No More Learning

Lanigan's
512 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
rities, forty years with St. Germanus,^* while he was employed, in diligently studying the Holy Scriptures. However, the Third Life states,^5 that Patrick was only four years with St. Gernianus, and, that then he lived nine years, in an island, called Tamerensis. Afterwards, it is said, he went to Rome.
Again, St. Erric of Auxerre speaks of eighteen years, as all passed by St. Patrick, under St. German. ^^ Many who wrote after his time adopt this statement. Rigorously taken, however, this could not be true. From the words of Erric of Auxerre, it might be inferred, that St. Patrick was the con- stant companion of St. Germanus. ^7 It was during this time, that our Apostle is said to have got the name of Magonius, or, as Nennius has it, Maun. ^^ Not in Gaul alone, but likewise in Italy, St. Patrick is introduced, as being under the guidance of St. Germanus,^? who spent much of his time, withtheimperialruleratRavenna. Here,too,hedied,andSt. Patrickwas probably under his guidance there, as in many other places, where he may have received instruction. This seems consistent, with what we read, in various tracts. 9° He is said to have crossed the mighty Alps,? ^ and to have visited the south-east of Italy, to learn wisdom and religion, from the Bishop Germanus. 9^ By one learned authority, it has been advanced, that the four years of St. Patrick, passed in St. Martin's monastery, should precede those years he spent in the island. 93 And next, in chronological order, ought to follow those other four years, he remained under the immediate direction of St. Germanus. Thus, it might happen, at thirty years, that Patrick could have placed himself, under the guidance of so holy a bishop, who recom- mended him to study in a suitable place, and who afterwards received his missionary services, until the Irish mission had been thought deserving our Apostle's ultimate charge. The practical duties of a pastor and the adminis- tration of the sacraments were a necessary part of this preparation. 9<
In the Irish version of Nennius95 it is said, that Patrick went southwards to study, and that he read the Canon with Germanus. ? ^ Other Acts of the
Until he left him with Germanus, Southwards in the south of Letha. "
—
^* These might in some manner be ac-
counted for, as being added to 414, they there is added this ancient gloss :
correctness of such an assertion. See cap. xxii. , and nn. 26, 28, pp. 13, 17, "Trias Thaumaturga. "
*s See cap. xxi. , xxii. , pp. 22, 23.
"Irish Ecclesiastical Record," vol. iii. ,
make 432, the presumed date when St. Patrick commenced his mission in Ireland.
*7 See " De Miraculis S. Germani," lib. i. , cap. xii.
^'^
If there be any truth in this stoiy, it has been conjectured, that Maun might be the same as Maen, a rock, by which metaphori-
Italia ubi fuit Germanus. " See p. 9.
cal
St. Patrick
may
have been
'^xhediversitiesof narrative and the chro-
— difficulties found in St. Patrick's nological
—Acts especially in reference to this period have induced the Rev. John Francis Shearman and other writers to suppose, that those statements must have reference to more Patricks than to the traditional
appellation, recognised.
*9 Probus, who has been classed among
the most accurate of our Apostle's biogra-
phers, represents him, as having been in Gaul and Italy. Thus, our saint is made to
"
state, that he had been ""
Apostle of Ireland. See Father Shearman's per Italiam. " See Quinta Vita S. Pa- ingenious essay in Loca Patriciana,'. ' part,
tricii," lib. i. , cap. xix. , p. 48.
'° See Ussher's " Primordia," cap. xvii. .
pp. 833 et seq.
9' From the Hymn of St. Fiach, " Liber
his
Hymnorum," we read t— translation, by
:
William M. Hennessey tory
*' He sent him across the mighty Alps, It was an illustrious course,
^s Published by the Irish Archaeological Society, in 1848.
per Gallias atque
No. 25. October, 1866. On this last word,
'^ See the " Tribes and Customs of Hy-
Fiachrach," edited by Dr. O'Donovan, p. 413. Taken from a fragment of St.
"
Patrick's Life, as found in the Breac. "
Leabhar
xiii. , pp. 409 to 468, in the "Journal of the Royal Historical and Archaeological Asso- elation of Irelan,d" vol. iv. Fourth Series.
July, 1878. No. 35.
'* "
See Dr. Ecclesiastical His-
of
vol.
sect,
Ireland," pp. 169, 170.
i. , chap,
iv. ,
xi. ,
Lanigan's
" />.
