Saints and Sinners in Early Christian Ireland: Moral Theology in the Lives of Saints Brigit and Columba (Studia Traditionis Theologiae: Explorations in Early and Medieval Theology) [Illustrated] 9782503533155, 2503533159

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SAINTS AND SINNERS IN EARLY CHRISTIAN IRELAND

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STUDIA TRADITIONIS THEOLOGIAE Explorations in Early and Medieval Theology 3

Series Editor: Thomas O’Loughlin, Professor of Historical Theology in the University of Nottingham

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SAINTS AND SINNERS IN EARLY CHRISTIAN IRELAND Moral Theology in the Lives of Saints Brigit and Columba Katja Ritari

H

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© 2009, Brepols Publishers n.v., Turnhout, Belgium All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. D/2009/0095/148 ISBN 978-2-503-53315-5

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CONTENTS

ix xi x111

LIST OF TABLES ABBREVIATIONS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 1. introduction: model christians and hagiography 1.a. Questions of Research and Goals of Study 1.b. Hagiography and Theology 1.c. The Characters in the Lives 1.d. The Sources

1 1 7 10 17

2. holiness as perfect christian life 2.a. Miracles of Heavenly Apparitions

29 30

2.a.1. Witnesses and Types of Apparitions, p.31 - 2.a.2. The Manner of Witnessing, p.36 - 2.a.3. Other Aspects of Superhuman Seeing, p.39

2.b. Heavenly Life on Earth

44

2.b.1. Contemplation, p.45 - 2.b.2. Heavenly Joy and Harmony, p.47 - 2.b.3. Bodily Integrity, p.49 - 2.b.4. Foretaste of Heavenly Perfection, p.51 - 2.b.5. Harmony with Nature, p.53 - 2.b.6. Imperfection of Earthly Life, p.54 - 2.b.7. Death of a Saint as a Birth to True Life, p.56

2.c. Conclusions

58

3. virtues of good christians 3.a. Virtues of Saints

60 62

3.a.1. Charity and Compassion, p.62 - 3.a.2. Humility, p.66

3.b. Virtues of Ecclesiastics

67

3.b.1. Prudence and Wisdom, p.68 - 3.b.2. Obedience, p.69 3.b.3. Love and Respect, p.70

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3.c. Virtues of Laymen

71

3.c.1. Prudence, Wisdom, Humility, and Faith, p.71 - 3.c.2. Generosity and Charity, p.73

3.d. Virtues of Women

79

3.d.1. Roles of Women in the Lives, p.81 - 3.d.2. Groups of Women and Their Virtues, p.88 The Right Role of a Wife, p.88 - Virtuous Virgins, p.92 - Religious Lay Women, p.95 - Pious Widows, p.96 - Categories of Women and Sexuality, p.97 - Young Women and Sexuality, p.98

3.e. Conclusions

99

4. antithesis of good christian life 4.a. Vices of Ecclesiastics

103 104

4.a.1. Disrespect Towards the Saint, p.104 - 4.a.2. Impurity, p.105 4.a.3. Hiding Sins, p.105 - 4.a.4. Valuing Property, p.106 4.a.5. Disobedience and Pride, p.107

4.b. Vices of Laymen

109

4.b.1. Disrespect Towards the Saint, p.109 - 4.b.2. Pride, p.111 4.b.3. Brigandage, p.114 - 4.b.4. Sexual Sins, p.121 - 4.b.5. Incest, Fratricide and Parricide, p.123 - 4.b.6. Stealing, p.124

4.c. Vices of Women

126

4.c.1. Disrespect Towards the Saint, p.127 - 4.c.2. Insubordination, p.128 - 4.c.3. Sexual Sins, p.131

4.d.Conclusions

134

5. consequences of actions in this life 5.a. Penance 5.b. Punishments

136 137 140

5.c. Conclusions

146

6. posthumous consequences of actions 6.a. Good and Bad Deaths 6.b. Heaven and Hell

148 148 152

5.b.1. Ecclesiastics, p.140 - 5.b.2. Laity, p.143

6.b.1. Souls Taken to Heaven, p.152 - 6.b.2. Souls Taken to Hell, p.156 - 6.b.3. Adomnán’s Vision of the Destinies of Souls, p.158 6.b.4. Heaven and Hell in the Brigidine Lives, p.167

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CONTENTS

6.c. Conclusions

171

7. how to be a good christian

173

BIBLIOGRAPHY INDICES

183 203

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LIST OF TABLES

Table 1: Witnesses of heavenly apparitions Table 1.1: in VC p.32 Table 1.2: in VPB p.33 Table 2: Roles of women p.82 Table 3: Physical presence of women Table 3.1: in VBC p.85 Table 3.2: in VPB p.85 Table 3.3: in VC p.87 Table 4: Souls taken to heaven in VC p.154 Table 5: Souls taken to hell in VC p.156

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ABBREVIATIONS

AASS ACW ANF AU BHL CD CH CHR CIH CMCS Coll. DDC DLS ÉC FC G.G.Dial. HE HTR IER Inst. IR ITQ JMH JRSAI

Bollandists, Acta Sanctorum Ancient Christian Writers Ante-Nicene Fathers Annals of Ulster Bibliotheca hagiographica latina. Subsidia Hagiographica no.6. Bruxelles, I 1898–1899, II 1900–1901. Augustine, De civitate Dei Church History Catholic Historical Review Corpus Iuris Hibernici Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies (later Cambrian Medieval Celtic Studies) John Cassian, Collationes Augustine, De doctrina christiana Adomnán, De locis sanctis Études Celtiques Fathers of the Church Gregory the Great, Dialogi Bede, Historia ecclesiastica gentis anglorum Harvard Theological Review Irish Ecclesiastical Record John Cassian, De coenobiorum institutis Innes Review Irish Theological Quarterly Journal of Medieval History Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland

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LRP L&S

Gregory the Great, Liber regulae pastoralis Lapidge, M. & R. Sharpe, A Bibliography of Celtic-Latin Literature 400–1200 Dublin 1985 MGH Monumenta Germaniae Historica Mor. in Iob Gregory the Great, Moralia in Iob MS Milltown Studies NPNF Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers PHCC Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium PL Migne, Patrologia Latina. PRIA Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy SC Sources chrétiennes SH Studia Hibernica SP Studia Patristica S.S.Dial. Sulpicius Severus, Dialogi TS Theological Studies VA Athanasius, Vita Antonii VB Gregory the Great, Vita Benedicti VBC Cogitosus, Secunda vita s. Brigidae VC Adomnán, Vita Columbae VM Sulpicius Severus, Vita Martini VP Muirchú, Vita s. Patricii VPB Vita prima sanctae Brigidae ZCP Zeitschrift für celtische Philologie

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

My journey into Celtic studies started over fifteen years ago when, as a first-year undergraduate, I attended a course on early Christian Ireland taught by Professor Máire Herbert at the Department of History at the University of Helsinki. After that course my fate was sealed because it brought together my interests in medieval history and in Ireland in general. Besides leading me to this path which I have followed ever since, I owe my deepest gratitude to Professor Herbert for her ever patient and helpful guidance throughout my years of study at Cork, first as an undergraduate during my year as an Erasmus student, and later as a postgraduate when I returned to Cork to do my PhD. I also wish to thank all the staff of the Department of Early and Medieval Irish at University College Cork during my years of staying there for making me feel truly welcome and for making my time in Ireland so pleasant. I am indebted especially to Pádraig Ó Riain, John Carey, Kevin Murray, Caitríona Ó Dochartaigh and Clodagh Downey at UCC for always taking the time to answer my questions and for being helpful in every way. My time in Cork would not have been the same without all my colleagues at the postgraduate room of the Irish departments. My special thanks to Phillip Bernhardt-House, Maxim Fomin, Deirdre Nic Mhathúna, and Harriet Barnes for their delightful discussions and for sharing the pains and joys of writing a doctoral thesis. My background in Finland is in medieval history and I am especially grateful to Tuomas M.S. Lehtonen and Maiju Lehmijoki-Gardner for encouraging and guiding me in that field since my first years of study. I am also thankful for all those who have attended the reading groups on medieval cultural history, the Bible, Augustine, and Dante, which have been meeting in Helsinki over the years. These groups

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have had a formative influence on my understanding of scholarship and academic fellowship. I also owe many thanks to my fellow celticists in Finland: Anders Ahlqvist, Tom Sjöblom, Riitta Latvio, and Alexandra Bergholm. Special thanks to Alexandra for sharing my office and my interest in early Irish Christianity during these few years. I have truly enjoyed our discussions and collaboration. When I returned to Finland after four years in Ireland I found a new academic home at the Department of Comparative Religion in Helsinki. I am much obliged to everybody at the department for welcoming me and especially to Professors René Gothóni and Tuula Sakaranaho for their support of my postdoctoral career. My time at the Department of Comparative religion has enabled me to enter a new field of study which has enriched my research in many ways. I am also grateful to everybody in the field of Celtic studies who has made me feel at home among the Celticists and has encouraged me in my studies. I want to express special thanks to Jacqueline Borsje, Dorothy Ann Bray, Damian Bracken, and Jennifer O’Reilly for their kindness and helpfulness. When adapting my thesis into a book, I have benefited greatly from the comments and constructive criticism of my examiners, Máire Ní Mhaonaigh and John Carey. I am also forever grateful to Jonathan Wooding for encouraging me to propose this book for this series and to Thomas O’Loughlin as the series editor for accepting it. I would also like to express my appreciation to both of them for being so well-disposed towards a young scholar entering the field of early Irish theology. I am sure there are many others who would have merited my thanks, so I extend my thanks to everyone who has encouraged and supported me throughout my studies. Naturally all the mistakes in this text remain mine alone. My studies in Ireland would not have been possible without the generous funding from the Osk. Huttunen Foundation and the Academy of Finland. The Academy has also funded me after my return to Finland, first as part of a project on ‘Religion, Society, and Culture: Defining the Sacred in Early Irish Literature’, and then as a postdoctoral researcher. Last but not least, I wish to thank my family for never doubting my abilities and for supporting me in many ways. I am also thankful to my parents-in-law for their interest towards my work. My deepest gratitude goes to my husband, Ossi Kokkonen, who has always been supportive, even when I wanted to move to Ireland. I also am indebted to him greatly for sharing our parental duties equally, thus facilitating my return to work. Finally I wish to thank our son, Otso, for being such a joy.

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1. introduction: model christians and hagiography 1.a. Questions of Research and Goals of Study Quid sit christianum esse?—What is it to be a Christian?1 According to R.A. Markus, this was one of the important questions asked by Christians at the end of the fourth and the beginning of the fifth centuries. That was the time of debates between Christians and pagans and the era of the christianisation of Roman society. This is therefore a salient problem for those seeking to define the Christian identity. Markus notes that this question was eventually replaced by the question ‘What is a good or a bad Christian?’, which consequently is the issue at the heart of this study.2 The aim of this study is to find out what it meant to be a Christian in the Ireland of the late seventh and early eighth centuries. This was the era when an image was formed of the Irish as a Christian society, and when monasteries started to produce the Lives of their founders and other texts.3 As a consequence the sources bear witness to a predominantly Christian Ireland, when learned men looked back to the time when monasteries were founded and thus to the beginnings of the Christian society in Ireland. Markus (1990), 19. Markus (1991), 19. 3 For example, there was increased annalistic activity in Iona around the same time with the writing of the Life of their patron saint. See Hughes (1972), 227. 1 2

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The topic of this study is the moral theology of three authors from early medieval Ireland. Moral theology involves moral judgement and the evaluation of different deeds on a moral scale. This theology involves not only this world, but it also has soteriological significance, since one’s deeds in this life determine one’s destiny in the other. So the significance of moral theology lies in salvation which can be guaranteed only by the twin pillars of baptism and proper behaviour. Man’s right relationship to God is based on obedience and thus sin can be understood as a breach of this contract. The saints exemplify the right relationship between man and God in its perfect form, and they can therefore be seen as exemplary Christians who lead the way for others to follow. In addition to the saints, there are also other characters in the Lives through whose portrayal the moral message of the Lives can be conveyed. I will also look at these minor characters who populate the Lives in order to determine the chances of the different groups of people—including ecclesiastics, lay men and women—to attain salvation. According to Karl Rahner, ‘theology is the science of faith. It is the conscious and methodical explanation and explication of the divine revelation perceived and grasped in faith.’4 This study is about hagiography, a literary genre concerning saints, and thus not a form of systematic theology. However, hagiography can be understood as dealing with the meaning of the divine revelation and faith in the life of a person, albeit one of exceptional nature. In short, hagiography deals with theological questions, such as virtue, sin and salvation. Marie Ann Mayeski has argued for reading hagiography through the lens of doctrinal theology and for expanding the evidence for medieval theological thinking in this way.5 In her view, the medieval authors themselves well understood the theological nature of narrative literature and used hagiographical texts as vehicles to express their theological beliefs. In the context of Irish material, this approach has been demonstrated by Thomas O’Loughlin, especially in his studies concerning Muirchú’s Life of Patrick.6 O’Loughlin has argued that an explicitly Christian reading of events in the Life, viewing the text as a document composed Rahner (1975a), 1687. Mayeski (2002). 6 O’Loughlin (2002b). See also O’Loughlin (1999); O’Loughlin (2000a), 87–108; O’Loughlin (2003). This point has also been noticed by J.F. Kelly (1999), 133, whose own study is restricted to exegetical texts, when he admits that for the fuller understanding of the Irish concept of the devil one should also study hagiography and other genres which are not primarily theological. 4 5

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within a religious textual tradition, can throw light on the author’s intentions and on the world in a way that a reading focused on the political or pre-Christian background is not able to do. For this reason, hagiography can be included among other types of sources where philosophical questions concerning human action and morality are addressed.7 Following in the footsteps of these scholars, the aim of this study is to focus on how a specific question concerning moral theology is addressed in the earliest Lives of the Irish saints Brigit and Columba. These Lives are the seventh-century Life of Brigit by Cogitosus, the seventh-century Vita Columbae by Adomnán, and the Life of Brigit known as Vita prima, of debated date, but which I assign here to the eighth century.8 The question at the heart of this study is: ‘How does one lead a good Christian life?’ The same question could be also posed as: ‘How does one attain a place in heaven?’ Christianity is not only a belief system, but a way of life, the parametres of which were set out in the teaching of Jesus.9 This means that good Christian life is a fundamental theological and spiritual question, that ultimately derives from man’s right relationship with God. What constitutes a good Christian life is featured largely in the Bible, and it permeates the writings of the Church Fathers. It is a moral question that has relevance to all Christians, not only in this life, but having fundamental repercussions in the afterlife, since the moral quality of earthly life determines one’s destiny in the hereafter. Attempts to define good Christian life can be found in several different genres of writing, including hagiography (through the example of the saint), penitentials (through prescribing rules of behaviour and punishments for breaking them), sermons (teaching through preaching), autobiographical writing (through the experiences of one person, e.g. the Confessions of Augustine or St Patrick), wisdom literature (instruction), monastic rules (how to lead a good life as a monk), letters (instruction to recipients), and moral and theological treatises (e.g. Augustine’s De sancta virginitate etc.). The answer to ‘How does one lead a good Christian life?’ could also be understood as forming the core of the spirituality of a certain place and age. Thomas O’Loughlin has defined ‘spirituality’ as the way in which believing in Jesus Christ affects the lives of men and women as members of a society. Thus studying spirituality means O’Loughlin (1996), 100. For further discussion see section on sources in chapter 1.d. 9 On this, see Evans (2000), 66–69. 7 8

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an ‘examination of how cultures have reacted to that Christian proclamation’. Such study is distinct from that of theology, which seeks to make sense of ‘the internal structure of the Christian message’.10 If spirituality is understood as the interpretation of the Christian message by a specific culture, then this study seeks to tell something of the spirituality, the wider mentalité, of seventhand eighth-century Ireland, or at least of specific Irish monastic communities of the time. This study concentrates on the attitudes of a local church,11 that of early medieval Ireland, through the study of three illustrative texts from that period. These all belong to the same genre and are all written in Latin. They all appear to have been written in an Irish monastic enviroment inside a timespan of about a hundred years, and thus they can be seen as products of the clerical and monastic culture of late seventh- and early eighth- century Ireland. These Irish texts will be treated as part of the continuum of Christian writing and learning that reached Ireland in the centuries following the Christian conversion. Hence their models will be sought in the Bible and in certain patristic writings. The influence of earlier authors on the Lives of Brigit and Columba will be studied primarily at the level of ideas, not as direct verbal borrowings, although sometimes these will be also pointed out. The foremost aim of this study is not to prove that specific patristic texts were known or not known in early medieval Irish circles, although I may be able to contribute to the question by examining how certain theological ideas were used and adapted by the authors of the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba. These ideas, however, could be directly transmitted by the texts of origin or by intermediary means, such as through works of other authors or through access to excerpts. The knowledge of classical and patristic texts in early medieval Ireland has been studied only incidentally in the context of other questions or of specific texts.12 This means that no complete list is 10 O’Loughlin (2000b), 26. For a definition of spirituality see also Ó Laoghaire (1969), 135; Bonner, (1986), 7; Sheldrake (1991), 37; Davies (1999), 10. 11 For a discussion of local theologies, see O’Loughlin (2000a), 8–9; O’Loughlin (2002a), 59–63. Peter Brown (2003), 15, 355, has used the term ‘micro-Christendom’ to convey the same idea. 12 Instead, there has been more focus on the biblical and apocryphal themes in Irish writings. See, for example, O’Loughlin (2003); O’Reilly (1997); O’Leary (1996); Bray (1992a), 17–20.

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available of all the works known in early medieval Irish monasteries.13 John Cassian certainly exerted an influence on the Irish penitentials, and he and Basil are named as the authors whose works were used by Columba in the Amra, a poem probably written to commemorate the saint’s death in the year 597.14 Irish exegetical and eschatological writings, on the other hand, show the influence of Augustine and Gregory the Great among others.15 Of the three Irish authors in this study Adomnán is the only one whose learning has been thoroughly analysed. It is known that the influences in his Vita Columbae include the Dialogi of Gregory the Great and Vita Martini of Sulpicius Severus among other works, while his exegetical work concerning the Holy Land, De locis sanctis, reflects the influence of some of the works of Augustine and Jerome.16 By setting the ideas of three Irish hagiographers within the framework of patristic writings, I hope to demonstrate that there existed a shared intellectual culture that was common to the patristic and the early medieval Irish authors. In fact, the expectations of the Irish authors concerning the good Christian life fit in neatly in many places with the patristic authors’ discussions on the topic. Thus they share a basic theological understanding of what holiness and good Christian living entail. The Irish authors probably knew some of the discussions of the patristic Fathers on the topic, if not always directly, then through intermediary means. These shared ideas could also be based in part on the biblical learning common to all these authors. The aim of this study is then to examine the extent to which the three Irish authors in question shared a cultural horizon with some of the Latin patristic Fathers. 13

For a list of some of the works known in early medieval Ireland, see Esposito (1929) 229–260; Kenney (1929), numbers 515–523; Bieler (1952), 222–223; Smyth (1986), 206; Smyth (1996), 23–31. On early Irish theology, see also L&S numbers 339–351. 14 Amra Choluimb Chille iv.48, v.55. On Basil and Cassian in Amra see CharlesEdwards (2000), 286–287. For Cassian and other sources of the penitentials, see McNeill (1932), 17–19; Oakley (1933), 323; Mitchell (1955), 11–13; F. Clancy (1988), 92–93, 95. For Cassian’s influence on Irish texts, see also Ó Néill (1987), 207–208; McNamara (1998), 211–212; Stalmans (2003), 164–165. 15 For the influence of the Church Fathers on Irish theology, see McNamara (1989), 8–15, 32–33; McNamara (1996), 46–75; McNamara (1998), 202–209; J.F. Kelly (1999), 136–143. For a catalogue of early medieval Irish exegetical literature, see Bischoff (1976), 95–149. For a discussion of early medieval Irish learning, see also Ó Cróinín (2005), 377–404. 16 Brüning (1917); O’Loughlin (1992); O’Loughlin (1994a); O’Loughlin (1994b); O’Loughlin (1997a); O’Loughlin (1997b); O’Loughlin (2007), 247–9.

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The focus in this study is on the Christian themes in Irish hagiography, since my aim is to study the sources first and foremost as hagiography, as examples of this Christian genre of literature. It is, however, obvious that the Irish background of the sources also exerted influence on them, but my main objective is to study the Irish saints’ Lives as products of a Christian learned culture, telling of Christian holy people, and aimed for the veneration of these saints and for the education of their audience. These sources were written at a time when the image of the Irish as a Christian nation was being formed and the authors of the three works considered in this study took part in this endeavour. In their writings they are shaping an image of an ideal Christian life through the portrayal of the good Christians and their antithesis, thereby contributing to the creation of the Christian community around them. Thomas O’Loughlin has interpreted Muirchú’s Life of Patrick as a work that discloses the author’s theological understanding concerning conversion. According to O’Loughlin, it reveals Muirchú’s vision about the way in which an individual and a nation become Christians.17 Taking this thought a little further, it is possible to see Collectanea by Tírechán, which mainly lists the churches founded by Patrick and the people ordained by him and tells short anecdotes related to these matters, as a source dealing with the foundation of an organized church in Ireland. If Muirchú’s Life tells of the origins of the Irish church, then Tírechán’s work focuses on the second phase of the Church—the laying of the organisational basis for its further life. When reading the earliest Irish hagiographical works from the perspective of forming an image of the Irish as a Christian society, the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba appear as parts of the continuum that presents the subsequent phase in the life of the Church in Ireland—the formation of a truly Christian nation that is not Christian only in name, but also in their way of life.18 If the Lives of Patrick focus on ‘turning towards God’, which is the first part of the definition of conversion in the New Catholic Encyclopedia, then the Lives of Brigit and Columba deal with the second meaning, that is the turning ‘away from sin’.19 The works on Patrick look back into the beginnings of Christianity in Ireland, while the Lives of Brigit and Columba are directed towards an idealized future where the Irish nation would lead O’Loughlin (2002b), 124–127. For a more detailed discussion of this theme, see Ritari (2006), 717–727. 19 Lawrence (2003), 234. See also, Wood (2001), 3; O’Loughlin (2002b), 127–128. 17 18

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Christian life following the path showed by the saint. For this reason, the present study concentrates on the Lives of Brigit and Columba and refers to the Lives of Patrick only when they add to the topics discussed in the other early Lives. I am interpreting hagiography as being essentially a Christian genre although, of course, the Irish cultural background and contemporary local needs directed the authors’ choices of material when it comes to the types of tales they would tell. Many scholars of Irish hagiography have focused on the political and economical aims of the Lives.20 Although these are an integral part of the motives for writing hagiography, I would argue that we should also take the Christian contents of the sources more seriously.21 Thomas O’Loughlin has championed this view and has demonstrated its validity admirably in his studies concerning the Life of Patrick by Muirchú and the De locis sanctis by Adomnán. When focusing on the Christian contents of these sources we can see how they reflect the theology and spirituality of their times.

1.b. Hagiography and Theology Saints as holy people are ‘conspicious for the generosity of their response to God’ and thus ‘they act as signs of the possibility and reality of holiness’.22 Moreover, their close connection to the heavenly is visibly demonstrated by their miracles, which illustrate that God is actively manifested in historical figures who are descendants of the patriarchs and apostles. So a saint is at the same time the model of a perfect Christian to be imitated, and a holy person set apart from the 20 For example, see Doherty (1987), 13–20; Doherty (1991); Swift (1994). A good example of the political preoccupation of Irish hagiographical studies is Dáibhí Ó Cróinín’s dismissal of the Brigidine Lives as ‘merely catalogues of miracles’ on the basis that the Lives do not touch upon the political realities of their time. Ó Cróinín (2005), 385. 21 See Smith (1992), 71, commenting on the recent scholarly preoccupation with emphasizing the political nature of hagiography, and concluding that it is important to understand hagiography’s role as part of devotion, both monastic and lay, to the saint and of the Church’s spiritual and moral message. See also Kitchen (1998), 12, where he comments that ‘the most striking feature of modern research in general is how little it actually engages the religious thought and theological outlook presupposed and expressed by the hagiographic texts.’ 22 Cunningham (1993), 482.

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normal human community to be admired.23 The Life of a saint reflects ‘a Christian ideology regarding sanctified persons, an image of holiness which is shaped not only by the mainstream of hagiographical tradition within the Church, but also by the interpretation of such a tradition within the society which has acclaimed the saint’.24 So a saint can be seen as the embodiment of theological principles concerning holiness and ideal Christian living, and the Life can be used as an instrument for expressing theological ideas and for explaining their practical meaning to Christians.25 Many medieval hagiographers seem to have been well versed in a broad range of Christian writing, including theology. It follows then that hagiography may well reflect the author’s theological learning and understanding of spirituality. Furthermore, we can question whether the medieval authors themselves would have recognized divide between hagiography and theology as being as clear-cut as we do.26 It can also be argued that biographical texts were viewed as being essentially theological documents and that they were used as instruments of discussing theological themes, as we can see from the Gospels, and from some of the earliest Lives of saints, such as those of Antony and of Martin of Tours. Furthermore, the Dialogi of Gregory the Great and the works of John Cassian demonstrate how hagiographical anecdotes can alternate with more straightforward theological discussion, and how those anecdotes can be used to illustrate theological principles.27 An important theme in the life of a saint is imitatio Christi.28 Through the example of the saint, the life of Jesus and the apostles can 23 Boyer (1981), 30 has written: ‘The hero [i.e. the saint] is the incarnation of the ideal of a human group by the simple fact that he performs an action both extraordinary and exemplary. His proper name is the expression of a social model.’ For discussion of the problem of imitating saints, see Geary (1996), 15; Brown (2000), 16–21. See also, Brown (1987); Drijvers (1990). 24 Bray (1992c), 29. Similarly Drijvers (1990), 140: ‘Yet these lives also function as paradigms of ideal manhood and social ordering, a code through which reality is read and understood by the groups in which these lives originate. They provide us with a metaphysics of human behaviour, a moral that is preached, though certainly not always practiced.’ 25 See Delehaye (1998), 50: ‘Some hagiographical documents are clearly of this kind; they are parables or stories designed to bring out some religious truth or moral principle.’ 26 This question has been posed by Mayeski (2002). For her answer, see especially pp.692–694. 27 For this point, see Straw (1988), 70; Carozzi (1994), 54. 28 See Augustine: De sancta virginitate 27: ‘. . . the son of man revealed in himself all that we must imitate’. Translation by Walsh.

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be re-interpreted in a new historical context.29 This imitation can happen on two levels; firstly in the actual life of the historical person of the saint, and secondly, in the hagiographical modelling involved in the writing of the saint’s Life. Since the saint’s holiness ultimately derives its models from the image of Christ and of other biblical characters, writing about holiness has its background in the same source. As a consequence, following the example set in the Bible, it is natural for the hagiographers to write theology in a narrative form.30 Taking these presumptions into account my aim in this study is to set the Irish authors’ ideas concerning a good Christian life, which are presented in a narrative form in a hagiographical text, into a theological context. By reading hagiography this way, with the emphasis being on the theological and spiritual message of the text, I believe we can get closer to the world in which the monastic authors operated.31 Of course, there are also other powers, such as political and economical claims, at work in hagiography, but we have to remember that the authors were first of all monastic and biblical scholars writing about a holy person whose life can be seen as an example of Christian perfection towards which all Christians should strive for to the best of their abilities. During recent decades, hagiography has enjoyed a renaissance as a source for history.32 Patrick Geary has concluded: ‘As historians turn increasingly from the history of events to that of perceptions and values, hagiography appears a kind of source superior to almost any other, because it seems to offer images of societies’ ideal types’.33 Brown (1987), 6–8. See also Drijvers (1990), 146–147; Constable (1995a). For discussion of this, see Mayeski (2002), 692–697. On the similarities between the Gospels and hagiography, see also O’Loughlin (2002b), 125–126: ‘In this sense both the gospels and the vitae are propaganda in the strict sense of the word: texts which are intended to help the growth into reality of the imaginary world they describe.’ 31 See O’Loughlin (2002a), 60, where he postulates that if we accept theology as the conscious structuring of and reflection upon the imaginative world of a society, then for example, the Navigatio sancti Brendani is every bit as much a theological text as formal textbooks. In the same article, he furthermore calls for a new theological model which would help us to really appreciate the religious and spiritual contents of the texts. 32 For critical appraisal of some of the different approaches taken, see Geary (1996), 4–10; Kitchen (1998), 3–22; Mayeski (2002), 691–692. For the recent trends in the study of Irish hagiography, see Herbert (1996), 82–90. 33 Geary (1996), 3. See also Bray (1982), 113: ‘The Lives of the saints may be explored with caution for historical data, but in a literary approach, the history which may be found in any literature is history of attitudes and ideas.’ 29 30

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Thomas Charles-Edwards has also stated that ‘narrative texts are, in some ways, the best sources for someone attempting to get a sense of the variety and subtlety of moral thought in Early Christian Ireland’, and later, he concludes that ‘yet, however promising early Irish literature may be as material for the historian of moral values, it cannot be said that this investigation has yet progressed very far’.34 Similarly J.N. Hillgarth has declared that: ‘We are just beginning to glimpse how, through these Lives, we can hope to enter into the “mental universe” of the time, how they can introduce us, as no other source can do, to the religion (that is the interpretation of the world and of the place of God and man in it) which was available to seventh-century man.’35 The aim of this study is to further explore the ways in which hagiography can be used as a source for theology and for the moral values of the age that produced them. It is the values of the authors that will be studied instead of the incidental information they might offer of the material or political conditions of their time. By taking hagiography seriously as a form of theological writing, we get to appreciate the complexity of issues that can be discussed within the narratives and gain a fuller understanding of the authors’ aims.

1.c. The Characters in the Lives This study is not only about saints, since the question of good Christian life will also be examined through the portrayal of other characters who appear in the hagiographical narratives. These characters include several laymen and women, and so the ideal image of a lay person will be one of the main questions studied.36 Lay people as such have not attracted much attention in hagiography and most studies touching upon the question of the laity in early medieval Ireland thus far have been based Charles-Edwards (2000), 140–141. Hillgarth (1987), 316. See also Noble & Head (1995), xviii: ‘Just as epics such as Beowulf or the Norse sagas provide a key to understanding the ideals of Germanic culture, so too the texts that follow [i.e. Lives of saints from late Antiquity and early Middle Ages] will help to unlock the ideals of early Medieval Christianity.’ 36 For studies of the laity in early Middle Ages from a religious point of view, see Vauchez (1993), 4–12; Smith (1995), 654–678. See also Southern (1963), 88–134, and especially p.88, where he states that ‘the first thing to emphasize about the religion of the laity during this period is the extent of our ignorance’. 34 35

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on legal materials. Thus, due to the nature of these materials, the questions asked have mainly concentrated on the organisation of the society and the formal structure of church-lay–relations.37 The focus of Irish hagiographical studies has usually been either on the motivations and models of the author, or on the image and actions of a saint. As a result the collective group of laity has usually passed unnoticed, and the only groups of lay people to which scholars have paid widely attention to has thus far been kings, and women to some extent.38 I will look at the situations where laymen encounter saints, and examine the acts that are performed in these encounters. The narratives about these encounters were written by churchmen, and their function was to provide testimony of a saint’s miraculous powers. Therefore laymen are seen through the eyes of the churchmen, and their function is to act as receivers, witnesses, or opponents of the miracles performed by the saint. This means that the sources do not offer opportunities for studying the religious beliefs or selfunderstanding of the lay people at large, and one has to concentrate instead on the attitudes of the churchmen towards the laity. However, by telling exemplary stories about good and bad Christians hagiography portrays the ideal Christian and his opposite. Hagiography can reflect the expectations of the Church concerning the laity, but it does not have much to say about laity’s own traditions and about popular religion, except maybe in some accidental glimpses.39 The sources represent the clerical view, and as such they cannot be taken as good representations of the laity as they really were. This is true, of course, not only of the hagiographical sources, but also of most early medieval sources. This is because the writing was in the hands of a small, select group of people, while most of the culture was still in the oral form, and thus it is only partly and very laboriously 37 Lay people in early Ireland have mainly been studied from the standpoint of law, thus concentrating on the legal status of the different groups of the laity. See for example Charles-Edwards (1986), 53–75; McCone (1991), 124–126; Aitchison (1994), 48–59; Edel (2001), 51–63. For studies on the relations between the Church and the laity, see Ó Corráin (1981), 1–13; Sharpe (1984); Etchingham (1991), 99–118; CharlesEdwards (1992) 63–80. 38 Kings have mainly been studied as part of the political background of Irish hagiography where the kings of the saint’s time can be used to represent the royal families of the author’s own time, see Swift (1994); Herbert (1988), 158–168. For a study concerning women in Irish hagiography, see Borsje (2001). 39 On this point, see Thomson (1998), 74–76.

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retrievable from the written sources.40 The relationship between the written Lives and oral tradition concerning saints is a complicated one. Some scholars have pointed out the high number of miracles they have classified as representing ‘folklore-type’ in Irish hagiography, which might be seen as an indicator of a living and popular oral tradition of the saint, that would have left its traces in the hagiographical narratives.41 However, this classification of miracles as representing a ‘folklore-type’ would need further study and justification before some of the miracle-stories could be taken to represent genuine popular tradition.42 Sometimes the hagiographers themselves, as for example Adomnán, explicitly state that they learned the story in question from oral tradition, either inside the monastery or outside in the world.43 This points clearly to an interaction between the written text and the oral tradition about the saint. Nevertheless, in most cases, there is not enough information to allow us to speculate about the exact relationship between the popular oral tradition, which could be called folklore, and individual episodes in the Lives.44 We can also question the relationship between the depiction of reality in the early Irish hagiography and the actual historical situation. Furthermore, we can enquire into the extent to which the hagiographical sources reflect the contemporary reality of the seventh century, or project the author’s ideas of 40 For oral tradition and written sources in Irish context, see Richter (1994), 100–104; Richter (2002), 28–30. For the influences of oral culture on Irish hagiography, see Ó Riain (1982), 146–147, 153–155; Ó Riain (1989), 274–276; Picard (1992), 355–373. For an overview of the oral-literary question in Ireland, see Ó Coileáin (1977–8), 7–35. For discussion see Bergholm & Ritari (forthcoming). 41 For example, see Stancliffe (1992), 89–90. See also Bieler (1962), 253 commenting that some of Tírechán’s stories ‘have the appearance of genuine folk-tales’. 42 For example, Stancliffe (1992) does not define at all her use of the label ‘folklore-type’. See also Picard (1981), 98–9, who concludes in his study of the different types of miracle tales in hagiography that ‘the folklore tales are mainly animal stories’. See also Herbert (1996), 88, where she notes the mythic and folkloric elements besides religious motifs in Irish hagiography, and calls for studies refocusing on this material and taking into account the considerable advances in the study of religion. 43 For example, Adomnán states in the second preface to his Vita Columbae that he has written down what he had learned ‘from the lips of certain informed and trustworthy aged men who related them without any hesitation’, but here he seems to be rather referring to the oral tradition inside the monastery than to what could be called popular folklore. 44 On interaction between the Church and popular culture, see Gurevich (1988), 5.

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the reality in the saint’s time, or depict an ideal society that has no historical basis. In any case, the sources of this study cannot be treated as sources of the saint’s own time, although some information about the historical saint can be recovered from the Lives, especially from Adomnán’s Vita Columbae. The Lives therefore reflect the interests and conventions of their time and the enviroment of writing, and so they should be treated as sources reflecting the monastic world of seventh century Ireland. Hagiography in the Middle Ages was ecclesiatical literature, since it was mostly written by ecclesiastics, and its purpose was usually connected to spreading the fame of the founding saint of the church, or of another saint buried there. Sometimes lay people might have been among the targeted audience of the work, especially kings and other important members of the society, as they had better access to reading and to the Latin language, or to the people skilled in these arts.45 However, the main audience was the fellow ecclesiastics. The function and audience of a hagiographical work were intertwined, and since often the function had to do with the economical and political aspirations of the church, the main audience tended to consist of clerics and the upper stratum of the society. As the earliest Irish saints’ Lives were written in Latin, the direct audience of these works was limited to those who had knowledge of the language, i.e. to those educated by the Church. On the other hand, this is not the same as to say that they could not reach the laity at all. It was still possible to use the Latin texts as a help and a base when preaching to the laity in the vernacular.46 However, the choice of language strengthens the ecclesiastical character and focus of the sources at hand, since the main audience in the author’s mind would have probably consisted of those with knowledge of Latin. We have to remember that the saints and the churchmen who wrote about them were often members of the upper stratum of the society, and therefore, in a strictly hierarchical society based on status, such as early medieval Ireland, they must have been conscious of the 45 For example Adomnán gave a copy of his De locis sanctis to the Northumbrian king, Aldfrith. Although it is not a work of hagiography, the act of giving the work to King Aldfrith testifies that the king must have had some access to reading either by being able to read himself or through literate personnel in his service. See Bede HE v.15. For education available to non-monks in early medieval Ireland, see CharlesEdwards (1980), 158–161, and for the literacy of the laity in early medieval Ireland, see Stevenson (1989); Richter, (2002). 46 For example, see Gurevich (1988), 18–19, 54.

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difference of class when writing about the encounters between the saint and the lower classes.47 So the portrayal of the laity, and especially of the lower classes of the society, would have been coloured by the author’s understanding of a lay person’s role and place in the society and in the Church, as well as by his previous reading of the Bible and other Christian texts involving laymen. What I am especially interested in is the categorisation of persons into different groups, and the clerical authors’ attitudes towards these subgroups within the laity. The distinguishing factors in the groupings can be quite varied, and they can range through gender, age and social status or wealth, to moral judgements involving a person’s final destiny either in heaven or hell. By focusing on these divisions of the laity, I hope to reflect the variety of attitudes the seventh-century authors had towards this wide group of people, and subsequently the historical variety of people classified as laity. A division of foremost importance for this study is the one between the laity and those of ecclesiastical status. In VC ii.20, a reference is made to Nesanus homo plebeus erat cum uxore et filiis. Thus, it would appear that for the author, Adomnán, the ultimate dividing factor between ecclesiastics and the laity was the fact that a layman is married with children, and as a result does not follow a celibate way of life. While my main focus is on the laity, I have to look at them in relation to the churchmen, and therefore one question that touches my topic is the organisation of the Irish Church in the early Middle Ages. This is a question much debated. I will try to answer the question on my part by looking at the situations where laymen encounter churchmen, and the acts that the monks and the members of the clergy respectively perform. The main aspect of the laity’s relation to the Church is pastoral care but that is an aspect that does not feature much in early Irish hagiography.48 The actual church organisation and its services are reflected only incidentally as part of the narratives about the saint’s miracles which are the focal point of most hagiographical 47 Adomnán belonged to the nobility as well as Saint Columba himself. Not much is known of Cogitosus’s family background, but in VBC 1/1, he presents Brigit’s parents as being both Christian and noble. For social distinctions in early medieval Irish society, see chapter 3 in Charles-Edwards (2000). 48 Sharpe comments this saying that the Lives of the saints ignore the Church’s pastoral role to a very considerable extent, and instead they depict the saints as leaders of monastic life, not as pastors for the laity. Sharpe (1992), 83. See also Sharpe (1984), 251; Etchingham (1991), 239–240. For some discussion of the role of pastoral care in VC, see Márkus (1999), 121–138.

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texts, since they were the main means by which the saint demonstrated his connection to the higher powers. So it is not surprising that in most encounters between the early Irish saints and the laity, many miracles are performed, and the story may be told because of the miracle, not because of the laity involved.49 According to the Encyclopedia of Early Christianity, the laity—Latin laicus from the Greek laos—is the people, referring to the ordinary believers as distinct from the clergy, i.e. those who hold the office in the Church. A Christian layperson may also be defined as one living in the world, in contrast to a monk.50 The terms used of the laity in the early medieval Irish sources are ‘the people’ populus or plebs in Latin, and túath in Old Irish.51 In Christian Latin, the term laicus was often used, but in Hiberno-Latin, a much greater range of meanings is attested for this term. It can mean simply a ‘layman’ in contradistinction to clericus, but it can also mean a ‘warrior’ or more specifically, a brigand, someone outside the Christian fold and hateful to it. In the same way, the Irish word láech can have the different meanings of a ‘layman’ or a ‘warrior’.52 In the main sources of this study, the word that is mostly used to describe lay status is plebeus, but also denominations such as vir saecularis and laicus appear.53 In this study, I treat the clergy and the monks as a single group representing the Church, and distinguished from the laity, baptized members of the Church who form the majority of the Christians.54 This is relevant point since in the early medieval Irish context, the division between a monk or a member of the clergy is not always so clear, since both could and did live in monasteries. The division of churches into monasteries and non-monastic churches is likewise not clear.55 The earliest Irish saints, and also the authors of the saints’ Lives, were attached to monastic churches, although they could be in 49 For the role of the miracles in hagiography and the cult of the saints, see Demm (1975); Brown (1981), 69–85; Gurevich (1988), 73–74; 50 Schatkin (1990a), 938–939. 51 Charles-Edwards (1992), 68. 52 Sharpe (1979), 75–77. 53 Plebeus in VBC 17; VC i.1, 16, 20, 46, 47, ii.3, 4, 17, 20, 32, 37, 39, 41, and iii.10. Vir saecularis in VBC 25. Laicus in VC i.1. 54 See Columbanus who writes in Epistola ii that clergy and monks should together execute the rules of Lord Jesus Christ, and that, although their patterns are different and distinct, both groups should maintain the Gospel and live as members of the same body where Christ is the head. 55 See the comment on this in Sharpe (1984), 260–261.

