Celtic and Old English Saints 9 September =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= * St. Ciaran of Clonmacnoise * St. Bettelin of Croyland * St. Osmanna of Brieuc * St. Wilfrida of Wilton * St. Wulfhilda of Barking =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
St. Ciaran of Clonmacnoise, Abbot (Ciaran the Younger, Cluain Mocca Nois, also known as Kieran, Kyran, Ceran, Queran) --------------------------------------------------------------- Born in Connacht, Ireland, c. 516; died at Clonmacnoise, c. 556. Saint Ciaran is one of the "12 Apostles of Ireland." Born into a Meath family of pre-Celtic descent, Saint Ciaran was the son of the carpenter Beoit. As a boy he left home with a dun cow for company in order to be trained for the monastic life in Saint Finnian's monastery at Clonard. At Clonard he taught the daughter of the king of Cuala because he was considered the most learned monk in the abbey. About 534, he migrated to Inishmore in the Aran Islands, where he spent seven years learning from Saint Enda and was ordained priest. He left after having a vision that Enda interpreted for him. Ciaran travelled slowly eastward, first Scattery Island where he learned from Saint Senan, then to Isel in the centre of Ireland. He was forced to leave here because of his excessive charity and moved on to Inis Aingin (Hare Island). He left there with eight companions and eventually settled at Clonmacnoise on the Shannon River south of Athlone in the West Meath, where he built Clonmacnoise monastery. He gave his monks an extremely austere rule, known as the Law of Kieran. The saint is said to have lived only seven months after founding the great school of Clonmacnoise, dying at the age of 34. Clonmacnoise may have been one of the most famous in Ireland, attracting students from throughout the country. The monastery survived many invasions and raids until 1552, and there are still many notable ruins remaining from its early days. Although Ciaran's shrine was plundered several times during the medieval period, the Clonmacnoise crozier remains in the National Museum in Dublin. Various legends, some outlandish, are told of Ciaran. One relates that a fox's whelp would carry his lessons to Ciaran's master until it was old enough to eat the satchel containing the saint's writings. Another says that the other Irish saints were so jealous of him that they fasted and prayed that he might die young--hardly to be given any credit. (Attwater, Benedictines, Delaney, Farmer, Macalister, Montague). The following stories derive from the Vitae Sanctorum Hiberniae as translated by Plummer, which includes the moving account of his death: "The abbot Ciaran "was like a burning lamp, of charity so rare that not only did the fervour and devotion of his pitiful heart go out to the relieving of the hunger of men, but he showed himself tireless in caring for the dumb beasts in their necessity. . . ." Ciaran left Saint Senan to live for a time with his brethren Luchen, abbot, and Odran, prior, at Isel Monastery, where he was appointed almoner. One day "Ciaran was reading out of doors in the graveyard in the sun, when he suddenly spied some weary travellers going into the guest house; and hurriedly getting up, he forgot his book, and it lay open out of doors until the morrow. "Meantime, as he busied himself settling his guests in their quarters and bathing their feet and eagerly tending them, the night fell. In that same night there fell great rains; but by God's will the open book was found dry and sound; not a drop of rain had fallen upon it, and all the ground round about it was damp. For which Saint Ciaran and his brethren gave Christ praise. . . . "One day, when Saint Ciaran was working in the field, there came to him a poor man asking for alms. At that very hour a chariot with two horses had been brought in offering to Saint Ciaran by a certain lord, the son of Crimthann, King of Connaught; and these horses and chariot gave Ciaran to this poor man. "Now Saint Ciaran's brothers could not endure the vastness of his charity, for every day he divided their substance among the poor, and so they said to him, 'Brother, depart from us; for we cannot live in the same place with thee and feed and keep our brethren for God, because of thy unbounded lavishness.' To whom Saint Ciaran made reply: 'If I had remained in this place, it would not have been Isel (that is, the low-lying): not low but high, but great and honourable.' "And with that Saint Ciaran blessed his brothers, and taking his wallet with his books on his shoulder, he set out from thence. And when he had gone a little way from the place, there met him on the path a stag, awaiting him in all gentleness; and Saint Ciaran set his wallet on his back, and wherever the stag went, the blessed Ciaran followed him. And the stag came to Lough Ree, which is in the east of Connaught, and stood over against Hare Island, which is in the lake. "Then Saint Ciaran knew that God had called him to that island; and blessing the stag, he sent him away, and went to that island and dwelt there. And the fame of his holiness spread abroad, and from far and near good men came together