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 513
Irish Apostle sustain this statement. 97 The testimony of the Tripartite Life
is quite expHcit, on this head. It says, that having been admonished, in many visions, St. Patrick journeyed across the Iccian Sea, until he came to France. 9^ Here, we can hardly doubt, he had a conference with St. Ger- manus, when he revealed to the holy bishop some of his own sublime purposes and aspirations. To the Alps, and to southern parts of Italy, he went from France, continues the Tripartite ; and, there he found St. Ger- manus. Withhim,St. Patrickreadtheecclesiasticalcanons,evenasGama- liel, at the feet of the Apostle Paul. He there served God in labours, and in fasting, and in chastity, in contrition of heart, and in the love of God and of his neighbour. In collecting dates, from the confused evidences now at hand, if we regard St. Patrick's first introduction to Germanus, as occurring about A. D. 418, thirteen or fourteen years of study and of missionary labour probably occupied the interval, until a. d. 432. Then, as pretty clearly established, St. Patrick commenced the active pursuit of his Irish Apostolic labours. 99
The life of St. Patrick was—according to his most enlarged Acts—a stir-
ring and an adventurous one. Some of the writers merely commemorate the
fact, that he "spent some time in Italy. Others subjoin various incidents, connected with this period. The bleak and barren isles, that rise out of the Tuscan Sea, from Serino to Lipari, were chosen by Anchorets, for the place
'°°
Here, too, the Irish Apostle sought a congenial retreat, for a time, in the Tyrrene Islands. '"^ It does not follow, however, that he there received instruction from St. Germanus in person,^°=^ although saidtohavebeenwithhim,^°3inSouthernLatium. '°'^ Wearetold,thatafter
of their voluntary exile.
5* Th—e Hymn of St. Fiach likewise
" In the islands of the Tyrrhene Sea he
states
:
LegAif CAnoin La 5e|\mAii, i^et) a-o^a'dac ti'ni.
staid
therein he meditated. "
:
It is thus translated into English — :
" He read the canon with Germanus : this that history relates. "
it is
—" Irish Ecclesiastical Record," vol. iv. ,
pp. 284, 285.
"^ The author of the Third Life places
thosefour at Tours, between the years, passed
four other years, spent with St. German, and that time, when St. Patrick -went to the
island. Dr. Lanigan remarks, likewise, tiiat this statement must be a Hysteron pro- tcron, or in other words a reversal of order, l:)y placing the latter incidents of narrative the first, as meeting the reader's attention.
'°3 St. Germanus, however, did not re- side, nor hold a school, in any of those islands, near the south of France. Yet, some writers have supposed, that the account, given in St. Fiech's Hymn, related to one
iminterrupted chain, as a part of St. Patrick's life. According! }', they placed St. German along with him, in the island or
—" Irish Ecclesiastical Record," vol. iv. , March 1868, pp. 284, 285.
97 See the Second Life, cap. xx. , p. 13 ; the Third Life, cap. xxi. , p. 22 ; the Fourth
Life, cap. xxvi. , p. 38 ; the Fifth Life, lib.
i. , cap. xxi. , p. 48 ; the Sixth Life, cap.
xxii. , p. 66.
"
s8 See
cap. xxxi. , p. 121.
Septima Vita S. Patricii," lib. i. ,
"^ See Colgan's dissertation on these matters, in "Trias Thaumaturga," Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii," cap. xiii. ,
islands of the Tyrrhene Sea.
Probus says cum insula-
to
•°° See Gibbon's "
of our " saint,
pp. 241
245.
sicque permansit
"Quinta Patricii," lib. i. , cap. xvi. , p. 48.
of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire," vol. vi. ,
nis illis novem annis. "—
Vita S.
History
'°-* The Scholiast here remarks, that '°' The Hynm of Fiech states, in reference Latium means Italy, and that it was so to St. Patrick :— called, because Saturn "ibi latuit," when
flying from Jove. He notices, however, ''
chap, xxxvii. , p. 233.
1n irin|-ib inA^NA t:oi\iMAn, &. yn\\ innib that Germanus was living in Gaul. In
At)|Mmi.