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clerical orders at the same time. Irrespective of the saint’s status as a monk or as a member of the clergy, he represents the Church in hagiography, and thereby does so in his hagiographical encounters with the laity. For these reasons this study considers both monks and clergymen to be representatives of the Church, and thus non-laity. Although the laity and the clergy are here treated as two different groups, the difference between them should not be seen as an insurmountable one. The churchmen of early medieval Ireland shared the same culture and values as the members of the laity, and they were still very much a part of that society. The churchmen were also connected to the society firstly through their own families, which tended to be from the upper classes of the society, and secondly through the interests of their churches.56 Some scholars have labelled the ecclesiastical learned men and the native learned classes, the áes dána, as one ‘mandarin class’, meaning that there was a shared appreciation of learning and that the learned churchmen had imbued with the same traditions of storytelling as the laity and were influenced by it.57 The minor character in the Lives—some of whom belong to the laity—can function as paradigms of behaviour that is to be either avoided or emulated and this moral message is made evident by their respective destinies when divine punishment and rewards are meted out to them. If the saint is the idealized figure of perfect Christian behaviour, how does this image relate to the different groups of people and how close to perfection can the members of the laity get? Since the Lives considered in this study were written in Latin, a language not understood by the majority of people in early medieval Ireland, we may infer that the principal audience of the Lives consisted of male and female religious.58 Yet does the model of good Christian life provided in these Lives apply only to monks and nuns, since avoiding sin and attaining salvation should be equally in the interests of all Christians? Although the Lives were written by See Bitel (1990), 104–114, 145–172. For example, Picard (1989), 371, has argued that VC i.47 concerning the strange death of Guaire from his own knife represents ‘the process of weaving pagan tradition into Christian literature’. For the relations of the native and the ecclesiastical learned classes see, for example, Moisl (1987), 258–271; Stevenson (1989) 150–152, 160–164. The term ‘mandarin class’ has been coined by Donnchadh Ó Corráin, see Ó Corráin (1987), 26–7. 58 The question of the audience of the Lives will be addressed further in chapter 1.d. where the nature and background of the sources is considered. It is possible, however, that the audience could also have consisted of other people, not only of the monks or nuns, who were attached to the monastery. O’Loughlin (1999), 19, has raised this possibility in his discussion of the Latin Navigatio sancti Brendani. 56 57

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churchmen, and principally for a monastic audience, they still are likely to reflect these churchmen’s understanding of a Christian life that should apply to all Christians. Thus, the virtues of the saints not only provide models of ideal Christian behaviour for ecclesiastics, but the same virtues could, at least to some extent, offer an example to lay Christians.

1.d. The Sources By the time that the genre of hagiography was adopted in Ireland, at latest by the seventh century, this genre was well-established in Latin Christendom, and the Irish authors who adopted it viewed their own saints within the traditions founded by their predecessors outside of Ireland.59 The earliest surviving Life of an Irish saint is that of Columbanus, written by the monk Jonas in the middle of the seventh century.60 However, this work was not written by an Irish hagiographer. Two of the main sources of this study, the Lives of Brigit by Cogitosus and of Columba by Adomnán, together with the two works on saint Patrick written by Muirchú and Tírechán, represent the oldest layer of Lives written by Irish authors in the late seventh century. These earliest Irish saints’ Lives were written in Latin, while the writing of Lives in Old Irish is attested from the ninth and tenth centuries.61 In total, Irish authors produced approximately a hundred Latin Lives of more than fifty Irish saints and about fifty vernacular Lives of forty saints between the seventh and sixteenth centuries.62 Yet, many of these Lives still lack modern editions, and apart from the seventh-century Lives, most would need careful study to establish a secure dating for their writing.63 The oldest of the Irish seventh-century Lives is generally thought to be the Life of St Brigit (VBC) written by Cogitosus around 650,64 while Adomnán’s Vita Columbae (VC) was written See, for example, Bieler (1962), 243–244; Bieler (1975), 14; Picard (1985), 69. See McCone (1984), 27–28; Sharpe (1991), 8. 61 McCone (1984), 38; Sharpe (1991). 19–26; Herbert (2001), 339–340. 62 Sharpe (1991), 5–7. 63 A majority of the Latin Lives are known from the great compilations of the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries, but the dates of the texts range from the seventh to the fourteenth centuries, while the vernacular Lives are mainly known from manuscripts ranging from the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries. See Sharpe (1991), 5–7. On the dating of Irish saints’ Lives, see Ó Riain (1989), 270–280. 64 Kenney (1929), 359–360; Hughes (1972), 226–227; McCone (1982) 108–109; Sharpe (1982), 83–86; McCarthy (2000), 268–269; Herbert (2001), 332–333. 59 60

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some time between 689 and 700.65 Since both authors were Irish churchmen writing between 650 and 700, their works can be seen as products of the same clerical and monastic culture of late seventhcentury Ireland. Consequently we can expect them to share to some extent the same values and worldview, although they differ in their motivations for writing. The remaining two hagiographical works from seventh-century Ireland are the two works on St Patrick written by Muirchú and Tírechán dated to the 660s or 670s.66 The focus of these works is on building the cult of Patrick through presenting him as converting the Irish and establishing the Church in Ireland. Therefore, as the Patrician Lives are not primarily designed to provide models for ideal Christian conduct, they are noted in this study only when they add to the evidence provided by the Lives of Brigit and Columba. Some scholars have argued that the Vita prima of Saint Brigit (VPB) may also be assigned to the seventh century, but consensus on the dating of this Life has yet to be reached.67 However, as VPB will be used in this study alongside VBC, discussion of the dating and content of this material is necessary, and this will follow below. It is generally agreed that the Lives of Brigit do not include much reliable historical material about Brigit as a person. Even the historicity of the person of Brigit has been questioned, and it has been suggested that she is just a Christianized version of a pagan goddess bearing the same name. The more moderate view is that the saint has taken over some of the characteristics of the goddess, and that this has helped the spread of her cult.68 Brigit’s birth and death are recorded in the annals several times, with her birth usually in the 450s and her death in the 520s, but these entries are not contemporary and their historical value 65 Kenney (1929), 431–433; Hughes (1972), 220; Picard (1982), 167–169; Anderson & Anderson, (1991), xlii; Sharpe (1995), 55; Herbert (2001), 333–334. 66 Kenney (1929), 324–325, 329–334; Hughes (1972), 229–230; Bieler (1979), 1–2, 35–36, 42–43; Sharpe (1991), 12–14; Herbert (2001), 330–331. 67 See discussion below. For example, see S. Connolly (1989), 5–7; McCone (1982); Sharpe (1982). 68 Kenney (1929), 357–358; Hughes (1972), 229; McCone (1982), 110–11; McCone (1984), 46; Sharpe (1991), 9; Stancliffe (1992), 94. See, for example, Stevenson (1989), 152: ‘. . . St. Brigit, who herself not only bears the name of a major celtic goddess but is shown in her Vitae as a veritable cornucopia of agricultural prosperity and has no real point of anchorage in history at all’.; Bray(1992c), 28: ‘. . . a goddess wrapped in the hagiographical trappings of the Christian Church’. For an overview of the evidence, see Harrington (2002), 63–67.

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is therefore questionable.69 However, Daniel McCarthy has suggested that the 439 entry for her birth and 524 for her death are the most plausible ones based on his collation of the different entries in the various annals.70 The oldest surviving Irish hagiographical work, VBC (L&S 302, BHL 1457), was probably written in Brigit’s monastery at Kildare to promote that centre.71 This work has been preserved in over 60 Continental copies, thereby demonstrating its popularity.72 Some scholars have commented on the lack of biographical structure in Cogitosus’s work, since he only mentions the saint’s parentage and childhood briefly, and omits her death altogether.73 Nevertheless this fits well with the intentions of Cogitosus, since he states in his preface that he intends to write a collection of the saint’s miracles in order to bring her greatness and her virtues to the public eye.74 Cogitosus both begins and ends the Life with a description of the greatness of Kildare in his own time. Some scholars have considered this to be the most valuable part of the work for a historian.75 These passages about Kildare set out claims for primatial authority, and Cogitosus refers to Kildare in his preface as caput pene omnium Hiberniensium Eclesiarum. The rest of the work then reveals the powers and virtues of the saint, and demonstrates that her miraculous powers are still active in the contemporary world. Thus Cogitosus provides testimony about the extraordinary powers of the saint, and by demonstrating how the same power works in the contemporary world, he could claim primatial authority for Kildare, the centre of Brigit’s cult. 69 AU 452, 456 for Brigit’s birth, and AU 524, 526 for her death. See Hughes (1972), 227; Sharpe (1982), 84; S. Connolly (1989), 5–6; McCarthy (2000), 256–263. 70 McCarthy (2000), 256–268. For McCarthy’s collation of the annals, see www.cs.tcd.ie/Dan.McCarthy/chronology/synchronisms/annals-chron.htm 71 Brigit’s monastery is introduced already in the preface of VBC and it also has a major role in the end of the work, see VBC 31–32/32–36. On the writing of VBC and the aspirations of Kildare, see McCone (1982), 136–144; McCone (1984), 29–30; Charles-Edwards (2000), 416–438; Auslander, (2002), 47–49. On the monastery of Kildare, see Harrington (2002), 75–80. 72 Esposito (1912), 308–319, 325–326; McCone (1982), 108; Sharpe (1982), 87; S. Connolly (1987), 5; Sharpe (1991), 13–14. 73 Bieler (1962), 247; Bieler (1974), 219; McCone (1984), 30; Sharpe (1991), 13. Although the death of the saint is omitted, some of her posthumous miracles are related in the Life, which fits well with Cogitosus’s aims of promoting Kildare. Berschin (2001), 75–76 has suggested that the lack of biographical structure in VBC might be an imitation of Venantius Fortunatus’s Vita S. Radegundis. 74 On this, see Picard (1985), 72–73. 75 Esposito (1912), 324; Kenney (1929), 360; Sharpe (1991), 13–14.

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Sean Connolly, on the other hand, has stressed that the primary aim of Cogitosus’s work was edification of readers.76 I would agree with him in underlining the importance of the spiritual message of VBC instead of seeing it purely as a work aimed at promoting the political and economical claims of Kildare. According to Connolly, the main spiritual strands running through the whole work are the virtues of faith and charity, virginity, the monastic virtue of obedience, and Christian fraternal love.77 The other Brigidine Life considered here, Vita prima sanctae Brigitae (L&S 352, BHL 1455/1456) is thus called because it is the first of the Brigidine Lives in the Bollandist compilation Acta Sanctorum.78 In his Trias Thaumaturga, John Colgan placed this compilation as the third of the works concerning Brigit, and he ascribed its authorship to Ultán.79 This work has survived in about 25 Continental manuscripts, the earliest of which was written around 850 in Germany.80 The dating of VPB and its relationship with VBC has generated extensive discussion, since the two share a considerable amount of material.81 The more commonly-held view is that VBC predates VPB, and that VPB is probably an eighth-century compilation of earlier sources.82 Hence either VPB would borrow directly from VBC, or the two would share a common source. Even so, the opposite view, that VPB precedes VBC, has been defended, for example, by Sharpe, McCarthy, and Howlett.83 The latter two have also ascribed the work to Ailerán, while others have considered the works of Ailerán and Ultán to be among the 76 S. Connolly (1987), 7–9. See also Hughes (1966), 84–85; S. Connolly (1995); Stalmans (2003), 61. 77 S. Connolly (1987), 7–9. 78 AASS I Februarii,118–129. 79 Tertia vita S. Brigidae. Authore, ut videtur, S. Ultano Episcopo. Trias Thaumaturga, 527. On this, see Esposito (1935), 124–125. 80 Esposito (1935), 140–159; Sharpe (1982), 82; S. Connolly (1989), 5–6. 81 On the extent of the shared material, see Esposito (1935), 134–135; Ó Briain, (1978), 120–122; McCone (1982), 127–131; Sharpe (1982), 89–93. See also Howlett, (1998), 18–21. 82 This view has been held, for example, by Kenney (1929), 356, 361; Ó hAodha (1978), xiv, xx–xxiii; Ó Briain (1978), 128; McCone (1982), 131; S. Connolly (1987), 5; S. Connolly (1989) 5; Maney (1994) 185; Stalmans (2003), 291. This view was originally shared by Esposito (1912), 319, although he later changed his mind. See also McKenna (2002), 72–74, where she puts forward the interesting idea that the author of VPB may be borrowing from Muirchú’s VP, which would thus mean that VBC is older than VPB, since Muirchú mentions his ‘father Cogitosus’ in his preface. 83 Sharpe (1982), 82; Howlett (1998), 21–2; McCarthy (2000), 277.

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sources of VPB.84 These opposing views have been based, for instance, on the evidence of annals (McCarthy), on the structural and stylistic features of the texts (Howlett), on the internal developments of the genre of hagiography (Stalmans), and on their historical and political context (Sharpe, McCone, Maney). The miracle-stories are presented in VPB within the framework of Brigit’s journeys, in what purports to be a chronological order.85 The text is considerably longer than VBC, and its geographical focus is wider, since VBC concentrates only on the saint’s deeds and cult in Kildare and Leinster. In VPB, Kildare is mentioned only once, and the interests of the author seem to lie rather in the regions controlled by the southern Uí Néill.86 VPB brings the saint into contact with Saint Patrick, and presents the two as being equal in terms of their miraculous powers.87 It seems that the author of VPB had to take into account the growing cult of Patrick and the primatial claims advanced by Armagh, similar to those presented by Cogitosus earlier.88 This means that VPB would reflect a more realistic policy than the unrealisable claims in VBC, being concerned with building Brigit’s cult outside of its original base in Leinster.89 Based on the advancing cult of Patrick in the seventh century and its possible influence on the writing of VPB, I would tentatively lean towards the later date for VPB, thus making VBC the earliest of the Brigidine Lives. While an agreement concerning the dating of VPB is still to be reached, even if this work was written in the eighth century rather than the seventh, it would still belong to the earliest stratum of hagiographical literature in Ireland. So, VPB can be validly considered to be a source for the same period 84 Howlett (1998), 21–22; McCarthy (2000), 280. On Ailerán and Ultán being among the sources of VPB, see McCone (1982), 135; S. Connolly (1989), 7. Also Esposito (1935), 136–137, 140, has ascribed VPB to Ailerán. In Esposito (1912), 319, he has, however, upheld the position that VBC is the earliest Life of Brigit, which means that VPB cannot be Ailerán’s work. 85 On this structural feature, see Picard (1985), 80. 86 VPB 45/47. See McCone (1982), 132–133; S. Connolly (1989), 7. 87 See VPB 58/60: Tu et ego aequales sumus. Patrick features also in VPB 40/40–41, 42/44, 55/57, 57/59, 60/62, and 61/63. Patrick’s disciples are mentioned in VPB 3/3, 20/18, 29/27, 30/29, 33/32, 38/37, 39/39, 40/40, 69/71, 85/85, and 86/86. 88 On the relations of Armagh and Kildare, see Charles-Edwards (2000), 416–440. Interestingly, Charles-Edwards does not mention VPB at all in this discussion, and throughout the whole book, he only mentions it briefly (see pp.198 and 49, n. 153); furthermore, VPB does not have an entry in the index, unlike VBC and Bethu Brigte. 89 See McCone (1982), 111, 122, 135–144; Maney (1994), 178–187. See also Stalmans (2003), 284–285, where she argues that VPB was written essentially for the members of Brigit’s community.

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of hagiographical activity as VBC and VC. As a consequence I will use it in this study as a source for the earliest period of hagiographical activity in Ireland. There is no modern edition of either VBC nor VPB, and thus scholars have to rely on the seventeenth-century editions in John Colgan’s Trias Thaumaturga and in Acta Sanctorum (February 1st).90 I have based my study primarily on the Trias text.91 There is a modern translation of VBC made by Sean Connolly and Jean-Michel Picard, on which the translations quoted in this work are based if not otherwise stated.92 Unfortunately, the authors do not provide information on which manuscripts form the basis of their translation, and in some places, their text diverges somewhat from that in the Trias Thaumaturga edition. For this reason I have numbered the episodes to take into account both the Latin text and the English translation. The first number supplied refers to the numbering of Connolly and Picard, which is the most commonly used, and the second to the Trias reference [e.g. VBC 6 (English) / 7 (Latin)]. This same policy is also applied to the numeration of VPB, where the first number refers similarly to Connolly’s published English translation, and the second to the numeration of the Trias edition. The lack of modern editions may explain why there have been comparatively few full-length studies concerning the Lives of Brigit. In recent time, the published work has been mainly in the form of articles, focusing primarily on the relative chronology of the two Latin Lives, and on Brigit’s relationship with the pagan goddess bearing the same name.93 The Life of St Columba written by Adomnán (L&S 305, BHL 1886) is generally held to be the only one of the seventh-century Irish 90 Scholars have commented on this lack of modern edition for years, and a pending new edition by Connolly and Picard has been announced several times. See S. Connolly (1987), 5, 9; S. Connolly (1989), 5; S. Connolly (1995), 207. See also Esposito (1912), 307–308; Hughes (1972), 221; McCone (1982), 108; Sharpe (1991), 14 n. 44. 91 (VBC) Secunda vita S. Brigidae & (VPB) Tertia vita S. Brigidae, in Trias Thaumaturga, ed. John Colgan (Dublin 1997, facsimile repr. of the Louvain edition 1647). 92 Cogitosus’s Life of St Brigit, trans. S. Connolly & J-M. Picard, JRSAI, 117, (1987), pp.11–27. 93 On issues of chronology, see Esposito (1912); McCone (1982); Sharpe (1982); McCarthy (2000). On the saint’s relationship with the goddess, see Bray (1987); McCone (1991), 162–186; Bray (1992); Ó Catháin (1992); S.K. Walker, (1994); Harrington (2002), 63–68; McKenna (2002). For studies on other topics concerning Brigit and her Lives, see Bowen (1973/74); Ó Riain (1990); S. Connolly (1995); Auslander (2002). For a study of Brigit in the context of other Irish female saints, see Johnston (2002).

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hagiographical works that contains historically reliable information about its subject.94 VC was written by Adomnán, Columba’s ninth successor as the Abbot of Iona, during the last decade of the seventh century.95 VC has survived in the oldest hagiographical manuscript of Irish origin, written by Dorbbéne who died in Iona in 713.96 The principal audience of VC was probably the monks of the community of Iona at whose bidding the work was written.97 Nevertheless, Adomnán may well have also envisaged his work as having a wider audience, both in Ireland and beyond, particularly in Northumbria. Thus the apologies concerning the ‘words . . . in the poor Irish language’ in the first preface would be directed to the latter.98 His aim in regards to the Northumbrian audience seems to have been to remind them of their former patron and of the origins of their Christianity.99 It has been suggested that the writing of VC may be placed in the context of the controversy concerning the date of Easter between the northern Irish churches (including Iona) that were following their traditional calculations regarding the date of that festival, and the southern Irish and English churches that favoured the Roman manner of calculating the Easter date.100 Jean-Michel Picard has argued that at the time when VC was written, Iona’s decline had already began precisely owing to its position on the Easter controversy, and so the purpose of VC would have been to raise the morale in Columban 94 See for example Binchy (1962), 56: ‘With the luminous exception of Adamnán no biographer of an Irish saint can be regarded as a genuine historical witness.’ See also Shaw (1963), 195; Hughes (1972), 220; Doherty (1987), 12; Ó Cróinín (2005), 386. 95 Kenney (1929), 431; Hughes (1972), 222; Picard (1982), 166–167; Anderson & Anderson (1991), xlii; Sharpe (1995), 55. On the person of Adomnán, see O’Loughlin (2007), 1–8. 96 AU 713: Dorbeni kathedram Iae obtenuit, 7 .u. mensibus peractis in primatu .u. kl. Nouimbris die sabbati obiit. The manuscript in question is Generalia 1 held in the Stadtbibliothek of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. A slightly differing version is known from three manuscripts held in the British Library. See Brüning (1917), 216–220; Esposito (1937), 153–155; Anderson & Anderson (1991), liv–lv; Sharpe (1991), 10–11. 97 VC 1st pref.: Beati nostri patroni Christo sufragante uitam discripturus, fratrum flagitationibus obsecundare uolens . . . ‘Wishing to respond to the importunity of the brothers, with Christ’s favour I shall describe the life of our blessed patron . . .’ 98 VC 1st pref.: Et nec ob aliqua scoticae uilis uidelicet lingae . . . Translation by Sharpe. 99 See especially VC i.1 and ii.46. See Picard (1982), 173–176; Herbert (1988), 145–147; Sharpe (1991), 10–12; Sharpe (1995), 63–65. 100 On the Easter controversy, see Kenney (1929), 210–217; Hughes (1966), 103–110; Picard (1982), 164–166; Picard (1984), 66–69; Charles-Edwards (2000), 391–415; O’Loughlin (2000a), 76–77.

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monasteries and to demonstrate to rivals the greatness of Columba and his paruchia.101 Máire Herbert has also seen the writing of VC in the context of the Easter controversy, but she has argued that instead of declining, Iona was still enjoying the support of Columba’s and Adomnán’s kinsmen, the Uí Néill kings. Therefore Adomnán was not concerned with putting forward claims to status or property, as was the case in the contemporary works on Brigit and Patrick. Adomnán sought to demonstrate to the monastic followers of Columba that he continued to be a devotee of the saint, in spite of his adoption of the universal Roman Easter instead of the traditional Columban practice. In short, Adomnán sought to remind his community of the fact that Columba’s sanctity was not dependent on the specific observances which he followed, but on his holy way of life.102 Adomnán’s work is divided into three books; the first deals with prophecies, the second with miracles, and the third with supernatural manifestations.103 VC also includes two prefaces following the models of Sulpicius Severus’s Vita Martini (VM) and Athanasius’s Vita Antonii (VA), the latter known in the West through the Latin translation of Evagrius.104 Apart from these well-known Lives Adomnán drew on the Dialogi of Gregory the Great, and especially on the Vita Benedicti (VB), which forms Book ii of the Dialogi. His work also reflects borrowings from some of the works of Jerome, Constatinus’s Vita Germani, and the Gesta Silvestri, along with traces of some classical authors such as Vergil and Juvencus.105 VC has been edited with a translation by Alan Orr Anderson and Marjorie Ogilvie Anderson.106 Another translation of the text has been made by Richard Sharpe. If not otherwise stipulated the English translations quoted in this study are those of the Andersons (1991).107 Picard (1982), 171–177. Herbert (1988), 142–146. See also Herbert (2001), 334. Similar views have also been presented by Sharpe (1995), 63. 103 For discussion of this structure, see Charles-Edwards (1993), 66–67. 104 For discussion of the use of two prefaces and its models, see Picard (1985), 74–75; Picard (1996), 264–265. 105 See Brüning (1917), 241–255; Hughes (1972), 223; Picard (1985), 74–80; Herbert (1988), 137–138; Anderson & Anderson (1991), lxviii; Sharpe (1995), 57–59. For a list of books known to Adomnán based on the evidence of his own writings, see O’Loughlin 2007, 246–9. 106 Originally published in 1961, and revised by M.O. Anderson in 1991. 107 For personal names featuring in VC, however, I follow the spelling used by Sharpe. 101 102

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Columba and his Vita have been much more widely studied than Brigit and her Lives. The main work on the topic is Herbert’s monograph on the Columban familia and its hagiography.108 Other studies deal, for example, with the physical features of the monastery of Iona, Adomnán’s theology and use of Scriptures, and the purpose and models of VC.109 In addition to these text-based studies, Iona has also been the subject of archeological study, unlike Kildare.110 To help to set the early Irish hagiographical texts in their theological context, I will consult a number of earlier texts, both texts from the common stock of Western Christendom and texts produced in Ireland itself. More specifically Adomnán’s hagiographical models included Evagrius’s Latin translation of VA written by Athanasius in the years following Antony’s death in 356 (translation written before 374), Sulpicius Severus’s VM written in the 390s, and VB, which forms part of Gregory the Great’s Dialogi written in the end of sixth century.111 As texts known to early Irish writers, and as influences on at least one of the Irish seventh-century hagiographers, these works will be used in tracing the background of the theological themes examined in this study. In addition to VA, I will also use two other texts from the same monastic environment, namely Historia monachorum, which was translated into Latin by Rufinus (c. 345–410) in the first decade of the fifth century, and Jerome’s (c.340–420) Vita Pauli which was written in the 370s.112 In dealing with theological concerns, moreover, I will also consult sources from genres that are more evidently theological. Among 108

Herbert (1988). The main collections of articles on Columban tradition provide a good overview of the range of topics. See Cormac Burke (ed.), (1997); Dauvit Broun & Thomas Owen Clancy (eds.), (1999); John Carey, Máire Herbert & Pádraig Ó Riain (eds.), (2001), 1–62. 110 See Barber (1981); McCormick (1997); O’Sullivan (1999), 215–243; Fisher (2001), 126–135. 111 The dates of Gregory the Great are ca.540–604, and he was the bishop of Rome 590–604. On Gregory the Great’s influence on Irish texts, see Smyth (1996), 26; Bracken (2002), 159–163. On Adomnán’s literary models, see Brüning (1917), 241–255; Hughes (1972), 223; Picard (1985), 74–80; Herbert (1988), 137–138; Anderson & Anderson (1991), lxviii; Sharpe (1995), 57–59; Picard (1996), 264–265. 112 Stancliffe (1992), 88, comments that at least Cogitosus must have known Jerome’s Vita Pauli. For evidence of this, she unfortunately only refers to her forthcoming book (p.88 n. 5), which is yet to be published. Knowledge of Vita Pauli is also reflected in Navigatio sancti Brendani, where St Brendan and his companions encounter Paul the Hermit living on an island, as well as in the Irish stone crosses. See Ó Carragáin (1988). 109

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the patristic Fathers, the most influential, at least in the West, was Augustine (ca. 354–430), whose moral writings will be widely used in this study.113 Another author who had a huge impact on Western monastic life was John Cassian (d. c. 435), and his Collationes and Institutiones are also used when tracing the theological themes in the writings of Irish monastic authors.114 I will also consult the works referred to as the Dialogi by both Sulpicius Severus and Gregory the Great, as well as Gregory the Great’s Moralia in Iob and Liber regulae pastoralis, to trace hagiographical and theological themes discussed by these authors.115 I will also take into account some Irish sources to find additional information on the use and prevalence of the same themes among the early medieval Irish authors. Saint Patrick’s writings, his Confessio (L&S 25, BHL 6492) and Epistola (L&S 26, BHL 6493) to the soldiers of the British prince, Coroticus, are the oldest known texts from Ireland, and thus they will be used to show how certain themes were already known and used in Ireland in the late fifth century.116 Other sources are the two late seventh-century works on Patrick, those of Tírechán (L&S 301, BHL 6496) and of Muirchú (L&S 303, BHL 6497), whenever they introduce some of the themes discussed in this study.117 Tírechán’s work, sometimes referred to as his Collectanea, resembles more a listing of churches founded by Patrick on his travels around Ireland than a traditional Life of a saint. This examination of churches, which are claimed to belong to Patrick, provided a foundation for 113 Augustine’s influence on Irish texts has not been widely studied, but McNamara (1989), 6 has for example noted that the text De mirabilibus sacrae Scripturae composed in Southern Ireland A.D. 655 is heavily dependent on Augustine’s writings. O’Loughlin has, furthermore, noted the influence of some texts of Augustine on Adomnán’s DLS, see O’Loughlin (1994a), 21; O’Loughlin (1994b), 47, 51; O’Loughlin (1997a), 38; O’Loughlin (1997b), 102. See also Smyth (1996), 23–25; Carey (1999), 45–51; Bracken (2002), 157–158. 114 Knowledge of Cassian in Ireland is indicated in the Amra, see the previous discussion in chapter 1.a. On Cassian’s influence in early medieval Ireland, see Ó Néill (1987), 207–208; McNamara (1998), 211–212; Stalmans (2003), 164–165. See also Chadwick (1950), 148. 115 In order to avoid confusion, these works will be abbreviated respectively as G.G.Dial. (Gregory the Great’s Dialogi), and S.S.Dial. (Sulpicius Severus’s Dialogi). 116 There are several editions and/or translations of these texts. In this study, I am using those of Howlett (1994). For an overview of and references to the discussion concerning the date of Patrick, see Binchy (1962), 7–38. See also McCone (1984), 47–49. 117 Both have been edited and translated in Bieler (1979), 62–167. There is also a new edition of Muirchú’s work by D. Howlett published in Dublin in 2006, but my references are to Bieler’s edition.

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Armagh’s claims for a paruchia reaching over almost all the island.118 Muirchú’s text, on the other hand, is a hagiographical work presenting Patrick as a heroic saint who converts the Irish. Muirchú emphasizes Patrick’s association with the kingship of Tara, as well as the saintly foundation of Armagh. Thus, Muirchú’s work reveals Armagh’s aspirations in recruiting and consolidating the Uí Néill patronage, and in claiming pre-eminence over other Irish churches.119 The writings of the Irish monk Columbanus (ca. 543–615) constitute an important source, owing to their diversity and extent. His works include epistles, sermons, poems, two monastic rules, and a penitential.120 Although the author made his career on the Continent, where he founded the famous monasteries of Luxeuil and Bobbio, he got his training in Ireland in the monastery of Bangor, and he may therefore be considered to be representative of Irish learning of the sixth century. I will start this study by questioning ‘what does holiness mean?’ In other words, if a saint is at the same time a holy person and the model of a perfect Christian, what does this mean in practice? What is the ideal towards which all Christians should strive in theory at least, if not always in practice? These questions will be covered in chapter 2. After this I will proceed to discuss virtues in chapter 3 and vices in chapter 4. The aim of these chapters is to map the types of behaviour that were deemed to be beneficial or harmful to Christians, and thus to ascertain the characteristics of the ideal and the failed Christian. In these chapters, women will be treated as a separate category from men. By doing this, I hope to reflect the divisions prevalent in early Irish society, and to likewise highlight the possible differences in the authors’ attitudes towards the different genders. Following similar reasoning, I will also treat laity and ecclesiastics separately. By differentiating between these different groups of people—namely ecclesiastics, laymen, and 118 Binchy (1962), 59–61; Bieler (1979), 36–40; McCone (1984), 31–32; Sharpe (1991), 13. 119 Binchy (1962), 59–60, 105; Hughes (1972), 231; Bieler (1974), 223; McCone (1984), 32–34; Charles-Edwards (2000), 416–440. 120 All of these have been edited with a translation in G.S.M. Walker (1957). For the life and career of Columbanus, see G.S.M. Walker (1957), ix–xxxiv; Bullough (1997), 1–28; Charles-Edwards (2000), 344–390. Walker’s canon of Columbanus’s writings have been challenged. Lapidge and Sharpe have, for example, omitted in L&S all of the sermons out of the collection of Columbanus’s writings and placed them under the title ‘Authors and works of possible or arguable Celtic origin’. See L&S 1251. Stancliffe (1997), 92–202, has, however, concluded, based on her study of the contents and style of the sermons, that the thirteen sermons are indeed the works of a same man, and that this man is Columbanus.

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women—I seek to determine the kinds of behaviour that were seen as being ideal for each and deeds that were considered their respective sins. Thus we can see if the same requirements of Christian living were applied to all, or if there were differences in the level of virtue expected from different groups of people. Chapters 5 and 6 will focus on the consequences of the good and bad actions of Christians. By looking at these consequences, that is, the rewards for good behaviour and the punishments for the bad, we can form a clearer picture of the actions deemed to be good and bad, and of their theological meaning in the history of salvation. The first area assessed is the consequences happening in this life. The first of these is penance, which is here understood as a way of avoiding some of the more unpleasant consequences hereafter, and thus as a central tenet of Christian living. Secondly, I will study the punishments and rewards encountered in this life. In the last chapter, I will examine the posthumous consequences of actions, starting with the good and bad deaths. These point towards the last theme, which is the posthumous destinies of souls, i.e. their assigment to heaven or hell, where the final rewards and punishments will be meted out. By studying all these subjects, I hope to form a picture of the right ordering of the Christian community as it was seen by three early medieval Irish authors. This division of chapters is intended first and foremost to reflect the division of the Christian community into the different categories of people, and secondly, to reflect the different stages in a person’s life. In brief, I aim to form a comprehensive picture of the different aspects of a good Christian life, and of its antithesis, the unChristian life.

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2. holiness as perfect christian life An explanation of holy Scripture teaches us how to attain virtue and persevere in it, whereas a description of miracles shows us how this acquired virtue reveals itself in those who persevere in it. Then, too, the lives of the saints are often more effective than mere instruction for inspiring us to love heaven as our home.1

As the perfect Christian, the saint represents the pinnacle of Christian virtues, and thus stands as a model for others to imitate.2 At the same time, however, as a holy person (s)he is to be admired more than imitated, since (s)he is set apart through holiness from normal human society.3 Such holiness places saints in a special category as persons dedicated to God.4 The Christian concept of holiness as articulated in the early Church is dominated by a clerical and monastic outlook, which finds its earliest expression in the acts of martyrs. The martyrs’ victory over death is translated as a victory over the world, and thus the Christian ideal of holiness has its roots in the idea of detachment from 1 G.G.Dial. i.1. Translation by Zimmerman. Parts of this chapter will be published in my article ‘Heavenly Apparitions and Heavenly Life in Adomnán’s Vita Columbae’ in Adomnán of Iona: Theologian, Lawmaker, Peacemaker, ed. J. Wooding Dublin (forthcoming). 2 Augustine writes that those who lived pious lives are to be honoured by imitation, De vera religione lv.108. See also Cassian, Coll. iii.4, xvii.2, and G.G.Dial. i, prol. 3 See G.G.Dial. i.1, where this distinction is made between admiration (veneranda sunt) and imitation (imitanda). 4 Cunningham (1993), 479–487.

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the world.5 By ascetical practices, the holy person is able to break free from the restraints of normal human existence, to transform his body into a temple in which the Spirit can dwell, and to attain an angelic state. The goal of a holy person is to recover man’s original state as far as possible in this life, thereby recovering the image of God within man and attaining unity with God after death.6 The aim of this chapter is to explore the ways in which this goal of sanctity is realized in the Lives under discussion.

2.a. Miracles of Heavenly Apparitions A saint’s close connection to heaven is visibly demonstrated by his or her miracles, which illustrate that God’s power is manifested in historical figures, who follow the example of patriarchs and apostles.7 The focus in this chapter is on the ‘vertical miracles’ of the saint.8 These are miracles that manifest the saint’s heavenly connections through heavenly apparitions such as angels and heavenly light. ‘Horizontal miracles’ imply the existence of the saint’s heavenly connections on the earthly plane by demonstrating his or her divinely derived thaumaturgical powers. Nevertheless, it is vertical miracles that clearly spell out the relationship between the saint and the heavenly sphere. Here, the object of the miracle is the saint himself, and the subject is the heavenly apparition. The main axis in the narrative is therefore that between the saint and the heavenly apparition, which reduces other characters to the role of witnesses. This marks the structural difference between vertical and horizontal (or ‘practical’) miracles. In the latter, the recipients of the miracle are humans whose lives are touched by its 5 See Augustine, CD xxii.9: ‘For the martyrs themselves were martyrs—that is, witnesses—to the faith, bringing upon themselves by their witness the greatest hostility and cruelty of the world, and conquering not by resisting it, but by dying.’ Translation by Dyson. 6 See Augustine, De vera religione xlv.88, and CD xi.26 on the call to perfect human nature as it was before man sinned. For the background of the Christian ideas concerning holiness, see Constable (1995a), 150–153; Sheldrake (1991), 60–63; Drijvers (1990), 144–147; Brown (1988), 242–274. For the theological understanding of holiness in early Irish context, see Ritari (2008), 264–291. 7 See G.G.Dial. iii.35: ‘It is edifying to see men working such miracles, for we gain a glimpse of the heavenly Jerusalem in its citizens here on earth.’ On the Christian understanding of miracles, see Remus (1990), 600–605. 8 On this term, see Stancliffe (1992), 94–96. See also Stalmans (2003), 183.

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positive or negative effects. Thus the effects of horizontal miracles are normally felt in a physical way involving, for example, healing, food provision, or punishment. In contrast, vertical miracles do not normally have such physical consequences. 2.a.1. Witnesses and Types of Apparitions The entire VC book iii deals with supernatural apparitions, such as angels, heavenly light and demonic presences.9 Here we see the importance of these apparitions within Adomnán’s vision of Columba’s holiness. In VC i.1, where Adomnán’s lists the miraculous powers of the saint, he states of his subject that sanctorum quoque angelorum dulces et suauissimas frequentationes luminosas habere meruit.10 It is apparently the saint’s holiness that makes him worthy to receive this great honour from God. In this respect, Columba is following in the footsteps of biblical figures, such as Abraham of whom Adomnán, in his other major work, De locis sanctis, cites the episode of his entertaining angels under an oak tree.11 There are twelve occasions in VC on which somebody witnesses the saint being accompanied by angels or heavenly light (table 1.1 below).12 Apart from the saint’s mother, all witnesses of heavenly apparitions come from a monastic or ecclesiastical background. However, the saint’s mother, especially when she is pregnant with the saint, can thought to be sharing some of the holiness of her progeny, and thus she cannot entirely be seen as a representative of laity in the text. This special character of the saint’s mother is further underlined by the fact that she is one of only two women who are named in the text, the other being a holy virgin named Mogain in VC ii.5. Besides, the angelic apparition comes to Columba’s mother in a dream, rather than her being awake. Furthermore, the VC episode wherein a holy person’s mother is visited by an angel may be influenced by the biblical precedent of Luke 1:26–38. The vision seen by the pregnant mother of the saint can therefore be 9 Picard (1985), 77, has concluded that book iii of VC has a twofold aim; first to show that Columba’s power emanates from a good source, and second to show that the saint is already part of the heavenly world although still alive. See also Picard (1981), 94–5; Borsje (1996), 95. 10 VC i.1: ‘He was held worthy to receive in shining light the sweet and most pleasant visitations of holy angels.’ The joy caused by presence of angels is also mentioned in VC iii.22, 23. 11 DLS ii.11. See also S.S.Dial. i.17, ii.13, where angelic visitations form an important part of the demonstration of a saint’s holiness. 12 There is a short discussion of the witnesses and the heavenly apparitions of VC in Borsje (1996), 109.

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interpreted as a special case, in view of her share in her son’s holiness and owing to the manner in which the vision is received. Tables 1.1. and 1.2. list the occasions of heavenly apparitions being witnessed by someone other than the saint. The type of apparition as well as the mode of seeing is listed. The apparitions directly seen by the witness instead of being seen in a dream or vision or only fleetingly are marked by ‘x’. Table 1.1 Witnesses of heavenly apparitions in VC Witness Saint’s mother Saint’s foster-father, priest Saint Brendan of Birr Saint Uinniau, bishop A spying brother Saint Brendan moccu Altae Fergnae, young monk Brother Colgu Pupil at Iona Saint’s attendant & other brothers Holy soldier of Christ Holy soldier of Christ & other fishers

Apparition Angel in a dream Ball of fire over sleeping boy Saint accompanied by angels and fiery pillar Saint accompanied by an angel Saint conferring with angels Column of light above saint Heavenly light

Directly seen

Chapter

X

iii.1 iii.2

X

iii.3

X

iii.4

X

iii.16

X

iii.17 iii.19

Heavenly light Heavenly brightness Angelic light

iii.20 iii.21 iii.23

Bright light of angels seen in vision Light & fiery pillar

iii.23 X

iii.23

Almost all of the heavenly apparitions in the Lives of Brigit occur in VPB. This is a marked difference between VPB and VBC that VBC does not include any clear vertical miracles, while VPB has some examples of them. Brigit’s sainthood in VBC is presented through her practical miracles, which mainly function as miracles of assistance.

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Table 1.2 Witnesses of heavenly apparitions in VPB Witness Holy man

Saint’s mother & others Saint’s mother & druid & others Druid & other man Holy Bishop Mel St Brigit and crowd King of the Laigin

Apparition Ball of fire above pregnant mother of saint House where saint is sleeping looking like it is on fire Cloth touching saint seeming to be in flames Column of fire above house Column of fire above saint Bright cloud Column of fire above saint in vision

Directly seen

Chapter

X

4/3

X

7/5

X

8/6

X

10/8

X

20/18

X

58/60 88/90

There is a notable lack of angels or supernatural visions in VBC.13 The only miracle which might be considered to involve heavenly light is that of the sunbeam which held the saint’s garment in VBC 6/7. Miracle-stories featuring heavenly apparitions in VPB are listed above (table 1.2).14 In addition, angels accompany and help the saint in two episodes in VPB, but in both cases, we do not have an independent witness. In VPB 87/87–88, the saint reveals to one of her nuns a warning received from an angel and she explains that angels are her constant companions. In VPB 122/125, although we are told that an angel of God assisted the saint, the source of knowledge concerning the angelic helper is not revealed in the narrative. This episode also occurs in VBC, where there is only fleeting mention of the saint 13 Most of Brigit’s miracles in VBC function to demonstrate her generosity and compassion. There is one miracle of punishment in VBC (episode 16/17 where cattle-robbers are swept away by a river) and even there, the saint is not present, and thus it is God and not the saint who punishes the robbers. 14 For miracles involving fire and their significance in Brigit’s Lives, see Bray (1992b).