to him, and Saint Ciaran made them his monks. . . . "And one day as they rowed across, Saint Ciaran's gospel which a brother was holding carelessly fell into the lake, and for a great while it lay under the waters and was not found. But one summer day the cows came into the lake, to cool themselves in the water from the great heat of the sun; and when they were coming out from it, the leather wallet in which the Gospel had been put had caught about the foot of one of the cows, and so the cow dragged the wallet with her back to dry land; and inside the sodden leather the book of the Gospel was found, clean and dry and shining white, with no trace of damp, as if it had been hidden in a library. For which Saint Ciaran rejoiced, and his brethren with him. . . . "And after these things came a man of Munster . . . Donnan by name, to Saint Ciaran dwelling on Hare Island. And to him one day Saint Ciaran said, 'What seek you, my father, in these parts?' And Saint Donnan replied, 'Master, I seek a place to abide in, where I may serve Christ in exile.' "Then said Saint Ciaran, 'Abide, father, in this place; for I shall go to some other; I know that this is not the place of my resurrection.' Then Saint Ciaran gave Hare Island with his household goods to Saint Donnan, and came to a place called Ard Mantain on the River Shannon; but he would not dwell in that place, and said, 'I will not to dwell in this place, for here there will be a great plenty of the things of this world, and worldly delight; and heard would it be for the souls of my disciples to go to heaven, if I should live here, for the place belongs to the men of this world.' "And thereafter Saint Ciaran left that place and came to the place which was called of old Ard Tiprat, but is now called Clonmacnoise. And coming to the place he said: 'Here shall I dwell; for many souls shall go forth from this place to the Kingdom of God; and in this place shall my resurrection be.' So there the blessed Ciaran lived with his disciples, and began to found a great monastery there; and many found all sides came to him, and his parish spread about him far; and the name of Saint Ciaran was famous throughout all Ireland. And a famous and holy city rose in that place to the honour of Saint Ciaran, and its name was Clonmacnoise . . . and in it whether they be kings or princes, the chiefs of the sons of Niall and of Connaught are buried beside Saint Ciaran there. . . . "So for one year did our most holy patron Saint Ciaran dwell in his city of Clonmacnoise. And when he knew that the day of his death was drawing nigh, he prophesied, weeping, of the future evils that would fall after his day upon that place; and said that their life would be a poor thing. Then said the brethren: 'Father, what shall we do in the day of these calamities? Shall we abide here beside thy relics? Or shall we seek another place?' "To whom Saint Ciaran said: 'Haste ye to some other place of peace, and leave my relics as it might be the dry bones of a stag on the mountain. Better for you that your life should be with my spirit in heaven, than that ye should abide dishonoured beside my bones upon earth.' "And when the hour of his departing drew nigh he bade them carry him out of doors from the house, and gazing up at the sky said, 'Steep is that road; and it must needs be.' The brethren said to him, 'Father, we know that nothing is hard for thee: but for us feeble folk, there is sore dread in this hour.' "And again brought back into the house he lifted up his hand and blessed his people and his clergy, and having received the sacrifice of the Lord, on the ninth day of September he gave up the ghost, in the thirty-third year of his age" (Plummer). Troparion of St Kieran tone 8 "From childhood thy Life was resplendent with miracles, O Father Kieran,/ showing forth thy boundless love for God by loving and caring for His creation, both men and animals./ Leaving thy carpenter father, thou didst seek training in the ascetic life from Ireland's spiritual giants/ before founding the great monastery of Clonmacnois,/ from whence the Lord, in His great mercy, called thee to Himself in thy thirty third year./ Wherefore, O Righteous one, intercede with Christ our God that we too may be found worthy of His mercy. Icons of Saint Kieran http://www.allmercifulsavior.com/icons/Icons-Kieran.htm A Slideshow of Clonmacnoise Http://www.nantyglo.com/tourism/clonmac.htm Archaeology in Ireland: Investigations of the Celtic High Cross in Clonmacnois (County Offaly, Ireland) http://www2.hawaii.edu/~mcarson/clonmacnois.html Clonmacnoice - Ireland's Ancient Monastic Settlement dates back to the 6th. century. http://homepage.tinet.ie/~mcmullins/clonmacnoise.htm ************************************************************ Through the prayers of St Ciaran and all the Saints of Ireland, Christ our God, have mercy on us and save us! ************************************************************ Lives kindly supplied by: For All the Saints: http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/ss-index.htm These Lives are archived at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints *****************************************