It is thus translated into English — :
insulis maris Tyrrhene mansit, uti memoro,
''
is probably an error for the word,
ratur. " The word "remansit" can mean
2K
memo-
514 LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. [March 17.
leaving Ireland, St. Patrick crossed the Alps/°5 and how he remained with that master, in Southern Letha. ^°^ Colgan has incorrectly translated the Letha of St. Fiach's Hymn, by Latium, according to Rev. Dr. Lanigan ^°^
;
probably, he was not aware, that while Armorica, or Britany, went by such a
name, when distinguished as Southern Letha, the denomination applied,
to ^°^ Arelanensis'°9 is the name to this island of St. likewise, Italy. given,
Patrick's residence, by some authorities ;"° while, it is added, that he spent therethirtyyearsofhislife,underSt. Germanus. '" However,suchastate- ment is surrounded with too many inconsistencies. By Colgan, it has been supposed, that thirty-eight years elapsed, between St. Patrick's captivity and hisIrishmission. "^ But,thelatteraccountseemsonlythevisionarydream of those chroniclers, who wished to advance the age of our saint to sixty years, when he came as a missionary to our country. It has been conjec- tured, by Colgan,"3 that Camargue, at the mouth of the Rhone,"* was the place,towhichallusionhasbeenmade. InsomepartoftheMediterranean, and near the western coast of Italy, that island is thought to have been situ- ated. Lerins is said to have been the place. "5 It has been doubted, how- ever, by some, that St. Honoratus"^ founded his seminary there, during the earlycareerofoursaint. "7 Variouswriters,andamongothers,theBollan- dists, relate, that St. Honoratus founded his monastery, about the year 375. "^
only, that St. Patrick spent some time with St. German, before he went to the islands. The word, comdh/a>\! ^aib, which Colgan has
fusion has been caused, owing to the name of St. Patrick's island having been written Tamerensis and Arelanensis. Colgan would
"""
rendered, remansit," in Dr. Lanigan's read Arelatensis for "Arelanensis. "
opinion, ought rather be translated, Elsewhere, he makes Tamaria a different
"
'°3 The Hymn of St. Fiach states
island, from
See "Trias
nn. and 19,
visited," or,
conferred with. "
— :
Arelanensis.
"OO 1111110 X)e fAIT) CA^ elpA
TnA1]\
"0 See the Second Life, cap. xxii. , p. 13, the Fourth Life, lib. i. , cap. xxvi. , p. 38, and the Seventh Life, lib. i. , cap. xxxiii. ,p. 122.
Am\\vi ^\ec1iA
Conit) irAi\55Aib La 5e]\niAii, An-oc]-
irroei|'cnii\c
It is thus translated into
"
—
'" The Bollandists have distinguished
LechA.
He sent him across all the Alps theseamarvellouswashiscourse,
Until he staid with Germanus in the south, in southern Letha. "
—"
Ireland from insula Arelanensis. " See
"ActaSanctorum,"tomusii. , Martiixvii. De S. Patricio Apostolo Hibernian. Com- mentarius prtevius, sect, v. , p. 522, sect, ix. , p. 528. But, this difference may have been caused, by the circumstance of various
-—"Irish Ecclesiastical Record," vol. iv. ,
English :
— likewise,Tamarensis bywhichtheymean
over
:
Thaumaturga," h& 20, pp. 30, 31.
n.
27, p. 17,
pp. 284, 285.
'ofi See the Hymn of St. Fiech. For readings occurring for the same place, as
Alpes, which Colgan's translation has, at
found in different MSS.
'" To find the respective places, in which
so many years were spent, proves no easy task.
"3 See his " Trias Thaumaturga," n. 27,
stanza he tells us, in a note 5,
appended, that we are to read Albion, according to an
old marginal remark.
'°7 In the Second Life, cap. xvii. , the
voice, announcing to St. Patrick his liber- ation from captivity, is made to say, that a ship was ready for him that he might go to Italy. Dr. Lanigan thinks the author, or, perhaps, his translator, mistook Letha for Latium, and imagined, it has been assumed, his text should have been better vmderstood, by his writing Italy.
'°^ Dr. Lanigan thinks, likewise, that translating the Letha of St. Fiach's Hymn, for Latium, confused Colgan's calculations, in reference to St. Patrick's time spent with St. Germanus. See "Trias Thaumaturga," Quinta Appendix ad Acta S. Patricii, cap.
xiii. , pp. 241 to 245.