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moving a tree ‘by the divine assistance of angelic power’.15 The witnesses of the heavenly apparitions in VPB include in some cases a crowd of people and therefore the witnesses seem to also include lay people besides the saint’s mother and ecclesiastics. In two cases, the witness is the druid who owns the saint and her mother. It is through these visions that he recognizes the holiness of the girl despite his own pagan allegiance. The main function of all these visions is to demonstrate the holiness of the saint which needs to be recognized by the audience in order to have any effect. The descriptions of the heavenly apparitions, especially those of a ball or a column of fire in VC and VPB, are verbally very close to each other: VC iii.2 globum . . . igneum . . . uidit VC iii.3 ignicomam et ualde luminosam . . . columnam uidi VC iii.17 quendam criniosum igneum globum et ualde luminosum de uertice sancti Columbae . . . ardentem et instar alicuius columnae . . . uidit VC iii.23 quaedam pergrandis ignea apparuit columna VPB 4/3 uidebat . . . globum igneum VPB 10/8 uidit columnam ignis ardentem consurgentem VPB 20/18 apparuit columna ignis de uertice Brigidae VPB 88/90 columna ignis ardebat de capite eius usque in coelum The model for the image of a fiery column can be found in Exodus where God goes before His people as a pillar of cloud by day and as a pillar of fire (columna ignis) by night.16 The episode closest to this image is VC iii.3, where the fiery column goes before the saint, thereby demonstrating that he is a person chosen by God, just as the people of Israel are a nation belonging to God. A similar principle is also expressed in VC iii.2 where the ball of fire seen above the sleeping boy is taken as a form of the Holy Spirit descending on the saint. The globe of fire also appears in Gregory the Great’s Dialogi where St Benedict sees the soul of Bishop Germanus being taken to heaven in a ball of fire (globum igneum . . . uidebat).17 These two forms of heavenly fire can occur together as demonstrated in VC iii.17 where it is said that 15 VBC 24/25. The reference to angelic assistance comes from the translation of Connolly. In the Trias-version of the text, it reads: Euangelicae uirtutes per diuina ministerio nullo mortalium auxilio leuantes, sine ulla difficultate ad locum, quem uoluit S. Brigidae, detulerunt. 16 Ex 13:21–22, 14:24, also Num 14:14 & Neh 9:12, 19. 17 G.G.Dial. ii.35, same episode repeated in G.G.Dial. iv.8

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saint Brendan moccu Altae quendam criniosum igneum globum et ualde luminosum de uertice sancti Columbae . . . tamdiu ardentem et instar alicuius columnae sursum ascendentem uidit.18 In VPB 121/124, the heavenly light is associated with Christ (sol iustitiae Christus) who did not leave any darkness wherever present. This association between the sun and Christ comes from John 8:12, where Jesus says that he is ‘the light of the world’ and that whoever follows him ‘will never walk in darkness’, and from Apocalypse 21:23, where it is said that the New Jerusalem does not need sun or moon since ‘the Lamb is its lamp’. The term sol iustitiae is futhermore taken from Malachi 4:2, where the ‘sun of righteousness’ is told to rise at the Day of Judgement.19 The image of bright and heavenly light is also related to the theme of resurrection as demonstrated in VC iii.23, where the saint after burial will rise again in luminosa et eaternali . . . claritudine. This image of heavenly light could have its background in the descriptions of the transfiguration in Matthew 17:2, Mark 9:2 and Luke 9:29, or in the image of light flashing from heaven at Saul’s conversion in Acts 9:3.20 However, the words caelestis claritudinis, used by Adomnán on several occasions, are most likely an echo of the heavenly light seen by the shepherds at the night of the Lord’s nativity in Luke 2:9. The words used in the Vulgate in this connection, et claritas Dei circumfulsit illos, are changed by Adomnán himself in his DLS ii.6 into caelestis circumfulsit claritudo, which in turn closely corresponds to the terms used in connection to the heavenly brightness seen surrounding saint Columba in VC.21 Another image that may recall the image of transfiguration is the bright cloud gleaming from a flash of lightning seen by Brigit and other listeners to St Patrick’s preaching in VPB 58/60.22 However, this vision could also recall the ‘immense cloud with flashing lightning and 18 VC iii.17: ‘. . . saw . . . a kind of fiery ball, radiant and very bright, that continued to glow from the head of Saint Columba . . . and to rise upwards like a column’. These episodes and their biblical models are also discussed in Bruce (2004), 141–2. Picard (1981), 95, has concluded that in general manifestations of divine light in hagiography ‘indicate the presence of the Divine Spirit’, but in the Irish context, they can also be understood as a literal interpretation of the divinatory ritual imbas forosna, ‘knowledge which illuminates’. 19 I wish to thank John Carey for pointing out the origin of this phrase to me. 20 See VC iii.19, 20, 21, 23. See also Act 22:6, 26:13. 21 VC iii.23: eum diuini luminis claritudo . . . circumfulserit; VC iii.21: caelestis splendore claritudinis erat repletum. See also VC 2nd pref., iii.11, 18, 19, 20. See O’Loughlin (1999), 10–11, for a discussion of similar appearances of heavenly brightness in Navigatio sancti Brendani. 22 VPB 58/60. Bright cloud enveloping the disciples in Mt 17:5, Mk 9:7 & Lk 9:34.

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surrounded by brilliant light’ seen by the prophet Ezekiel in a vision.23 In VPB 2/2 it is prophesied of the saint herself that sicut sol in uertice coeli lucebit in mundo.24 The words sicut sol used in the prophecy are a quotation from Matthew 13:43, where it is promised that the righteous will shine sicut sol in the Kingdom of God. Here it is implicit that the saint will be counted among the number of the blessed in heaven. 2.a.2. The Manner of Witnessing When we look at the manner of witnessing the heavenly apparitions, we find that only some witnesses see the miraculous apparitions properly in VC, while in VPB, practically all the witnesses see the apparitions directly with their own eyes. The only exception is the king in VPB 88/90, but he sees the column of fire in a vision, which can be taken as a privileged way of seeing and thus as being comparable to the apparitions seen directly with bodily eyes. Among those who see the apparitions directly in VC is Columba’s priestly foster-father, Cruithnechán, who sees a ball of light above the sleeping boy in VC iii.2. Two saints, both called Brendan, see the saint being accompanied by angels and by heavenly light or fire in VC iii.3 and 17. Columba’s teacher, Uinniau, sees an angel walking beside the saint in VC iii.4, and a soldier of Christ, a holy monk, sees miraculous light and a fiery pillar at the moment of Columba’s death in VC iii.23. In addition, an unnamed monk of Columba’s monastery in Iona witnesses the saint conferring with angels who quickly return to heaven as if sensing that they were being watched in VC iii.16. However, unlike other witnesses, this individual does not belong to priestly orders nor is a holy person himself. It is stressed that the spying brother transgressed the saint’s prohibition by following him. This brother was able to witness the heavenly sight with his bodily eyes, oculis enim corporalibus aspexerat, only because it was God’s will that Columba’s heavenly connections be known despite the saint’s reticence.25 23 Ez 1:4 : et uidi et ecce uentus turbinis ueniebat ab aquilone et nubes magna et ignis inuoluens et splendor in circuitu eius et de medio eius quasi species electri id est de medio ignis. VPB 58/60 tunc uiderunt nubem magnae claritatis descendentem de caelo in terram . . . coruscantem fulgure immenso. Cf. also G.G.Dial. iii.30 : in magna serenitate aeris super altare . . . nubes coelitus descendit. 24 VPB 2/2: ‘. . . will shine in the world like the sun in the vault of heaven’. 25 Cf. G.G.Dial. i.9: ‘. . . but that their holy deeds should be made public against their will, for the benefit of others’.

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In cases where the witnesses are holy persons themselves, the heavenly sights appear to them readily without any hindrance or danger. Moreover, one more person is presented as being capable of safely witnessing heavenly light. This is Columba’s foster-son and successor Baithéne, whose absence during the three days when the Holy Spirit visited the saint in the form of heavenly light is lamented by Columba.26 If Baithéne had been present, he could have written down the hidden mysteries revealed by the Holy Spirit according to the saint, thus implying that Baithéne would have been permitted in the hut filled with the heavenly light. We may deduce that the failure to record these mysteries in writing was divinely ordained, since Baithéne was prevented from returning to Iona in time by adverse winds, that is, by natural forces under God’s control.27 Apart from the saint’s mother who sees the angel in a dream in VC iii.1, other episodes mention that the witnesses do not see the heavenly manifestations directly. For instance a monk named Fergnae accidentally sees heavenly light accompanying the saint when praying in the church at night in VC iii.19, and is so frightened that he lowers his eyes in front of the light. Another monk, Colgu, sees heavenly light in VC iii.20 when praying alone at night, but the heavenly apparition quickly disappears before his eyes. Yet in another example a pupil at Iona spies on the saint, breaking the latter’s prohibition, and sees heavenly light through the key-hole of Columba’s hut in VC iii.21. But, this boy is so frightened that he flees immediately. Furthermore, the saint’s attendant Diormit and some other monks see heavenly light only from a distance, right before Columba’s death in VC iii.23. The last example of an aged holy man seeing the bright light of angels at the moment of the saint’s death in VC iii.23 is a borderline case, since he sees it in a vision, thus not technically with his bodily eyes. The danger of trying to see heavenly apparitions with one’s bodily eyes is underlined in VC iii.19 when the saint praises Fergnae for having lowered his eyes because otherwise he might have been blinded.28 The saint reproaches the spying pupil in VC iii.21, telling him that he might have dropped dead, or that his eyes might have been torn from their sockets 26 VC iii.18. O’Reilly (1997), 105, has come to the same conclusion concerning Baithéne’s share in Columba’s contemplative experiences. See also O’Reilly (1999), 196–9. 27 For miracles of wind controlled by God and the saint, see VC i.4, 5, ii.15, 34, 39, and 45. See also VC ii.42, where it is explicitly stated that the omnipotence of God controlled ‘the winds and all things’. 28 Cf. Ex 3:6, where Moses hides his face because he is afraid to look at the Lord in the burning bush.

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would the saint have not prayed for him. Furthermore, in VC iii.20, it is stressed that Colgu should not try to spy on the heavenly light that has not been granted to him (lumen quod tibi non est donatum). Moreover, in VC iii.19, Fergnae could not endure luminosa et inconparabilis effussio, just as nullus . . . meridianum solem rectis et inreuerberatis potest intueri oculis. This image of eyes being dazzled by the brightness of the midday sun could come from Augustine who writes that, si quis repente meridianum solem intueatur, repercussi oculi turbabuntur . . . malum est inordinatus aspectus, et ipsa quae consequitur perturbatio; quod malum non erit, cum oculi fuerint recreati, et lucem suam congruenter aspexerint. 29 Thus it is clear that the visions of heavenly brightness are only granted to those who can look at them without being dazzled, and those to whom seeing supernatural manifestations does not pose any danger.30 Yet not all ecclesiastics have the gift of seeing, as demonstrated in VC iii.3, and 17. Here it is Brendan of Birr and Brendan moccu Altae alone who see the heavenly apparitions accompanying Columba, while the other people present, in the first case the elders of a synod, and in the second case, the saints Comgall, Cainnech, and Cormac, cannot see these things, which the visionary afterwards discloses to them. There is one more group of heavenly visions, witnessed by the saint alone. These are the visions of souls being taken to heaven, or in some cases to hell.31 In these cases, the saint is the witness, while the soul of the recently dead person is the object of attention by supernatural beings. In one of the episodes concerning the posthumous destinies of souls, the saint stops suddenly and looks up to heaven in wonder. An accompanying monk asks the saint for an explanation of his action in VC iii.6, making it clear that only the saint could see the angels fighting in the air against demons for a soul. Moreover, in the description of Columba’s death in VC iii.23 it is explicitly stated that the saint alone was able to see 29 De vera religione xx.39: ‘Suppose one were suddenly to turn one’s eyes to look at the midday sun. The eyes would be dazzled and pained . . . Careless looking at the sun and the disturbance that is its consequence is evil. And there would be no evil if eyes had been practised and made fit to look at the light.’ Translation by Burleigh. For the same image see also Soliloquies I.xiii.23. 30 This observation is supported by John MacQueen (1989), 44, who has noted that in VC i.47, the saint does not reveal to Guaire the details concerning that man’s death, since as a layman, he was unfit to ‘have direct knowledge of a matter so closely involved in his salvation or damnation as death’, although the saint was willing to reveal similar information to clerics. For a discussion of these episodes from the point of view of spiritual instruction, see O’Reilly (1999), 199–210. 31 See VC iii.6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, and 14. These instances will be discussed in more detail in chapter 6.b.

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the angel coming for his soul. These cases where the saint sees souls being taken to heaven are probably modelled on Gregory the Great’s Dialogi.32 Gregory states that nam multi nostrorum mentis oculum fide pura et ubere oratione mundantes, egredientes e carne animos frequenter uiderunt.33 Thus the source of a human’s ability to see souls leaving the body lay in the purity and virtues of that person. In VPB, there does not seem to be any differentiation between the witnesses based on their moral purity or ecclesiastical standing. The visions are witnessed by laity and ecclesiastics alike, and even the pagan druid is a witness on two occasions. These visions do not seem to pose any danger for the witnesses either, and thus the theological complexity of VC is lacking in these episodes of VPB. Among other early Irish saints’ Lives, the idea of the moral purity of the witnesses is present in Muirchú’s VP I 28 (27), where the ability to share the vision of the saint is depicted as a test of the worthiness of the boy destined to be his successor. 2.a.3. Other Aspects of Superhuman Seeing The saint’s superhuman visionary ability also applies to apparitions that are said to come from the devil, as demonstrated by Adomnán when he writes the following in the beginning of his work: Daemonumque infestas ipse unus homo et innumeras contra se belligerantes cateruas occulis corporalibus uisas et incipientes mortiferos super eius cenubialem coetum inferre morbos . . .34 The saint’s ability to see hidden things is, of course, also evident through prophecy.35 In the words of Adomnán: inter ea miracula quae idem uir domini in carne mortali conuersans deo donante perficerat, ab See G.G.Dial. ii.34, ii.35, iv.8–11, and 16. See also Stalmans (2001), 42 ; Stancliffe (1992), 109. 33 G.G.Dial. iv.7: ‘. . . it was with spiritual vision, purified by acts of faith and abundant prayers that many of our people were able to observe souls leaving the body’. 34 VC i.1: ‘He, one man alone, with God’s aid repulsed innumerable hostile bands of demons making war against him, visible to his bodily eyes and preparing to inflict deadly diseases upon his community of monks.’ For episodes concerning demons, see VC ii.16, iii.6, 10, 13, 18. For discussion of Columba’s encounters with demons, see Stalmans (2003), 164–165. 35 On the aspect of prophecy in the portrayal of Columba, see MacQueen (1989). However, the author discusses the material in VC only from an anthropological and folkloristic point of view without paying any attention to the Christian and spiritual meaning of the theme of prophecy. See also Charles-Edwards (2000), 192–196, where he discusses Columba’s prophetic abilities of seeing and argues that this theme might have found special resonance among the Irish audience for whom prophecy would play a central role in the conceptions of the fili, ‘the seer’ or ‘learned poet’. 32

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annis iuuenilibus coepit etiam profetiae spiritu pollere, uentura praedicere, praesentibus absentia nuntiare, quia quamuis absens corpore praesens tamen spiritu longe acta peruidere poterat.36 The passage in which the different prophetic functions are listed is a direct quotation from Gregory the Great’s Dialogi, as has been noted by Gertrud Brüning.37 Yet Brüning only noted the similarity between the first half of Adomnán’s sentence and Gregory the Great’s Dialogues ii.11. What she fails to notice is that the words praesens . . . in spiritu is a quote from Gregory’s next chapter where the story about St Benedict’s prophetical abilities continues: VC i.1 quia quamuis absens corpore praesens tamen in spiritu

Dial. ii.12 Ipse autem protinus culpam pepercit perpendens quod in eius absentia ultra non faceret, quam praesentiam sibi esse in spiritu scirat.

In the preface of VC book iii, Adomnán explicitly states the principle of different levels of seeing: In hoc uero tertio, de angelicis apparationibus quae uel aliis de beato uiro, uel ipsi de aliis, reuelate sunt; et de his quae utroque quamlibet disparili modo, hoc est ipsi proprie et plenius, aliis uero inproprie et ex quadam parte, sunt manifestatae, hoc est extrinsecus et explorative, in hisdem tamen uel angelorum uel caelestis uisionibus lucis.38

Furthermore, he presents the image of the two ways of seeing in VC i.3 when describing how the saint was able to detect a boy approaching from behind, nam quod corporalibus occulis retro se actum intueri non potuit 36 VC i.1: ‘Along with the miracles that, by the gift of God, this man of Lord performed while he lived in mortal flesh, he began from his youthful years to be strong also in the spirit of prophecy; to foretell future events; to declare absent things to those present, because although absent in the body he was present in spirit, and able to observe what took place far away.’ Another episode in which the saint is present in spirit if not in body is VC i.37, in which the saint comes in spirit to meet and refresh his monks returning to the monastery weary after their day’s work. Cf. G.G.Dial. ii.22, in which saint Benedict comes to his monks in a dream since ‘the soul is far more agile than the body’. 37 G.G.Dial. ii.11: Coepit uero inter ista uir Dei prophetiae etiam spiritu pollere, uentura praedicare, praesentibus etiam absentia nuntiare. See Brüning (1917), 250. 38 VC iii, preface: ‘. . . in this third book, concerning angelic apparitions, that were revealed to others in relation to the blessed man, or to him in relation to others, and concerning those that were made visible to both, though in unequal measure (that is, to him directly and more fully, and to others indirectly and only in part, that is to say from without or by stealth), but in the same visions, either of angels, or of heavenly light.’

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spiritalibus perspexit.39 The source for the comparison of bodily and spiritual eyes could be Augustine, who presents it in Enchiridion 59.40 The theme of saintly vision is also present in VPB. In VPB 31/30, the saint makes the sign of the cross on the eyes of a holy virgin, thus enabling her to see what the saint saw, this being a demon sitting in a dish. In VPB 69/71, Brigit blesses the eyes of bishop Erc and of a boy of his household so that they too can see a battle fought far away. Brigit is also depicted as being accompanied by angels, which apparently are invisible to others.41 Moreover, in VPB 19/17, a connection is made between virginity and seeing with the inner eye. Thus Brigit is ready to relinquish her bodily eye to avoid a suitor, since this the loss is preferable to loss of the soul’s eye. Similar ideas concerning the visionary powers of the just are present in the Dialogi of Sulpicius Severus, where he relates how a globe of fire was seen above Saint Martin while he was offering the Mass. Sulpicius reveals that only one of the virgins, three of the presbyters, and three of the monks present were able to see the fiery globe, although there was a multitude present at the church at the time.42 Gregory the Great recounts in his Dialogi how the old enemy appeared to Benedict and his monks, but only the saint was able to see him face-to-face, while the monks could only hear and not see. Gregory also recounts how some people saw angels appearing at the death-bed of St Stephen, while others could not see them, but everybody was struck with fear.43 These episodes of Sulpicius Severus and Gregory the Great are probably among the hagiographical models for the episodes in VC and VPB. However, the idea of spiritual seeing is a theological theme often recurring in the writings of Saint Augustine. For him, the eye of the mind, or the eye of the heart, or the inner eye, has to be healthy and pure to see wisdom and to understand the deeper meaning of the Scriptures. In other words, the eye of the soul means intelligence, and right and perfect seeing signifies virtue. Since God cannot be seen with corporeal eyes, one needs spiritual eyes to see the truth. Only those eyes that have not been damaged by sin are able to behold God. Some 39 VC i.3: ‘. . . for what he could not with bodily eyes observe done behind his back, he discerned with spiritual sight’. 40 Enchridion 59: . . . non oculis corporeis sed spiritualibus uel mentibus ingerant. 41 VPB 87/88 and 122/125. 42 S.S.Dial. ii.2. Brüning (1917), 249, has noted verbal similarities between this episode and VC iii.17. See also Stancliffe (1983), 233–234. 43 G.G.Dial. ii.8, iv. 20. See also G.G.Dial. ii.25, iv.4, and 16. Cf. Act 9:7, where Saul’s companions hear a voice from heaven but do not see anyone.

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people are blessed with strong and vigorous mental vision that can be directed at truth itself, while most are smitten by the brightness of the light, and it is dangerous to show these what they do not yet have the power to see.44 Augustine explains this in De doctrina christiana saying: Quam ubi aspexerit, quantum potest, in longinqua radiantem, suique aspectus infirmitate sustinere se illam lucem non posse persenserit; in quinto gradu . . . purgat animam . . . ascendit in sextum gradum, ubi iam ipsum oculum purgat, quo uideri Deus potest, quantum potest ab iis qui huic saeculo moriuntur quantum possunt. Nam in tantum uident, in quantum moriuntur huic saeculo; in quantum autem huic uiuunt, non uident.45

These themes are also present in the writings of John Cassian, who writes in his Collationes that the atmosphere between heaven and earth is filled with thick crowds of spirits that cannot be seen with bodily eyes.46 In that same work, he also states that, by setting themselves apart from earthly and material things, and by going to the lofty mountain of solitude, monks will be able to attain purity and be able to see the glory of Christ’s face with the inner eye of the soul.47 In his Institutiones, Cassian also advises that, in order to acquire a knowledge of the Scriptures, one should not spend time reading commentaries but instead concentrate on purifying oneself from carnal vices: Sed nostro uitio uelamine peccatorum cordis oculos obnubente redduntur obscura, quibus rursum naturali redditis saniati, ipsa scripturarum sanctarum lectio ad contemplationem uerae scientiae abunde etiam sola sufficiat.48 44 For example, see Augustine, De utilitate credendi ii.4, xvi.34, xviii.36; De beata vita iv.35; Soliloquies I. vi. 12–13, I. xiii.23; De vera religione vii.13, xix.37, xxxii.59, xlix.97; De Genesi ad litteram xii.11; Confessiones VII.x.16, XIII.xviii.23; DDC i.24; CD x.15, xi.2, xi.27, xxii.19, xxii.29. For Augustine’s theory of the divine illumination of the intellect, see Knowles (1962), 37–41. 45 DDC ii.21–22: ‘When he [i.e. student of the divine scripture] beholds this light (as far as he is able to), shining as it does even into remote places, and realizes that because of the weakness of his vision he cannot bear its brilliance, he is at the fifth stage . . . and purifies his mind . . . he rises to the sixth stage, in which he now purifies the eye by which God may actually be seen—to the extent that he may be seen by those, who to the best of their ability, die to this world, and to the extent that they live in it they fail to see.’ Translation by Green. 46 Coll. viii.12. 47 Coll. x.6 48 Inst. v.34: ‘. . . rather they [i.e. the eyes of the heart] are made obscure by our vices, when the veil of our sinfulness clouds over the eyes of the heart. Once these latter have been restored to their natural healthfulness, the very reading of Holy Scripture—even by itself—will be more than sufficient for the contemplation of true knowledge.’ Translation by Ramsey.

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Gregory the Great also writes in his Liber regulae pastoralis that cum ad cognoscendam ueri luminis claritatem intellectus nostri aciem medicamine bonae operationis adiuuamus.49 This theme of wisdom not learned from books but received directly from heaven is demonstrated in practice in hagiography, when it is emphasized, for example, on the Lives of both Antony and Martin that their learning did not originate from books.50 This is clearly the theological framework for Adomnán’s outlook concerning heavenly apparitions and their revelation. Adomnán himself makes explicit the link between deeper understanding, heavenly light and moral purity when he states: Alio tempore cum sanctus uir in Hinba commaneret insula gratia sancti spiraminis super eum habunde et inconparabiliter effusa per tirduum mirabiliter mansit; ita ut per tris dies totidemque noctes intra obserratam et repletam caelesti claritudine domum manens nullum ad se accedere permitteret, neque manducans neque bibens. De qua uidelicet domu immensae claritatis radii per rimulas ualuarum et clauium foramina erumpetens noctu uisebantur. Carmina quoque quaedam spiritalia et ante inaudita decantari ab eo audiebantur. Sed et multa quaedam, ut ipse post coram paucis admodum professus est, occulta ab exordio mundi arcana aperte manifestata uidebat. Scripturarum quoque sacrarum obscura quaeque et difficillima plana et luce clarius aperta mundissimi cordis oculis patebant.51 49 LRP i.11: ‘. . . we aid the eye of our understanding for perceiving the clearness of the true light with the medicament of good conduct’. Translation by Davis. See also LRP iii.11. For discussion of Gregory the Great’s views of going beyond normal seeing in contemplation, see Leclerq, Vandenbroucke & Boyer (1968), 25–28. 50 VA 72(73)–73(74), VM xxv.6–8. See also Historia monachorum ii.5, and xiv.15. 51 VC iii.18: ‘At another time when the holy man was living in the island of Hinba, the grace of the Holy Spirit was poured out upon him abundantly and in an incomparable manner, and continued marvellously for the space of three days, so that for three days and as many nights, remaining within a house barred, and filled with heavenly light, he allowed no one to go to him, and he neither ate nor drank. From that house beams of immeasurable brightness were visible in the night, escaping through chinks of the doorleaves, and through the key-holes. And spiritual songs, unheard before, were being sung by him. Moreover, as he afterwards admitted in the presence of a very few men, he saw, openly revealed, many of the secret things that have been hidden since the world began. Also everything that in the sacred Scriptures is dark and most difficult became plain, and was shown more clearly than the day to the eyes of his purest heart.’ The eschatological images in this episode have been discussed in Bruce (2004), 142–4. See also VC iii.7, where it is stated that God revealed to Columba arcana ab aliis celata sacramenta ‘many secret mysteries, hidden from others’ and VC i.1 & i.43 where the saint sees the whole world in a ray of light. The ray of light -episode is a borrowing from G.G.Dial. ii.35, iv.8, as has been noted, for example, by Brüning (1917), 250, and Sharpe (1995), 305 n. 189.

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2.b. Heavenly Life on Earth VC iii.18 makes it clear that it is the saint’s purity that enables him to enjoy the grace of the Holy Spirit and that it is this grace that enables him to understand the deeper meaning of the holy Scriptures. Furthermore, it is noteworthy that the saint does not need to eat or drink during the three days and nights that the Holy Spirit stays with him. This reminds the reader of Augustine’s view that in its perfect state, as when in heaven, the body needs no nourishment.52 In addition, the spiritual songs, unheard before, being sung by the saint, may parallel the new song to be sung before the throne of heaven by blameless saints, who had kept themselves pure, according to the Apocalypse 14:3 (cantabant quasi canticum nouum).53 Augustine also states that it is the virgins who will be singing this song in heaven, while the married can only hear but not sing.54 Similarly Brigit is also able to hear coelestium sonos carminum, et spiritualis cantus organorum quotidie, thanks to an angel who accompanies her.55 From Adomnán’s account, we can conclude that the saint, during the three days when the Holy Spirit stays with him, was at some level able to reach the heavenly state of man, where all that is now hidden is made clear,56 where virgin saints can sing the heavenly song, and where the body is perfect and in need of nothing. In the aforementioned episode, Adomnán states that everything that was difficult in the sacred Scriptures plana et luce clarius aperta mundissimi cordis oculis patebant.57 This should be read against the 52 CD xiii.22; Confessiones X.xxxi.43. See VPB 42/44, where little nourishment is said to be enough, since the reading of the Holy Scriptures will make the saint and her company forget bodily food. See also S.S.Dial. i. 11 and 20, and Historia monachorum i.17,ii.9, vii.3, viii.6, 9, xi.5, xii.3–4,, xiii.4, 8, and xv.4, where the hermits survive on very little food in the desert and receive nourishment miraculously from angels. The same connection between not needing to eat and the paradisiacal state is made in Navigatio sancti Brendani, see O’Loughlin (1999), 11. 53 The spiritual songs are also discussed by Bruce (2004), 166–7, who makes a tentative connection between them and the pneumatic practice of ‘singing in tongues’. Bruce, however, fails to note the possible model of the new song in Apocalypse, although it would have fit well with the eschatological orientation of his argumentation. 54 De sancta virginitate 29. See also Gregory the Great, LRP iii.28. 55 VPB 87/88: ‘. . . daily the sounds of heavenly songs and spiritual melodies of instruments’. Translation mine. See also VC iii.23, in which the angels are singing when taking Columba’s soul to heaven. 56 VC iii.18. See Augustine, Enchiridion 94 ; De vera religione liii.103. 57 VC iii.18. On divine illumination in VC, see O’Reilly (1999), 160–7, 196–211.

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background of John Cassian’s writings, in which purity of heart is the monastic goal by which perfect understanding of the Scriptures may be attained.58 Athanasius also mentions purity of heart in his VA where he claims the saint’s purity of heart to be the enabling factor in his prophetical abilities.59 This connection between purity of heart and prophetical abilities is also present in VC ii.13 where the saint pronounces prophetical words de puro pectore. 2.b.1. Contemplation Cogitosus describes in VBC 17/18 how Brigit was engaged in contemplation ‘as was her practice, living heavenly life on earth’. These words, caelestem agens in terris uitam suum, ut solebat, may be a quote from the prologue of Historia monachorum (addition by Rufinus), uidimus enim apud eos multos patres caelestem uitam in terra positos agentes.60 The same idea is also expressed in the second preface to VC, quamuis in terra positus caelestibus se aptum moribus ostendebat.61 Contemplation as an aspect of saintly life is present in both VBC and VPB. In VPB 90/91 Brigit is praying so intently in an ecstasy of spirit (in mentis excessu Deo intenta) that she does not hear a great noise around her, and in VPB 91/92, she listens to God’s word being preached so intently that her mind is so intoxicated with it that she becomes oblivious to the present world (inebriata est mens eius uerbo Dei, et oblita est praesentia). Both Lives include an episode in which the saint’s mind is so absorbed in meditation upon heavenly things that she lets a dog go off with a piece of bacon.62 In another episode, Brigit is oblivious in her prayer to the fact that her chariot-horse had unyoked himself as she travelled.63 A king witnessing this event 58 Cassian, Coll. i.4 : destinatio uero nostra, id est, scopos, puritas est cordis. See also Coll. i.7, v.33, and Inst. v.33. On the concept of purity of heart in the writings of John Cassian, see Stewart (1998), 42–47. 59 VA 34(17): habeat purum cor. See also VA 82(51). See also G.G.Dial. iv.1, where the same words, cordis munditia, are used for purity of heart as in VC iii.18. 60 Historia monachorum, prologue: ‘We saw among them many fathers who while still on earth lived the life of heaven’. 61 VC 2nd pref.: ‘. . . he showed himself, though placed on earth, ready for the life of heaven’. 62 VBC 13/14: Dum enim haec animo esset intenta caelestium meditatione, ut semper solebat, suam de terrestibus ad caelestia eleuans conuersationem . . . ; VPB 105/107, Alia die S. Brigida suam mentem de terrestibus ad caelum eleuans . . . 63 VBC 17/18 (in meditation): cum in suo uehiculo meditatione theorica caelestem agens in terris uitam suum, ut solebat, Dominator emoraret; VPB 50/52 (listening to charioteer’s preaching): ille intentis auribus et animo curioso audirent . . .

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comments: dominumque solum animo intendit.64 This same theme is also present in VC iii.5, where the saint sees an angel one night in extasi mentis. The difference between the VC episode and the ones in the Brigidine Lives is that in the former the theme of the saint being so absorbed in meditation as to be oblivious to the present world is missing. The connection between contemplation and heavenly life is theologically based, since contemplation can be understood as a foretaste of heaven where the saints will be able to enjoy the vision of God constantly.65 This is a central theme for John Cassian. According to him this foretaste of heaven through contemplation is the object of a monk’s profession. Cassian writes: Huius ergo renuntiationis tertiae ueram perfectionem tunc merebimur obtinere, quando mens nostra, nullo carneae pinguedinis hebetata contagio, sed peritissimis elimationibus expolita ab omni affectu et qualitate terrena, per indesinentem diuinarum meditationem Scripturarum spiritalesque theorias, ad illa quae inuisibilia sunt eo usque transierit, ut circumdatam se fragilitate carnis ac situ corporis, supernis et incorporeis intenta, non sentiat; atque in huiusmodi rapiatur excessus, ut non solum nullas uoces auditu corporali recipiat, nec intuendis praetereuntium hominum imaginibus occupetur, sed ne adstantes quidem arborum moles et ingentes materias obiectas oculis carnis aspiciat.66

Also Augustine touches upon the subject of contemplation, when writing that one should seek stillness of thought that is free from space

VPB 50/52: ‘. . . her spirit is directed only on the Lord’. Translation mine. See Edel (2001), 73, where she discusses the Irish visions of heaven stating that heaven is ‘a state of contemplation and adoration’. 66 Coll. iii.7: ‘We shall deserve to attain to the true perfection of the third renunciation, therefore, when our mind is not dulled by any contact with fleshly coarseness. Once it has been planed by a careful filing, it will have passed over so far from every earthly affection and characteristic to those things which are invisible, thanks to ceaseless meditation on divine realities and to spiritual theoria, that, intent on supernal and incorporeal things, it will not feel that it is bowed down by the fragility of flesh, and by bodily location. Also, it will be seized by such an ecstasy that it will not only not hear any voices corporeally or be busied with seeing the images of present things but will not even to notice with the eyes of the flesh bulky items and looming objects that happen to be nearby.’ Translation by Ramsey. See also Coll. i.8, iii.6, ix.3; Inst. viii.18, x.3. See also Augustine, De vera religione xxxv.65 and CD xix.4. On the role of contemplation in Cassian’s monastic vision, see Stewart (1998), 47–54. 64 65

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and time.67 Like Brigit, Gregory the Great demonstrates the idea of transgressing the limits of the body by contemplation when he writes: quomodo ei labentia cuncta subter erant; quantum rebus omnibus quae uoluuntur eminebat; quod nulla nisi coelestia cogitare consueuerat; quod etiam retentus corpore, ipsa iam carnis claustra contemplatione transihat.68 2.b.2. Heavenly Joy and Harmony Augustine’s conception of heavenly life is reflected in his statement that: ordinatissima scilicet et concordissima societas fruendi Deo, et inuicem in Deo; quo cum uentum fuerit, non erit uita mortalis, sed plane certeque uitalis; nec corpus animale, quod dum corrumpitur, aggrauat animam, sed spirituale sine ulla indigentia, ex omni parte subditum uoluntati.69 The key concepts here are order and harmony in which everything would be in its rightful place as originally created, and humans would be able to enjoy God and each other without any conflicts between the body and soul. This is the perfect peace, which cannot be attained on this earth.70 However, the saints are able to enjoy a glimpse of this peace even while still living in their mortal bodies. In the second preface of VC, Adomnán lists the characteristics of his saint by using words borrowed from Actus Silvestri, Vita Martini and Vita Antoni.71 When he sets out his vision of the saintly qualities of Columba, Adomnán reveals his understanding of what holiness entails: 67 Augustine, De vera religione xxxv.65. See also CD xix.4, where he writes that ‘the less the soul is occupied with contemplation of God, the less it is subordinated to God’ and thus ‘the less subordinate is the body to the soul’, and Confessiones XIII.xviii.22, where he states that the delights of contemplation are a higher good than the good works of an active life. 68 G.G.Dial. i. prol.: ‘. . . all the fleeting things of time were in a world below me, and I could rise above the vanities of life. Heavenly thoughts would fill my mind, and while still held within the body I passed beyond its narrow confines in contemplation’. See also G.G.Dial. ii.3, and iv.49. 69 CD xix.17: ‘. . . a perfectly ordered and perfectly harmonious fellowship in the enjoyment of God, and of one another in God. When we have reached that peace, our life will no longer be a mortal one; rather, we shall then be fully and certainly alive. There will be no animal body to press down the soul by its corruption, but a spiritual body standing in need of nothing: a body subject in every part to the will.’ See also De fide et symbolo x.24. 70 See Augustine, De vera religione xxvii.50, De fide et symbolo x.21, Enchiridion 64, CD xiv.9, xv.26, xix.4, and Cassian, Inst. i.9 (in PL i.10). 71 See Brüning (1917), 247–248, 253.

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Qui et a puero christiano deditus tirocinio et sapientiae studiis, integritatem corporis et animae puritatem deo donante custodiens, quamuis in terra positus caelestibus se aptum moribus ostendebat. Erat enim aspectu angelicus sermone nitidus opera sanctus ingenio optimus consilio magnus . . . nullum etiam unius horea interuallum transpire poterat quo non aut orationi aut lectioni uel scriptioni uel etiam alicui operationi incumberet. Ieiunationum quoque et uigiliarum indefesis laborationibus sine ulla intermissione die noctuque ita occupatus ut supra humanam possibilitatem uniuscuiusque pondus specialis uideretur operas. Et inter haec omnibus carus hilarem semper faciem ostendens sanctam, spiritus sancti gaudio in intimis laetificabatur preacordiis.72

The last sentence reminds the reader of the paradisiacal, or even more aptly of the heavenly state, of man, where all are in harmony with each other and continually enjoying the presence of God.73 In this way, Adomnán makes it clear that the saint is able to have a foretaste of the blissful state of heaven, even when living on earth. Furthermore, the saint has superhuman strength in ascetic disciplines, such as fasting and continual vigils, and he is the perfect monk, always either praying, studying or working. In the chapter quoted above, Adomnán states that Columba was omnibus carus,74 while Cogitosus writes in VBC 12/13 that Brigit was ipsa omnibus affabilis . . . et faelix. The saints are living in harmony with their fellow men, thereby prefiguring the harmonious fellowship in heaven, and following Christ’s command to ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’75 Moreover, the joy of the Holy Spirit enjoyed by Columba in the same episode reminds readers of the angelic state VC 2nd pref.: ‘Since boyhood he had devoted himself to training in the Christian life and the study of wisdom, preserving with God’s help the integrity of body and purity of soul, he showed himself, though placed on earth, fit for the life of heaven. For he was angelic in appearance, refined in speech, holy in work, excellent in ability, great in counsel . . . he could not pass even the space of a single hour without applying himself to prayer, or to reading, or to writing or some kind of work. He was so occupied with unwearying labours of fasts and vigils without any intermission by day and by night, that the burden of even one seemed beyond human endurance. And with all this he was loving to everyone, his face ever showed holy gladness, and he was happy in his inmost heart with the joy of the Holy Spirit.’ Translation mine. 73 Bruce (2004), 164–6, has further discussion of joy in VC as an eschatological condition and a sign of the flowering of the faith. 74 VC 2nd pref., see also VC i.2, where it is mentioned that Baithéne was friendly towards strangers. 75 Mt 22:39, also Mk 12:31, Lk 10:27, see also Lev 19:18. See also Augustine’s CD xix.14, where this Golden Rule is discussed in detail. 72

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in heaven.76 It is also stated in Luke 20:36 that the elect will be aequales . . . angelis after resurrection, thus proving that the saints will be able the enjoy the same state as the angels already do.77 This angelic state is prefigured already in the mortal form of the saint, as demonstrated by Adomnán when he writes how the saint was aspectu angelicus, how he appeared to King Oswald in a vision in forma . . . angelica, and how the saint was greeted by the monks of Clonmacnoise quasi angelo domini.78 The saint’s supernatural ability of seeing, moreover, recalls the angelic state. This connection between angels and seeing is made by Augustine who paraphrases Paul to the effect that in our present state, we see ‘through a glass, darkly’, unlike the angels who already see ‘face to face’.79 The saint’s closeness to angels and to the angelic state is also present in VPB 87/88, where Brigit says that an angel always accompanies and assists her and that, furthermore, he is a source of joy to her every day, since thanks to him, she can hear the heavenly songs. Augustine writes in CD xix.9 that one of the sources of sadness which belong to this life is that angels do not mingle with us ‘on such familiar terms as men do’, thus indicating that the angelic company enjoyed by the saints is one of the signs that they are already living the heavenly life while on earth. 2.b.3. Bodily Integrity According to Adomnán, it is above all the integrity of the body and the purity of the soul that shows the saint to be ready for the perfected life in heaven.80 The concept of bodily integrity occurs in theological 76 VC 2nd pref. On the angelic state, see Augustine, CD xi.9, and on the heavenly concord CD xix.17. On the heavenly and angelic aspects of holiness in the Lives of the Desert Fathers, see Ward (1981), 36–37. 77 On this, see Augustine, CD xi.13 & Enchiridion 29. 78 VC 2nd pref., i.1, 3. See also VBC 26/27, where Brigit is greeted by a woman ‘as if she were Christ’. However, this reading is not reflected in the Trias –edition where the text reads: de faelici aduentu reuerendissima Brigidae uirginis Christi. The AASS–edition reads: de felici aduentu reuerendissimae Brigidae tamquam Christi. Cf. Gal 4:14: ‘you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God (sicut angelum Dei), as if I were Christ Jesus himself (sicut Christum Iesum)’. See also Historia monachorum prol.5, ii.1, iv.1, viii.19, and x.19 for monks resembling angels. See Bradshaw (1989), 10–12, for Irish saints transforming human society into an angelic state. 79 CD xxii.29, Augustine is here referring to 1 Cor 13:12. See also Confessiones XIII.xv.18. 80 VC 2nd pref. According to Adomnán, St Fintan had also preserved the integrity of his body and purity of soul, VC i.2.

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writing in connection with virginity. Augustine writes in his treatise, De sancta virginitate, that Mary serves as an example to holy virgins, having lived in imitation of heavenly life while in an earthly and mortal body. For Augustine, virginity and its enhancements, i.e. good morals and readiness to die for religion, angelicam uitam hominibus et caeli mores exhibent terris.81 Furthermore in CD, Augustine writes about man’s condition in paradise saying: sine ardoris illecebroso stimulo cum tranquillitate animi et corporis nulla corruptione integritatis infunderetur gremio maritus uxoris.82 The Irish monk Columbanus also writes in his Monastic Rule about integrity and the state of creation saying: Quae sunt igitur bona? Illa scilicet quae integra sunt ac incorrupta, sicut creata, permanserunt.83 Bodily integrity thus means virginity, but at the same time, it also refers to incorruption, to the paradisiacal state of man before the Fall, when the body was submissive in all its functions to the soul.84 Reaching this state is the goal of ascetic discipline as asserted by Augustine: ‘When they seem to persecute their own body by a kind of repression, and by hardships, their aim . . . is not to have no body at all but to have one that is subservient and ready for necessary tasks’.85 Besides being the paradisiacal state, bodily integrity is also the state of the body of Christ when he took mortal flesh,86 and moreover, it will also be the state of man after the resurrection, when ‘the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality’.87 81 De sancta virginitate 54: ‘. . . demonstrates the life of angels to men and the ways of heaven to the regions of earth’. See also De sancta virginitate 4 & 38, and on Mary’s bodily state, DDC i.29. 82 CD xiv.26: ‘. . . not needing to be aroused by the excitement of passion, the man would have poured his seed into his wife’s womb in tranquillity of mind and without any corruption of her body’s integrity’. See also CD xiv.21–24, xxii.24. 83 Columbanus, Regula monachorum viii: ‘What things then are good? Certainly those which are whole, and have remained uncorrupted as they were created.’ Translation mine. 84 See Augustine, De vera religione xi.22, xxiii.44, xl.77, xliv.82, De natura boni iv, vii, CD xiv.3. On the role of virginity and ascetic disciplines in the early Church, see Brown (1988), 242–274, and on virginity as integritas, see Brown (1988), 354. See also Drijvers (1990), 144–147. 85 DDC i.49. For Gregory the Great’s views on the conflict between body and soul, and the role of asceticism, see Straw (1988), 132–133. 86 Augustine, De natura boni xx : ‘The mortal flesh of our Lord did not see, i.e. suffer corruption.’ See also, Enchiridion 41, and CD x.24. 87 1 Cor 15:53: oportet enim corruptibile hoc induere incorruptelam et mortale hoc induere immortalitatem.

