lichfield. ^
Article V. —First Deposition of St. Fursey's Relics.
\Smenth
Century,^ From various sources, Colgan collects the inference, that the first
deposition of St. Fursey's relics took place, at the present date. ' It is
related, in the old Acts of St. Fursey, that his body lay unburied, within,
and, not after, thirty days. Venerable Bede states, that it lay unburied for
twenty-sixdays;' but,Colgansuggests,thattwenty-threeshouldprobablybe the correct rendering. Hence, he considers, that Trithemius^ and others, whomakethisthedayofSt. Fursey'sdeath,oughtratherregardit, asthat for his first interment. The life of this great servant of God has been akeady given, at the i6th of January, while his death by many ^^Tite^3 has beenassigned,eithertothatdate,ortothe9thofFebruary. Supposingthis lattertobethecorrectdateforit, Colganthinksthepresentdayshouldbe marked in the Calendars, for the first deposition of his relics. *
Article VI. —Feast of St. Lucius, Pope and Martyr. \Third Century^ At the 4th of March, the Irish Church celebrated the festival of St. Lucius. ' He was the son of Porphyrius, and of a distinguished Roman
family. He was the twenty-second Pope, but he only ruled over the Church for a brief period, and suffered martyrdom, during the second consulate of Volusianus,onMarch4th,a. d. 253. ' Heiscommemorated,onthisday,in
"See O'SuUevan Beare's "Historiae
CatholicseIberniasCompendium,"tomusi. ,
lib. iv. , cap. xi. , p. 49, and cap. xii. , p. 56.
Article IV. —'See "Acta
tomus i. , Martii iv. De S. Owino Monacho been
Lichfeldias in Anglia Commentarius histori- cus, pp. 212, 213.
'
See his Life, at the 2nd of March.
3 His Life is included in Jerome Porter's "Flowers of the Lives of the most ilkistrious
Saints of England, Scotland and Ireland. "
* See an account of him in "A Memorial
of Ancient Briti—sh Piety," p. 46.
Article v. 'See "Acta Sanctorum
Hiberniae," iv. Martii. S. Fursei Abbatis
furnished,
by Professor O'Looney
Depositio, pp. 456, 457. *"
5. 1111. n.
*
Stuiiro ce^-An in epouic
1 i\UAini yvig'OA coitroLech Co fluAg Aobul Ainglech tuciuf ieff U)inni\ecli.
Celebrate the passion of the"
bishop,
In Rome, the kingly, the lumi-
nous,
With a mighty angelic host, Lucius the brilliant torch.
See Historia Ecclesiastica Gentis An- glorum," lib. iii. , cap. xix.
3 See " De Viris Illustribus Ordinis Bene- dictini," lib. iii. , cap. Ixxxvi.
Sanctoram,"
See Bertl's "Ecclesiastics Historise * See Colgan's "Acta Sanctorum Hiber- Breviavium. " Pars Prima. Skc. iii. , cap.
nine," xvi. Januarii. Appandix ad Vitam S.
i. , p. 96.
Fursaei, cap. x. , p. 98.
—
stanza, in the "Feilire" of St. ^ngus, and
'
found in the " Leabhar Breac " has copy,
with the —
EngUsh translation,
:
Article vi.
The
following
Irish
March 5. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 115
the Roman Breviary. 3 His Acts, by the Monk Guaiferius, are set forth in the great Bollandist collection, with some preceding commentaries. *
jfittf) I3ap of ilaitl)*
ARTICLE L—ST. KIERAN, OR CIARAN, FIRST BISHOP OF SAIGIR KING'S COUNTY, AND PATRON OF THE DIOCESE OF OSSORY.
[FIFTH AND SIXTH CENTURIES. } CHAPTER I.
INTRODUCTION—THE ACTS OF ST, KIERAN—FAMILY AND BIRTH—HIS DESIRE TO BECOME A CHRISTIAN, AND TO VISIT ROME.