'°9 It is rather curious to find, what con-
p. 17. " "• See Carolus Stephanus,
"
Diction-
arium Geographicum.
"5 In certain stories, concerning St.
Patrick's insular proceedings, there occur circumstances, that have a sort of similarity with some, which are said to have taken place at Lerins.
"* The feast of St. Honoratus, Arch- bishop of Aries, occurs on the i6th of Ja- nuary. He died, A. D. 429, and from Aries, his remains were translated to Lerins, now called St. Honore, A. D. 139 1.
"' See Ussher's " Primordia," cap, xvii.
p. 836.
"^ See also Tillemont's " Memou-s pour
March 17. ] LIVES OF THE IRISH SAINTS. 515
Most probably, his building at Lerins may be referred, to the beginning of
thefifthcentury. Atanyrate,bymanyyears,itmusthavebeenpriortoa. d,
418, when St. Patrick is supposed to have visited this island, for the first
time. "9 There and learned men had received their "° many holy training.
The authority of Probus and his description are cited, by the BoUandists, for
the of such an '^^ The Island of Lerins lies near the probability opinion.
coast, and the mountains ; while, it may be regarded, as situated in the Tyrrhene Sea. AVhile St. Patrick was in the island, he is said to have banished a huge beast, that used each year—the month of May excepted— to hinder the islanders, from getting water, at a certain fountain. "^ This is somewhat like a story, concerning St. Honoratus having driven a dragon out ofLerinsIsland. '=^3 Yet,morethanoneislandissaidtohavebeenhonoured, by St. Patrick's presence. '^'* Near Lerins, there was another, known as Lero,
He might have wished, even, to hold intercourse with holy recluses, who inhabited someislands,lyingnearhim. "^ Bysomewriters,theislandofSt. Patrick's residenceiscalledTamerensis. ^^7 Thishasbeenincorrectlyidentifiedwith
Capraria,nowCapraia. "^ But,Ussherindulgesaconjecture,thatTamaria wasCamaria,orCamargue,'^? nearArles. ^^o AndProbus,whenrelatingthe angel's message, intimates, that island, in which St. Patrick's instructors dwelt,'3i lay between the mountains and the sea. ^32 But, although many monasteries had been established, in other parts of Provence,^33 we are not
aware of any religious house having been founded at Camargue. '34 The BoUandists start an absurd conjecture, that the " insula Tamerensis" was no
other than Ireland itself. ^3S Opposite the mouth of a river, Tamar, that flows in England, into the Irish Sea, this Insula Tamarensis has been placed, by another writer. '^e Yet, this river, at Plymouth,^37 does not enter the sea in-
now Sainte Marguerite. ^^s The pious student might have visited it.
servir a I'Histoire Ecclesiastique," tome xii. , at St. Honorat. Art. vii.
"9 Persons of various nations and tongues lived at Lerins. See ibid.
'^ See ibid. , tome xv. , p. 395.
'"See "Acta Sanctorum," tomus ii. , Martii xvii. De S. Patricio Episcopo, &c.
dia," cap. xvii. , p. 836; but, he does not identify it with Tamaria.
"' An island, formed by the mouths of the River Rhone.
'3o gee " Index Chronologicus," at A. D. ccccix.
'3' The matter was thus understood, by
Commentarius Pisevius, sect, ix. , pp. 528, the compiler of the Tripartite Life. After 529. mentioning, that St. Patrick was "in mari
'"
See Probus' or Quinta Vita S. Pa- Tyrrheno," or rather in an island of that
tricii, lib. i. , cap. xvi. , p. 48.
"3 See Tillemont, in the Article already
sea, the writer says, that there he went to certain persons, who dwelt in a cavern, be-
"
tween a mountain and the sea. See
tima Vita S. Patricii," lib. i. , cap. xxxiv. ,
quoted.
"*• See Fiech's Hymn, strophe 6.
Sep-
chan has a similar statement.
"S See Tillemont's " Memoires pour
servir a I'Histoire Ecclesiastique," tome XV.
p.
122.
'3= " Vade ad illos, qui sunt in insula
Art. S. Eucherius.
"* "
St.
Ambrose,
liexam. lib.
'33 See Histoire Ecclesiasti- Fleury's
Tire-
See,
cap. 5. Also, St. Jerome, Epist. 30 ad que," liv.