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For Brigit it is her virginity and purity alongside with her unwavering faith that give her miraculous powers.88 In VPB 11/10, Brigit’s purity is expressed clearly in the episode in which, as a girl, she rejects the impure food given by the druid, who thereby recognizes that she is full of the Holy Spirit and starts feeding her with the milk of a white cow set aside for this purpose. Kim McCone has interpreted this theme to mark the transition from paganism to Christianity.89 I would rather stress here the saint’s quality as a pure virgin whose diet underlines the fact that she does not belong to this world, but to the heavenly. Thus the opposition would rather be between the heavenly and the earthly than between Christian and pagan. As a holy person, Brigit is set apart from the normal human community by the food she eats, in order to preserve her purity. Preserving virginity is another way by which the saint secures her purity and sets herself apart from the human community based on familial relations. Her purity and the preservation of the paradisiacal order and incorruption is symbolized in the miracle that is connected with her taking off the veil in both VBC and VPB. When Brigit kneels to receive the veil and touches the wooden foot of the altar, it starts to flourish sine ulla putretudine et sine defectu (VPB 20/18) in order to commemorate her pristinae uirtutis (VBC 2/3). In Numericus 17 and 18:6–7, a wooden object that starts to flourish is presented as a sign of God’s election to special status. Brigit’s flourishing foot of the altar can be understood in a similar vein as a sign of God’s election. As a consequence Brigit’s status as a virgin can be seen as the female equivalent of the priestly role to which Aaron’s descendants are chosen when his staff starts to flourish in the Biblical episodes. 2.b.4. Foretaste of Heavenly Perfection The heavenly life of the saint means in Brigit’s case, the continuous contemplation of God, whereby she is able to transcend the limits of the visible world, entering the invisible. In this way she is able to free her mind from the body as far as is possible in this world, and to attain unity with God by focusing all her thoughts on that one single subject. Columba attained such a state by preserving bodily integrity and purity of soul, i.e. the paradisiacal state of man to which he was created 88 For example, see VBC 20/21: Et omnes admirantes quod factum fuerat, priuilegio sanctitatis et praerogativa multarum uirtutum semper pollentem maioribus gestis sanctam uenerati sunt Brigidam. See also VBC prol., 1/1–2, 3/4, 6/7, 23/24, and 24/25. 89 McCone (199), 174.

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and the state in which the body is submissive to the will.90 Thus, in both cases, the heavenly life that the saint leads while still on earth and in the mortal body means a foretaste of heavenly perfection. This image is fundamentally the same as that of Cassian, who writes: Haec igitur destinatio solitarii, haec debet esse omnis intentio, ut imaginem futurae beatitudinis in hoc corpore possidere mereatur, et quodammodo arrham coelestis illius conuersationis et gloriae incipiat in hoc uasculo praegustare. Hic, inquam, finis totius perfectionis est, ut eo usque extenuata mens ab omni situ carnali ad spiritalia quotidie sublimetur, donec omnis uolutatio cordis, una et jugis efficiatur oratio.91

According to Cassian, the way towards perfection then means turning one’s back on the present world and concentrating on the contemplation of God.92 In VPB 121/124, this same principle is stated by Saint Ita who, having asked Brigit to heal her eyes so that she might see the world again, then changes her mind, saying: iterum reclude oculos meos: quanto enim quis mundo absentior fuerit, tanto praesentior deo erit.93 This statement also recalls Augustine’s principle unde ipse homo Dei nomine consecratus, et Dei uotus, in quantum mundo moritur ut Deo uiuat, sacrificium est.94 The notion of dying to the world coalesces with that of sacrifice also in VC, where the pilgrim brothers who arrive in Iona offer themselves uiuam deo se ipsos exhibentes hostiam, when they give their monastic vows, and where a false penitent returns ad seculum, from the monastery, which indicates it to be a place set apart.95 90 On the body’s state after the resurrection, see Augustine, DDC i.52, and De vera religione xii.25. On the theme of restoration of the paradisiacal state of man in VC, see Stalmans (2003), 180–181. 91 Coll. x.7: ‘This, then, is the goal of the solitary, and this must be his whole intention—to deserve to possess the image of future blessedness in this body and as it were to begin to taste the pledge of that heavenly way of life and glory in this vessel. This, I say, is the end of all perfection—that the mind purged of every carnal desire may daily be elevated to spiritual things, until one’s whole way of life and all the yearnings of one’s heart become a single and continuous prayer.’ On contemplation and unceasing prayer in the writings of Cassian, see Stewart (1998), 100–113; Chadwick (1950), 101–105. 92 See Coll. iii.6–7, iv.19, ix.2–4, xiv.9. 93 VPB 121/124: ‘Close my eyes again, for the more one is absent from the world the more one is present to God’. 94 Augustine, CD x.6: ‘. . . a man who is consecrated in the name of God and pledged to God is himself a sacrifice insofar as he dies to the world so that he may live to God’. See also DDC ii.22, G.G.Dial. ii.16, and Columbanus, Instructiones viii.1. 95 VC i.32 (pilgrim brothers) ‘. . . as a living sacrifice to God’; VC i.21 (false penitent).

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2.b.5. Harmony with Nature In heaven, everything will be returned to its rightful place as in paradise, where man ruled ‘over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air and over every living creature that moves on the ground’.96 As a saint is able to recover to some extent the paradisiacal state of the first humans, while foreshadowing future bliss where everything will be made perfect, all nature becomes subject to him or her. This re-enactment of the paradisiacal order is evident in the control of Brigit and of Columba over birds and animals.97 This theme is more prominent in the Lives of Brigit, where animals repeatedly do the saint’s bidding, becoming tame and submissive.98 In both Brigidine Lives, an episode concerning a wild boar which joins the saint’s flock of pigs concludes: quod et bruta animalia et baestiae sermonibus et uoluntati eius resistere non poterat, sed et domita et subiecta sibi famulabantur.99 It is clear that these animals act contrary to their nature as indeed Cogitosus had previously observed about a dog which did not touch the bacon it had stolen contra suum solitum morem.100 All of Adomnán’s examples of 96 Gen 1:28. See Augustine, CD xix.13: ‘The peace of all things lies in the tranquillity of order; and order is the disposition of equal and unequal things in such a way as to give to each its proper place’, and CD xx.26: ‘As far as the absence of sin is concerned, therefore, it is clear that the time after the last judgement can be compared only to that time when the first human beings lived in Paradise before the transgression . . .’ 97 On the Irish and Christian background of the animal miracles in Irish saints’ Lives, and the connection between sanctity and fertility, see Lord (1995). On recapturing the paradisiacal state of man in the Lives of the desert saints as seen by their power over animals, see Ward (1981), 43–44; Elliott (1987), 131–167; Burton-Christie (1993), 213–235, especially 231–233. 98 See VBC 15/16, 18/19, 20/21, 21/22; VPB 27/26, 50/51, 73/74, 78/79, 105/107, 107/109, 124/127, 125/128, and 126/129. For hagiographical models of animals becoming tame in the presence of the saint, see for example Vita Pauli 16, G.G.Dial. iii.15, and S.S.Dial. i.14–15. See especially S.S.Dial. i.13, where the ideal harmony between the saint and the creation is well demonstrated when it is recounted how a hermit had a flourishing garden with an abundance of vegetables in the desert, and furthermore, there were nearby palm-trees producing fruits which were growing within easy reach in the lower branches thanks to God’s perfect plan, and finally, a lion accepted fruits from the hermit’s hand as tamely as any domestic animal. 99 VBC 18/19: ‘. . . so that even brute animals and beasts were unable to resist her words and her will, but served her tamely and submissively’. Translation mine. VPB 107/109 repeats this almost verbatim: quia et bruta alia et bestiae sermonibus et uoluntati eius resistere non poterant; sed domita et subiecta, placita sibi seruitute, ut uoluit, famulabantur. On the verbal similarity between VBC and VPB in this episode, see McCone (1982), 130–131. 100 VBC 13/14. For the same episode, see also VPB 105/107.

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animals obeying the commands of the saint concern large beasts,101 but these also are under God’s power, as Baithéne observes of a huge whale in VC i.19. Furthermore, Adomnán follows Augustine’s reasoning when he states that only men have rational souls, while the animals are ‘brute and unreasoning’, but still under the power of the Creator.102 Hence, miracles of animals obeying the saint contrary to their nature remind the audience, not only of God’s ultimate power over all the creation, but also of the paradisiacal harmony between man and the natural world. 2.b.6. Imperfection of Earthly Life Although saints are angelic in aspect and lead a heavenly life while on earth, they still are living in a mortal body and under the mortal condition of man.103 This is the one limitation of human life that even saints are not able to transcend. This is evident when Adomnán tells how Columba was so infirm with old age that he had to be taken by cart to see the brothers at their work on the other side of the island.104 The imperfection of the mortal state is again evident in the way in which the saint awaits his death to be taken to heaven, his real home, where he can leave this mortal body behind.105 Cogitosus writes in VBC 32/36 in a similar way about the death of Brigit as being a liberation from the burden of the body, saying: secura sarcinam deiecit carnis VC ii.26, 27. On monstrous animals and their symbolism in VC, see Borsje (1996), 95–175. For discussion on saint Columba rendering snakes harmless and thus evoking paradisiacal peace, see O’Reilly (1997), 94–97. Bruce (2004), 115–126 has also discussed this episode and others relating to harmony with nature as an inbreaking of the new earth. See also Márkus (1999), 118–9. 102 VC iii.23 : Huic uero bruto et inrationali animanti . . . egresurum a se domnum manifeste reuelauit. See Augustine, CD v.11, xi.16 ; De libero arbitrio I.viii.18, II.vi.13 ; De vera religione xxix.53. See also Job 35:11: ‘who teaches more to us than to the beasts of the earth and makes us wiser than the birds of the air ?’ 103 On the mortal condition of man in Augustine’s writings, see Bonner (1986), 19–20. 104 VC iii.23. Cf. VA 91(58), where the saint’s ageing limbs begin to discomfort him, and where he longs to see heaven. 105 VC iii.22: Interea multis ante diebus a domino meo deuote postulaui, ut in fine tricensimi huius prasentis anni me de meo absolueret inculatu, et ad caelestem patriam ilico aduocaret. Et haec fuit mei cause laetaminis . . . Angelos enim sanctos de excelso uidi misos throno ad meam de carne animam obuios educendam, ‘Meanwhile, for many days past, I have earnestly requested of my Lord that at the end of this present thirtieth year he would release me from my residence, and at once call me to the heavenly country. And it was this that caused my gladness . . . for I saw holy angels sent from the high throne to meet and conduct my soul from the flesh.’ 101

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et Agnum Dei in celestibus mansionibus secuta est.106 This is a quote from Jerome’s Vita Pauli 12, which reads expedit tibi, sarcina carnis abiecta, Agnum sequi.107 The principle of heaven being the true home of a saint is expressed by Adomnán when he writes in VC iii.23 how the saint at his death de hac tediali perigrinatione ad caelestem patriam transmeantis.108 Seeing life as a pilgrimage towards the heavenly home is a common Christian theme expressed by Augustine on several occasions and repeated by Columbanus.109 It is only in heaven that a saint can exceed the limitations set by the mortal body and thereby attain the perfect peace in which the body and soul are in perfect harmony. This is the state for which man was originally created, as Augustine expresses on the subject of paradise: Nihil corruptionis in corpore uel ex corpore ullas molestias ullis eius sensibus ingerebat. Nullus intrinsecus morbus, nullus ictus metuebatur extrinsecus. Summa in carne sanitas, in anima tota tranquillitas.110 Augustine makes it clear that all infirmities are a consequence of the Fall, and so they are a sign of man’s mortal and imperfect state. Hence the statement by Augustine that man had no fear of disease in paradise can be contrasted with the observation by Adomnán that the saint hoped to die swiftly and with no preceding bodily distress, thus demonstrating that the saint was still under the mortal condition of man where bodily infirmities are a fact of life.111 The dichotomy between the body and soul is ever-present in the earthly life of a saint and it forms an important factor in the concept of holiness.112 This dichotomy is noted by Paul when he writes: ‘For 106 VBC 32/36: ‘. . . freed from care, she cast off the burden of the flesh and followed the lamb of God into the heavenly mansions’. 107 Vita Pauli 12: ‘. . . it is expedient for you to lay aside the burden of the flesh and to follow the lamb’. 108 VC iii.23: ‘. . . crossing over from this weary pilgrimage to the heavenly country’. Translation by Sharpe. 109 Augustine, CD i.29, xii.9, xv.6, xix.14 ; DDC i.8 ; Enchiridion 56 ; Columbanus, Instructiones iv.3, v.1, viii.2. 110 CD xiv.26: ‘There was no corruption in the body, or arising from the body, to bring any distress to any of his senses. There was no fear of disease from within or injury from without. He enjoyed supreme health of body, and entire tranquillity of soul.’ See also CD xiii.17, 20, xiv.15; De vera religione xv.29, xliv.82; De fide et symbolo x.23–24; Enchiridion 91. 111 VC iii.22, and 23. 112 The dichotomy between the two also features in VC ii.30, where the saint prays saying: animam mei ministratoris pii de huius carnis habitaculo me non auferas superstite, ‘while I live take not away from the habitation of this flesh the soul of my devoted servant’.

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the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the spirit and the spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not what you want.’113 This dichotomy is also well expressed by Patrick when he cites the ‘body of death’ and ‘inimical flesh’, and by Columbanus, who writes about ‘this prison of the body’.114 The saint is therefore a person who is able to resolve this dichotomy as far as it is possible in this world, and that is why his true home is heaven, for which he longs, and where he will be rewarded. 2.b.7. Death of Saint as a Birth to True Life Adomnán writes the following concerning Columba’s death: Quo tabernaculum corporis egreso facies rubens et mirum in modum angelica uisione exhilarita in tantum remansit, ut non quasi mortui sed dormientis uideretur uiuentis . . . Hic itaque nostro praedicabili uitae terminus fuit; ista meritorum exordia. Qui, secundum sententias scripturarum, aeternis comes triumphis patribus additus, apostolis et profetis consertus, numero aggregatus albatorum milium agnino in sanguine suas sanctorum qui lauerunt stolas, agnum ductorem comitatur; uirgo immaculatus, ab omni integer labe, ipso domino nostro Iesu Christo dignante . . . corporis egreso facies rubens et mirum in modum angelica uisione exhilarita in tantum remansit, ut non quasi mortui sed dormientis uideretur uiuentis . . . Hic itaque nostro praedicabili uitae terminus fuit; ista meritorum exordia. Qui, secundum sententias scripturarum, aeternis comes triumphis patribus additus, apostolis et profetis consertus, numero aggregatus albatorum milium agnino in sanguine suas sanctorum qui lauerunt stolas, agnum ductorem comitatur; uirgo immaculatus, ab omni integer labe, ipso domino nostro Iesu Christo dignante . . .115 Gal 5:17. See also CD xiii.13. Patrick, Conf. 44: quamdiu fuero in hoc corpore mortis . . . Sed caro inimica semper trahit ad mortem. The image of ‘body of death’ comes from Rom 7:24, which reads: quis me liberabit de corpore mortis huius. Columbanus, Instructiones iii.3: ut quamdiu homines sunt et in hoc corporis ergastulo constitute . . . 115 VC iii.23: ‘When that [i.e. the spirit] had left the tabernacle of the body, his face continued to be ruddy, and in a wonderful degree gladdened by the vision of angels, so much that it seemed like the face not of a dead man, but of a living sleeper . . . This was the end of our memorable patron’s life; those were the beginnings of his rewards. Being, in the language of the Scriptures, added to the fathers as a sharer in eternal triumphs, united to the apostles and prophets, and joined to the number of the thousands of white-robed saints who have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb, he attends the Lamb his leader; a virgin unstained, free from every flaw, by the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ himself . . .’ See also VC ii.32. For discussion of the use of Scriptures in VC iii.23 see O’Reilly (1997), 97–103. 113 114

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The white robes washed in the blood of the Lamb are an image from the Apocalypse 7:14, where they are worn by the blessed saints in heaven, thus showing that Columba should be counted among them.116 Moreover, the expression ‘tabernacle’ referring to the body is from 2 Peter 1:13, and it is repeatedly used by Gregory the Great in his Moralia in Iob.117 The episode concerning the death of Brigit in VPB similarly presents the saint among the heavenly ranks of patriarchs and prophets: tum autem Brigida migrauit de hac luce Kalend, Februarii, post uictoriam, inter choros patriarcharum, et prophetarum, atque apostolorum et Martyrium omniumque Sanctarum uirginum: et inter Angelorum, et Archangelorum agmina ad corona aeternas regni caelestis in Ierusalem caelestem, et ad regnum sine fine; ubi premia praestantur aeterna . . .118

The death of the saint as a release from the body and as a rebirth in a true home is also evident from the way the day of the saint’s death is referred to as dies natalis. Cogitosus uses such terminology in VBC 32/36 when writing about the feast of Brigit (ad solemnitatem natiuitatis s. Brigidae); Adomnán mentions the celebration of mass at the saint’s natal day in VC ii.45 (in tua celebrimus eclesia tui natalis misarum sollemnia) and also in relation to the day of saint Brendan’s death in VC iii.11 (Hodie enim natalis beati Brendini dies). These episodes concerning the deaths of the two saints make it clear that they are joined to the ranks of the patriarchs and prophets and other holy people among whom they truly belong. Their life on earth has been nothing but a short interlude after which they are taken to their true home in heaven where they will dwell forever. In other words, as holy people, they function as signs of the heavenly reality,

116 Apoc 7 :14 : et dixit illi domine mi tu scis et dixit mihi hii sunt qui veniunt de tribulatione magna et lauerunt stolas suas et dealbauerunt eas in sanguine agni. 117 2 Pet 1:13: in hoc tabernaculo. The expression tabernacle is used for the body also in Num 19:13. For Gregory the Great’s use of this image, see also, Mor. in Iob xii.liv.62, and xvi.xvi.21. 118 VPB 129/311: ‘Then Brigit departed on the first of February after victory among choirs of patriarchs and prophets and apostles and martyrs and all the holy virgins and among the ranks of angels and archangels to the eternal crown of the heavenly kingdom in the heavenly Jerusalem, and to the kingdom without end where everlasting rewards are bestowed . . .’ Translation mine. Alternative ending 129.2a is almost identical in the translation.

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and as beacons who show the way for others to follow by their virtues and faithfulness.119

2.c. Conclusions A saint’s supernatural powers are naturally evident in all of his or her miracles, but it is the vertical miracles involving angels and heavenly light that clearly spell out the relationship between a saint and the heavenly sphere. Of the three Lives considered in this study, this theme is most evident in VC, where the different levels of seeing connected to these supernatural manifestations clearly demonstrate the saint’s holiness in practice. It is Columba’s purity that enables the safe and direct seeing of the heavenly apparitions that are granted to him by God, while witnessing them puts other—less holy—persons in danger. In brief, the theme of saintly abilities of seeing demonstrates in practice that the saint as a holy person is closer to heaven than are others.120 In his Dialogi iv.1, Gregory the Great states the following concerning the postlapsarian state of Adam: illa coelestis patriae gaudia, quae prius contemplabatur, uidere non potuit. In paradiso quippe assueverat homo uerbis Dei perfrui, beatorum angelorum spiritibus cordis munditia et celsitudine uisionis interesse; sed postquam huc cecidit, ab illo quo implebatur mentis lumine recessit.121 From the foregoing discussion it is clear that this perfect state as enjoyed by Adam in paradise is being 119 See Augustine, De vera religione xxviii.51: ‘If any of the earthly people at any time had the merit of reaching the illumination of the inward man, he gave to the human race in his day his aid in showing it what that age required, hinting by prophecy what it was not opportune to show clearly. Such were the patriarchs and the prophets.’ Translation by Burleigh. See also G.G.Dial. ii.1, where the example of St Benedict is compared to a shining lamp that gives light to others. 120 The episodes featuring heavenly light in VC are rightly interpreted by Bruce as signs of the inbreaking of the eschatological kingdom of God on earth. He notes in passing the manner of witnessing these heavenly apparitions but fails to connect it explicitly to the idea of spiritual seeing, although he has a lengthy discussion of the latter in regard to Columba’s ability to see (and hear) in spirit, see Bruce (2004), 140–7, 173–5, 188–197, 230–2. 121 G.G.Dial.: ‘. . . he was no longer able to perceive the joys of heaven which had been the object of his contemplation before. In Paradise he habitually enjoyed converse with God and purity of heart and loftiness of vision mingled with holy, angelic spirits. After falling from that noble state he also lost the inner light which enlightened his mind.’

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recovered by the saints Columba and Brigit as far as is possible in this life. It is their purity that allows them to mingle with angels and to be enlightened with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and it is their contemplative powers that enable them to reach the heavenly reality in spirit, even if not in body. Furthermore, Columba’s mind is enlightened by the Holy Spirit so that he can perceive the deeper meaning of the Scriptures and know many hidden things. Therefore, the saint’s holiness in the Lives of Brigit and Columba means that his or her life can be perceived as a foretaste and prefiguration of life in heaven.122 In portraying the saint’s life as a foretaste of heaven, the Irish authors of the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba closely follow the sentiments of the Latin Fathers. This entails the saint’s harmony with nature, the supernatural abilities of seeing, and the angelic companions, which are all common hagiographical themes that occur, for example, in the Lives of Antony, Martin, and Benedict. These are, however, also common themes in theological discussions concerning the purity of the soul and virginity. The saintly faculty of seeing heavenly apparitions and perceiving the true light is a prominent theme both for Adomnán and Augustine. Both authors stress that the gift of seeing is not given to everyone, and that it is purity from sin that precedes the ability to see. Adomnán, moreover, mentions the saint’s bodily integrity, which is a theme discussed by Augustine in connection with virginity and the paradisiacal state of man. In the Brigidine Lives, the saint’s ability to live the heavenly life while on earth is portrayed through the emphasis on her contemplative powers, which allow her to inhabit a higher plane and to be oblivious to her surroundings in an ecstasy of spirit. By doing this, Brigit is achieving the goal of monastic life as envisioned by John Cassian.

122

On purity and heavenly life in Irish hagiography in general, see Ritari (2008), 269–279.

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3. virtues of good christians A man is made virtuous by regulating his soul according to the rules and guiding lights of the virtues . . .1 Virtue in the widest sense is any perfectly developed capacity of man’s spiritual soul, or the development itself. There can therefore be virtue, for example, in the domain of cognition: intellectual virtues. In the narrower sense, virtue is the power (ability, skill, facility) to realize moral good, and especially to do it joyfully and perseveringly even against inner and outer obstacles and at the cost of sacrifices.2

The virtues of good Christians are much the same as the virtues represented by the saints. At some level, the saints act as models of perfect Christians for all Christians, but at the same time, not everyone is expected to take the practice of these virtues to the same lengths. Since the saints embody Christian virtues, they are models to be admired, but their actions are not always to be imitated. Nonetheless, even if the ideal of a holy life was unattainable by the majority of believers, the presence of this ideal and the constant repetition of the motifs of a holy life, were themselves important aspects of religious education.3 According to Sulpicius Severus in his VM:

1

Augustine, De libero arbitrio II.xix.52. Translation by Burleigh. Rahner (1975b), 1794. 3 Gurevich (1988), 43; Heffernan (1988), 28–30; Noble & Head (1995), xvii–xviii. 2

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For these reasons I think it would be useful if I were to write a detailed record of the life of this most saintly man as an example to others in the future. It would serve to rouse the enthusiasm of its readers for the true wisdom, for heavenly military service and for divine heroism. In doing so we will also be pursuing our own advantage in such a way that we may expect not empty renown from our fellow men but an everlasting reward from God. For even if we ourselves have not lived in such a way as to be an example to others, we have at least made an effort to prevent a man who deserves to be imitated from remaining unknown.4

Following the same line of thought, Hippolyte Delehaye, writing in 1905, sums up his Legends of the Saints with the following words: The saints show forth every virtue in superhuman fashion—gentleness, mercy, forgiveness of wrongs, self-discipline, renunciation of one’s will: they make virtue attractive and ever invite Christians to seek it. Their life is indeed the concrete manifestation of the spirit of the Gospel; and in that it makes this sublime ideal a reality for us, like all poetry can claim a higher truth than history.5

The Christian virtues derive largely from the portrayal of the life of Christ as a man in the New Testament. According to Augustine: ‘His [i.e. Christ’s] whole life on earth as Man . . . was an education in morals’.6 Gregory the Great states in Dialogi i.9: ‘Every act of our Redeemer, performed through His human nature, was meant to be a pattern for our actions.’ The saints follow Christ in their virtues and way of life, and by doing this, they set an example for the rest of the Christendom to follow. Leading a virtuous life means obedience to God and thus perfecting man’s right relationship with God through 4 VM I. Translation by White. See also VA 55 (28): ‘Remember the deeds done by each of the saints, so that memory of their example will inspire your soul to virtue and restrain from vices’; Gregory of Tours (d.594), Life of the Fathers, Introduction: ‘I have recently discovered information about those who have been raised to heaven by the merit of their blessed conduct here below, and I thought that their way of life, which is known to us through reliable sources, could strengthen the church. Since the occasion presented itself, therefore, I did not want to postpone the relation of some of these things, because the life of the saint not only makes their aims clear, but also encourages the minds of the listeners to follow their example’; John Cassian, Collationes xvii.2: ‘Reason itself and the way of life of holy persons is effectively teaching us what is more beneficial for making progress in the spiritual life.’ 5 Delehaye (1998), 181. 6 De vera religione xvi.32. See also Augustine, De sancta virginitate 27: ‘son of man revealed in himself all that we must imitate’, and John Cassian, Coll. xi.13: ‘the Lord, in human form, who came . . . to offer a way of perfection and an example of virtue’.

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which one can merit the grace of God and salvation in the hereafter. This means that these virtues are not only a matter of this life, but have a much deeper soteriological significance. In being perfect examples of Christian living in this world, the saints also breach the thin line separating this world from the other, thereby offering a glimpse of heavenly life in this plane. Their virtues reflect the heavenly harmony between the just soul and God, and their miraculous powers are tangible proofs of the power of God. The virtues of the saints and their power to do miracles are intertwined as is indicated by the use of the same word, virtus, for both.

3.a. Virtues of Saints More otherworldly aspects of sainthood were discussed in chapter 2. The discussion of the saint’s virtues in this chapter focuses on the practical actions that can be emulated by Christians. Thus the focus will be on the saint’s exemplary character as the ‘perfect Christian’ whose actions exemplify the virtues that all Christians should strive for. 3.a.1. Charity and Compassion The main virtue that is underlined in both of the earliest Lives of Brigit is her charity.7 One third of the episodes in VBC deal with the saint’s generosity and hospitality, while the proportion is approximately twenty percent in VPB.8 Brigit is generous to a saintly extent because her generosity is helped by her thaumaturgical powers, but the virtue of generosity itself is easily imitated by lay people. It is the attitude of the saint towards the poor and needy that can be imitated, while her miraculous powers can only be admired by Christians. The majority of the instances of her offering to the needy in VBC and VPB have to do with food (either in the form of foodstuff or cattle), thus providing an attainable model for lay people, and especially for lay 7 Stalmans (2003), 279, has also noted that in VPB, Brigit functions as a model of human compassion and charity. 8 In VBC, I counted 11 out of the 32 episodes as dealing with the saint’s generosity, while in VPB 27 out of the 129 (131 in the Trias –version) episodes dealt with this subject. VBC 1/2, 3/4, 5/6, 7/8, 8/9, 10/11, 14/15, 15/16, 27/28, 28/29, 29/30, and VPB 14/13, 16/15, 17/15, 18/16, 21/19, 23/21, 28/26, 32/31, 33/32, 35/34, 44/46, 47/49, 48/50, 51/53, 53/55, 78/79, 82/82, 87/89, 99/101, 101/103, 102/104, 104/106, 106/108, 111/114, 115/118, 119/122, 127/130.

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women.9 Nathalie Stalmans has argued that Brigit’s charity in VBP functions as a model for the members of her community, while Clare Stancliffe has ascribed the high number of helping miracles in the Brigidine Lives to Kildare’s interest in promoting pilgrimage.10 I would see them rather in the context of edifying Christians—including the laity—concerning the right attitude people should have in their dealings with each other, and especially towards those in need. When Brigit demonstrates the virtue of generosity from a young age by distributing everything she has to the poor, her actions resemble those of saint Boniface who, according to Gregory the Great’s Dialogi, starts already in his childhood to distribute even the clothes he is wearing to those in need.11 Both saints encounter opposition from their parents; Brigit’s father contemplated selling her because of the many thefts she was committing, while Boniface’s mother frequently rebuked him by telling him that iustum non esset ut ipse inops pauperibus uestimenta largiretur.12 Brigit’s father is furious when the saint has given away a valuable sword belonging to him, while Boniface’s mother becomes frantic when the saint has donated almost all the family’s wheat to the poor. Both parents have a change of heart eventually, and consequently see the value in their children’s saintly actions. In VBC 1/2, it is stated that the saint distributed goods to the poor obaudire magis uolens Deo quam hominibus, thereby demonstrating that the saint followed a higher rule in her generosity than dictated by normal human conventions. Similarly in the abovementioned episodes of VPB and Dialogi, where the saints act against parental wishes, they follow Christ’s example and exhortation in Matthew 19:21 to be perfect and give all their possessions to the poor.13 An explicit biblical context for Brigit’s actions is furthermore stated in VBC 28/29, 9 VBC 1/2 (butter), 3/4 (bacon), 5/6 (milk), 7/8 (sheep), 8/9 (ale), 10/11 (salt), 14/15 (meat), 15/16 (cow & calf ), and 29/30 (honey). Only 27/28 (silver vessel) and 28/29 (bishop’s vestments) have nothing to do with food. VPB 14/13 (meat), 16/15 (butter), 17/15 (food), 21/19 (bread and bacon), 23/21 & 28/26 (beer), 32/31 (apples), 47/49 (banquet), 51/53 (cow & calf ), 78/79 (cow), 82/82 (meal), 87/89 (water), 99/101 (milk), 101/103 (sheep), 102/104 (beer), 104/106 (salt), 106/108 (meat), 119/122 (butter & bacon), and 127/139 (honey). See also VPB 18/16 (sword), 33/32 & 35/34 (chariot), 44/46 (girdle), 48/59 (chain), 53/55 (spear), 111/114 (vestments), and 115/118 (tunic). 10 Stalmans (2003), 284–285; Stancliffe (1992), 98. 11 VBC 1/2; VPB 16/15, 18/16; G.G.Dial. i.9 12 VPB 18/16; G.G.Dial. i.9: ‘. . . . it was not right to give his garments to the poor when he himself was in need’. 13 See also VA 2(2).

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where her generosity is likened to that of Job.14 Thus we can see Brigit, in her Lives, as the embodiment of the virtue of generosity, who demonstrates in practice how to follow such biblical exhortations as those of Matthew 19:21, 25:34–40, Mark 10:21, and Luke 3:11, 12:33. Brigit illustrates the right attitude of Christians towards their fellow men. In her two Lives, Brigit is praised for being affable towards everyone and for demonstrating compassion (misericordia) towards the less fortunate.15 In addition to inspiring her generosity, this attitude also inspires other acts of assistance, such as helping the burdened to carry their loads or saving people from danger.16 This altruistic attitude, which demonstrates itself in practical actions, is recommended by Augustine when he writes in CD ix.5: And what is compassion (misericordia) but a kind of fellow feeling in our hearts for the misery of another which compels us to help if we can? This compassion is the servant of right reason when compassion is displayed in such a way as to preserve righteousness, as when alms are distributed to the needy or forgiveness extended to the penitent. Brigit’s attitude and actions also parallel those of Saint Martin, who is said in VM 2 to have behaved like a Christian even before his baptism, by supporting those in trouble, bringing help to the wretched, feeding the poor, clothing the naked, and keeping for himself only what he needed for food. The other virtues of Brigit that are mentioned in VBC include humility, self-restraint, chastity, and modesty, while VPB stresses her quality as the pure virgin who avoided secular marriage.17 Her chastity and modesty could also be held as models for all Christians to emulate in their lives. Brigit is also named in VBC as a wise administrator and as having a great authority in divine worship, which are perhaps her characteristics most specific to monasticism.18 The relationship between the saint’s virtues and actions is quite straightforward in the two Lives of Brigit. Her generosity, for example, is praised in the context of describing the miraculous outcomes of her 14 VBC 28/29: Secundum enim beatissimi Iob exemplum numquam inopes a se recedere sinu uacuo passa est, ‘After the example of the most blessed Job, she never allowed the poor to go away from her empty-handed.’ This could be a reference to Job 29:12–14 & 31:16–23. 15 See VBC 3/4, 12/13, 20/21; VPB 31/30, 54/56, 100/102, 101/103, and 125/128. On the theological definition of this attitude of love, see Rahner (1975b), 1796–1806. 16 VPB 54/56, 100/102, 125/128. 17 VBC 1/1, 2/3, 12/12, VPB 19–20/17–18. See chapter 3.d.2. for a discussion of virginity. 18 VBC pref. and 12/12, see also 23/24.

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generous actions.19 By contrast, the saint’s deeds in VC are more purely miraculous, and so they are not so easily imitated. Columba’s virtues are listed mainly in the second preface of the work, and the miracles ascribed to him are not used to illustrate exemplary virtues in the same way as are those of Brigit. Instead of Columba being held up as a straightforward model of behaviour that the laity could follow, he is rather presented in VC as a perfect monk and saint. In the second preface of VC, Columba is presented as the model of the perfect monk, who is devoted to the study of wisdom, occupied in fasts and vigils, all time busy with prayer, reading or writing, and preserving the integrity of his body and purity of his soul. Furthermore, he is the perfect saint, who is living a heavenly life while still on this earth. His face shows gladness because he is happy with the joy of the Holy Spirit, and true wisdom and hidden things are revealed to him as gifts of the Spirit.20 Since the virtues of Columba listed in the second preface of VC are focused on his monastic and saintly life, these cannot be seen as a straightforward model for the laity to follow. Although Columba’s virtues are not as clearly stated and praised as those of Brigit, we can still infer some of his virtues from his actions. In the second preface of VC, it is stated that Columba is omnibus carus, and he clearly demonstrates his compassion when comforting a Pictish family whose son had died, or when reassuring and refreshing his monks.21 There are also a few episodes where Columba’s actions are said to have been motivated by the pity (miseratio / misereo / conpatior) that he felt towards those who were suffering in either pain or poverty.22 The actions of both Columba and Brigit thus illustrate the love and mercy which should be shown towards fellow humans. In the New Testament, this is recommended as the guiding principle in all human relations. This principle is repeatedly stated in exhortations such as ‘Love your neighbour as yourself,’23 as well as in the parable of the Good Samaritan.24 Love and mercy are also present in VC when the saint asks the wizard Broichan to release an Irish slave-girl based on VBC 1/2, 14/15, 15/16, 28/29; VPB 18/16 Cf. VA 67(40). See also VC i.43, iii.18 about wisdom revealed to the saint, and i.49, where the saint is hailed as a verus profeta. 21 VC ii.32 and 37–39. See also VC ii.33. 22 VC ii.4, 31, 37, and 40. See also VC i.43, where the saint shows compassion. 23 Mt 22:39, Mk 12:31, and Lk 10:27. See also Lev 19:18, Mt 5:43, 19:19, Mk 12:33, Rom 13:9–10, Gal 5:14, and Jas 2:8. 24 Lk 10:25–37. On mercy, see also Mt 5:7, 23:23; Lk 15:20; Col 3;12; Jas 2:13. 19 20

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humanitatis miseratione, ‘human compassion’,25 that is, kindness that all men should show towards each other. Augustine writes about this brotherly love that should reign between men, stating that a man is of good will when he loves his neighbour as himself and naming this disposition as caritas in CD xiv.7. Augustine also writes that compassion is due to everybody,26 while Gregory the Great states that charity is the mother and guardian of all other virtues.27 The sixth-century Penitential of Finnian (L&S 598) gives witness of a similar thinking in an Irish context by exhorting us to have pity on all who are in need.28 3.a.2. Humility Columba’s humility is a recurring theme in his Life. The clearest indication of the saint’s humility is his wish to conceal his miracles.29 His humility is praised, for example, in VC ii.1, where as a young man, he attributes the miracle of turning water into wine not to himself, but to his teacher, Bishop Uinniau. The connection between humility and the saint’s command to conceal these mysteries is made explicit in VC iii.7, where it is said that he wished to avoid boasting (ut iactantiam deuitaret). Here Adomnán seems to be following Athanasius who states in VA 66(39) that Saint Antony did not reveal to brothers the vision seen by him, for he did not wish to boast (causa iactantia). Other possible models are Mark 9:9: ‘As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus gave them orders not to tell anyone what they had seen until the Son of Man had risen from the dead,’30 and VM 1: ‘He did not seek praise from men but wished to conceal all his virtues, as far as it lay in his control.’31 However, in the biblical examples, the motivation seems to involve the wish to avoid attracting crowds as much as humility. Yet there are such biblical statements as Matthew 23:12 ‘for whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted’. Both motivations are found in VC iii.7, and here two reasons are given for the saint’s reluctance to have his heavenly revelations revealed. The first reason is 25 VC ii.33. Translation mine. Anderson & Anderson have translated this ‘as an act of human kindness’, and Sharpe as ‘having pity on her as a fellow human being’. 26 DDC i.67–72. See also Augustine, Expositio 75, and CD xix.14. 27 LRP iii.9, also LRP iii.23. 28 Finnian 33 : omnibus qui sunt in necessitatibus constituti conpatiendum est nobis. 29 See VC i.43, iii.6, 16, 19, 20, 22, 23. 30 See also Mt 9:30, Mk 1:43–45, and Lk 5:14–15, where Jesus gives instructions to people he had healed saying: ‘see that you don’t tell this to anyone’ (Mk 1:44). 31 About Martin’s wish to keep his miracles secret in order to avoid boastfulness, see also S.S.Dial. ii.1, 4.

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to avoid boasting, and the second is to prevent unmanageable crowds from flocking to him, attracted by the renown of his miracles. The same principle concerning humility is also present in the Dialogi of Sulpicius Severus where it is illustrated by an anecdote of two boys who are punished by their abbot for publicly declaring a miracle concerning a snake.32 Similarly, Brigit is once reported to have asked her nuns not to reveal a miracle, but the reason for this prohibition is not spelled out.33 In the Brigidine Lives there does not seem to be any similar concern with attracting crowds of people to the monastery by the renown of the saint’s miracles, since it is repeatedly stated especially in VBC that the poor and needy flocked to the saint attracted by her fame.34 Adomnán mentions vainglory (uana gloria) twice in the context of humility, thus presenting the two being as in opposition to each other.35 Both John Cassian and Gregory the Great count vainglory (inanis gloria) among the main sins; Cassian especially warns the more advanced monks against being puffed up by their achievements.36 Augustine, furthermore, sets Christ as the model of humility,37 while Columbanus recommends humility to heal pride, envy, and vainglory.38 In VA 29(17), the contempt of vainglory is given as one of the characteristics of those who live rightly, and in VM 3, Sulpicius Severus writes about the young Martin: uir beatissimus non in gloriam est elatus humanam, sed bonitatem Dei in suo opere cognoscens.39 This means that Adomnán is in line with the patristic authors in stressing the saint’s humility in trying to hide his miracles in order to avoid vainglory and boasting.