guiding to the light of Faith those who have been immersed for a
have weight, with the unconverted. They perform superstitious practices, frequent their' temples, and, on certain days, have absurd rites and cere-
monies, merely in conformity with prevailing national usages. Their parents were superstitious, their friends and neighbours are likewise so. With diffi- culty can they make up their minds to break that chain which strictly binds them to all these things : it would be a breach of filial or natural piety, to recede from the customs of their forefathers. Considerations like these keep back a great many honest-minded pagans, from embracing the pure Faith, whichleadstothemostadmirablecodeofmorahty. Lefttothemselves,the people are not generally hostile to Christianity. Were they but free in their movements, they would follow the attraction of what they see and under- stand. This would be all the easier, since their trust in spells and idols is of the faintest kind. Yet, those vested interests, which tend to sustain the tottering fabric of unsound and impious institutions, are with difficulty counteracted, because fanaticism and deep-rooted prejudices combine, to
IN timein
long pagan darkness,
conversionswouldbenumerousandmore easily effected, if it were only possible, to remove the moral and material obstacles which obstruct their way. Traditions and ties of race and family
prevent truth from appearing lovely to human minds. For a long time, our "
ancestors were sitting in darkness and in the shadow of death," until the people became the Lord's portion and the lot of his inheritance. ' However, Christianity was not unknown, in parts of Ireland, during those years preced-
ing the arrival of St. Patrick,^ according to many respectable authorities. 3 After Ireland's early reign of Druidismand Heathendom, the land, that was desolate and impassable, was to be made glad; the wilderness was to rejoice and flourish like a lily ; the eyes of the blind were to be opened, and the ears of the deaf were to be unstopped ; waters were to break out in the desert, and streams in the wilderness ; the dry land was to become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water ; the redeemed of the Lord were to come into Sionwithgreatpraise,everlastingjoywastobeupontheirheads; theywere to obtain joy and gladness; sorrow and mourning were to flee away ;+ while
3ParsVerna. Dieiv.
* See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus i. , iv.
et
nomy. xxxii. , 9.
= See his Life, at the 17th of March.
3 See "Chronicon," at A. D. Sigebert's
432. This writer died, A. D. 1 1 12. * See Isaias, xxxv.
Martii. De S. Lucio
Papa
Article i. —Chapter i. —. ' Deutero-
301 to 3p8.
Martyre, pp.
11 6 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS.
[March 5.
the light of the Gospel was destined to arise and to beam with effulgence over the land.
The primitive form of Irish society appears to have been based, on the clan or sept system ; the chief was regarded as the patriarch, father and defender of an extended family, whose members were generally united by ties of relationship and kindred. s However, there was an Ard-Righ, or chief monarch over Ireland, and under him were subordinate princes, whose powers were well defined, and subject to the chief monarch. One of these ruled over each considerable province or district. The chief was a petty sovereign, within his own territory. Notwithstanding, the chieftains acknow- ledged a qualified allegiance, either directly or indirectly, to the monarch of the Island, According to a very general opinion of our historians, Ireland was governed by a sort of pentarchy, as the chief ruler's authority was supposed to immediately and directly affect four other powerful kings, his suzerains. There can be little doubt, that from a community thus constituted at Saigher, the first preachers of Christianity went forth, among the rude and turbulent tribes of ancient Ossory. Nor is it at all improbable, that on this spot was also erected one of the earliest Christian churches in Ireland. A date, anterior to the advent of St. Patrick, is very generally assigned for the founding of the cell at Saigher, by St. Kieran, or Chiarain, the son of Lug- haidh. ^ Several matters, connected with his transactions and period, have been questioned, notwithstanding, and it shall be our object to give these the fairest consideration, we are able to afford, consistenly with the involved diffi- culties of our theme.
Some Irish Lives of the holy man, who has been so affectionately styled,
" Primogenitus Sanctorum Hibernise," 7 are yet preserved in manuscript. Among these, a Life of St. Kieran of Saigir, in Irish, has been transcribed by Brother Michael O'Clery. ^ Among the Messrs. Hodges and Smith's collec- tion of Irish Manuscripts, in the Royal Irish Academy, is a Lite of St. Kiaran of Saighir. 9 Jn Marsh's Library, Dublin, in the manuscript, called "Codex Kilkenniensis," there is a Lite of St. Kieranus (Ossoriensis). '** Thereis an '* VitaS.
"in a
among Messrs. Hodges and Smith's MSS. , No. 12,'3 in the Royal Irish Academy. Another is to be found, in the Bodleian Library, at Oxtord,'* and it is a vellum folio of the fourteenth century. Colgan furnishes two Lives of this celebrated saint. 's One of these is taken from the manuscript described
Kierani,"
belonging to Trinity College, Dublin. " A Life of St. Kieran is contained,
imperfect
5 See Goldwin Smith's " Irbh History and Irish Character," p. 15.
fol. 139. Again in vol. xxii. , Nos, 7672 to 7674, we find a Vita S. Kierani, fol. 197.
' it is numbered 150, a 410 paper MS,
"Fol, 107 to 110.
" It only gives a few sentences, however, beginning at fol. 71, the succeeding lolios to 91 being defective.
" This is classed E. 3. 11.
'3 A small 4to paper MS.
'* It is classed, Rawl.
