Celtic and Old English Saints 17 April =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= * St Donnan of Eige =-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
St. Donnan (Dounan) and Companions, Martyrs ------------------------------------------------ Died on Eigg, c. 616-618. Saint Donnan was an Irish monk of whom little is known except that he was one of the most active early Scottish saints judging from the trail of place names (usually "Kildonan") stretching from Galloway to Perth and Aberdeenshrie in Uig, South Suist, Sutherland, Arran, and Eigg. Many were converted to Christianity through his efforts. Some say he was a monk of Iona under Saint Columba (f.d. June 9); othersthat he was associated with the Pictish Church and followed the missionary path of Saint Ninian (f.d. September 16). He eventually established a community of monks on the island of Eigg at Loch Ewe in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. While he was offering the Sacrifice on Easter eve, a gang of armed men arrived. When the Offering was over, they herded the 52 monks into the refectory, set fire to it. Those who tried to escape were killed by the sword. According to D'Arcy, the record of Columba's death in the "Martyrology of Aengus" prophesies Donnan's end: "Donnan then went with his monastic family to the Western Isle and they took up their abode there in a place where the sheep of the queen of the country were kept. 'Let them be killed,' said she. 'That would not be a religious act," said her people. But they were murderously assailed. At this time the cleric was in church. 'Let us have respite till the Offering is ended,' said Donnan. 'Thou shalt have it,' said they. And went it was over they were slain, every one of them." Thus, it is said that the deed was prompted by the local chieftainess, who resented the monks' presence on the island, or by a local woman who had lost her grazing rights; but it may simply have been a Viking raid. The monks, whose names are recorded in the "Martyrology of Tallaght" compiled c. 792, are viewed as martyrs. His feast is kept at Argyll and the Isles. His staff was venerated at Husterless until its destruction during the "Reformation." (Attwater, Attwater2, Benedictines, Coulson, D'Arcy, Farmer, Gill, Montalembert, Moran, Simpson, Skene). Sources: ======== Attwater, D. (1983). The Penguin Dictionary of Saints, NY: Penguin Books. Benedictine Monks of St. Augustine Abbey, Ramsgate. (1947). The Book of Saints.NY: Macmillan. D'Arcy, M. R. (1974). The Saints of Ireland. Saint Paul, Minnesota: Irish American Cultural Institute. [This is probably the most useful book to choose to own on the Irish saints. The author provides a great deal of historical context in which to place the lives of the saints.] Farmer, D. H. (1997). The Oxford Dictionary of Saints. Oxford: Oxford University Press. Gill, F. C. (1958). The Glorious Company: Lives of Great Christians for Daily Devotion, vol. I. London: Epworth Press. Montalembert. (1863). Monks of the West. Paris. Moran, P. Card. (1879). Irish Saints in Great Britian. Simpson, W. G. (1934). Celtic Church in Scotland. Aberdeen University Studies. Skene, W. F. (1875-80). Celtic Scotland, 3 vols. Edinburgh. For All the Saints: http://www.saintpatrickdc.org/ss/ss-index.htm An Alphabetical Index of the Saints of the West http://www.orthodoxengland.btinternet.co.uk/saintsa.htm These Lives are archived at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints ¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤¤ ------------------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/celt-saints/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