3.b. Virtues of Ecclesiastics I will not differentiate here between the members of the clergy and the monks because in these encounters with the saint, they both represent 32

S.S.Dial. i.10. See also G.G.Dial. i.9, iii.17. VPB 96/98. 34 See VBC 10/11, 14/15, 15/16, 32/35. 35 VC i.43, 50. 36 Cassian: Inst. xi, Coll. v.7, Gregory the Great: Mor. in Iob xxxi.87–89. 37 De sancta virginitate 33, see also 31, and 38 38 Columbanus: Epistola ii.5. 39 VM 3: ‘. . . but this most blessed man was not puffed up with vainglory by the vision but saw God’s goodness in his own good deed’. See also VA 67(39): Numquam . . . aut humilitatem exerit in gloriam ‘. . . nor did he allow his humility to become puffed up into pride’. 33

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the Church as opposed to the lay people. Female religious will be discussed in the chapters dealing with the rest of women for two reasons. Firstly, it is more natural to discuss the relative merits of marriage and virginity in one and the same chapter, even though the women denoted as virgins might live in a monastic enviroment. Secondly, the difference between nuns and other types of religious women living in secular establishments with their families is not always very clear in the sources. Whereas the narrative of Cogitosus focuses mainly on the saint’s virtues and powers, with only minimal description of other characters, the authors of VPB and especially of VC use the minor characters extensively to exemplify different qualities and actions that are beneficial or harmful to Christian life. This helps us to form an image of the virtues especially recommended to certain groups of people, such as ecclesiastics, laymen, and women. Since the case of women will be discussed separately in the following chapter, the focus here will be on men, and reference will be made to women only in those cases where interesting comparisons or parallels can be made. 3.b.1. Prudence and Wisdom The first ecclesiastic, apart from the saint, to be praised in VC is the young saint Fintan, who parallels in his virtues those of Columba. In VC i.2, Fintan is said to have preserved the integrity of his body and soul (integritatem carnis et animae . . . custodiens) from boyhood, to have been devoted to the studies of divine wisdom (studiis dialis sofias deditus) and to have followed virtuous ways (bonis moribus regens) in his life. The saint’s successor, Baithéne, is described in the same episode as being holy and wise (uirum sanctum et sapientem), as well as being affable and accessible to strangers (affabilis et perigrinis appetibilis). This means that both Fintan and Baithéne closely resemble Columba in their respective virtues. The third ecclesiastic mentioned in the same episode, the priest Columb Crag, is described as being prudent and venerable (prudentissimum uenerandumque). Another ecclesiastic, whose growth in virtuous ways and virtues of the soul (bonisque moribus et animae uirtutibus . . . crescet) is predicted, is Ernéne in VC i.3. He is also to gain wisdom and prudence (sapientia . . . et prudentia). We are told that he later became well-regarded and famous throughout all the churches of Ireland in accordance with the saint’s prediction. Lugaid, the aged soldier of Christ who witnessed a vision on the night Columba died, in VC iii.23, is also described as being wise (sapiens), as well as being righteous

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(iustus). Bishop Crónán in VC i.44 is futhermore praised for having tried to hide his identity humbly (humiliter). Other examples include three monks in Iona who are described as men of good ability (bonae indolis iuuenis / homo),40 the saint’s foster-father priest, Cruithnechán, is described in VC iii.2 as spectabilis uitae uir, ‘a man of admirable life’, and a British monk in VC iii.6, the first to die in Iona, is depicted as being devoted to good works (bonis actibus intentus). The ecclesiastics in VC closely parallel the saint in their virtues and especially wisdom and prudence, the ability to distinguish between the right and wrong, seem to be virtues that are characteristic of ecclesiastics. 3.b.2. Obedience The obedience of monks is a recurring theme in VC, and so we can infer it to be central to the monastic virtues promoted by Adomnán.41 It is clearly illustrated in VC i.19 by the contrasting destinies of the monks in the story concerning the great whale, which frightens the monk Berach, who does not obey the saint’s advice, while Baithéne, who trusts the saint’s word, is saved from the danger. The rewards of obedience are also clearly demonstrated in VC i.31, where the saint foresees the death of the monk Cailtan. Columba commands him to come to Iona without delay, and when this is done the saint says: O Cailtane, bene fecisti ad me oboedienter festinando . . . Idcirco ad te inuitandum misi, amans amicum, ut hic mecum in uera finias oboedientia uitae cursum tuae.42 Subjection to the judgement of others as a central characteristic of monastic life is also indicated in VC iii.23. Here Adomnán describes how a soldier of Christ, Fergnae, sailed to Iona where he post multos in subiectione inter fraters inreprehensibiliter expletos annos.43 Furthermore, obedience is also praised in the episode concerning the exemplary penitent, Librán, who promises to follow the saint’s orders quamlibet durissima quamlibet indigna.44 Similar ideas VC ii.18, iii.6, and 19. For example, see VC i.2, 18, 32, 34, 41, 48, ii.27, iii.16. See also VC i.6, where a monk who had left his monastery without his abbot’s consent prevents Cormac from finding a place of retreat, thus indicating it to be a serious transgression. The theme of obedience in VC i.19 and ii.27 is briefly discussed in Borsje (1996), 164–166. MacDonald (1997), 27–28 has also noted that obedience is a constantly recurring theme in VC. 42 VC i.31: ‘You have done well Cailtan, in hastening to me obediently . . . As one that loves his friend, I have sent to invite you, so that here with me in true obedience you may end the course of your life’. 43 VC iii.23: ‘. . . completed irreproachably many years in subjection’. 44 VC ii.39: ‘. . . however harsh, however degrading’. Translation by Sharpe. 40

41

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concerning monastic obedience also feature largely in the Regula Monachorum of Columbanus, where he writes that nihil itaque recusandum est oboedientibus ueris Christi discipulis, quamuis durum et arduum sit.45 Cogitosus likewise treats obedience as a monastic virtue when, in the preface of VBC, he stresses his own obedience in writing the Life and presents an apology for his insufficient skills.46 In stressing the importance of monastic obedience, the authors are following many eminent predecessors. Sulpicius Severus, for example, praises the monks in the desert for living under the rule of an abbot, doing nothing of their own inclination, and thus keeping obedience as the first of virtues among them.47 Like Sulpicius Severus, John Cassian states that the virtue of obedience holds the first place among good qualities.48 Augustine also stresses the importance of obedience when he writes that man’s sin in paradise was disobedience, and that obedience is the mother of all virtues.49 Moreover, obedience is specifically a monastic virtue, since the monks were expected to follow the monastic rules and to submit in obedience to the judgement of their elders. The monastery of monks living in obedience is a microcosm, reflecting man’s right relationship to God and the heavenly order where obedience is given to God in everything. 3.b.3. Love and Respect The monastic virtue of brotherly love is present in VC iii.23, when the saint instructs his monks before his death ut inter uos motuam et non fictam habeatis caritatem cum pace.50 In addition, he instructs them to follow the example of the holy fathers. Peace and charity among the 45 Reg. Mon. i: ‘Thus nothing must be refused in their obedience by Christ’s true disciples, however hard and difficult it be.’Translation by Walker. 46 VBC pref.: . . . itaque iussionibus uestris coactus satis habeo meam non defuisse obedientiam, et ideo pauca de pluribus . . . ne inobedientiae crimen incurram, patefacere censeo, ‘So, constrained by your [i.e. the brethren’s] commands, I am satisfied that I have not been lacking in obedience, and therefore, lest I incur the charge of disobedience, I have conceived the idea of publishing a few of the many things . . .’. For a brief discussion of this, see S. Connolly (1987), 8. 47 S.S.Dial. i.10. 48 Inst. iv.30, see also Inst. iv.24 and Coll. i.10, 17–19. 49 De natura boni xxxv ; De bono coniugali 29–30; CD xiv.12. On Augustine’s views concerning disobedience as the first sin in the paradise, see Salisbury (1986), 285. 50 VC iii.23: ‘. . . that you shall have among yourselves mutual and unfeigned charity with peace’

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monks is highly regarded also by Columbanus, who recommends it in one of his letters.51 The virtuous ecclesiastics in VPB include the bishops Ibor and Brón who both show their respect to the saint and whose generosity and hospitality matches that of Brigit.52 The first is overjoyed at the saint’s arrival and he gives his only food to her, while the latter comes to the saint with gifts. In a similar fashion, some clerics come from a distance to bring gifts to Brigit in VPB 84/84. All these examples have to do with showing fitting generosity towards the saint and her community, thus revealing the appropriate relationship between other churches and that of Brigit. Furthermore, they strengthen the case for the central role of generosity in VPB. In VPB, an anchorite who avoided looking at the faces of women is praised as being totus Deo deuotus et perfectus.53 As a model anchorite, he resembles figures in the Dialogi of Sulpicius Severus, such as the anchorite who avoided all human contact, and a virgin who had withdrawn from the eyes of men.54 The anchorite’s actions also recall a maxim of John Cassian that a monk should by all means flee from women and bishops, since both bring disturbance with them.55 The anchorite also recalls Antony who lived for years in the desert in solitude, trying his best to avoid human contact, and the Egyptian hermit John of Lycopolis who had not laid eyes on a woman for forty years.56

3.c. Virtues of Laymen 3.c.1. Prudence, Wisdom, Humility and Faith In VC ii.37, the actions of the wife who does not trust in the powers of the saint are said to be not prudent (non quasi prudens). Furthermore, prudence is twice named as the virtue of certain ecclesiastics in VC.57 51 Epistola ii.5: omnes filii Dei ueram pacem et integram caritatem inter se inuicem habebunt. 52 VPB 52/54, 85/85. 53 VPB 72/73. 54 S.S.Dial. i.17 & ii.12. 55 Inst. xi.18. See also Historia monachorum i.36, where it is stated that ‘it is not in our interest to have our dwellings near inhabited places, or to associate with women’. 56 VA 14(13), 48–50(24), 84(53). Historia monachorum i.4. 57 VC i.2, 3.

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In VBC the leader of the monastery’s craftsmen advises his men wisely (prudenti) to trust the powers of the saint when encountering an insurmountable problem.58 These examples suggest that prudentia means good judgement, and especially good judgement in having faith in the saint’s powers. The connection between prudence and good judgement is reflected in Augustine’s definition of the virtue of prudence as tota uigilantia sua bona discernit a malis, ut in illis appetendis istisque uitandis nullus error obrepat.59 There are two laymen in VC who are referred to as sapiens, which Andersons translate as ‘a wise man’ and Sharpe as ‘scholar’ and ‘a learned man’ in the first instance, and as ‘wise’ in the second.60 These characters are exemplary penitents. Thus, taking into account the testimony of these two episodes together, I would lean towards the Andersons’ reading and interpret sapiens in both of these examples as meaning ‘wise’ in the sense of being sufficiently wise to admit sins, and to repent genuinely of them. There are two episodes in VPB that illustrate the virtue of humility in laymen. In both cases the protagonists are lepers whose destinies are diametrically opposed. One example involves a leper who is healed first and is then asked to help his fellow by washing him. The healed man refuses, starts boasting of his own condition, and accordingly is stricken with leprosy propter superbiam, while the second is healed propter humilitatem suam. In the second example, an arrogant and ungrateful (ingratus et superbus) leper is swept away by a river, while his humble fellow is rewarded by crossing the river safely, bringing with him a cow donated by the saint.61 Other praiseworthy actions of the laymen in VC include the pious services given to the saint and faith in the saint’s powers. The man whose devotion and services to the saint is praised is rewarded when the saint punished his oppressor in VC ii.22. In addition, believing VBC 31/32, 32/35. It is not quite clear whether the man is a monk or a layman attached to the monastery. He is named as praepositus (‘prior’ in the translation) in 31/32, and doctor et omnium praeuius artifex Hibernensium (‘master and leader of all Irish craftsmen’) in 32/35. In any case, what matters here is his prudence in trusting the powers of the saint. 59 CD xix.4: ‘. . . vigilance to distinguish good things from bad, so that no error shall creep in as we seek to pursue good and avoid evil’. See also Augustine, Expositio 49, where he defines prudentia as the wisdom to seek good and to avoid evil, and De libero arbitrio I.xiii.27, where he states that prudence is the knowledge of what is to be sought and what is to be avoided. 60 VC i.30, 50. Anderson & Anderson (1991), 57, 91; Sharpe (1995), 133, 152. 61 VPB 76/77 and 78/79. 58

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(credentes) lay people are rewarded by various kinds of healings in VC i.1 and ii.6, while in VBC 31/34, it is the faithful (de fidelibus) who are healed when touching the millstone by the door of the church. These could be references to the Gospel stories where faith (fides) is given on several occasions as the prerequisite for healing.62 The right relationship between human and God, leading to a virtuous life, is preached in VPB 63/65 by a deranged person who is running from place to place furore agitatus. This peculiar person preaches to the saint saying: Ama Deum, et amabunt te omnes: honora Deum, et honorabunt te omnes. Time Deum et timebunt te omnes.63 Thus if one lives by loving, honouring, and reverencing God, this also leads to harmony between the person and her or his fellow men. 3.c.2. Generosity and Charity In VPB, generosity is clearly illustrated as a virtue of lay people. The great majority of episodes featuring lay people relate their donations to the saint and to other generous acts.64 Their actions reflect Brigit’s own generosity or charity, which is a central theme in both VBC and VPB. Charity as a Christian virtue is applicable to all, whether ecclesiastics or laity. This can be seen as a demonstration of faith, and as a step towards creating an ideal Christian society where people would be merciful towards each other.65 Augustine, for example, clearly sees the role of charity thus when he comments on the biblical command to love one’s neighbour, saying si autem ista fides congregationem societatemque hominum non teneat, in qua fraterna charitas operetur, minus fructuosa est.66 Augustine also writes that compassion should be based See Mt 9:22, 29; Mk 10:52; Lk 17:19, 18:42. VPB 63/65: ‘Love God and everyone will love you. Honour God and everyone will honour you. Venerate God and everyone will venerate you.’ Translation mine. 64 See VPB 17/15, 33/32, 47/49, 53/55, 68/70, 70/71, 75/76, 96/98, 120/123, and 126/129 for generous acts of laity. For comparison, see other virtuous acts of people (in some cases technically pagans) VPB 17/15, 40/40, 120/123 (believing and being baptized), 59/61 (being a good person), and 75/76 (obeying the saint’s command). 65 On the thoughts of the Church Fathers concerning poverty and charity, see Mollat (1986), 20–53. On monastic hospitality and charity, see Mollat (1986), 45–49. On the caritas of women in early Ireland, see Bitel (1984), especially p.14. For Augustine’s and Gregory the Great’s views on charity, see Corcoran (1983); Straw (1988), 90–106. For the social implications of the opposite of generosity, avarice, see Newhauser (2000), 5, 88. 66 Augustine, De fide et symbolo x.21 : ‘. . . unless the Christian faith gather men together into a society in which brotherly love can operate, it remains less fruitful’. Translation by Burleigh. Augustine is here referring to Mt 22:39, Mk 12:31, and Lk 10:27. See also Gregory the Great, LRP iii.9 & 23, where it is stated that charity is the mother and guardian of all other virtues. 62 63

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on the awarness of our own infirmity, and that datum est res ipsa quam dat, but a fruit is bona et recta uoluntas datoris.67 The Penitential of Finnian, moreover, is specific in a practical way, since it states that money should be spent fruitfully on the poor and needy.68 This fruitful use of goods is demonstrated in a very literal way in VPB 32/31, where a woman refuses to let the apples she had given to Brigit to be donated to begging lepers. Because of the woman’s lack of charity towards the poor, the saint curses the woman’s apple trees saying ligna tua fructum non habebunt in aeternum. So, when the woman returns home, she finds her trees barren (sterilis).69 The consecutive and parallel episodes in VC ii.20 and 21 mention two poor but hospitable men who receive Columba joyfully as a guest for one night. Both are rewarded on the following morning by a blessing that increases the number of their cattle from five to a hundred and five, and their sons and grandsons are likewise blessed. In practice, this reflects an awarness of early Irish law, since the changes would have constituted a rise in honour-price and consequently, of social status, which after three generations would have been permanently recognized.70 Conversely, a niggardly rich man, who does not receive the saint as a guest, is doomed to lose all his property and to become a beggar.71 Similarly in VBC 26/27 a hospitable but poor woman is rewarded by the restoration of the goods that she had offered for the saint’s hospitality. Hospitality had important implications in early medieval Irish society, since it was the duty of clients to pay part of their food-rent while entertaining their lords in their own homes, and there was also a class called briugu, ‘a hospitaller’, whose duty it was to offer 67 Confessiones XIII.xxvi.41. See also Confessiones XIII.xvii.21. Augustine underlines the importance of the right disposition of the one giving to the needy, and the benefits of charitable actions to the giver instead of to the receiver. 68 Finnian 32 : Ecclesiastico dogmate egenis et pauperibus fenerandum est. 69 VPB 32/31: ‘. . . your trees will never bear fruit again’. On the connection between goodness and fertility in Irish saints’ Lives, see Lord (1995), 132–135. 70 See Críth Gablach line 335, where it is stated that three generations, those including the man himself, his son, and grandson, were needed for the recognition of the rank of aire désa (the lowest of noble grades). See also Jaski (2000), 40: ‘The commoner grades basically derive their honour-price from the number of cows they possess’, and Charles-Edwards (2000), 129–136, and 92: ‘The general principle was that it took three generations to raise oneself to a higher rank, and likewise three generations to lose rank.’ 71 VC ii.20. See Charles-Edwards (2000), 269, on the offence of rejecting hospitality in canonical texts.

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hospitality to all freemen.72 The native resonance of the theme of generosity has, for example, been discussed by Kim McCone. He has argued that the theme of hospitality in the Brigidine Lives is based on the cult of a mythical female hospitaller.73 Felim Ó Briain has also concluded that the food miracles in Irish vitae assume forms and details that are clearly borrowed from themes of inexhaustible cauldrons and magic wands that provided food.74 Although it is evident that hospitality has special significance in the Irish context, the authors of the Lives seem to be giving more Christian overtones to this concept.75 For instance the lone woman who uses her last resources to feed the saint in VBC 26/27 reminds us of the biblical example of a poor woman who gives her last coins to the temple treasury.76 The parallellism between the saint and the Church as receivers of alms is reflected in VPB 70/71. Here the saint is equated with the temple when some people donate to Brigit and Bishop Erc the alms that they had prepared for a church saying: accipite eleemosynam quam uobis misit Deus. Non enim habemus meliorem Ecclesiam quam uos.77 Adomnán states that the inhospitable rich man Christum in peregrinis hospitibus spreuit, the guests being in this instance the saint and his companions.78 Yet, it is not only the saint, but all needy persons, that can be seen to represent Christ. This means that Adomnán’s rejection of the niggardly rich man has to be read against the wider background of ideas about charity. Adomnán shows knowledge of Sulpicius Severus’s VM, and so he must have known of the famous miracle of 72 See Kelly (1988), 36–38, 139–140; Patterson (1991), 134–135; Charles-Edwards (2000), 525–527; Jaski (2000), 105–107. 73 McCone (1991), 162. Lerner (1994), 163, has followed along the same lines by seeing Brigit’s miracles of plenty in the pre-Christian context and concluding: ‘An older perceptual holdover is clear in the identity of St. Brigit as depicted in the Cogitosan Life, where the nature and food-oriented elements of her character seem very likely to harken back to the primal Irish goddess Bríg of pre-Christian times.’ 74 Ó Briain (1946), 333. 75 For a discussion of the theme of hospitality in Irish hagiography, see Bitel, (1990), 194–221. Her approach, however, can be questioned since she lumps together hagiographic accounts from different ages without much regard for their dating. Moreover, her focus is on the politics of hospitality, and thus she does not discuss the deeper meaning of the theme in a Christian context. 76 Lk 21:1–4, also Mk 12:42–44. 77 VPB 70/71: ‘Accept the alms which the Lord has sent you, for we do not have a better church than you.’ 78 VC ii.20: ‘. . . . spurned Christ in pilgrim guests . . .’ See also VC ii.22, where an evil-doer despises Christum in suis . . . seruis, when he scorns the saint.

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Saint Martin involving the divided cloak given to a beggar in VM 3.79 There Christ appears to Martin in a dream wearing the beggar’s half of his cape, thus demonstrating that the beggar represented Christ. Adomnán might also have in mind the biblical maxim in Matthew 25:40, ‘whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me’, which is also quoted by Sulpicius Severus in VM 3. This image is also attested by Augustine, who states in CD xxi.27: Qui ergo Christum diligit in Christiano, hoc animo ei porrigit eleemosynam quo accedit ad Christum.80 This overall image of charity and its value in Christian life is confirmed by Adomnán when he writes about the rich man who enjoyed God’s mercy on account of his generosity and mercy he had shown to the poor.81 This could be a reference to Matthew 5:7: ‘Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.’82 This indicates that charity is seen by Adomnán as being a central image in a truly Christian life, since it is a means of earning God’s mercy, and therefore a place in heaven, as also illustrated by the example in VC iii.9 of the smith whose charitable actions are rewarded in heaven. Cogitosus shares this vision concerning the central role of charity in Christian life. In VBC 28/29, Brigit is represented as donating a bishop’s vestments Christo in forma pauperum, and later she receives similar vestments a Christo, quem per pauperem induebat, recalling again the famous image of Saint Martin and his cape.83 This is the context for representation of the generosity of Saint Brigit in VBC, and thus all the episodes of her giving something to the needy have to be read as part of this theological vision.84 Her generosity is stressed in statements such as in VBC 14/15 quantum misericordiae et pietatis in pauperes, and when underlining how poor people and other needy flocked to her, attracted by her fame.85 The idea of guests and the poor representing Christ features also in VPB, where the saint is represented as stating in VPB 16/15 that omnis 79 On Adomnán’s use of VM, see Brüning (1917), 247–248; Picard (1996), 264–268, 271–273 80 CD xxi.27: ‘He, therefore, who loves Christ in the person of a Christian gives alms to that Christian in the spirit of one who draws near to Christ.’ 81 VC i.50: Uirum . . . . pro misericordiis pauperum et eius largitione dei comitatur misericordia. 82 Mt 5:7: beati misericordes quia ipsi misericordiam consequentur. 83 VBC 28/29: ‘. . . for the sake of Christ in the guise of the poor . . . from Christ whom she used to clothe in the person of the beggar’. 84 On this point, see S. Connolly (1987), 9. 85 VBC 10/11, 14/15, 15/16.

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hospes Christus est. Brigit also tells her father that she gave his royal sword to Christ when she had donated it to a poor man in VPB 18/16. Furthermore, in VPB 31/30, a devil commanded to speak by the saint answers that he could not spurn the command owing to the saint’s respect for God’s commands and her affability towards the poor and underpriviledged, which demonstrates that the saint’s charitable actions give her special powers over the demons.86 The value of almsgiving is also spelled out in various episodes in which lay people come to the saint with donations.87 The saint explicitly confirms the importance of alms-giving in VPB 32/31, where she says to a woman who did not want her apples to be divided among the lepers: male agis, prohibens eleemosynam dare.88 The right attitude, on the other hand, is demonstrated in VPB 53/55 by a king who gladly gives his spear to an arrogant leper at Brigit’s bidding, and who states that he would even give all his arms at once if the saint asked. Besides the poor, lepers constitute another group of needy persons in the Lives.89 In VBC, they are featured solely as being recipients of the saint’s generosity.90 In that Life, their function as needy people who ask material favours from the saint is the same as that of the poor. As a consequence, they are defined by their poverty rather than by their sickness, although one of them is specifically denoted as being sick. However, this occurs in the context in which Brigit’s generosity is further stressed when she even gives her chariot to the leper, besides the cow and calf he had demanded, so that he would not be wearied on the journey.91 Cogitosus obviously represents lepers and poor people as overlapping categories when he writes about the three lepers to whom the saint donated a silver vessel, since they are first named as lepers (tribus 86 See also VPB 41/43 on the saint’s effect on demons. See also VA 30(17), where practices that frighten Satan, including compassion, are listed. 87 VPB 33/32, 47/49, 68/70, 70/71, 96/98, 126/129. 88 VPB 32/31: ‘You are acting wrongly in refusing to give alms’. 89 Note that leprosy here does not need to refer to the actual illness but to skin diseases generally. On the connection between leprosy and the state of being poor, see Mollat (1986), 17–18. Bray (2001), 273, discusses briefly the theme of leprosy in Irish saints’ Lives, noting that the popularity of the motif is based on biblical models, and therefore cannot necessarily be taken as evidence of the prevalence of leprosy in early medieval Ireland. 90 VBC 8/9, 15/16, and 27/28. 91 VBC 15/16 : roganti infirmae . . . donauit. There is a parallel of this episode with some differences in VPB 51/53. There the leper’s demand is not presented as unreasonable, and the motivation for sending the charioteer with the man is his own request for help in driving the cow, not the saint’s abundant generosity and the man’s sickness.

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leprosis) and later, in the end of the episode, as poor (ipsi pauperes).92 A further indication that Cogitosus represents lepers as a general group of needy rather than as specifically sick, is the fact that there are no lepers among the people whom the saint heals, only a blind man and a dumb girl.93 In this respect, Cogitosus’s representation of lepers is different from that of the Gospels, where they feature in the context of healing, among other types of sick people, as in Matthew 10:8: ‘Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy (leprosos mundate), drive out demons.’94 Adomnán, on the other hand, follows biblical models more closely in his only mention of leprosy, since it figures in a list of diseases inflicted by a well that is venerated by the pagan Picts.95 In VPB, there are fourteen examples of lepers. In seven cases they are cured,96 while in six, they feature as recipients of the saint’s charity. In one case, they are neither cured nor helped.97 In short, in VPB lepers feature almost equally as sick people as well as needy receivers of the saint’s generosity. The representation of lepers follows most closely the Gospel models in the cases where lepers are mentioned among other sick, as in VPB 71/72: Tunc adduxerunt ad eam claudos; et leprosos, et daemoniacos et omnes infirmos; et in nomine Iesu Christi Brigida omnes illos sanauit.98 Lepers are not only cured (sanatus), but also more specifically cleansed (mundatus) in VPB as well as in the Gospels.99 The value of generosity is also highlighted in VC through the representation of its opposite, the sin of avarice. Among the four men who are guilty of avarice in VC, one is a leader, and one rich.100 The other 92 VBC 27/28. In Connolly’s translation, the last sentence reads: ‘And so, her sick poor departed with their gifts, rejoicing among themselves, without any grounds for grievance or envy,’ while the Trias -edition only says ipsi pauperes, not mentioning that they are sick in this sentence. 93 VBC 11/12, 12/13. 94 See also Mt 11:5: ‘The blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cured, the deaf here, the dead are raised, and the good news is preached to the poor.’ See also Mt 8:2–4, Mk 1:40–42, Lk 4:27, 5:12–14, 7:22, 17:11–19. See also VM 18, where Martin kisses a pitiable leper who is thereby cleansed from all signs of his affliction. 95 VC ii.11, aut lepri aut lusci aut etiam debiles. 96 VPB 23/22, 26/25, 36/35, 56/58, 71/72, 76/77, and 81/81. 97 Receivers of goods: VPB 32/31, 51/53, 53/55, 78–79/79, 87/89, and 102/104. Additionally in VPB 34/33, two quarrelling lepers are punished and finally repent. 98 VPB 71/72: ‘Thereupon they brought her the lame and the leprous and the possessed and all the sick and Brigit healed them all in the name of Jesus Christ.’ See also VPB 36/35. 99 VPB 26/25, 56/58, and 81/81. Cf. Mt 8:2–3, 10.8, Mk 1:40–41, Lk 4:27, 5:12–23, 7:22. 100 VC i.35 (leader) and ii.20 (rich).

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two are simply named in VC i.50 without giving details of their social status, but the context of their appearance suggests that they are likely to be men of property. The first man whose gift the saint immediately accepts is designated as being rich, and his generosity highlights the others’ lack of the virtue. He is an example of a rich man who uses his riches generously to help the poor. Adomnán sees avarice as a sin of rich people, who can overcome it by acting generously towards the poor. One example of the right use of riches is that of the charitable ironsmith in VC iii.9, who used all his earnings in alms for the needy, and who was taken to heaven because of his righteousness. This image of a rich man who reached heaven because of his generosity could be a reversal of the parable of the rich man and Lazarus in the New Testament.101 This demonstrates that riches are not a hindrance in leading a good Christian life and in earning a place in heaven, as long as they are well used, according to the Christian principle of charity. Here Adomnán seems to follow many early Christian authors, such as Clement of Alexandria, Basil the Great, John Chrysostom, Ambrose of Milan, and Augustine who, according to Newhauser, did not demand the kind of extreme Scriptural rejection of wealth such as we see in Matthew 19:21 and 1 Timothy 6:10.102 Rather, they saw wealth as neutral, in itself, and its moral value depending on its use.103 The author of VPB seems to agree with Adomnán in this respect, since he also gives an example of the right use of riches. There is an example in VPB 44/46 of a maiden who received a miraculous girdle from the saint. This maiden consequently became wealthy because of the gifts she received from the people healed by the girdle, but she used the acquired wealth well by giving to the poor.

3.d. Virtues of Women Men generally represent the norm in early medieval sources, and that also seems to be largely true of the earliest hagiographical sources of Ireland. Commenting on the Irish sources, Lisa M. Bitel has stated: Lk 16:19–31. Mt 19:21: ‘If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven’, and 1 Tim 6:10: ‘For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.’ 103 See Newhauser (2000), 10–12, 23–27, 38–41, 70–73, 88–91. See also Corcoran (1983), 72–74. 101 102

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These sources [i.e. ecclesiastical canons, cána, penitentials, secular laws, and hagiography], like all written material produced by the intellectual elite of the medieval west, take as their norm the free, adult, Christian male, generally the aristocrat. All references to people such as the unfree, the pre-adult, the non-Christian, or the female, are made either in relation to the norm, as anomalies, or by coincidence.104

This tendency to take men as the basic unit is clearly demonstrated by the way a wife and children are depicted in VC as appendages of a man, for example, plebicula cum mulieribus et paruulis, homo plebeus . . . cum uxore et filiis, maritus cum marita liberisque.105 Mentioning a wife and children along with a man is quite natural, since together they form the family unit, but the context seems to indicate that man was considered as the expected norm, which makes it necessary to mention women and children additionally.106 However, the Lives of Brigit present a slightly alternative picture, since the main character of the narrative, the saint, is a female herself, although as a saint she does not represent the average woman in all her aspects. Early medieval Irish women have mainly been studied from the viewpoint of legislation, with consequent focus on their duties and rights as members of the society and as inferiors to men.107 There have also been some studies focusing especially on religious women and on their status.108 As some aspects of the depictions of women in the earliest Lives of Columba and Brigit have already been discussed in previous studies, my aim in this chapter is to focus on the relationship between the two saints and women in order to set the representations of women in their hagiographical context. The main aim of this chapter and of chapter 4.C, however, is to discuss the positive and negative models of behaviour presented by this group of Christians. By treating women in separate chapters, I hope to form a more integrated Bitel (1984), 6. VC i.20, ii.20, 32. See also VC i.28, 46, ii.37, and VBC 20/21. 106 Women and children are additionally mentioned in this sense, for example, in Mt 14:21, where Jesus feeds 5000 men, besides women and children, with five loaves of bread and two fish (manducantium autem fuit numerus quinque milia uirorum exceptis mulieribus et paruulis), see also Mt 15:38. 107 See Mulchrone (1936); Ó Corráin (1978); McAll (1980); Ó Corráin (1985); Jaski (1996). See also Edel (2001), 35–50, for a discussion of women in law and literature. 108 Bitel (1984); Bitel (1986); Lerner (1994); Ní Dhonnchadha (1994–5); Borsje (2001); Harrington (2002). 104 105

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view of hagiographical representations of their specific sins and virtues. I also hope to reflect on the way that the role of women is conceptualized as being distinct from that of men. Thus, my aim is to study the ideological constructs concerning women as well as the practical exemplary value of the episodes where they feature, rather than to draw conclusions about the practicalities of the real lives of women in early medieval Ireland.109 I will start by discussing the roles of women in the Lives before proceeding to their virtues, in order to form a better picture of the ways in which women are portrayed in the Lives and the types of roles they play in the narrative. Some of the topics discussed here, such as marriage, also concern men, but it is women who feature predominantly in connection with these topics rather than men. Virginity is a further example of a topic that should concern men alike, but in the sources in question, here it is always women who are designated as virgins.110 Thus, it is appropriate to discuss virginity and marriage in the chapter dedicated to women, although the ideals of virginity and chaste marriage apply to men alike. 3.d.1. Roles of Women in the Lives The only women to be named in VC are the saint’s mother, Eithne, in the second preface and the holy virgin Mogain in VC ii.5. Among the named women in VBC we find only the mother of the saint, Broicsech, in VBC 1/2 besides Saint Brigit herself. However, Cogitosus treats most of his characters, whether male or female, as nameless archetypes, naming only Bishops Conlaed and Mac Caille, the saint’s parents Dubhtach and Broicsech, and the strong man, Lugaid.111 VPB has the greatest number of women in the text, and thus it is not surprising to also find the greatest density of named women. Besides the saint’s mother, Broicsech, we have another holy virgin Brigit, Saint Laisre and Saint Ita, the saint’s pupil Darlugdach, and a virgin 109 For this kind of approach, see Smith (1998), especially 68–69, for the application of this kind of approach to women in hagiography. 110 The treatises concerning virginity are generally occupied with women, for example, see Augustine’s De sancta virginitate. Cassian is an exception, since his discussion of chastity and fornication solely concerns male monastic sexuality, see Institutiones vi; Collationes xii, xxii. For the reasons why women’s virginity was seen as a far more profound alienation and renunciation of self than that of men, see Castelli (1986), 86–87. See also Schulenburg (1998), 127–129; Drijvers (1990), 150. 111 VBC pref., 1/1, 2/3, 23/24, 28/29, 32/35.

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named Kinna or Hinna.112 All the named women in VPB, except the saint’s mother, have religious status. Similarly ten out of the sixteen named men in the work bear a religious title, being either holy men or bishops.113 Table 2 does not reflect the exact number of women mentioned in the Lives since one and the same person might have several roles, such as the Christian virgin who also acts as the fosterer of the saint in VPB 11/10, and the woman who is both Colcu’s sister and foster-mother in VC ii.7.114 Besides, in some episodes, reference is made to women in the plural without any indication of their exact number.115 Table 2 Roles of women Role Mother (mater / genitrix) Foster-mother (nutrix) Daughter (filia)

VBC

VPB

1/1, 12/13

1/1,

116

41/42

11/10, 75/76 12/13

27/26,117 72/73, 81/81, 117/120 123/126 38/37 1/1, 17/15, 33/32, 43/45, 72/73 109/111, 109/112, 125/128

Sister (soror) Wife (uxor / marita / coniux)

VC i.17, 22, ii.39, iii.1 ii.7

ii.7 i.47, ii.3, 37, 39, 41

112 VPB 1/1, 31/30, 42/44, 97/99, 113/116, 121/124, 123/126, 129/131. The virgin in VPB 113/116 is named as Kinna in the translation by Connolly, while in the Trias-edition, her name is rendered as Hinna. Additionally, also in VPB 44/46, there is a maiden who is named as being of the Moccu Uais, although her first name is not revealed. 113 Ecclesiastics: VPB 3/3, 39/39, 40/41, 49/51, 52/54, 69/71, 109/111, 111/114, and 112/115. The other named men include three royal persons (62/64, 64/66, 65/67), saint’s father (1/1), a leper (53/55), and a strong man (108/110). 114 I have also omitted a few women who are just mentioned in passing but who do not have any real role in the narrative. For examples of these see VPB 7/5 and VC ii.20, iii.19. For all the mentions of women in VC, see Borsje (2001). 115 For example, see VC ii.9 and VPB 83/83. 116 The saint’s mother also features in some other episodes, but for the sake of brevity, I have only included here the first mention of her. The other episodes featuring her are VPB 2/2, 3/3, 4/4, 5/4, 6/4, 7/5, 16/15, and 17/15. 117 The daughter does not feature in the Trias-edition. There it is only a woman who is first mentioned as coming with the offering (uenit qaedam mulier), but later in the same episode, two or more people call on the saint una voce to help: ‘ô Brigida iuua nos.’

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Woman118 (mulier / femina)

1/2, 9/10, 25/26, 26/27, 32/35

Follower of saint (una ex ad haerentibus) Abbess (abbatissa / domina eclesia) Nun (puella)

12/13

Widow (uidua) Virgin (uirgo)

32/35 32/35

27/26, 29/27, 31/31, 39/39,119 81/81,120 85/85,121 87/89,100/102, 103/103, 123/126

32/35

36/35

32/35

20/18, 24/23, 28/26, 36/35, 38/38, 40/40, 56/58, 60/62, 62/64, 64/66, 72/73, 84/84, 85/85, 87/87, 94/96, 95/97, 96/98 15/14 11/10, 20/18, 25/24, 31/30, 44/46, 50/52, 52/54, 57/59, 77/78, 83/83, 87/88, 93/95, 96/98, 110/113, 113/116, 123/126 1/1, 74/75, 109/112

Slave, bondmaid (ancilla / serua)

i.20, ii.9, 40, iii.10122

ii.5

ii.33 Continued

118 Here I have only listed those examples where the women in question do not have any other denomination. 119 In Connolly’s translation, the woman is also named as a virgin but this is missing from the Trias-edition. 120 She is only mentioned as a woman, although from the context we know that she was also a mother. 121 These women are not mentioned in Connolly’s translation, but only in the Trias-edition. 122 She is also known to be a wife, as her husband is mentioned in the narrative, although she is not named as such. The representation of her primarily as a woman instead of wife reflects the fact that she is presented as an independent entity and as the main character besides the saint in the story.

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Table 2 Continued Role

VBC

VPB

VC i.38, 39

Whore (meritrix) Queen (regina) Sick women (aegrotae) Saint (sancta) Disciple (una discipularum eius) Girl (puella / filia)

6/4, 48/50, 62/64 36/35 42/44, 121/124 45/47 46/48123

ii.25124

74/75 82/82 93/95 97/99, 129/131

Mistress (domina) Cook (coqua) Old woman (uetula) Pupil (alumna)

However, table 2 gives an indication of the frequency with which women feature in the Lives, and the range of different roles which they occupy. Out of the twelve women featuring in VBC besides the saint herself, four are not distinguished further. Among the others are the saint’s mother, an adherent of the saint, with her daughter, and the religious women who feature in the account of the church in Kildare. VPB has by far the greatest the number of women and the same also applies to the variety of their roles when compared to the two other Lives (in VPB, there are 20 different roles, in VC, 9 and in VBC 8 respectively). The majority of the women in VPB are either nuns or virgins who accompany the saint all the time. In some cases, the two plural terms, puellae and uirgines, can occur interchangeably, thus demonstrating that they often refer to the same group of women.125 In VC, the majority of women are presented as wives (five out of twenty), while mothers, and women without further attributes, follow closely (in both cases, four out of twenty).126 From this distribution, we can see that women are presented in both of the Lives of Brigit either as independent 123 Here the term puella is used, which normally means nun in this text. However, Connolly has translated this as a girl, and from the context we can see that she is not leading a monastic life, since she lives with her foster-father. For this reason, I have not listed her among the nuns. 124 The term used is the same as for daughter, filia, but the girl is not presented here as being anyone’s daughter. 125 See for example in VPB 20/18 and 96/98 126 Also Borsje (2001), 91, has come to the same conclusion concerning the roles of women in VC.

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entities, or in relation to the saint (mother, adherent, and her nuns), while in VC, women are most often defined by their relationship to men (mothers and wives). Many of these men are also named, which means that the women are presented as nameless companions to the named men. This difference between the representation of women in the Lives of Brigit and in the Life of Columba can be explained by the gender of the saint. Brigit herself is a female saint, a fact which naturally influences her representation and that of the people around her, since it affects the situations where the saint is encountered, as well as the roles of the saint and other narrative personae. As a result Brigit can be presented hagiographically as having close relations with other women with whom she shares domestic tasks, as well as with those who come to her to show reverence and to seek help.127 These women can be presented as independent characters whose relationship to the saint is the one that counts. On the other hand, Adomnán writes about the life of a male saint, a difference which comes clearly to the fore when we look at the physical presence of women in the company of the saint. Table 3.1 Physical presence of women in VBC Physically present

Not present

Saint’s mother 1/1 Women doing churning 1/2 Woman lapsed from virginity 9/10 Saint’s follower 12/13 Mute girl 12/13 Chaste woman 25/26 Hospitable woman 26/27

Abbess 32/35 Nuns 32/35 Widows 32/35 Faithful women 32/35

Table 3.2 Physical presence of women in VPB128 Physically present

Not present

Mother of saint 1/1 Foster-mother of saint 11/10 Widow 15/14 Wife of a druid 17/15 Virgins 20/18

Wife of Dubthach 1/1 Queen 6/4 Wife 43/45 Queen 62/64 Virgin 87/88 Continued

For example, see, VPB 25/24, 27/26, 44/46, 62/64, 74/75, 81/81, 87/89, and 123/126. For the sake of brevity I have omitted the nuns in this table because they physically accompany the saint in every episode where they are featured. However, all the mentions of virgins are listed in this table, although in some cases, the plural term uirgines can be used besides puellae to mean the nuns who accompany the saint. 127

128

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Table 3.2 Continued Physically present

Not present

Virgins 25/24 Woman and daughter 27/26 Holy virgin Brigit 31/30 Virgins 31/30 Woman 32/31 Wife 33/32 Superioress 36/35 Sick women 36/35 Blind woman 38/37 Sinful woman 39/39 Mother 41/42 St Laisre 42/44 Maiden 44/46 Disciple 45/47 Girl 46/48 Queen 48/50 Holy virgin 50/52 Virgin 57/59 Wife 72/73 Maidservant 74/75 Mistress 74/75 King’s foster-mother 75/76 Virgins 77/78 Women 85/85 Woman 87/89 Old Woman 93/95 Virgins 93/95 Darlugdach 97/99, 123/126 Woman 100/102 Woman 103/105 Woman 106/108 Wife 109/111/112 Virgin 110/113 Daughter 117/120 St Ita 121/124 Woman & daughter 123/126

Virgin Kinna / Hinna 113/116129 Wife 125/128

129

However, it can be deduced from the episode that she had been in contact with the saint previously.

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Table 3.3 Physical presence of women in VC Physically present

Not present

Saint’s mother iii.1130 Luigne’s wife ii.41 Murdered girl ii.25

Colcu’s mother i.17 Woman driving sheep VC i.20 Mother in incestuous relationship i.22 Whores i.38, 39 Guaire’s wife i.47 Virgin Mogain ii.5 Wise wives ii.3, 39 Colcu’s foster-mother & sister ii.7 Women walking by river ii.9 Female slave ii.33 Foolish wife ii.37 Librán’s mother ii.39 Woman helped in childbirth ii.40 Woman taken to heaven iii.10

Table 3.3. shows that all the women in VBC physically encounter Brigit, except for the women mentioned in the description of the church of Kildare in Cogitosus’s own time,131 while in VPB, most women are also physically in contact with the saint. On the other hand, only three of the women in VC are physically present in the episodes featuring them.132 This indicates that there is a clear difference in the saint’s relationship with women, a difference that can be explained by the gender and the type of saint featured in the narrative. First of all, the fact that Columba is a male influences the depictions of his relationship with women. Since he is also a monastic saint, he is mainly depicted as being surrounded by his monks. In addition, the members of the laity whom he encounters, either in Iona or when visiting Ireland and Pictland, are mostly males.133 Another important point is that none of the three women whom he 130 In the episode in question, the saint’s mother is pregnant with him, and thus her contact with the saint is of a special kind. 131 Even here, the saint’s grave is physically present in the church where the women are. 132 Although Borsje (2001) discusses the relationship of women and the saint in VC in great detail, she does not make this point about the physical presence of women in these episodes. 133 See VC i.10, 13–16, 27, 32, 46, ii.7, 17.

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encounters sets foot in Iona,134 and the only one whom the saint directly addresses is Luigne’s wife, whose aversion to her husband he heals in VC ii.41. Most females do not encounter the saint personally at all in VC, since they feature in narratives of prophecy or of the saint’s knowledge of far-away things.135 Women are also among those helped through the saint’s prayers, or through objects blessed by him brought by messengers.136 3.d.2. Groups of Women and Their Virtues The Right Role of a Wife Two of the five wives in VC are examples of virtuous wives who give sound advice to their husbands: the first advises her husband to trust the power of the saint and to sow grain even after midsummer, and the second counsels her husband to refuse the gift sent by the saint and to let their servant be released without payment.137 By giving beneficial advice to their husbands, these two wise women demonstrate the right role for a woman in supporting her spouse, who is the decision-maker of the family as stated in Ephesians 5:23.138 These two wise women can be contrasted with a wife in VC ii.37, who tells her husband to get rid of a stake blessed by the saint, not trusting the saint’s word that it would not hurt either people or cattle. It is stated that she does not act like a prudent person, but like a fool (non quasi prudens sed fatua). The lesson about trusting the saint’s powers is underlined when the loss of the blessed stake reduces the family to its original poverty, and Adomnán states: Sed tamen diabuli inuidia per sociam ut Adam et hunc etiam miserum inuenit.139 Eve is thereby 134 VC ii.25 happens when the saint is studying in Leinster as a young man; ii.41, happens while the saint is visiting the island of Rathlin; and iii.1, happens apparently in Ireland where Columba was born. 135 VC i.17, 20, 22, 38, 39, ii.3, 39, iii.10. 136 VC ii.40 (prayers), VC ii.5, 33 (objects). Cf. Historia monachorum i.4–12, where John of Lycopolis helps three women without encountering them himself. In the first case, he gives his blessing to her in a dream, in the second, he gives advice to her husband, and in the third, he sends oil to her for healing. Commenting on this, see Ward (1981), 29–30. 137 VC ii.3 and 39. The eschatological elements of the first episode have been discussed in Bruce (2004), 114–115. 138 A wife’s duties to obey and support her husband are discussed by Augustine in De coniugiis adulterinis ii.8. 139 VC ii.37: ‘. . . but the malice of the devil reached this wretched man, as it did Adam, through his wife’. For further discussion of this episode, see Borsje (2001), 118–121.

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implicitly the archetype of a wife who channels demonic plans for ruining a man.140 Another woman who is both reminiscent of Eve, and at the same time of Mary (the second Eve),141 appears in an episode in which Saint Columba helps a female relative who endures a painful childbirth. After praying for her the saint, says in VC ii.40: Nunc propritius dominus Iesus de mulier progenitus opportune miserae subueniens eam de angustiis liberavit; et prospere prolem peperiit, nec hac morietur uice.142 Here the birth of Jesus from Mary is established as the model for all childbirths. This passage also suggests that Adomnán is echoing Paul in Galatians 4:4 Misit Deus Filium sum factum ex muliere.143 Furthermore, Adomnán may also be recalling Genesis 3:16, Multiplicabo aerumnas tuas et conceptus tuos: in dolore paries filios.144 This reference to the pains of childbirth as one of the consequences of the Fall is made explicit when Adomnán presents the young woman in her suffering as a daughter of Eve in the title of the episode.145 As Adomnán implies, giving birth was a perilous time when the danger of death was always present, and it was therefore especially appropriate for women to call on the saints and on God for help at that moment.146 In the next episode VC includes a lesson about marriage and a woman’s duties towards her husband. According to VC ii.41, a layman called Luigne came to the saint to complain that his wife had an aversion to him, and would not allow him to enter into marital relations with her.147 The wife said that she would be ready to perform 140

The same idea concerning Eve’s role is also presented by Patrick who writes in his Epistola 13, sicut Eua non intellexit quod utique mortem tradidit uiro suo, ‘just as Eve did not understand that she certainly handed over death to her husband’. 141 On the connection between Mary and Eve, see Lerner (1994), 168–169; Sawyer (1996), 149–155. 142 VC ii.40: ‘Now the Lord Jesus, born of woman, shows favour, and giving timely help to the sufferer has released her from the distress. And she has safely borne a child, and will not die this time.’ For further discussion of this episode, see Borsje (2001), 105–107. 143 Gal 4:4: ‘God sent his son, born of a woman.’ 144 Gen 3:16: ‘I will greatly increase your pains in childbearing; with pain you will give birth to children.’ 145 VC ii.40: De quadam muliercula magnas et ualde dificiliores parturitionis ut Euae filia tortiones passa. 146 Cf. the eighth-century Old Irish Penitential V § 17, which mentions the possibility of woman dying in childbirth. 147 For discussion of this episode, see Borsje (2001), 107–110. See also Hughes (1966), 62, who comments on the episode, and Ní Dhonnchadha (1995), 67–69, where she discusses Adomnán’s aims of promoting Christian marriage in Cáin Adomnán, noting also this episode of VC.

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any obligations that the saint would lay upon her, even to join a monastery, as long as she would not have to sleep with her husband. The saint then reminds her that the Lord says: Erunt duo in carne una, and Quod enim deus licite coniunxit nefas est separari.148 The saint, the wife and the husband all fast, and during the night, the saint prays for them. As a result, the wife’s heart is changed from hate to love, and she is ready to fulfil her marital duties towards her husband. There is a parallel to this episode in VPB 43/45, in which the saint heals a woman’s aversion towards her husband at his bidding by the sprinkling of blessed water all around the couple’s house and food. However, the biblical echoes are missing in this episode, and thus so is the theological finesse of Adomnán. In the foregoing episode, Adomnán uses the Bible (Matthew 19:5–6, Mark 10:7–9) to make a statement about the value of marriage.149 Adomnán’s citations in turn refer back to Genesis 2:20–25, in which Eve is created as a companion to Adam from one of Adam’s ribs, and it is stated in Genesis 2:24: Quam ob rem relinquet homo patrem suum, et matrem, et adhaerebit uxori suae: et erunt duo in carne una.150 As a result, it can be inferred that Adomnán reminds his public that marriage is an institution created and blessed by God, while he also provides a lesson on the duties of a woman towards her husband, and on the indissolubility of marriage. As for the woman offering to go to a monastery of nuns instead of sleeping with her husband, Adomnán makes Columba promote the good of marriage and marital relations instead of celibacy. This recommendation by Adomnán that a husband be given what is his due, could be read in light of Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 7:3–5 that both the husband and the wife should fulfil their marital duties towards each other, and that they should come together so that Satan 148 VC ii.41: ‘Two shall be one flesh,.. for it is forbidden that that should be separated, which God has lawfully joined’. Referring to Mt 19:5–6 (also Mk 10:7–9): et dixit propter hoc dimittet homo patrem et matrem et adherebit uxori suae et erunt duo in carne una et itaque iam non sunt duo sed una caro quod ergo Deus coniunxit homo non separet. 149 Adomnán is here promoting the Christian ideal of monogamous marriage, while in reality, in early medieval Ireland, polygamy seems to have still been common. On the different types of unions between man and woman in early Irish law, see Cáin lánamna, ‘Law of relationships between couples’, CIH 502.7–519.35. For discussion, see Power (1936), 81–103; Ó Corráin (1978), 2–4; Ó Corráin (1985); Kelly (1988), 70–73; Kelly (1988), 70–73; Jaski (1996), 20–22, 33–41. 150 Gen 2:24: ‘For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and they will become one in flesh.’

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would not tempt them because of their lack of self-control. Augustine, furthermore, could be writing directly to Luigne’s wife when he states: Observe how continence has usually been pleasing to the woman, but does not please the man. The wife leaves him and begins to lead a life of continence. She obviously intends to remain chaste, but she will make an adulterer of her husband, which the Lord does not wish. For, the husband will seek another woman when it becomes impossible for him to restrain himself. What are we to say to the woman, except to repeat what the sound doctrine of the church maintains, that is, render the debt to your husband, lest, while you seek after a source of further glory, he find the source of his damnification . . . All this, because you have not authority of your body, but he does; and he has not authority of his body, but you do. Except by mutual consent, do not refuse each other his dues.151

Therefore, both Augustine and Adomnán agree in presenting marriage as a safeguard against adultery and fornication, and intercourse in marriage as blameless. This positive image of marriage is reinforced in VC iii.10, in which the saint sees a happy and virtuous woman being taken to heaven by angels. A year later, the saint sees how the woman helps the angels to rescue the soul of her pious husband from the demons. The order of wife and husband here is noteworthy; it is the woman who goes to heaven directly without battling demons and who helps to rescue her husband’s soul. Here it seems that the wife is more virtuous, though both of them have merited heaven by being pious and virtuous. We can therefore conclude that it is Adomnán’s view that married people can live good Christian lives. Adomnán’s positive view of marriage seems to also have been shared by other early medieval Irish authors. The Irish author of the seventh-century text De mirabilibus sacrae scripturae (L&S 291) presents humans as created by God and as destined for a life on earth, which includes parenthood. Furthermore, the Fall of humanity (unlike that of the angels) was not from the state of perfection, but rather from an intermediary state which can be regained by penitence.152 This view of human history is basically the same as the inter151 De coniugiis adulterinis i.4, see also De bono coniugali 3, 6, 15, and De continentia 27. 152 De Mirabilibus Sacrae Scripturae i.2.

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pretation of Irenaeus of Lyons (c.130–c.202), who saw the Fall as an event in the childhood of the race, and thus as an understandable lapse due to weakness and immaturity.153 Positive views of married people similar to those of Adomnán can also be found in the writings of the Latin Fathers.154 According to Gregory the Great, married people are not alienated from salvation even though they are not totally separated from worldly life. He holds in LRP iii.27 that the married should assist each other to salvation by mutual encouragement, and that they can save their lives by interceding for one another by assiduous supplications, which remind us of Adomnán’s pious wife, who helps her husband to reach heaven in VC iii.10. Augustine states that the married can reach heaven but that the rewards waiting for them there are not as great as those for virgins.155 Moreover, he recalls that God instituted marriage before sin in Gen. 1:28, and as a consequence, it is not marriage or begetting children that is sinful, but lust which is not bridled by the will.156 Virtuous Virgins The only named woman in VC, besides the mother of the saints, is Virgin Mogain.157 The fact that she is named, and presented as an independent entity, unlike the other women in VC, demonstrates that she held a special position as a holy virgin dedicated to the Church. She is also more speicifically identified as Mogain, daughter of Daimén,158 just as most named men in VC bear their father’s name.159 This further underlines the fact that she is not married, and thus not presented as being a man’s wife. Even so, Mogain’s 153 Irenaeus, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching 12, 16. For the views of Irenaeus, see McDannell & Lang (1990), 48–53; Stancliffe (1992), 102–104; Duffy (1993), 895; Rousseau (2002), 79–81. On the medieval Irish views on Eve’s role on the Fall, see also Lerner (1994), 168–169. 154 On the views of the Church concerning marital sex, see Payer (1980). 155 De sancta virginitate 14, see also De sancta virginitate 28, and CD xxi.26. On Augustine’s views on marriage and sexuality, see Brown (1988), 396–419; Wilson (1986/87), 98–99; Salisbury (1986), 284–288. 156 CD xiv.22–24. 157 VC ii.5. For discussion of this episode, see Borsje (2001), 104–107. For religious women in early medieval Ireland, see Harrington (2002) 24–188, and on virgins, pp.134–141. 158 The title of the episode reads: De Maugina sancta uirgine Daimeni filia . . . 159 VC i.7, 10, 11, 12, 21, 35, 36, 49, 50, ii.4, 5, 7, 22, 24, 31, iii.6. For Adomnán’s use of kinship terms, see Charles-Edwards (1993), 134–145.

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status as a religious woman is not quite clear, since the reference to Clocher filiorum Daimeni, as the place where she lives, could either refer to an ecclesiastical or to a secular establishment owned by her family.160 The Lives of Brigit present further examples of the value of virginity.161 Brigit herself is naturally the principal example of a holy virgin. She is presented in VBC 12/12 as being renowned above all the virgins of her time for her tantis uirtutibus, morum temperantia, et spirituali gratia plena, tantam autoritatem et celebre nomen prae omnibus coaetaneis uirginibus habere meruit.162 She is also hailed as a type of Mary (quasi in typo Mariae), in VPB 15/14, thus showing her to be parallel to the ultimate model of unblemished virginity. Cogitosus states how Brigit’s parents wished her to marry more humano,163 while the saint herself, inspired from heaven, presents the Christian ideal of wishing to take the veil.164 The same theme is also discussed in VPB, where the saint resorts to drastic measures in order to avoid marriage. In VPB 19/17, a man of honourable birth approaches the saint’s father to express his wish to marry her. This pleases the father and Brigit’s brothers, who put pressure on her to marry. So these men represent the traditional secular society and its expectations, while the saint subverts the order in which a woman is expected to obey her 160 See Sharpe (1995), 320–321, n. 223. Borsje (2001), 105, names Mogain as a nun without hinting at any doubt on this part, and Hughes (1973), 30, takes the reference to the place as Clochar Macc nDaiméni, ‘Clocher of the sons of Daimen’, to mean that it was a family monastery where Virgin Mogain lived alongside her kinsmen. See also Harrington (2002), 35, who points out that in the early Middle Ages, particularly in the fifth and sixth centuries, many religious women were not living in organized coenobitic monasteries, and pp.125–126, where she discusses religious women living on family property. 161 For a brief discussion of the virtue of virginity in VBC, see S. Connolly (1987), 7–8. 162 VPB 12/12: ‘. . . . such great virtues, restraint of character, and full of spiritual grace with which she had merited great authority and celebrated fame over all contemporary virgins’. Translation mine. 163 The Trias facsimile is extremely corrupted at this point and one can hardly make out the letters –ano and parts of the possible letters h and u. However, the reading can be checked against that of Acta Sanctorum in which the words more humano can be clearly read. Connolly and Picard translate this as ‘according to the custom of the world’. 164 VBC 2/3. See also VPB 20/18 for another version of the episode. Cf. Tírechán’s Collectanea, where virgins accepting the veil from Patrick is a recurring event recorded with the words accipit / tenuit pallium, see Collectanea 16, 24, 27, 31, 34, 37, and 44. The first of these maidens is Brigit herself. For the legal aspects of virgins dedicating themselves to the church in early Ireland, see Bitel (1984), 11–12.

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guardian’s wishes.165 In order to avoid this secular destiny, the saint prays to be deformed so that men would not be interested in her, and thus one of her eyes bursts out of its socket. The author writes that magis elegit oculum perdere corporalem, quam animae; et plus amauit pulchritudinem animae quam corporis,166 thus juxtaposing the two choices and demonstrating the danger that secular marriage, and the resulting loss of virginity, would have posed to her inner beauty. This juxtaposition of the two choices and the preference for virginity echoes Paul, who recommends virginity as the better choice of two goods.167 Brigit’s loss of an eye (which is later healed) could be a reminder of Matthew 18:9, which advises that ‘if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.’ The need for protecting one’s virginity is likewise epmhasised in Augustine’s De sancta virginitate, where he writes that to attain the continence of virginity, a woman has to refuse the advances of suitors or to forestall them.168 The superiority of virginity is also spelled out in VPB 117/120, where the saint helps a chieftain’s daughter to be released from a marriage against her father’s wishes. Wishing to preserve her virginity, the girl flees to Brigit the night before the wedding. The saint stops the father and his horsemen from following the girl and makes them repent. Thus filia liberata a carnali sponso, colligata est Christo.169 A parallel episode can be found in Gregory the Great’s Dialogi iii.14, in which it is related that as a young girl, Gregoria fled from home after everything was prepared for her marriage wishing lead a holy life consecrated to God. She subsequently sought refuge in a church where Saint Isaac defended her, and quae quia sponsum fugit, in terra, habere sponsum meruit in coelo.170 Structurally and 165 Cf. the probably seventh-century ‘Second Synod of St. Patrick’ xxvii, in which it is stated that a maiden should do as her father wishes concerning marriage. 166 VPB 19/17: ‘ . . . she preferred to lose her bodily eye than the that of the soul and loved beauty of soul more than that of the body’.Translation mine. 167 1 Cor 7:8–9, 27–38. A similar attitude is also evident in the writings of Augustine, see De sancta virginitate 14, 28, and CD xxi.26. On the idea of virginity and its roots in the early Church, see Castelli (1986), 65–78. See also Brown (1988), 254–256. 168 De sancta virginitate 18. 169 VPB 117/120: ‘And so the girl was freed from an earthly spouse and bound to Christ.’ On the notion of the virgin as the bride of Christ, see Castelli (1986), 71–72. 170 G.G.Dial. iii.14: ‘ . . . because she had fled from an earthly marriage she was worthy to have a spouse in heaven’.

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thematically, these two episodes bear a close resemblance. In both cases, the girl flees from home right before marriage, determined to live as a virgin dedicated to God. In both cases, the females seek refuge in a religious establishment where a holy person defends them, which results in their being allowed to have a spouse in heaven instead of an earthly one. Apart from Brigit, and the nuns and virgins mentioned in Cogitosus’s description of the church of Kildare in VBC 32/35, the only remaining example of a woman who had devoted herself to virginity in the Life is the woman in VBC 9/10 who had lapsed from that state and become pregnant. A shorter version of the same episode also occurs in VPB 103/105.171 In the VBC episode, the saint removes the pregnancy, and sine partu, sine dolore, eam sanam ad paenitentiam restituit.172 This seems to suggest that virginity is here seen rather as a spiritual state than as a physiological fact. This interpretation is supported by the Penitential of Finnian 21, which states that a woman who has carried a child should do penance for six years, after which she may be joined to the altar, and then posse renouare coronam et induere uestimentum album debere et uirginem nuncupare.173 The lenient attitude of the authors of the Brigidine Lives towards the lapsed virgin can be contrasted with that of Augustine, who states that a woman who has married after vowing continence is worse than an adulterer.174 Unlike the Irish authors, he seems to understand virginity as a physiological fact, besides a spiritual state, since he argues that virginity is only for those who have not lost it yet.175 We may therefore conclude that the lenient attitude of the Brigidine hagiographers might derive from their belief that virginity can be regained by penance, while to Augustine, its loss is irrevocable. Religious Lay Women Brigit is not the only religious female in VBC. There is also a chaste woman and a follower of Brigit who flees to her seeking refuge from the cruel man lusting after her. In addition, there is an adherent of the 171 There is also a second example of such a woman in VPB 39/39 to be discussed further below in chapter 4.c. 172 VBC 9/10: ‘ . . . she restored her to health and to penitence without childbirth or pain’. 173 Finnian 21: ‘ . . . her crown can be restored and she may don a white robe and be pronounced a virgin’. For further discussion, see Bitel (1987), 81–85; Lerner (1994), 163; Harrington (2002), 36–38, 150–154. 174 De bono viduitatis 14, see also 12, and De coniugiis adulterinis i.15. 175 De sancta virginitate 27.

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saint who comes to show reverence to her, and a faithful woman who offers hospitality to the saint.176 These women do not seem to be nuns, but rather religious laywomen having special reverence for the saint. The adherent of the saint comes to visit with her daughter, which seems to indicate married or widowed status, but it is her relationship to the saint, and not to men, that counts in this story. VPB contains several examples of religious women living both in secular and ecclesiastical settings. For example a disciple of the saint who had been fostered by her is mentioned in in VPB 45/47, but nonetheless she was living with her parents, and thus in a secular establishment. Another example is a woman who brings accompanied by her daughter a cow as an offering to the saint in VPB 27/26. These women, and others,177 are models of religious lay women who show pious reverence towards the saint. Furthermore, the women who come to seek Brigit’s help in various problems demonstrate both the power of the saint’s assistance, and their trust in that power.178 Pious Widows Widows held a distinct place in the early Church, their activity including ascetic practices and the exercise of Christian charity.179 This special reverence enjoyed by widows as a distinct pious category seems to have been also recognised in early medieval Ireland. Cogitosus lists in VBC 32/35 widows (cum . . . uiduis fidelibus tantis) alongside the abbess (abbatissa) and her nuns (cum suis puellis) in the groups of women allowed to enter the holiest part of the church of Kildare. This demonstrates that widows are presented as a group of women dedicated to religious life like nuns, and they seem to enjoy a status that is even higher than that of the virgins and other faithful women who use a separate entrance to the church (per quam uirginum et fidelium foeminarum congregatio intrare solet). The fact that widows are mentioned here with nuns suggests that they were following some kind of monastic or semi-monastic life, while the virgins in common with other faithful women could lead secular lives among their families, but still retain some kind of religious status. VBC 12/13, 25/26, 26/27. See VPB 32/31, 44/46, 46/48. 178 VPB 81/81, 87/89, 100/102, and 123/126. 179 See Schatkin (1990b); Volz (1990), 185–192; Sawyer (1996), 146; Harrington (2002), 42, 154–165. 176 177

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VPB 15/14 also mentiona a God-fearing widow (religiosa . . . uidua) who goes to a synod with Brigit. However, in this case, her living arrangements are not quite clear, since she is only said to be living in a nearby village. Further proof of the special religious status enjoyed by widows in early medieval Ireland can be found in St Patrick’s Confessio, in which widows are mentioned alongside virgins and abstinent women as those who have dedicated themselves to the practice of religion.180 Categories of Women and Sexuality The classical division of women into virgins, widows and married, presented above by St Patrick, implies a hierarchy in holiness resulting from one’s distance from sexuality.181 Although it does not feature as such in the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba, the importance of sexuality in defining the position of women can also be detected in these sources. The division of women can perhaps be most clearly seen in the description of the church of Kildare in VBC 32/35. There, however, it is nuns, and not virgins, who take the holiest place alone with the widows, while the virgins are told to enter the church with the rest of the faithful women (fidelium foeminarum congregatio), which probably refers to the married. In VPB, the terms for nuns (puellae) and virgins (uirgines) are often used interchangeably. In some cases, virgins can be women dedicated to God but living in a secular establishment, thus demonstrating the fluidity of terminology and variety of lifestyles among women dedicated to God.182 Adomnán considers sex in a marriage to be commendable, probably because it prevents adultery, but he still elevates Mogain, the holy virgin, as she is the only woman named in the work apart from the saint’s mother. The higher status of virgins is also evident in the representation of Brigit herself, since she is presented in both of 180 Confessio 42, quod etiam omnes uirgines Dei ita hoc faciunt . . . nescimus numerum eorum praeter uiduas et continentes. 181 Ní Dhonnchadha (1994–5), 72, discusses the threefold division of religious women into virgin nuns, holy widows and married women, and mentions the seventh-century Armagh text Liber Angeli 15 as an example of this division into nuns (virgines), widows (poenitentes), and married women (in matrimonio ligitimo). See also Constable (1995b), 269–271; Harrington (2002), 39–43, 134–135, 156–157. For examples of this division in the writings of the Fathers, see Augustine, De vera religione xii.78; De bono coniugali 15; De sancta virginitate 45; CD i.27, xv.26, and De bono viduitatis 13. 182 On the different forms of ascetical life of women in Late Antiquity, see Castelli (1986), 78–84, and on the different forms of religious life available for women in early medieval Ireland, see Harrington (2002), 23–188.

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her earliest Lives as the exemplary virgin, whose virtue is celebrated in the miracle of the altar pedestal that stayed unblemished and green, and whose purity is stressed by her rejection of impure food as a child.183 Furthermore, Brigit is hailed as a type of Mary in VPB 15/14, and the value of preserving virginity, and thus inner beauty, is stressed in the miracle of her eye in VPB 19/17. Young Women and Sexuality A few episodes in the sources focus on young women or girls, and highlight the terms in which this group of Christians was seen.184 In VC ii.40 the saint helps by prayer a young woman (muliercula) who is calling his name while suffering the pains of childbirth. In both of the Lives of Brigit, a follower of the saint comes to visit with her twelve-year-old daughter who is mute.185 The saint asks the girl whether she wants to take the veil and remain virgin, or to be given away in marriage, reflecting the possibilities open to young women in society.186 The girl regains her ability to speak, and affirms that she does not want anything except what the saint wants. Curiously, neither of the Lives reveals which option the saint recommended, though we may suppose that she would wish her to follow Brigit herself, the exemplary virgin. Similar options in the women’s lives are reflected in the episode about Saint Brigit as a young woman in VBC 2/3 and VPB 19/17, 20/18. The relatively young age of another woman can be deduced from the fact that she had lapsed after a vow of virginity in iuvenili uoluptatis desiderio, becoming pregnant in VBC 9/10. We may also include the chieftain’s daughter discussed earlier who flees her home the night before her marriage in order to remain a virgin in VPB 117/120. Most examples involving young women are thus concerned with virginity and sexuality in various ways. This highlights the terms in which women, and especially young women, were seen. Their sexual status is the defining factor through which they are Pedestal: VBC 2/3, VPB 20/18. Food: VPB 11/10. There are some other episodes in which girls feature as daughters, but they are not included in the discussion here as their only role is to accompany their mothers or to be healed. For example, see VPB 27/26 and 81/81. Other episodes featuring young women that are omitted from the discussion here include VC ii.25 (youth here serves to underline the innocence of the victim of a murder), and VPB 35/36 (this will be discussed in chapter 4.c. the context of the sins of women). 185 VBC 12/13, VPB 123/126. I am here following the narrative of Cogitosus in the details since his version is longer and more detailed than that of VPB. 186 On the choice between marriage and religious life in early medieval Ireland, see Bitel (1986), 20–22; Harrington (2002), 131–134. 183 184

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approached.187 The twelve-year-old girl approaches the age when sex becomes a factor and she has to define her relationship to it, and thereby, to the female group to which she is going to belong.188 Before that age, she could be treated as a child, that is, more or less in the same way as her brothers, but at the age of becoming a woman, her relationship with men would become a defining factor in her social position.189

3.e. Conclusions Cogitosus focuses his description of Christian virtues purely on the person of Brigit, without paying considerable attention to those of the other characters around her. From this, we have to infer his list of virtues solely from his treatment of the saint. However, since the virtues that he promotes in his description of Brigit are mostly fitting for lay people, we can compare his list of the virtues of the saint with those that were set out as exemplary for the laity in VC and VPB. In contrast, presenting the saint as an example of virtuous life is not the central aim of Adomnán, who rather uses the minor characters in the Life as archetypes illustrating the different virtues and sins. The saint is presented as the perfect model of a monk for his monastic brethren to follow and some of the virtues of the ecclesiastics that are praised in VC reflect those of the saint himself.190 Furthermore, some of the virtues of ecclesiastics promoted in VC, such as being prudent, wise and righteous, are likewise expected from members of the laity. This means that there are three partly overlapping layers of virtues in Cf. O’Loughlin (2000a), 109–127, where he discusses the two books in the early eighth-century Collectio canonum Hibernensis dealing with women. See especially p.120 where he concludes that ‘all problems concerning women are focused around the binary opposition of virginity (the superior state) and sexual involvement with men (inferior state)’. 188 See CIH 922.25–26: Be thogha .i. tic di co aos togai na togai .i. im co fer their fa in ngaba chaille, ‘Woman of choosing i.e. she comes to the age of choosing i.e. whether she go to a man or take the veil.’ Translation by Ní Dhonnchadha (1994–5), 83 n. 40. 189 According to early Irish laws, until the age of seven, a child’s honour-price was irrespective of the child’s sex, and still until the age of twelve, a girl was of equal status with her brother. Both boys and girls could be fostered, and a girl’s fosterage would end when she reached mariageable age, that is, fourteen. See McAll (1980), 7–9. For the fosterage of girls, see also Mulchrone (1936), 187–190; Kelly (1988), 86–90; Charles-Edwards (1993), 78–82. 190 See Picard (1984), 56: ‘VC is essentially a work of edification, presenting Columba as a model of monastic ascetism.’ 187

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VC: those of the saint, those of the ecclesiastics, and those of the laity. Adomnán demonstrates that it is the virtues and charitable deeds of good Christians that help them to gain a place in heaven, and that lay people are not excluded from that possibility.191 Thus, in Adomnán’s view, all Christians, whether ecclesiastics or lay, should strive to emulate the virtues demonstrated by the saints, although some virtues, such as obedience, might be more suitable for monastic life, and others, such as generosity, might be more relevant for lay people. In the Lives of Brigit, on the other hand, all the virtues promoted through the character of the saint, and to a lesser extent through the portrayal of other ecclesiastics, are more suitable for emulation by both ecclesiastics and laity. Brigit is clearly being used by her hagiographers to illustrate certain virtues, generosity in particular, which are suitable for laity as well as ecclesiastics—indeed perhaps even more applicable to the laity than to the religious. Of the two saints in this study, Brigit comes closer to lay people in her virtues and in being in contact with them constantly and in sharing domestic tasks with them.192 This might be explained by her gender and by the absence of focus on monasticism. The final explanation, however, probably has to do with the aims and the targeted audience of the Brigidine Lives. Brigit’s life as well as her virtues reflect everyday life, while Columba first and foremost is the model of a perfect monk. This characteristic of Columba derives probably from the fact that Adomnán was writing mainly for a monastic audience.193 There is, nevertheless, a difference between the two Brigidine Lives in their treatment of the theme of the saint performing lowly domestic tasks. This theme is more developed in VBC, while in VPB, it is more suppressed. The difference is most evident in the parallel chapters. For example, in VBC 6/7, the saint hangs her garment on a sunbeam after returning from her work as a shepherd, while in the parallel episode in VPB 91/92, no work is mentioned. Similarly in VBC 7/8, the saint works as a shepherd when a prankish boy comes to ask for a sheep, while in VPB 101/103, her flock of sheep is mentioned, but it is not explicitly stated that she actually shepherded them herself.194 The See VC iii.9, 10. See for example VBC 1/2, 5/6, 6/7, 7/8. 193 On Adomnán’s audience, see Picard (1982), 169–177; Herbert (1988), 142–148; Sharpe (1995), 63–65. 194 See also VBC 1/2 where Brigit churns butter herself, while in VPB 16–17/15, her work churning and milking cows is only implied. 191 192

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only occasion where the saint actually performs domestic tasks herself in VPB is in 99/101, and here she milks a cow miraculously three times. This episode is a straight parallel of VBC 5/6. In this case the fact that Brigit does the milking herself is an integral part of the story, while in the other VPB episodes mentioned above, these aspects could be suppressed without changing the miracle itself. The main virtue that Cogitosus repeatedly stresses is generosity, and in this respect, VBC parallels both VPB, where similarly charity plays a central role among the virtues, and VC, which emphasizes the right use of riches is stressed. The ideal of generosity in all three Lives is based on the biblical command to love one’s neighbours, as well as on the idea of seeing the image of Christ in all those in need of help, which would have been well known from VM. All three Lives can, therefore, be seen to promote generosity, charity and compassion as virtues that should be present in all human relations. As a consequence we can infer that these are taken to be the virtues on which an ideal Christian society should be based. Adomnán, furthermore, repeatedly underlines the monastic virtue of obedience in his representation of the monks of Columba, as well as the virtue of humility in the character of the saint. Obedience is also stressed by Cogitosus in reference to his own work as a monk, and we can infer that the theme of humility is present in his apology for his own inadequate skills, although it is a well-established formula in Christian writings to belittle one’s insufficient skills in writing.195 In addition, Cogitosus lists the saint’s humility among her other praiseworthy qualities in VBC 12/12. In VPB, the value of monastic obedience is stressed in the episodes dealing with the murmuring nuns that will be discussed further below in chapter 4.c. In one of these, the right attitude of humility is represented in VPB 36/35 by the saint herself as she volunteers to wash the feet of the sick women when the young nuns declined. This all indicates that all three authors consider obedience to be a central virtue of the monastic life. In this respect, they closely agree with other authors writing about the monastic life, such as John Cassian and Sulpicius Severus. Women are represented in general in a positive way in the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba. Nevertheless, there is a marked difference between the Lives in the roles in which women appear and in 195 VBC pref. For similar apologies, for example, see the prologue in Historia monachorum; Evagrius’s prologue to VA; the dedicatory letter in VM; Patrick’s Confessio 9–12, 62; 1st preface of VC. On the formula, see Picard (1996), 264–265.

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their relationship with the saint. Brigit, as a female saint, comes close to common laywomen in her domestic activities, and she has close relations with the women who are her co-workers and followers. These women are represented as independent entities, whose relationship to the saint is the one that counts in these stories. In contrast, Adomnán presents women mainly as mothers and wives, i.e. in relation to men. The most distinctive feature in women’s relationships with Saint Columba is that they do not physically encounter the saint, although the attitude of the saint and of his hagiographer towards females and towards marriage is generally sympathetic. In short, Columba’s monastic character is emphasized. However, all three authors present women—both religious and secular—as capable of living a good Christian life, and thereby meriting heaven. Adomnán’s attitude towards marriage is predominantly positive, although implicitly he elevates the Virgin Mogain as the only woman named apart from the saint’s mother. When giving a lesson about a woman’s duties towards her husband and the indissolubility of the marital bond, Adomnán is following the same lines of thought as Paul and Augustine, who agree in presenting marriage as a safeguard against adultery and marital sex as blameless. The authors of the two Lives of Brigit, on the other hand, present marriage as the lesser of the two choices given to young women, and thus they elevate virginity more clearly as the higher and more recommendable path for women to follow. This probably is due to the fact that Brigit herself is a female and a virgin, and thus her hagiographers are writing to promote virginity and to elevate her as its prime example. When elevating virgins above the married, the Irish authors are clearly writing within a common Christian tradition of giving virgins a higher status in the Christian life and greater rewards in heaven.

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4. antithesis of good christian life Sin, then, is any transgression, in deed, or word, or desire, of the eternal law.1 Sin: Turning away from God and the consequent moral disorder of the self in will, disposition and action.2

As we can see from the definitions of sin above, sin refers to a breach of God’s law and thus a breaking of the right relationship between man and God. Sin is therefore the antithesis of virtue and something a good Christian should avoid. However, according to many Christian writers it is impossible to lead a sinless life in this world, but by sincere penance, it is possible to obtain forgiveness from God. The fact that the division between the good and bad characters in the Lives is extremely clear means that we are dealing with stereotypes that are used to illustrate some specific quality, and that are intended to teach or entertain. This is typical of folktales, but it can be found in other types of oral and written literature as well. The saints themselves are a certain kind of stereotype, since the real characteristics of the historical person of the saint are often suppressed under an ideal reconstruction of the saint that is needed for the narrative.3 In a similar way, 1 Augustine, Contra Faustum xxii.27. Translation by Stothert. On the Augustinian view of sin, see Duffy (1993), 895–896. 2 Babcock (1990), 848. 3 Noble & Head (1995), xviii; Vauchez (1990), 313; Delehaye (1998), 16–27.

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other characters in a Life can also be used to illustrate qualities and deeds that are beneficial or harmful to Christian life. Kim McCone has discussed the analogy between the apparently unedifying details in the Old Testament and Irish narratives and concluded that the moral negative can be conveyed by depicting the evil consequences of bad behaviour, and in fact there is no need to be squeamish about their contents.4 In a similar way, the negative examples in hagiography can be used to convey a moral message concerning the fitting behaviour of Christians through the portrayal of its antithesis.

4.a. Vices of Ecclesiastics I will deal here with those cases of sinful behaviour that occur in an ecclesiastical context, although in some cases, the ecclesiastical status of the person involved is doubtful. The widest range of examples are offered in VC. The only example of the sinful behaviour of ecclesiastics in VBC, as well as most of the cases in VPB, will be discussed in chapter 4.c., in the context of female spirituality, as the narratives concern nuns. 4.a.1. Disrespect Towards Saint There are three cases of the sinful behaviour of males in an ecclesiastical environment in VPB. The first one is in VPB 69/71 and it features a boy belonging to the household of Bishop Erc. When the boy questions the source of Brigit’s ability to see a faraway battle, he is rebuked by the bishop, who bids him not to blaspheme the Holy Spirit. Apparently the boy’s question reveals his doubt concerning the saint’s abilities, and so his question can be considered to be blasphemous. It can be seen as a punishment to the boy that he sees his brothers being killed in the battle in question, after the saint had enabled him to share in her vision by blessing his eyes. The second example of a sinful ecclesiastic in VPB 72/73 also illustrates fitting reverence towards Brigit. This example features an anchorite whose virtuous behaviour in avoiding women was mentioned in the previous chapter. Despite his virtue, this anchorite is guilty of sinful excess in ascetical practices when he treats Brigit as any other woman in refusing to go to her to be blessed. The fault in the 4

McCone (1991), 77.

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anchorite’s behaviour is revealed when he and his companions realise that they have left their baggage behind, understanding immediately that the reason for this lapse is their refusal to go to Brigit to be blessed for the journey. They are able to alleviate their sinful lack of respect towards the saint, nonetheless, by fasting during the night and by retracing their steps back to the saint. 4.a.2. Impurity The last one of the three cases concerning the sinful behaviour of male ecclesiastics in VPB concerns an attendant of a bishop whose sin is revealed when Brigit sees a monstrous goat in the Eucharistic chalice in VPB 92/94. The attendant is consequently forced to confess that he had illegally taken a goat from a goat herd in order to kill it and to eat part of the meat. There is a similar episode in VC i.40 in which the saint reveals the hidden sin of a priest consecrating the sacred elements of the Eucharist.5 In both cases, the context for the revelation is the Eucharist, which underscores the importance of ritual purity when handling the sacrament and demonstrates the polluting effect of sin.6 This view is confirmed by Adomnán, when he quotes the saint’s words: Munda et inmunda periter nunc permisceri; hoc est munda sacrae oblationis ministeria per inmundum hominem ministrata . . .7 4.a.3. Hiding Sins The priest with the hidden sin in VC i.40 is considered by the community to be deeply religious. Similarly, Adomnán also relates in VC i.38 how the saint revealed the true nature of a rich cleric who was respected among his people. The point of these two stories is to epmhasize the saint’s ability to see a person’s true nature. Condemnation of men who are outwardly religious but who hide their sins also 5 Cf. The Penitential of Finnian 10–11, in which sins concealed from men but known to God are discussed. 6 Cf. Historia monachorum xvi.1–2, in which the monk Eulogius is able to see the spiritual state of those approaching the altar in order to partake in the Eucharist. See also Gregory the Great, LRP ii.2 where he states that a priest should be pure in thought, and that no impurity should stain one who has undertaken to duty of cleansing the hearts of others. See also VC iii.6, where the saint leaves a house before the death of a monk, and Anderson & Anderson (1991), 190 n. 215, where they comment that the presence of the saint at the death would have incurred pollution which would have prevented him from celebrating the Eucharist. This episode is also commented on in Sharpe (1995), 360 n. 364. 7 VC i.40: ‘Now we see clean and unclean intermingled together: the clean rite of the sacred offering administered by unclean man . . .’

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comes from Gregory the Great, who writes in Liber regulae pastoralis iii.35, that they should rather worry about God’s judgement than seek human acceptance. Since Adomnán does not specify the sin in question in either VC episode, we can only guess about its nature. In fact, the episode concerning the hidden sin of the priest does not contain enough information on which to base any guesses. Although the clerical status of the rich man in the other episode seems to be secondary for the story, it might give the episode some extra weight. 4.a.4. Valuing Property Cassian demands that those joining a monastery should relinquish all property, and he stresses how worrying about property holds one’s mind fast to the physical world, whereas it would be better to contemplate heavenly things.8 This admonition focuses on communal life. In the case of the VC i.38, Adomnán does not reveal whether the rich cleric in question was attached to a community. However, the penitential of Cummean iii.14 reads: Clericus habens superflua donet ea pauperibus; sin autem, excommunicetur.9 What is noteworthy here is that even if the man is a secular cleric, his personal property is the focal point. All the other men whom Adomnán denotes as rich belong to the laity.10 Actually not enough is known of the organisation of the early medieval Irish church to say how common it would have been for clerics to retain personal property, and exactly how the material support of ecclesiastics was organized.11 However, Adomnán emphasizes the fact that the man is rich by mentioning his wealth rather than his 8 Inst. iv.4, vii.7, 14. On Cassian’s views concerning property, see Newhauser (2000), 61–68. 9 Cummean iii.14: ‘A cleric who has an excess of goods shall give these to the poor; but if he does not, he shall be excommunicated.’ Translation by Bieler. Cf. The Penitential of Finnian 28, where covetous clerics are condemned. See also Old Irish Penitential iii § 10: ‘A cleric or a nun who lives in a communal church and has somewhat more than suffices him, whatever it be, let him give it to the poor and needy of the church where he lives. If he does not, let him be excommunicated from the church where he lives.’ 10 See, for example, VC i.50, ii.17, 20, 23. 11 For example, Ó Corráin (1981); Etchingham (1991); Charles-Edwards (1992); Sharpe (1994), discuss the relationship of the Church and society at large, but there are still several unanswered questions. For an assessment of the different models concerning the organisation of the Irish church, see Etchingham (1999a), 12–46. See also Bitel (1984), 5: ‘Also, a discussion of donations may lead to an answer for the larger, almost unconsidered problem of the property relations between churches and laity in early Ireland.’

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clerical status in the title of the chapter, and subsequently goes on to represent the man as sinful. This would suggest that being rich, or at least valuing material property, was not deemed to be a beneficial quality in a cleric.12 The rich cleric who is sinful may be compared to the man reproached by Martin in the Dialogi iii.15 of Sulpicius Severus for keeping horses and purchasing slaves, although he did not own anything before the entering clerical office. We can conclude from this that Sulpicius Severus reflects the view that it was not fitting for clerics to value property. There is a hint of sexual sinfulness in this episode when Martin accuses the man not only of owning barbarian boys, but also of acquiring girls of a comely appearance. Similarly the rich cleric in VC i.38 also seems to be guilty of sexual sins, since Columba foresees that he will die while lying with a whore. 4.a.5. Disobedience and Pride Various examples of wrongdoing in VC illustrate the opposite of monastic obedience. For instance, a monk who had taken a journey without his abbot’s consent prevented Cormac from finding a place of retreat; a monk who went against the saint’s advice encountered a monstrous whale; and two residents of the monastery who secretly spied on the saint against his command, hoping to see heavenly apparitions, were severely reproved by Columba.13 One of the episodes highlighting a lack of obedience concerns a penitent who refuses a relaxation of diet when the saint comes to visit the community of penitents on the island of Hinba in VC i.21. This man is not technically a monk, but since he seems to be doing several years of penance in a community attached to the monastery, his lifestyle would probably be similar to that of the monks and he would also be under the authority of the abbot.14 As the context of this episode is evidently monastic, I will discuss it here among the other sins of ecclesiastics. 12 Doherty (1984), 306, suggests that Adomnán used this episode in VC to strike against the secular clergy, which would support the interpretation that the wealth of the cleric had a connotation of sin. 13 VC i.6, 19, iii.16, 21. 14 For examples of such communities, see VC i.21, 30, ii.39. See Sharpe (1995), 282 n.115. For discussion of penitential communities, see also Stancliffe (1982), 40–44; Etchingham (1999a), 290–297, 322; Etchingham (1999b), 21–25; Charles-Edwards (2000), 120–121.

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When writing about the penitent’s refusal to lighten the fast for Columba’s visit in VC i.21, Adomnán may be following Cassian who tells how in Egypt, a hermit’s fast is broken if visitors arrive.15 Cassian explains that the opportunity for fasting is always there, whereas the visitor will only stay for a little while, and that the requirements of charity and receiving Christ in the guise of the guest are more important, since one can always continue with a stricter fast after the visitor is gone.16 Adomnán (and Cassian) might also be thinking of Mark 2:19–20, in which Jesus speaks of himself as the bridegroom when explaining why his disciples are not fasting saying: ’How can the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? They cannot, so long as they have him with them. But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them, and on that day they will fast.’17 If guests are treated as representing a type of Christ, as was shown in the previous chapter, then this biblical passage will support the requirement to relax a fast when visitors arrive. Another reason why the refusal of the indulgence offered is considered to be sinful might be its connection to the sin of pride. Cassian warns the monks in Institutiones xii especially against pride, since it is a sin that specifically preys on those who are perfect, and who have already conquered the other seven vices. Cassian makes the connection between fasting and obeying when he narrates an example of an old monk who preferred his own judgement over obeying the elders. This monk practised incessant fasting to the extent that he did not even join the celebrations of the Easter festival with the other brethren for fear of being seen as relaxing his fast. Feeling pride for his achievement, he was finally tricked into receiving an angel of Satan as one of light, jumping into a well at this Satanic angel’s suggestion.18 The lesson here 15 See also VC i.26, where the saint predicts the arrival of a guest to Iona saying: Crastina quarta feria ieiunare proponimus, sed tamen superueniente quodam molesto hospite consuetudinarium soluetur ieiunium, ‘On the fourth day of the week, tomorrow, we propose to fast; but nevertheless a disturbing guest will arrive, and the customary fast will be relaxed.’ 16 Inst. v.24. See also Coll. ii.26, where monks are encouraged to partake in the food offered to visitors, and Coll. xvii.21& 23, where discretion is recommended when it comes to fasting instead of obstinately sticking with what one has intended. 17 See also Lk 5:34–35. 18 Coll. ii.5. See also Coll. ii.16 and 17, for warnings against excessive fasting. See also VA 17 (15) where Antony warns his monks saying: ‘Do not be seduced by pride in your achievement’, and Gregory the Great’s LRP iii.22, in which he warns that sometimes superiority in fasting can result in the person being separated from the society of others.

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is that monks should be humble and should not take pride in their feats of fasting and mortifying of the flesh. Such seems to be the case with the penitent in VC i.21, who refuses the remission of fast. This suggests that, if he is under the ruling of the saint as a penitent, he is also guilty of disobedience. Thus, the penitent is represented as lacking in humility by not obeying, and by wanting to be better than others in the severity of his diet.

4.b. Vices of Laymen 4.b.1. Disrespect Towards the Saint Hagiography as a genre aims to engender veneration for a saint, and this is done by relating the benefit of a saint’s the miraculous powers for those who believe in them. The same message can also be conveyed by telling what happens to those wretched people who oppose or mistrust a saint. This message of veneration for a saint, and for his or her successors, is clearly conveyed by the authors of the earliest Lives of Columba and Brigit. While episodes must be understood from their hagiographical context, the centrality of particular themes might be reinforced by tendencies that are native to Irish society. For instance, status and honour were central ideas in the early medieval Irish social order, and the principal vehicle through which these were conveyed was enech, the value of the face. Honour was due to those who upheld their status by fitting conduct, but honour could be always threatened by the loss of physical attributes, or by being attacked by ridicule and satire.19 For these reasons these episodes involving disrespect towards the saint can also be understood from an Irish social background, in which status was upheld and made visible through a fitting social response. As a result, public acts of disrespect towards a saint could have wider social implications.20 Adomnán provides several examples demonstrating the benefits of obeying the saint, and the terrible consequences of mistrusting 19 See McCone (1991), 124; Charles-Edwards (2000), 105–106, 129, 136; Jaski (2000), 43–47. 20 Cf. VP I 17 and 19, in which the fact that two pagans rise up when the saint comes in can be understood against the background of the early Irish social custom of the junior rising in front of the senior as an act of respect, or even as a mark of submission. For discussion of this, see Jaski (2000), 124.

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him.21 In VC ii.37, a poor and wretched man does not trust the saint’s promise that a spike blessed to provide him with food would not hurt humans or cattle. Following his wife’s foolish advice, he then loses this alleviation of his poverty and returns to begging. On the other hand, in VC ii.3, another man is rewarded for following the saint’s instructions at his wife’s behest, when grain sown late is ready to be reaped in August. VC also has many examples of much graver transgressions against the saint than the mistrust of his word. These transgressions are committed by deeply sinful men who are guilty of killing and other grave sins, and who are denoted as bloody, wicked, cruel, hard, treacherous, unyielding, and greedy. These men not only mistrust the saint, but also actively mock and scorn Columba, and his God.22 The moral of these stories becomes clear when we look at how this disrespect is repaid by the violent and sudden deaths of these men. The result is that they die without returning to the grace of God, and thus they are cast to hell.23 One of the men showing lack of respect towards the saint is Broichan, the druid in VC ii.33, who refuses to release an Irish slavewoman at Columba’s bidding. Broichan is punished by being seriously injured when a cup breaks as he is drinking from it. In order to save him, King Brude sends messengers to the saint, promising the release of the slave. As a result the druid is healed when the messengers return from the saint, bringing a stone blessed by Columba. A structurally similar episode occurs in the Dialogi i.10 of Gregory the Great, in which Saint Fortunatus sends a message to some Goths asking them to release two small boys abducted by them. When the Goths refuse, one of them suffers a badly broken rib when his horse slips. Consequently, the boys are released, and the Goth is healed when a messenger is sent back to him with holy water. Both of these episodes illustrate the dangers of opposing the saint and the need for mercy towards prisoners. Three examples also occur in VPB of kings who refuse to release prisoners at Brigit’s bidding, thereby demonstrating their disrespect towards her.24 In all cases, the kings have to yield when the saint finds 21

Most of the examples involving obedience to the saint feature in connection with monks, and thus those were studied in the previous chapter. For example, see, VC i.19, 31, and ii.39. 22 VC i.39, ii.20, 22, 23, 25. 23 This theme will be discussed in more details in chapters 6.a. and 6.b. 24 VPB 30/29, 66/68, 125/128. On disrespect towards the saint, see also VPB 26/25, in which two blind lepers with a leprous servant insult the saint. In this case, the men are not punished for their disrespect, but healed.

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miraculous ways to release the prisoners. This also occurs in VBC in a parallel to one of the VPB episodes.25 Furthermore, in VPB 80/80, there is also a man who refuses the saint permission to use a shortcut through his fields, and in VPB 118/121, a king who rejects the chieftain the saint wanted to be appointed. As a punishment, they both encounter a sudden death, similar to those in VC.26 4.b.2. Pride Augustine, John Cassian and Gregory the Great consider pride to be the root of all evil.27 Pride (superbia) is seen as a sin especially grave for monks, from whom humility and obedience in front of both God and the abbot were expected. Monastic pride was discussed above, and here I will only look at incidents concerning laymen. Adomnán mentions pride in connection with a king who is uplifted with royal arrogance and refuses to open the gates of his fortress for the saint.28 After the saint miraculously opens the gates, the king learns his lesson, and from that day onwards, he honours the saint with high esteem. In this passage, Adomnán portrays pride in connection with the powerful status of royalty, while providing a lesson on the fitting esteem and reverence to be shown to the rulers of the Church, or at least to the followers of Columba. Cogitosus treats pride as the sin of a strong túath that compels the weaker and less numerous túatha of Brigit to work on a more difficult part of the task of road-building.29 Cogitosus presents pride here in connection with the unfair and cruel use of power, and therefore as a sin of the powerful. So pride is seen by both Adomnán and Cogitosus as a sin especially relevant to powerful people, who can be puffed up by their status and start abusing their authority. Here the Irish authors are following in the footsteps of Athanasius, who presents pride as a sin specifically threatening rulers, when he describes how Antony gave advice to Emperor Constantine, and to his VBC 20/21, cf. VPB 125/128. For more on this, see chapter 6.a. 27 De libero arbitrio III.xxv.76; Inst. xii.6, 8; Coll. v.7; Mor. in Iob xxxi.87. For discussion, see Bloomfield (1952), 69–73; Alexander (1981); Newhauser (2000), 94–95, 99–106. For the treatment of pride in Irish penitentials, see H. Connolly (1995), 112– 123. 28 VC ii.35: idem rex, fastu elatus regio, suae munitionis superbe agens in primo beati aduentu uiri non aperiret portas. 29 VBC 30/31: in illorum fortium et superborum partem, qui alios pauciores et infirmiores se iniuste et durissime operari compellebant. 25 26

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sons Constans and Constantius, concerning their salvation, warning them against the lure of imperial power, and against allowing the royal authority to make them swell with pride.30 Cassian also treats vainglory and pride as sins especially relevant to rulers, since all the biblical examples he gives of vainglory and pride are of kings who are prideful, just as is the king in VC ii.35, who is puffed up by royal pride.31 Gregory the Great similarly gives biblical examples of arrogant kings when warning those who rule against being puffed up by their status and power.32 The king in question in VC ii.35 rules in Pictland and he has a magician as a foster-father.33 As a result, we expect him to be a pagan. However, the point of the two episodes dealing with the magician, Broichan, and the king, Brude, is not to describe the saint’s encounters with pagans, but to reveal the saint’s powers.34 The sequence of events in the episode in question demonstrates clearly that its function, together with the following episode, VC ii.36, is to illustrate fitting reverence towards the saint. In the first episode King Brude initially refuses to open the gates because of his royal pride, then the saint miraculously causes the gates to open, whereupon the king comes to meet the saint whom he honours, as was fitting, for the rest of his life. In the second episode, when the monks of Terryglass had lost the keys to their church, the saint then miraculously opens the doors, and afterwards, he is honoured by the monks. Both episodes, therefore, demonstrate the fitting honour that should be shown towards the saint, and thus towards his followers. The first episode gives this lesson in a secular context, the second in an ecclesiastical one. The Pictish king does not appear to represent pagans as a group, but rather to stand in a more general way for rulers who act wrongfully and oppose the saint.35 VA 81(50). Inst. xi.10,11, xii.21. See also Coll. ii.3. 32 LRP i.3–4, ii.6, see also LRP iii.2, 4. 33 See VC ii.33. 34 VC ii.33–35. However, there is one short episode about King Brude and his magicians inserted at the end of VC i.37, which specifically deals with pagan opposition to the saint. There the magicians try to prohibit the saint from singing vespers in front of Brude’s fortress, lest it be heard by the heathen people. This episode is inserted after other episodes in which the saint’s voice could be heard far away, but the motivation of the magicians is here explicitly presented as pagan opposition to the new religion. These episodes featuring King Brude are discussed by Bruce (2004), 214–217, with the aim of showing that Columba was engaged in missionary activities. 35 Cf. the Easter episode in VP I 15– I 21, in which there is a clear religious motivation for the confrontation between the saint and the king and his druids. 30 31

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Adomnán could have in mind a similar story concerning emperor Valentinian’s refusal to grant entry to Saint Martin, narrated by Sulpicius Severus in Dialogi ii.5. After the doors had miraculously been opened to the saint, and the emperor had been forced to show respect by rising to meet him, Valentinian finally came to a better frame of mind, and granted all of Martin’s requests, thus demonstrating the right relationship between secular and ecclesiastical rulers. An alternative picture of pride is provided in VPB, since it represents pride as the sin of three arrogant lepers, which demonstrates that pride can also be a sin of those with no apparent power or high standing in society.36 The first leper makes excessive demands, asking for a king’s spear, while the lack of humility of the two others highlights their companions’ virtuousness. The leper in VPB 76/77 is also guilty of boasting, a sin closely connected with pride.37 The leper in VPB 78– 79/79 is judged by the saint to be a filius perditionis, which indicates that the man’s sins were grave indeed. Adomnán also names two men as sons of perdition in VC i.22 and 36. Both of them are guilty of especially grave murders, since the first man had committed fratricide and the second had killed a king ordained by God. This term occurs in the Bible in John 17:12 in reference to Judas, and it indicates that the men in question are destined to hell.38 In VPB 62/64, a parallel term, ‘son of death’, is applied when the saint states categorically that filii uero regum serpentes sunt et filii sanguinum, filii que mortis.39 This term filius mortis, occurs in the Old Testament in the two books of Samuel, and there it is applied to those who deserve to die because of their misdeeds.40 As we see, these two terms are used by the hagiographers, in line with their biblical use, to refer to men who are destined for hell because of their sins. VPB 53/55, 76/77, and 78–79/79. There is also ‘a certain proud king’ in VPB 118/121 who rejects a chieftain the saint wanted to be appointed, but the Trias-edition only reads quidam rex without defining him as being proud. 37 See the Penitential of Cummean vii.2, in which the opposite of pride, humility, is recommended for those who boast. 38 See also 2 Thes 2:3, in which the term refers apparently to the Antichrist. This term also occurs in Columbanus, Instructiones iii.4. 39 VPB 62/64: ‘. . . the sons of kings are serpents and sons of blood and sons of death’. 40 I Sam 26:16, and 2 Sam 12:5. The term could also be connected to the Irish term mac báis, ‘son of death’, applied to the pillaging fíanna (see discussion of fíanna or díberga below). On mac báis, see McCone (199), 218–219. On VPB 62/64, see McCone (1986), 9; Stalmans, (2003), 276. 36

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4.b.3. Brigandage One group of sinners includes blood-stained killers and marauders, and oppressors of innocents. They do not follow a Christian way of life, although the rest of the society in the Lives seems to be more or less Christian. Adomnán once identifies the way of life of that group of sinners as laica conuersatio,41 though in other instances, he always uses the word plebeus to refer to layman.42 The term laici (in plural in VC i.1) is translated as ‘lay people’ in the Andersons’s edition, but Richard Sharpe has translated it as ‘brigands’.43 Sharpe has connected this term to the Old Irish díbergach, meaning ‘man of evil, marauder’. According to Sharpe, these terms had pagan connotations, and that is why brigandage, the activity of organized bands of killers, was particularly abhorrent to the Church.44 In his study of the subject, Sharpe has concentrated more on the terminological aspects of díberga, while Kim McCone has looked at its social and economical context, and at the Indo-European roots.45 Neither has paid much attention to the question of the pagan implications of díberga in an otherwise largely Christian society. Colmán Etchingham has, furthermore, argued that brigandage was treated simply as gravely sinful behaviour rather than as being pagan, while Thomas Charles-Edwards has stated that it ‘was condemned outright not just for its violence, but also for its explicit paganism’.46 McCone has also concluded that the Church’s disapproval is a proof of the pagan background of the fían and that the only good evidence for anything approaching to organized paganism in early Christian Ireland relates to fían.47 My aim here is to assess the evidence for the alleged paganism of the brigands in the Brigidine and Columban hagiography. The brigands in VC i.1 seem to be Christians, since some of them are saved from danger by singing songs praising the saint. However, in VBC and VPB there seems to be a connection between such evil men and paganism. In VBC 22/23, the saint encounters nine men who are VC i.1. See also VC ii.22 and 24 for a similar band of evil-doers. See VC i.1, 16, 20, 46, 47, ii.3, 4, 17, 20, 32, 37, 39, 41, and iii.10. On Adomnán’s terminology concerning laymen, see Etchingham (1999a), 298–299. 43 Translation of VC by Anderson & Anderson p.17, and by Sharpe p.111. 44 Sharpe (1979), 253 n. 45; Sharpe (1995), 327 n. 258. 45 Sharpe (1979); McCone (1986); McCone (1991), 205–226. 46 Etchingham (1999a), 298–305; Etchingham (1999b), 23–24; Charles-Edwards (2000), 464–465. 47 McCone (1991), 218, 226. 41 42

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in quadam forma speciali uanae et diabolicae superstitionis,48 and who have made a vow to kill someone. The saint tries to convince them ut mortiferis erroribus relictis,49 and when this fails, she makes them believe that they have killed and thus fulfilled their vows. Through revelation of the saint’s miracle illis qui antea erant homicidae, per paenetentiam conuersi sunt.50 The men in VPB 65/67 and 67/69 are shown as carrying some kind of amulets (sub stigmatibus malignis, signa diaboli; habentes stigmata diabolica) and they come to ask for Brigit’s blessing on setting out to kill. In the first episode, it is explicitly stated that this is the only way in which they can fulfil their sworn vows. In both cases, the men are tricked into believing they have fulfilled their mission, just as in the corresponding episode in VBC 22/23. Consequently, they lay aside the amulets and show their respect to God and Brigit.51 Although the men were shown as following a superstitious practice of which the church did not approve in VBC 22/23, it does not necessarily follow that they were considered to be pagans.52 Cogitosus mentions repentance, but not baptism, in connection with their conversion, and this could just as well mean being converted back to a Christian life instead of being converted from paganism to Christianity. Conversion in this sense is mentioned, for example, in the penitential of Finnian 35, which states: Si quis autem laicus ex malis actibus suis conuersus fuerit ad Dominum et omnem malum egerit, id est fornicando et sanguinem effundendo, tribus annis peniteat.53 From the context of the penitential and the use of word laicus, it becomes clear that the person converted from his wicked deeds to the Lord is a Christian. 48 VBC 22/23: ‘. . . in a certain peculiar guise of a worthless and diabolical superstition’. 49 VBC 22/23: ‘. . . . to abandon the deadly errors of their ways . . .’. 50 VBC 22/23: ‘. . . those who hitherto were murderers were converted to the Lord through repentance’. 51 The transformation of the brigands in VPB 65/67 is briefly discussed by Nagy (2001), 280. 52 See Gurevich (1988), 58–59, where he writes that the clashes between the saint and the common people are not necessarily due to an antagonism between Christianity and paganism, but that they could also occur among the already converted. 53 Finnian 35: ‘If one of the laity is converted from his evil-doing unto the Lord, and if he has wrought every evil deed, by committing fornication, that is, and shedding blood, he shall do penance for three years.’ See also Penitential of Cummean 11: Quoniam qui conuerti fecerit peccatorem de errore uitae suae, ‘He who causes a sinner to be converted from the error of his life’, quoting Jas 5:20.

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Conversion in the same sense is also used in the Bible, as James 5:20 reads: quoniam qui conuerti fecerit peccatorem ab errore uiae suae saluabit animam eius a morte.54 Converting sinners to repentance also features in Adomnán’s DLS iii.4, where it is stated: Deus . . . qui non uult peccatoris mortem sed ut conuertatur et uiuat.55 In addition, Sharpe has admitted that paganism is not always in question when men are converted from brigandage, and he has explained this by pointing to the hagiographer’s interest in giving a moral lesson about penance.56 For instance, Cogitosus does not represent society as being completely Christian even after the death of the saint, since he mentions a pagan man (paganus) who sent his grain to the mill of the monastery in VBC 31/33. Nevertheless, he does not call the brigands pagans, and he refers to their beliefs as superstition instead of as paganism. The function of this episode is to relate the miraculous power of the saint to convince these men that they had fulfilled their vow of killing, and thereafter to convert them from their wicked ways. This function does not necessitate that the men be pagans, but neither does it depend on the men being Christian. Cogitosus states that these men acted instinctu antiqui hostis, while both VPB episodes mention the amulets carried by the men as being diabolical. When Cogitosus states that their errors are deadly, he makes it clear that the men are destined for hell if they do not abandon their way of life and repent of their crimes. He also recounts in VBC 22/23 how the saint prayed to the Lord, uolens omnes saluos fieri et ad agnitionem ueritatis peruenire, quoting 1 Timothy 2:3–4.57 These references to the devil and hell may suggest that the brigands were pagans, although wicked men, who are Christians in name only, would also be destined for hell.58 In being subject to the ‘ancient enemy’ and carrying diabolical amulets, these men in the Lives of Brigit can be seen to parallel the 54 Jas 5:20: ‘Whoever turns a sinner from the error of his way will save him from death.’ 55 DLS iii.4: ‘God, who does not wish the death of the sinner but that he be converted and live’. The same citation of Jas 5:20 is also repeated in Augustine, De natura boni xlviii. 56 Sharpe (1979), 84–85. He is specifically discussing the above-mentioned episode of VBC in this context. 57 VBC 22/23: ‘. . . willing . . . all men to be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth’. 1 Tim 2 :4 : qui omnes homines uult saluos fieri et ad agnitionem ueritatis uenire. 58 S. Connolly (1989), 10, takes these references to mean that the amulets are pagan trappings.

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pagan druids in VC and in Muirchú’s VP, who work ‘miracles’ by the art of the devils. They also are reminiscent of the pagans in VC whose senses are clouded by devils.59 In most of the VC examples, the men in question are obviously pagans. In VC ii.17, however, the sorcerer who draws milk from a bull is apparently Irish and not Pictish, as are the obvious pagans in VC.60 Sharpe has argued that the maleficus in VC ii.17 represents ‘a continuing superstitious belief in witchcraft’, which the saint seeks to discredit by attributing the sorcerer’s powers to the devil.61 The sorcerer’s actions would then represent practices condemned by the Church, whether he be pagan or not. The fact that the brigands are in a pact with the devil, therefore, could support the argument concerning their pagan status, although the possibility that they are nominally Christians who have abandoned their religion cannot be ruled out. This is because there are also some examples of the presence of devils in episodes set in a monastic context in VC and VPB, thus bearing witness to the devil’s role also in the sinful behaviour of Christians.62 Moreover, the brigands can also be compared to the persecutors of churches in VC ii.24, one of whom tries to kill the saint with a spear at the devil’s prompting (diabuli instinctu).63 This happens when the saint proceeds to excommunicate the men, thus suggesting that the men in question were Christians. Adomnán’s use of these terms can also be glimpsed from the stories concerning the two men who act diabulo instigante in DLS iii.4 & 5. They are both called incredulus, and the second is further defined as being a Jew. But, the first of the two is converted into repentance, suggesting that he was nominally a Christian. All this evidence suggests that even though the brigands in the Brigidine Lives follow diabolical practises, this cannot be taken as unambigious evidence for their paganism, since Christians also might be similarly influenced by the devil. 59 VC ii.11, 34, and VP I 20. Notice that in describing druids affecting natural powers, as in VP I 20 and VC ii.34, Collectanea 19 only states that it is not known by whose power the deed was done. For druids in VC, see Stalmans (2003), 158–160, 162–165. 60 For pagans in VC, see for example i.33, ii.11, 27, 34, iii.14. 61 Sharpe (1995), 325 n. 247. Sharpe has stated that the episode is set either ‘in Ireland or possibly Scottish Dalriada but not in Pictland’. See also Brown (1972), 140– 142, where he discusses the relationship between saints and sorcerers, and argues that when the society was completely Christianized, the sorcerer was no longer seen as a pagan outsider, but as one who had abandoned his Christian identity and made a compact with the devil. 62 VC ii.16; VPB 31/30. 63 See also VC ii.22 concerning the same band of evil-doers.

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The amulets (stigmata, signa) carried by the brigands in VPB may be interpreted as being an analogue to the mark (character) carried by those who worship the beast in the Apocalypse.64 The passage of VPB 67/69 specifies that the men carried the amulets on their heads, while in Apocalypse 13:16, they receive the mark either on their right hand or on their forehead. This mark sets apart those in the Apocalypse who are destined for hell, as opposed to those who carry the name of the Lamb on their forehead and are thus destined to reign with Christ.65 Therefore, as long as the men encountered by Brigit wear the amulets, they are disqualified from heaven, and when they lay the amulets aside, they return to the Christian fold. This reference to the Apocalypse again does not necessarily mean that these men were pagans, but rather that they were destined to hell because of their errors. The passage of VPB 65/67 indicates clearly that the amulets are a visible sign of an obligation to kill, since the men explain that the only way to undo their bonds (uincula) is to murder their enemies.66 If we compare this to VBC 22/23, we see that the men are similarly obliged to kill by their vows and oaths. So it seems that in both of the Lives, these men had performed some kind of superstitious ritual in the form of an oath and/or taking amulets, that the Church wished to discredit. Augustine also condemns amulets (ligaturae) as a superstitious practice comparable to magic and to remedies in the form of incantations or marks.67 Sulpicius Severus writes in VM 5 about men practising brigandage (latrocinia exercens) who had attacked Saint Martin. According to Sulpicius Severus they are disqualifying themselves from Christ’s mercy because of their chosen occupation. This episode gives support to the theory that it may be their life as brigands that disqualifies the men in the eyes of God, rather than their possible paganism, although these two might be connected. These brigands who do not follow a Christian way of life could also be compared to Coroticus, the recipient of St Patrick’s Epistola. Coroticus is presented as a prototypically wicked and sinful man. He seems to be nominally Christian, but he is still engaged in such wicked Apoc 13:16–17, 14:9, 14:11, 16:2, 19:20, and 20:4. See also Augustine, CD xx.9. Apoc 14:1, 14:11, 20:4. 66 This obligation and its possible background are briefly discussed by S. Connolly (1989), 10–11. Cf. Canones Hibernenses i.4, in which penance is prescribed to one who has vowed himself to evil. 67 DDC ii.74–75. 64 65

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activities as raiding and taking captives.68 Since Patrick’s letter is addressed to the soldiers of Coroticus, it seems that the latter is the head of a band of bloody and wicked men who engage in plundering.69 As a result, he is reminiscent of the organized bands of brigands in the Brigidine Lives. Patrick writes that owing to their evil works, he and his men are ‘fellow citizens of demons’ and are therefore comparable to the Scots and Picts, who are apparently pagans and apostates who have renounced the Christian religion.70 Patrick’s description of Coroticus qui Deum non ueretur nec sacerdotes ipsius,71 can also be seen as a parallel to the thieves qui nec Dominum, nec homines uerebantur, who had stolen Brigit’s cattle in VBC 16/17.72 It is not known how well this ‘letter’ was known in seventh-century Ireland, and therefore whether Cogitosus (or Adomnán) knew of it. However, Patrick’s descriptions of wicked men and their deeds are in many instances similar to those mentioned in the works of early Irish hagiographers. This might be explained by Patrick’s extensive use of biblical language, i.e. language that the hagiographers would have known intimately as well.73 Another parallel would be the brigand, Mac Cuill, in Muirchú’s VP I 23, whose way of life includes plundering and killing. The most noteworthy detail in this context is that he also wears signa . . . nequissima crudelitatis.74 The brigand in this story is clearly a pagan, since he is baptized by Patrick. This, however, fits well with the overall image of the society as being largely pagan in the Lives of Patrick. Mac Cuill is not only baptized, but he is also transformed into a penitent by his encounter with the saint. This visible sign of his way of life is later also transformed when he is sent out to sea wearing an emblem of his sin (insigne peccati) on his head.75 One argument supporting the Christian status of the brigands in VPB could be that these men seek Brigit’s blessing, and that the For discussion on the person of Coroticus, see E.A. Thompson (1985), 126–137; Dumville (1993), 107–115; MacQuarrie (1997), 45, 263. 69 Epistola 2, 13. 70 Epistola 2: Non dico ciuibus meis neque ciuibus sanctorum Romanorum sed ciuibus daemoniorum ob mala opera ipsorum ritu hostili in morte uiuunt socii Scottorum atque Pictorum apostatarumque. 71 Epistola 6: ‘. . . who had no respect for God nor his priest’. Translation mine. 72 VBC 16/17: ‘. . . who had no respect either for God or men’. 73 For Patrick’s use of biblical language, see Nerney (1949), 497–498; Conneely (1993), 25–57, 131–162. 74 VP I 23: ‘emblems of the most wicked cruelty’. 75 On the punishment and transformation of Mac Cuill, see T.O. Clancy (2000), 202–203. 68

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saint is willing to bless them. In VPB 65/67, moreover, the saint promises to protect them since they had laid aside their amulets for her sake. She fulfils this promise later by helping the men when they march against their enemies and inflicts great slaughter on their adversaries. Thus the saint is happy to protect the men even when they go to war, and so it seems to be the amulets that she is against and not the violence as such. This view is confirmed by VPB 88/90, in which the saint grants victory to a king in every battle he wages, and she is even seen as appearing before the king in battle. If the men were pagans, Brigit might not have been seen to give her blessing, since in VPB 40/40, she even refuses to eat food offered by a pagan. However, this man also shows great respect towards the saint and wants her to consecrate his house, despite his pagan status. This means that the brigands’ willingness to seek the saint’s blessing might similarly not provide evidence of their Christian belief. Nevertheless, the saint’s consent to bless them seems to support the argument that the men in question in VPB 65/67 and 67/69 are Christians. Thus it is their actions, not beliefs, that are seen as being incompatible with Christianity.76 The brigands in VC are clearly Christians, while in VBC and VPB their religious status is unclear. Nevertheless, in neither of the Lives is there anything that would conclusively indicate that they are pagans. Some episodes in both of the Lives feature characters who are clearly identified as pagans without any ambiguity, and so we could also expect to find some indicator of their paganism in the episodes concerning the brigands. This seems to indicate that the brigands in these episodes are Christians who have abandoned the Christian lifestyle, and in the case of the Brigidine examples, they have also made a compact with the devil.77 In any case, the brigands are disqualified from God’s mercy by their sinful deeds, even if they were nominally Christians. The destiny of nominal Christians is also discussed by Augustine in DDC iii.31. Here he states that the congregation of the devil consists not only of those clearly in the outside, but also of those who are part of the Church for the time being but who actually belong to the devil. Consequently, it is also possible for Christians to be disqualified from salvation due to their sinful way of life unless they repent and change their ways. 76 Here I agree with Etchingham’s assessment of the evidence. See Etchingham (1999a), 304–305. 77 See VBC 31/33; VPB 40/40.

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4.b.4. Sexual Sins In the early Irish penitentials, sexual sins such as adultery, sodomy, and bestiality, figure prominently.78 However, according to Bitel, the main concern of the clerics was not sex itself, but a social order based on the family unit, and on the marriage of conscientious individuals. Since sexual relationships were meant for bringing forth legal heirs, lust was sinful because it led to indiscriminate procreation. Nevertheless, lust was not seen as the most damnable sin, as theft and murder were recognized as more sinful actions.79 The danger of the sin of fornication features in VPB 97/99 concerning Brigit’s companion Darlugdach,80 while lust is explicitly mentioned in VBC 25/26. In the latter case, it is the sin of a high-born man who lusts for a girl, and who devises a wicked plan to reduce the girl to the status of a slave, so that he could use her sexually as he pleased. The man gives a valuable brooch to the girl for safekeeping, but then takes it secretly back and throws it into the sea, so that when the girl cannot return it, she will be made his slave.81 The chaste girl flees to the saint, who recovers the brooch from the belly of a fish.82 When the saint produces the lost brooch in front of an assembly of the people, the cruel tyrant humbly bows down and confesses his sin to the saint. In other words, lust is represented here as leading to deceitfulness, and scheming deceit may be considered an equally grave sin. In VC ii.10, Columba foresees the future of an infant whom he baptized, predicting that in annis iuuenilibus carnalibus desideriis satis seruiturus.83 This view that young people are more prone to obey 78 For example, see, Penitential of Finnian 35–39; Columbanus B 2–4, 10, 14–18; Cummean II.1–33; Old Irish II. See also Payer (1984); H. Connolly (1995), 80–96. According to Payer (1984), 52, the canons dealing with sexual sins comprise over twenty percent of the total number, and the percentage he gives for the Penitential of Finnian is 37%. 79 Bitel (1987), 79–80. 80 This episode will be discussed in more detail in chapter 4.c.3. 81 Compare the similar punishment in VBC 20/21, where a man kills a tame fox belonging to the king, and the king orders that if he cannot produce another fox similarly trained the man will be killed, his wife and sons reduced to slavery and his possessions seized. See also VC ii.37, where a wife is afraid that, if people or cattle happen to perish on a spike used by her husband for hunting, he with her and their children will be either put to death or reduced to slavery as a punishment. See also Kelly (1988), 216. 82 Cf. CD xxii.8, in which a gold ring is miraculously found inside a fish. 83 VC ii.10: ‘In the years of his youth he will sufficiently obey the desires of the flesh.’

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the demands of the flesh can also be found in VBC 9/10, in which Cogitosus writes concerning a pregnant woman who had lapsed from a vow of virginity fragilitate humana in iuuenili uoluptatis desiderio.84 Both authors thus see carnal temptation as something that is characteristic of youth. In this, they may be compared to Athanasius, who relates in VA 5 (4) the devil’s attempts to tempt the young Saint Antony with seductive dreams and lustful thoughts, thereby setting before him ille lubricum adolescentiae iter et ad ruinam facile.85 Similarly, the early Irish penitentials make a connection between sexual sins and youth, since they specify lesser penances for young people more often in connection with sexual sins than any other types of sinning.86 The Old Irish Penitential ascribed to the late eighth century even prescribes the avoidance of young people as one of the remedies against fleshly lust.87 The connection between youth and lust is also evident in the writings of Augustine, who states that in marriage, the carnal or youthful incontinence (carnalis uel iuuenalis incontinentia) is applied to begetting children.88 Cassian, furthermore, mentions the heat and lightmindedness of youth (petulcum uel calidum iuuentutis), and Columbanus writes about puerilia desideria.89 Gregory the Great confirms this view when writing that the temptation of the flesh is at its strongest during the years of youth.90 Cogitosus uses the terms concupiscentia in VBC 25/26 and uoluptatis desiderium in VBC 9/10 when writing about lustful behaviour.91 Moreover, Adomnán once uses the term luxuria, which is the common Latin term for lust in the lists of seven or eight deadly sins.92 He uses the term in VC iii.21 when referring to the luxurious lifestyle (luxoriose uiuens) followed by a student of Iona on his return to Ireland. Since the prophecy VBC 9/10: ‘. . . through human weakness into youthful desire’. VA 5(4): ‘. . . the slippery path of youth that leads to disaster’. 86 For lesser penances in relation to different types of sins, see Finnian 1,2,4 (sexual sins); Cummean II.6 (sexual sin), X.1 (talking), 2–9 (sexual sins) 10–12 (stealing food), 13–17(sexual sins), 21 (striking); Old Irish penitential I §9 (stealing), II §28, 30, 31–34 (sexual sins), III §2 (thieving), and 15 (perjury). 87 Old Irish penitential II §1e. 88 De bono coniugali 3. On the connection between youth and sexual temptation in the writings of the Fathers, see Salisbury (1986), 283; Brown (1988), 248–249. 89 Cassian, Inst. i.7 & iv.8; Columbanus: Epistola vi.3 (this does not, however, necessarily need to refer to sexual desire, but also to the general desire for earthly things). 90 G.G.Dial. ii.2, see also G.G.Dial. i.4, and ii.8 91 Cf. VPB 53/55, where the verb concupiscere is used in the context of covetousness to refer to a leper’s actions when he covets a spear belonging to a king. 92 See Inst. v.1; Coll. v.2; Mor. in Iob xxxvi.87. 84 85

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is connected to a sin, a luxurious life in Ireland must be seen in the context of sinful behaviour. The saint promises the boy that before his death, he will do tearful penance and be forgiven. So, luxurious life in the time between monastic youth and penance before death has to carry a negative connotation. However, the way in which Adomnán uses the term luxuria here does not make it clear whether he is specifically referring to sexual lust, or to more general excess. Adomnán also mentions the sexual sin of incest in VC i.22, but his treatment of it as connected to fratricide makes it appear that he views both in terms of a breach of the kin-based social order rather than seeing the former as being primarily a sin related to lust. 4.b.5. Incest, Fratricide and Parricide Besides incest and fratricide, Adomnán’s treatment of parricide further reveals his interest in protecting the kin-based social order.93 One character commits both incest with his mother and fratricide, killing his brother in VC i.22. Adomnán refers to these sins as ‘unheard of in this world’, and he says that the punishment for them has to be fearsome.94 The guilty man is considered to be so sinful that the saint orders him to be stopped before he sets foot on the island of Iona.95 Parricide, the killing of a close relative, is mentioned in VC as a sin against which an Uí Néill king is warned, lest he lose the kingship of Ireland that has been predestined for him.96 It is evident that Adomnán considered incest to be comparable to fratricide and parricide, as it also represents a break in the normal kin-based order of the society. He sees all these three sins as very grave transgressions of the rules governing the conduct of good Christians, and he views parricide and fratricide as especially wicked forms of killing. VC i.14, 22. On incest in the penitentials, see Payer (1984), 30–32. Actually, Adomnán writes about the sins of this man in the singular: aliquod inauditum in mundo peccatum perpetratum est, pro quo ualde timenda iudicalis uindicta. It is not clear whether he is only talking about one of the sins, or whether he is considering the two sins to be so closely related that he talks about them in the singular. I would take it to mean that Adomnán considers the two interrelated sins to be so deeply embedded in the sinfulness of the man that he does not make any distinction between them, but refers to the sinful condition of the man in general. 95 For discussion of the meaning of this prohibition, see MacDonald (2001), 15. 96 VC i.14. Sharpe (1995), 276 n. 96 notes the connection between Adomnán’s parricidali . . . peccato and the Irish fingal. For kin-slaying, see also Kelly (1988), 127– 128; Charles-Edwards (1976), 49–51 (Charles-Edwards specifically discusses VC i.22 in this context). Sharpe (1995), 276 n. 95 discusses the political background for this parricide inside the Southern Uí Néill lineage. Although this episode seems to have a real historical bearing, in this study, I am only concerned with Adomnán’s treatment of parricide as a sin, and not on the political implications of the episode. 93 94

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Saint Patrick similarly picks out parricide and fratricide as especially grave sins in his Epistola 5, citing the actions of those who have destroyed the Law of God: patricida, fratricida, lupi rapaces deuorantes plebem domini ut cibum panis sicut ait Iniqui dissipauerunt legem tuam Domine.97 Incest is also condemned as exceptionally sinful behaviour that does not happen nec inter gentes in 1 Corinthians 5:1, and Augustine describes it as a monstrosity.98 These acts are therefore seen as something alien to Christians, and so Adomnán is not alone in seeing these sins in the context of breaking the societal order, and in presenting them as especially grave transgressions against the laws governing Christian conduct.99 Kin-slaying in the form of fratricide also features in VPB 64/66 where it is prevented by the saint who causes two brothers not to recognize each other. This episode does not elaborate on the gravity of the sin, and thus nothing of the author’s outlook can be deduced. The only possible indication of the gravity of the sin is the statement ascribed to the saint that non sic faciat Deus noster nobis.100 However, it seems that Brigit is here referring to the blessing that she had previously given to one of the brothers, thereby indicating that God would not allow the man to be killed against her blessing, rather than that God would not allow such a sinful thing as fratricide to happen in general. 4.b.6. Stealing Adomnán explicitly refers to the biblical commandment ‘You shall not steal’101 in connection with a thief who had tried secretly to steal seals belonging to the monastery in VC i.41. The saint poses the question: Patrick, Epistola 5: ‘Parricide, fratricide, rapacious wolves devouring the folk of the Lord as a meal of bread. Just as it declares: The unjust have utterly destroyed your Law, Lord.’ Also the Old Irish penitential I § 17 groups together slaying of mother, father, or brother, and sleeping with one’s mother, sister, or daughter. Compare this to Tírechán’s Collectanea iii.32, in which Patrick says ‘Make friendship since you are brothers’ in an episode where the saint encounters two brothers are ready to slay each other because of an argument about the division of the inheritance, thereby providing further evidence that slaying inside family, and especially between brothers, was seen as a special kind of transgression that should be avoided. This episode is discussed by Kelly (1988), 211–213 as an example of the legal practice of duelling. 98 Augustine, Expositio 79. 99 Cf. Old Irish Penitential V §2, which recommends heavier penance for kin-slaying than for other types of homicide. 100 VPB 64/66: ‘Our God will not do this to us’. 101 Ex 20 :15, repeated in Dt 5 :19. 97

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Quare tu res alienas diuinum transgressus mandatum sepe furaris?102 This thief is called edax ualde furax,103 but still the saint orders some sheep to be slaughtered and given to him so he does not need to return home empty-handed. Later the saint even sends some more gifts of food for the funeral-feast of the thief when he foresees his imminent death. So it seems that although the man tried to steal from the monastery, his crime was not very grave, perhaps because his thieving may have been motivated by the necessity to feed his family. A similar lenient attitude towards thieves is shown by Gregory the Great, who writes about a thief who repeatedly stole from the monastic garden until the gardener told him to stop stealing and to come to him in the future and ask for what he needed.104 A sterner attitude towards stealing from the saint is taken by Cogitosus. In VBC, a river sweeps away the thieves who have stolen the cattle of Brigit while the cattle return home unharmed.105 In VC there seems to be a distinction made in the gravity between the different kind of thieves. For instance, the wicked thieves of Cogitosus are reminiscent of the hard and unyielding evil-doers and oppressors of good men who plunder the house of a friend of Columba in VC ii.22.106 Both act in the bands of evil-doers, and come from a different province—or at least they do not from the same region (in VC, this is implied by the fact that the plunderers sail away)—and both include a sudden death by drowning (I take the fact that the river sweeps away the thieves who stole Brigit’s cattle to mean that they are drowned). There is also an example of the water turning against thieves in VPB 45/47. There a river that is flooding prevents thieves from driving stolen cattle away. The thieves try to solve this problem by securing all their clothes and weapons on the horns of the cattle, thus attempting to swim over. The animals, however, turn back in midstream and go directly to Brigit’s house with the men comically running naked after them. In another example of thieves in the Life, those who steal horses belonging to Brigit and her nuns, as well as their neighbour’s seed-corn, also end up accidentally in Brigit’s house with their plunder in VPB 102 VC i.41: ‘Why do you repeatedly steal other people’s property, transgressing the divine commandment?’ 103 VC i.41: ‘very greedy and thievish’. 104 G.G.Dial. i.3. See a similar story also in G.G.Dial. iii.14. 105 VBC 16/17. Cf. Collectanea iii.31, where Patrick predicts to the men who had stolen his horses that their ‘seed will serve the seed of their brothers’. 106 Sharpe (1995) 327 n.258, interprets the description of these men to suggest that they formed a band of ‘men of evil’, in Irish, díbergaig.

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57/59. Both examples demonstrate the power of the saint to convert the men to repentance, thereby making punishment unnecessary. In both cases of stealing in VC, the crime is repetitive, since in VC i.41, the word sepe ‘frequently’ is used, while in VC ii.22, the brigands are said to have plundered the house of the saint’s friend three times. In the early Irish penitentials, a difference is often made between stealing once, or repeatedly offending, and the penance imposed on thieves is dependent on the frequency or habitual nature of the act.107 This means that Adomnán seems here to be echoing the view that repeated stealing is a graver transgression, and by mentioning the repeated nature of the thefts, he is underlining the sinfulness of the perpetrators.

4.c. Vices of Women As regards the different types of sins committed by men and women in VC, the gravest sins, such as killing and plundering, are committed only by the men, while women are guilty merely of being foolish and stupid and not trusting in the saint’s powers.108 Among the souls taken to heaven in VC are those of two women, an innocent murdered girl and a virtuous wife, while no females are specified among the damned.109 Most of the women in VBC are represented as being chaste and faithful followers of the saint, and even the woman who had fallen from a vow of virginity and become pregnant is saved from punishment.110 In VPB, most of the women’s sins are not very grave. They mainly consist of minor insubordination, such as trying to avoid unpleasant tasks, or seeking to curb the saint’s excessive generosity. Yet, there are more examples of women’s sins in this Life than in the others, so it is worth looking at them in more detail. 107 Penitential of Columbanus B 7; Cummean 19, III 1, X 11–12; Old Irish I § 9, III § 2. See also Kelly (1988), 149, regarding habitual thieves in the Irish laws. 108 VC i.17, ii.37. 109 VC ii.25, iii.10. See chapter 6.b. for further discussion of the posthumous destinies of good and bad Christians. 110 VBC 12/13, 25/26, 26/27. The penitentials are not as understanding. The First Synod of St Patrick 17 reads: ‘A virgin who has made a vow to God to remain chaste and afterwards has taken a spouse in the flesh, shall be excommunicated until she changes her ways; if she converts and dismisses the adulterer, she shall do penance; and afterwards they shall not live in the same house or the same village.’ Translation by Bieler.

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4.c.1. Disrespect Towards Saint The first example of sinful women in VPB concerns Dubthach’s wife, who is jealous of his love for the saint’s mother, the bondmaid Broicsech in VPB 1/1–4/4. The wife’s behaviour can be contrasted with that of Broicsech, who is beautiful both in appearance and in conduct. The behaviour of Dubthach’s wife in wanting the bondmaid to be sent away and in being worried that the bondmaid’s child will take the inheritance or status belonging to her family, parallels the concern of Abraham’s wife Sarah in Genesis 21:8–14. In both instances, the father of the child is reluctant to send the bondmaid and the child away, but in both cases, the men finally submit to the will of their wives. However, the setting of the Genesis story is inverted in VPB, since in Genesis, it is Sarah’s child, Isaac, who is more important for the religious history of the nation than the bondmaid Hagar’s son, Ishmael. In contrast, in VPB it is the bondmaid’s daughter, Brigit, who eclipses the child of the wife in importance. Another example of the sinful behaviour of women in VPB is that of the druid’s wife, who scorns the small amount of butter the saint has left after distributing most of it to the poor in VPB 17/15. The druid’s wife apparently represents a lack of faith in the saint’s powers and a negative view of charitable actions. Even so, neither she, nor Dubthach’s wife, is punished in any way, although it is clear that they display a negative attitude towards the saint. A further example of a transgressing laywoman concerns the woman in VPB 72/73 who, with her husband and children, tries to settle on an island occupied by a hermit who is dedicated to God and who refuses to look at women’s faces. This woman is punished when an eagle snatches her baby, and she repents when Brigit finds the baby unharmed. But, the woman’s husband stays unrepentant and he is only moved to contrition after further punishment. The woman thus sets an example to her husband in understanding the sinfulness of their actions and in repenting first. Yet another example concerns a mistress (domina) who refuses to release her skilled maidservant who has run away to the saint in VPB 74/75. Nonetheless, the woman is made to repent and to free the servant after her hand—with which she had seized the servant—withers. It is implied that the servant wanted to join Brigit’s community.111 So 111

The episode ends with the maidservant being freed and let to go to Brigit (dimisit ancillam liberam Brigidae).

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the economic value of the servant as a good weaver, which made the mistress to want to keep her, can be contrasted with the spiritual rewards which the maid would acquire in a monastery. Another maidservant, who steals a silver lunula belonging to her mistress and throws it into a river, appears to escape any punishment, and the lunula is eventually found inside a fish.112 A recurring theme in VPB is the negative attitude of some women towards the saint’s excessive generosity.113 For instance, in VPB 32/31, a woman bringing a gift of apples to Brigit wants them back when the saint tries to share them with lepers. In other examples, it is the nuns who oppose the saint’s generosity by trying to hide a precious gift from a queen and by refusing to give their own clothes to a leper.114 As punishment for her lack of generosity, the laywoman’s apple trees are cursed. Moreover, the nun who refuses to clothe the leper is stricken by leprosy for an hour. The nuns who hide the queen’s gift, on the other hand, are not punished at all, but instead, the precious chain given to the poor is replaced by another that is exactly similar. This theme of the community not appreciating the generosity of their leader can also be found in VB of Gregory the Great. There one of the monks refuses to give the last of the monastery’s oil to the poor during a famine.115 The monk’s error is demonstrated when the glass vessel containing the oil stays intact when thrown out of the window, and finally the monk is publicly rebuked de infidelitate sua et superbia. 4.c.2. Insubordination The avoidance of unpleasant tasks is shown by the virgin in VPB 93/95, who suggests stripping a dying old woman of her clothes before her death to save washing them out in the cold and snow. In this case, the nun is not punished, but is actually helped when the clothes VPB 109/112. This is a well-known folktale motif, which also occurs in VBC 25/26. See S. Thompson (1955), where the theme appears as motif N211.1: Lost object found in fish, also Irish variation Lost articles found in interior of fish through virtues of saint under number N211.1.0.1. For the Irish variation N211.1.0.1, see Cross (1952). Cross refers here to Plummer (1910), clxxxv, in which Plummer mentions the theme and in his note refers only to VPB 109/112. The main example of this motif in vernacular Irish literature is in Táin Bó Fraích, for the story and discussion, see Carney (1955), 1–65. 113 This theme is briefly discussed by Schulenburg (1998), 90, who cites saint Brigit as an example in this context. 114 VPB 48/50, 56/58. 115 G.G.Dial. ii.28. On the same theme, see also G.G.Dial i.9. 112

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miraculously appear outside after the old woman’s death. A further example of insubordination involves young nuns who make excuses to avoid the task of washing the feet of some poor and sick women in VPB 36/35. In this case, the saint herself demonstrates the right attitude by volunteering to do the task. Brigit’s act of washing the feet of the poor and sick echoes that of Jesus when he washed the feet of his disciples in John 13:5. Another hagiographical example of this same attitude of humility can be found in the Dialogi ii.6 of Sulpicius Severus, in which a queen insists on washing Saint Martin’s feet and serving him herself.116 The underlying fault in the behaviour of the obstinate nuns seems to be murmuring, thinking themselves to be better than the task at hand. This sin is discussed, for example, by Augustine, who recommends bodily work to monks, by stressing its spiritual rewards, and by declaring that monks should submit to their superiors without a murmur.117 Similarly, John Cassian states that one of the signs of humility is that a monk places no trust in his own opinion but instead trusts in all to the judgement of his superior.118 Gregory the Great writes that the obstinate deem themselves to be more than they are when they do not submit to the advice of others, and that obstinacy is begotten by pride.119 Furthermore, Columbanus rules that monks should beware of proud independence and obey without murmuring and hesitation.120 Cummean, the author of the seventh-century penitential bearing his name, makes a connection between murmuring and pride by presenting the penance for murmuring in the chapter dealing with pride.121 This all means that the episodes concerning the insubordination of the nuns in VPB should be read against the background of these exhortations that connect murmuring with lack of humility and pride. Further examples of disobedient nuns include the two in VPB 52/54 who refuse to eat the dry bread and pork offered to them during 116 The practice of washing the feet of guests is also mentioned in VC i.4. For discussion of this practice, see Bitel (1990), 204–205. Bitel cites practical and political reasons for the custom, and sees it as a form of acting out status differences. She fails, however, to note the biblical precedent and the spiritual implications of the act. 117 De opere monachorum 4, 19. 118 Inst. iv.39. On the spiritual rewards of the manual labour of monks, see also Inst. x.24. 119 LRP iii.18. 120 Regula monachorum i & ix, see also Regula coenobialis x. 121 Penitential of Cummean viii.6. For the sin of murmuring in the penitentials, see H. Connolly (1995), 115–117.

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Lent, although it is the only food available. The saint here leads by example by eating the meal in company with Bishop Ibor. The nuns’ error is clearly demonstrated to them when their portions turn into serpents, and they are severely reprimanded by the saint and made to fast in tears. This episode demonstrates a flexible attitude towards fasting. The same attitude is promoted by Cassian, who recommends moderation and discretion instead of stiff obstinacy when it comes to fasting.122 What is noteworthy in this episode is that the nuns are guilty of the same sin as the ones discussed above, that is, pride in trusting their own judgement rather than that of their superior.123 Again we see a negative attitude towards work by the virgin in VPB 31/30, whose laziness makes possible the presence of a demon at the table. She is freed from the demon, however, after being granted sight of it by the saint. This episode clearly demonstrates the connection between sinful behaviour and demons, a connection which is also evident in VC, where three examples of this occur: evil-doer tries to kill the saint prompted by the devil (diabuli instinctu),124 a boy’s negligence enables the devil to hide at the bottom of a milk-pail,125 and the devil clouds the senses of the pagans worshipping a well.126 This view of the devil’s role is corroborated by Augustine, who writes that a sinner falls into the power of the devil.127 All these examples of insubordination in VPB depict women leading religious lives and illustrate the sin of disobedience which was already discussed above in the context of male ecclesiastics. The religious women in these episodes are guilty of trusting their own judgement above that of the saint and in trying to avoid unpleasant tasks. Their actions illustrate the role of humble servitude and obedience in the life of female monastics through the negative examples and their consequences, while the saint herself represents the ideal attitude of humility. 122

Coll. ii.16–17, xvii.23. Cf. VC i.21, concerning the obstinate penitent which was discussed above in chapter 4.a. 124 VC ii.24. 125 VC ii.16. Cf. G.G.Dial i.4, where a nun who eats lettuce from a garden forgetting to say the customary blessing first is thrown to the ground by the devil. 126 VC ii.11 See also VC ii.17 and 34. Further evidence of this connection in Adomnán’s mind can be found in his DLS iii. 4 & 5, in which a man hits a marble column of Saint George, and another man throws a picture of Mary into human extrement, diabulo instigante. 127 De libero arbitrio III.x.29. 123

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4.c.3. Sexual Sins A virgin, who had fallen into sin and given birth to a baby in VPB 39/39, is freed from her error by repentance when the child miraculously reveals her accusations concerning the father of the child as false.128 Here it is not quite clear whether the worse sin is that of lapsing from virginity or that of making the false accusations concerning a bishop of St Patrick. However, since her punishment includes her head and tongue, by which she had pronounced the accusations publicly, swelling up, it seems that in this case, the graver sin may be the false accusations against the bishop. This would seem to give further support to my conclusions in chapter 3.d.2. concerning the lenient attitude of the authors of the Brigidine Lives towards lapsed virgins, based on their view of virginity as a spiritual rather than a physical state. Another example of a virgin being tempted by lust is the saint’s pupil, Darlugdach, in VPB 97/99.129 The sudden desire for a certain man results from her insufficient guarding of her eyes. However, she does not succumb to the temptation, but fights it with the help of God by burning her feet with coal. The next day Brigit, who had been observing Darlugdach’s struggle, praises her by saying: quia uiriliter dimicasti hac nocte, et pedes tuos in praesenti combussisti, ignis fornicationis iterum in praesenti non nocebit te, et ignis gehenne in futuro non comburet te.130 This episode includes several biblical references as well as parallels to the theme of hermits fighting against lust in hagiographical writings. Temptation reaches Darlugdach through her eyes, a reference perhaps to Job 31:1, ‘I made a covenant with my eyes not to look lustfully at a girl’, and Job. 31:7, ‘if my steps have turned from the path, if my heart has been led by my eyes’. Another possible parallel is Matthew 5:28: ‘But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ This could also be a reference to Matthew 18:9, cited earlier in the context of discussion of Brigit’s extreme measures of guarding her virginity. Further evidence that this biblical passage was in the author’s mind is provided by the fact that in both texts, there is a causal connection between avoiding Cf. VPB 103/105, (also VBC 32/35) for another example of a fallen virgin. For discussion of Darlugdach as a ‘reproduction’ of Brigit, see Nagy (2001), 278–279. 130 VPB 97/99: ‘How courageously you fought this night, you have burned your feet in the present life, the fire of fornication will not harm you again in the present life and the fire of hell will not burn you in the life to come.’ Translation mine. 128 129

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the temptation of the eyes and refraining from the fire of hell.131 The connection between lust and the fire of hell also occurs in VA 5(4), in which Antony defends himself against impure thoughts caused by the devil by thinking of ultrices gehennae flammas. Furthermore, it is Darlugdach’s fear of God and of Brigit that causes her to struggle against the passion she feels for the man. Fear of the Lord is a recurring theme in the Old Testament, and in Proverbs, it is stated that ‘a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised’.132 Brigit praises Darlugdach for fighting courageously, uiriliter,133 a term which in the Bible occurs mostly in connection with standing firm in faith against the enemies of Israel, but which can just as well refer to an inner battle against vice.134 Other sources that advocate fighting an inner battle against lust include Augustine’s CD xvi.25, in which he praises Abraham for treating his women uiriliter, since he did not use the bondmaid Hagar to gratify lust but only to produce offspring. Furthermore, in his De vera religione xli.78, Augustine writes that also women have some virile (uirile) quality whereby they can subdue feminine pleasures, serve Christ and govern desire. Moreover, Gregory the Great uses this term in connection with the fight against sins, and John Cassian praises Job for enduring the temptations of the devil uiriliter.135 As Darlugdach is freed from the temptations of the flesh in the present life, similarly a devout man, Equitius, in Gregory the Great’s Dialogi i.4, asks God’s help when suffering violent temptations of the flesh from which God frees him for the rest of his life. Another example in Dialogi ii.2, which resembles the case of Darlugdach even more closely, is that of Saint Benedict to whose mind an evil spirit recalls a woman he had seen earlier. The saint calls God to help and throws himself into a bush of nettles and briars to conquer the desire for pleasure through suffering. By inflicting pain on himself outside his body, he is 131 VPB 97/99: ignis gehenne in futuro non comburet te; Mt 18:9: mitti in gehennam ignis. See also Mt 5:22, Mk 9:42, 44, 46, and Jas 3:6. 132 Prov 31:30. See also, for example, Prov 3:7, 24:21; Lev 19:32, 25:17; Dt 6:2, 10:12, 31:12; Job 1:8, 2:3. Fear of God is also the first step to wisdom according to Augustine, DDC ii.16. On fear of the Lord in VC, see O’Reilly (1999), 199–211. 133 For examples of women acting manfully, uiriliter, see Smith (1998), 56–57. On the notion of the ‘virile nature’ of virgins, see also Castelli (1986), 76–77. 134 See Dt 31:6; Jos 1:18; 1 Chr 19:13, 22:13, 28:20; 2 Chr 32:7. See also 1 Cor 16:13, where it is used in an exhortation to act manfully. Acting uiriliter in the sense of standing against enemies also occurs in VC i.1, in which the saint gives advice to King Oswald prior to a battle. 135 Mor. in Iob xvii.16. Coll. vi.9, see also Coll. vi.10, vii.5, & xxi.9.

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able extinguish the burning desire within.136 Both in Darlugdach’s and in Benedict’s case, the fire of lust is conquered through physical pain, which for Darlugdach is actual burning, while for Benedict, the pain is said to burn his body. Another example of a Christian champion who subdues lust by pain is the martyr in Jerome’s Vita Pauli 3, who bites off the end of his own tongue in order to avoid the temptation caused by the harlot sent to conquer him. Similarly, although in a very literal way, Abbot Serenus is freed from lust in Cassian’s Collationes vii.2 when he sees in a vision at night how an angel opened his belly and removed ‘a kind of fiery tumor’ from it. Being freed from lustful impulses is the goal of a perfect monk, such as Serenus, according to Cassian.137 He treats fornication as a spiritual battle against the unlawful impulses of the body and mind. This battle is fought both on the physical and spiritual fronts, by means of ascetical practices that constrain the body, assisted by prayer and contemplation that target the spirit. Put succintly, the goal of the perfect monk is to have both his body and soul under his will so that no unlawful thoughts can bother him even in his sleep.138 As for Darlugdach, the temptation comes to him during the night, which according to Cassian, is the time that is most vulnerable to demonic suggestions.139 Furthermore, Darlugdach fights the battle both by prayer and by physical means, the course recommended by Cassian when fighting the spirit of fornication.140 Cassian writes that it is not only physical contact that can arouse passion, but also the recollection of it, which is what happens to Darlugdach.141 Brigit finally congratulates her pupil for being freed of the fire of fornication (ignis fornicationis), her words perhaps reflecting Cassian’s view of the spirit of fornication and the fire of lust that the monks have to overcome.142 136 G.G.Dial. ii.2: ibique diu uolutatus, toto ex eis corpore uulneratus exiit, et per cutis uulnera eduxit a corpore uulnus mentis; quia uoluptatem traxit in dolorem. Cumque bene poenaliter foris arderet, exstinxit quod intus illicite ardebat. Vicit itaque peccatum, quia mutauit incendium. 137 See Coll. xii.7, in which Serenus is given as an example of this highest state. 138 Coll. v.4, xii, xxii, Inst. vi. On Cassian’s views concerning chastity and fornication, see Foucault (1985); Stewart (1998), 62–84. 139 See Coll. xiv.10, on meditation on the Scriptures during the night and xxii on nocturnal emissions. See also Inst. vi. 140 According to Cassian, there is a link between fornication and gluttony, and he consequently recommends a strict diet as one of the means of fighting lust, Coll. v.4. See also Coll. vii.2. 141 Coll. xix.15–16. 142 Coll. xix.15: . . . contra spiritum fornicationis.. etiam concupiscentiae ignis propositis.

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The story concerning Darlugdach can therefore be understood as an illustration of the same theological principles of freeing oneself from the fiery power of fornication that Cassian had discussed. As Darlugdach advances from being tempted by the recollection of a man she had seen, to the state of being free of lustful impulses through prayer and bodily punishment, she also frees herself from the fire of hell in the future. Thus, by not succumbing to lust, she wins a central battle in the monastic life, one that applies to both women and men. And by fighting uiriliter, manfully, she can exceed her own gender and reach a higher state in which she is free of lust. As a consequence she does not represent female ecclesiastic specifically in this episode but her example illustrates a central battle in monastic life in general.

4.d. Conclusions The main sin discussed in an ecclesiastical context in VC is disobedience, which also features largely in VPB as the sin of the murmuring nuns. This shows that the Irish authors are in line with Cassian in stressing the importance of obedience as a central tenet of monastic life. The episodes concerning disobedient nuns, monks, and penitents in VC and VPB, furthermore, exemplify the monastic virtue of submitting to the judgement of superiors, which is also recommended by Augustine, John Cassian, Gregory the Great, and Columbanus. VC and VPB also agree with each other in underlining the importance of ritual purity when handling the Eucharist. VC additionally hints that valuing material property was not deemed as a beneficial quality in ecclesiastical personnel, which is a theme that is also reflected in the writings of John Cassian and Sulpicius Severus. Another respect in which the Irish authors of the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba agree with their predecessors, such as Athanasius, John Cassian, and Gregory the Great, is in their presenting pride as a sin that is especially relevant to the powerful, who are in danger of being puffed up by their status and power. When it comes to sexual sins, the Irish hagiographical and penitential authors are also in line with their patristic predecessors in making a connection between youth and am increased susceptibility to the temptations of the flesh. The episode concerning Darlugdach in VPB, moreover, incorporates a lesson on the monastic battle against lust following hagiographical models from Gregory the Great’s Dialogi, and Jerome’s Vita Pauli. At

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the same time, this episode also offers a practical example of the monastic ideal of freedom from bodily lust that was discussed by John Cassian. One group of deeply sinful men in the Lives consists of brigands who seem to lead a profoundly non-Christian lifestyle in an otherwise largely Christian society. There may be a connection between their practices and paganism, but in any case, they follow superstitious practises that are condemned by the Church, whether or not the men themselves are strictly speaking pagans. Thus it is their lifestyle, which includes killing, wearing amulets, and making vows to kill, that excludes them from the Christian fold and that disqualifies them from the mercy of God unless they repent. In Adomnán’s mind, the sins of incest, fratricide, and parricide represent violations of the kin-based societal order. They are especially grave transgressions against the laws governing Chistian conduct, and they are likewise presented in such a light by Patrick. Other prominent sins in the hagiographical accounts concerning the encounters between saints and the members of the laity are acts of disrespect towards the saint. It is quite natural to present these deeds against the saint as being deeply sinful and as meriting great punishments, since the hagiographers are writing in order to engender veneration towards the saint and his or her successors. All these sources agree in representing the gravest sins, such as killing and plundering, as men’s preserve, which probably reflects the violent society in which most of the worst acts of violence would be performed by men. However, women are presented as being guilty of lesser sins, such as pride, lack of faith, greediness, foolishness, stealing, and lust. Both nuns and laywomen alike are presented as being guilty of these sins, although the sins of disobedience and lust get their most extensive treatment in the context of the female ecclesiastics in VPB, which suggests that they may be sins especially central to monastic life. Additionally, we can conclude that the authors of these works did not exclude women from good Christian life and heaven, but actually saw women as being at least equal to men in the pursuit of virtues.143

143 See Augustine, Confessiones XIII.xxiii.33, in which he concludes that women are also capable of being spiritual persons who exercise spiritual judgement between right and wrong.

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5. consequences of actions in this life You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.1

The punishments resulting from misdeeds show us that the deed in question was seen as sinful. In a similar way, a reward from a virtuous act points out the virtuous nature of the deed. In the hagiographical narratives concerning Brigit and Columba, however, the punishments, including penance, are dealt with in a much more graphic and extensive way than the rewards. As a result, the emphasis in this chapter is mainly on the negative consequences rather than the positive ones. Some of the consequences of good and bad actions—the rewards and punishments—have been briefly touched upon in the previous chapters. This chapter deals with the punishments meted out in this life. Another important topic to be discussed in this chapter is penance, since it is the means by which punishments can be avoided, and thus the final destinies of men be changed. Penance can, furthermore, clearly be seen as one of the consequences of bad actions, since repentance is required for the sins committed.

1

Ps 90:8.

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5.a. Penance May they [i.e. sinners] deserve to receive remission of the sins and blasphemies . . . whether through the sacrament of thy Baptism, or though the sacrifice of a broken spirit and contrite humbled heart, in penitential sorrow.2 . . . confession and penance free from death.3

According to the Bible, bad men, who have done wicked deeds and have lived in a way that is not in accordance with Christian morals, still have a chance to repent and mend their ways. This is because God is merciful, as we see, for example, in Psalm 31:5: ‘Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity, I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,” and you forgave my sin.’4 Penance ensures that sins are forgiven and the individual is healed from his vices, according to words ascribed in VC i.30 to saint Columba himself: Dimisa sunt tua quae commisisti peccamina. Quia sicut scriptum est: ‘Cor contritum et humiliatum deus non spernit.5 This is a quote from Psalm 50:19: sacrificium Dei spiritus contribulatus cor contritum et humiliatum Deus non dispicies. In his reference to this maxim, Adomnán resembles Augustine and Gregory the Great, who both use the same direct quote from the Psalm, which identifies true humility and repentance as the means for acquiring God’s forgiveness.6 This attitude is clearly demonstrated in VC i.30 by the exemplary penitent Fiachnae, who flings himself at the saint’s feet, weeping and grieving and publicly confessing his sins. Fiachnae’s actions remind the audience of the repentant sinner in Luke 7:36–50 who washes Christ’s feet with her tears. In VPB 92/94, a bishop’s attendant who had stolen a goat is ordered to repent and funde lachrymas cum fletu.7 After the man’s repentance, the sign of his sin, the monstrous goat in the Eucharistic 2 Augustine, De natura boni xlviii. For penance as a central part of Christian life following baptism, see Cramer (1993), 44–47. 3 Columbanus, Regula coenobialis, I. Translation by Walker. 4 The Psalm numbers given refer to those in the Vulgate. See also Lk 13:3 (repeated in Lk 13:5): ’But unless you repent, you too will all perish.’ 5 VC i.30: ‘Your sins that you have committed have been forgiven, because as it is written: “A contrite and humbled heart God does not despise.”’ 6 Augustine, Enchiridion 65, and Gregory the Great, LRP iii.30. There is also a reference to the words of the psalm in Augustine, De natura boni xlviii quoted above, siue per sacrificium contribulati spiritus et cordis contriti et humiliati. 7 VPB 92/94: ‘. . . . shed tears of sorrow’.

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chalice, disappears lachrymae enim illius culpam soluerunt.8 Weeping and lamentation (cum fletu et lacrimis / lamento) as a part of repentance is also mentioned in VC i.22 and 30. The hagiographers here agree with the author of the sixth-century Penitential of Finnian who requires doing penance in weeping and tears (in fletu et lacrimis). In addition, the seventh-century text known as the Second Synod of Patrick states that a short penance with weeping and lamentation (cum fletu et lamentatione) is more effective than a long and lukewarm one.9 The backgound for this notion of repenting with tears is, according to Thomas O’Loughlin, the idea of the ‘baptism of tears’ that was promoted by the Eastern theologian, Gregory Nazianzen.10 This means that the tears would have a central role in penance as an outer sign of inner compunction and remorse, which guarantee the sinner’s true repentance of his former sins. In VBC 22/23, Brigit preaches to nine wicked men who had vowed to kill someone by saying, ut mortiferis erroribus relictis, crimina per cordis compunctionem, et ueram dilerant paenitentiam.11 This episode demonstrates Cogitosus’s view of the danger of the sinful life of these men, and that their only means of achieving salvation would be through amendment and penance. A similar view concerning the goal of penance is also revealed by Adomnán when he states in VC ii.39 that Librán laboured ‘for the salvation of his soul’, during the seven years he was a penitent. Two examples in VC i.17 and 40 relate how people are made to confess their hidden sins, and thus to repent them. In the first, the sinner is a woman, and in the second, a cleric. In the case of the woman, Columba sends her son to question her earnestly about the sin, which eventually forces her to confess, although she first tries to deny the unnamed sin. Columba’s action accords with a practice recommended by Gregory the Great in LRP, the most popular guidebook of pastoral care in the early Middle Ages. Gregory advises that secret 8 VPB 92/94: ‘. . . for the tears had atoned the fault’. For penance in VPB, see also VPB 34/33, 39/39, 45/47, 57/59, 66/68, 72/73, 74/75, 77/78, 117/120. In most cases, the reference to penitence simply consists of the fact that the person or persons repented, poenitentiam egit / egerunt, with no further comments. 9 Finnian 12, 29, and Second Synod of St. Patrick iii. 10 See O’Loughlin (2000a), 54–57. See also O’Loughlin & Conrad-O’Briain (1993), 72–80; O’Loughlin (2000c), 96–97. 11 VPB 22/23: ‘. . . that they might abandon the deadly errors and cleanse themselves of the crimes by compunction of heart and true repentance’. Translation mine. For penance in VBC, see also VBC 25/26.

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matters should be closely investigated and the heart should be opened by thoroughgoing questioning.12 Other examples of confession of sins are the two wise men who are healed of their vices by their true repentance in VC i.30 and 50, and another man who finishes seven years of penance following the instructions of the saint in VC ii.39.13 However, in VC i.22, there is a man who has committed incest with his mother, as well as fratricide, and to whom the saint answers: Si xii. annis inter Brittones cum fletu et lacrimis penetentiam egeris, nec ad Scotiam usque ad mortem reuersus fueris, forsan deus peccato ignoscat tuo.14 The saint, however, later concludes to his monks, that: Hic homo filius est perditionis, qui quam promisit penetentiam non explebit sed mox ad Scotiam reuertetur, ibique in breui ab inimicis interficiendus peribit.15 To conclude, the wretched man might have a chance if he repented, the word forsan, ‘perhaps’, reflecting that possibility. This word can either refer to the gravity of the man’s sin, and thus to the fact that the sin might be too grave for forgiveness, or to the fact that the saint knows that the man might not, after all, fulfil his penance, and thereby will be doomed. The latter option seems more plausible, since the saint’s successor, Baithéne, suggests that the man’s penance would be accepted, quoting Holy Scripture to support this view.16 Adomnán does not reveal which biblical passage he has in mind, but he might be referring to Psalms 31:5 and 50:19 quoted above. This view is reflected in the penitential of Finnian 47, which comments: quia nullum crimen quod non potest ridimi per penitentiam quamdiu sumus in hoc corpore.17 Augustine also states that mercy is not denied to those who repent.18 Thus it seems that Columba is not 12 LRP ii.10. On the knowledge of LRP among Irish authors, see, for example, Columbanus’s Epistola i.9, in which he says that he had read the work. On LRP and its importance, see Volz (1990), 174–179. 13 For further examples of penance in VC, see i.17, 21, and 40. 14 VC i.22: ‘If you do penance among the Britons with wailing and weeping for twelve years, and do not return to Ireland until your death, perhaps God will condone your sin.’ 15 VC i.22: ‘This man is a son of perdition; he will not fulfil the penance that he has promised, but in a little while will return to Ireland, and will there shortly perish, killed by his enemies.’ 16 For discussion of Baithené’s role in this episode, see O’Reilly (1999), 193–4. 17 Finnian 47. ‘There is no crime which cannot be expiated through penance so long as we are in this body.’ 18 Augustine, Epistolae ad Romanos inchoata expositio 22, and DDC i.27. See also Gregory the Great, LRP i.1. On Gregory the Great’s views of penance, see Straw (1988), 213–235.

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denying the possibility of penance because of the gravity of the man’s sin, but because he knows that the man’s repentance is not genuine. The penance that Columba imposes on the wretched incestuous man is in line with that of the penitentials which impose some of their heaviest penance on men who had violated their mothers. For example, in the Penitential of Cummean from the seventh century, as well as in the sixth-century Welsh text from the Synod of the Grove of Victory, the mechator of his mother is ordered, not only to perform three years of penance, but also to go into a permanent exile.19 Adomnán twice uses the terminology of healing, sanata / sanatus est, in connection with penance.20 Furthermore, in VC i.27, a man comes to seek physical remedies in Iona and these remedies are explicitly compared to repentance for sins, for the saint thinks it would be better for the man to occupy himself with repentance, since the man is going to die soon. This may be seen to confirm that his view of penance is comparable to the view of the Irish penitentials, which view penance in terms of physical remedies.21 Even so, the use of medical images in connection with penance is not solely an Irish phenomenom, for Adomnán could have found examples of this in Mark 2:17 and Luke 5:31–32, and the idea also features in the writings of Augustine and Cassian.22

5.b. Punishments 5.b.1. Ecclesiastics When we look at the punishments meted out for the sins of ecclesiastics in VC, we find that the only ecclesiastic who has a violent ending is the wealthy cleric in VC i.38, whom the saint sees riding in a Cummean ii.7, and Synod of the Grove of Victory 6. VC i.17, 50. 21 For example, see, Penitential of Columbanus ante B, and Cummean viii.16. On the medical view of penance see McNeill (1932); Volz (1990), 141–142. On Irish penitential practises, see F. Clancy (1988), 94–100. 22 Mk 2:17/Lk 5:31–32: ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.’ Augustine, DDC i.27–28, and Epistolae ad Romanos inchoata expositio 18. Cassian, Inst. vii.5–6, xi.16, and Coll. xix.12–14. For Cassian’s influence on penance in Ireland, see McNeill (1932), 14–21; F. Clancy (1988), 92–93; O’Loughlin (2000a), 53–54; O’Loughlin (2000c), pp.95–96, 101–104. 19 20

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chariot. The sin of this cleric is not specified, but the saint predicts that he will choke to death while lying in bed with a whore after losing his wealth. The fact that the man is a cleric seems to be secondary to the story, since the title of the episode reads, De quodam diuite qui Lugudius Clodus uocitabatur, defining the subject of the narrative simply as a rich man, without any mention of his clerical status. This episode should be read together with the next one, VC i.39, where the prophecy of a similar ending is repeated—sudden death while in a bed with a whore. On this occasion the recipient is apparently a layman whose sins are also unspecified. These two episodes demonstrate the prophetic powers of the saint without revealing anything about the specific sins of clerics or laymen. Another severe physical punishment of an ecclesiastic in VC is meted out in VC i.36 to a priest who laid hands in ordination on a murderer, for whom he had carnal love. Columba predicts that the hand used in the ordination, that is the tool of the sinning, will rot, causing great torments, and that it will precede the priest himself to the grave. However, the punishment does not include the death of the priest, since he is said to have lived many years after his hand has been buried. The murderer who is the object of ordination, however, is punished by a violent death, thus demonstrating that his sin is graver than that of the priest. A severe punishment is also inflicted on a boy who spies on Columba in VC iii.21, when his cell is filled with heavenly light. The saint reproaches the boy severely and tells him that his face will bear reproach (exprobrationem facies tua . . . patietur) for the rest of his life. The exprobratio on his face apparently refers to some kind of visible blemish, which in early Irish law was regarded as being a serious handicap, since it exposed the victim to public ridicule.23 However, Columba also foresees the boy’s return to his home in Ireland, where he will live luxuriously, and moreover, the saint predicts his repentance before death. The ecclesiastical status of the boy is not clear. He is called a foster-son of the saint, and is said to be in Iona to study wisdom. Yet, it would appear that he may have been sent to study in the monastery without any plans for a monastic future.24 This CIH 2313.17 & 585.32–3. See also Kelly (1988), 132. See MacDonald (1984), 290, in which he concludes that ‘Columba’s student (alumnus) of philosophy (sapientia) appears to be a layman’. See also Sharpe (1995), 371 n. 393, in which he states that ‘it is clear that he was a lay youth rather than one intending to become a monk.’ On children given to the church to be educated, see Ó Corráin, Breatnach & Breen (1984), 410–411; de Jong (1996), 16–53. 23 24

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ambivalence about the boy’s monastic status is further supported by the fact that his punishment is more severe than that of a monk secretly spying on the saint in VC iii.16, who is only reproached and told to promise not to reveal what he saw for as long as the saint would live. The difference between the two, however, might not be only in their monastic status, but also in their actions consequent on the sin. The spying monk is not able to conceal his trespass when the saint questions who did it, while the pupil apparently tries to deny the deed thus comitting a further offence. Two of the most severe punishments of sin in VC therefore appear in cases where the ecclesiastical status of the sinner is ambivalent or secondary to other factors. In most of the cases in which the status of the sinner is unambigiously that of monk or a priest, sin and its consequences are treated leniently. In VC i.19, the monk who does not take the route suggested by the saint encounters a monstrous whale and is frightened and scarcely able to escape, but there is no further punishment of his boldness. In VC i.40, the priest carrying a hidden sin is made to confess, and in VC ii.16, the boy who is carrying a demon at the bottom of his milk-pail because of his carelessness is corrected mildly.25 The rich cleric, the priest who ordains falsely, the priest with a hidden sin, and the monk leaving his monastery without the abbot’s consent all appear in the episodes set in Ireland,26 while the false penitent, the monk encountering the whale, and the careless, and spying monks all belong to Iona.27 The Iona monks, apart from the penitent and the young boy, who are not technically monks, are not really punished at all. They are corrected of their vices, and the implication seems to be that they were wise enough to see their errors and thus learn from them, as did the monks in VC i.19 who encountered the whale and were filled with awe when they remembered what the saint had told them. The rich cleric in Ireland comes to an awful end, and 25 See also VC ii.38, where Lugaid is sent to Ireland as an emissary of the saint. While preparing for the trip, he loses a milk-skin when the ebb-tide carries it away. Lugaid admits his negligence to the saint who reassures him that the flood tide will carry it back. However, Lugaid’s negligence is not treated as a serious crime. Besides, it is specifically mentioned that Lugaid had covered the skin with large stones when he put it in the water for soaking, and thus it is implicated that he was not really guilty of negligence, although he himself as a conscientious monk thought so. Cf. a similar incident in G.G.Dial. ii.6. 26 VC i.6, 36, 40. 27 VC i.19, ii.16, 38, iii.16, 21.

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thus we can conclude that his sin must have been grave indeed. The wrongful ordination is described as an act committed against the law of God and of the Church, thus proving it to be a grave transgression. Columba describes the hidden sin of the priest in Ireland as being great although the sin itself is not specified. When the saint revealed the true nature of the priest, who was previously considered to be very religious, he was forced to confess in front of everyone. Although there is no immediate punishment for the monk who had left his monastery without permission, the consequence seems to be sufficiently grave in Adomnán’s mind, since it prevents Cormac from succeeding in his quest to find a desert in the ocean.28 In short, it seems that among the sins of ecclesiastics, those of the Iona monks appear less grave than those of ecclesiastics in Ireland.29 However, almost all the sins of ecclesiastics in VC, whether in Iona or in Ireland, are regarded as being milder than those of some lay people, as we shall see below. 5.b.2. Laity The examples concerning punishments meted out in this life to members of the laity almost exclusively concern men. In VC i.17, the foolish woman’s advice leads the family back to poverty, and in VC ii.37, another woman is forced to confess her hidden sin. The only woman guilty of sin in the Cogitosan life is saved from any consequences by the saint’s intervention in VBC 9/10. In VPB 74/75, a mistress who refuses to free a servant is punished when the hand with which she had grabbed the girl withers, thus reminding us of the case of the priest whose hand rots in VC i.36. Another case of physical punishment features a fallen virgin who is making false accusations concerning a bishop in VPB 39/39. Her head and tongue swell up, but even this is not enough to turn her to repentance. It is only after the baby born as a result of the sexual act is made to tell the truth concerning his father that the woman repents. The connection between the type of sin and punishment is also clear in the case of the woman whose trees are cursed by the saint so that they will never bear fruit again because of For example, the First Synod of St. Patrick 34 states: ‘A monk who goes wandering without consulting his abbot is to be punished.’ Also, Cassian considers going out from one’s monastery freely and without check as a sinful act, Inst. iv.16. The importance of asking the abbot’s permission is also stressed in S.S.Dial. i.10. 29 This conclusion can be supported by Márkus (1999), 115–138, on Adomnán’s mental map of Scotland. He concludes that in Adomnán’s mind, Iona is a place set apart and qualitatively different from the rest of Scotland. 28

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her lack of charity, and in the case of the nun who is stricken by leprosy for an hour because of her lack of compassion towards a leper.30 Other cases in which women are punished and then turned to repentance include the example of the wife whose baby is snatched by an eagle after the family had tried to settle on an island inhabited by a hermit, and the nuns whose portions of food turn into serpents after they had refused to eat dry bread and pork during Lent.31 Another example is a virgin who is punished and freed from laziness when she is made to see the demon whose presence is made possible by her vice.32 The effects of sinful behaviour extend even to the good deeds of the people in question, since in VC i.50, the saint rejects the gift of two avaricious men unless they repent of their sins. Similarly also Gregory the Great recounts in Dialogi iii.26 about a sinful man whose gift is rejected by a holy man called Menas. In both cases, the donations are anonymously placed with others, but the saint is able to recognize them as being given by sinful men. The principle that God will not accept the gifts of the wicked is stated in the Wisdom of Sirach (Ecclesiasticus) 34:18, and it is also cited by Patrick in his writings.33 In the case of generosity, or hospitality, and its contrary, avarice, the rewards and punishments are most clearly connected to the sin in question, since the property of hospitable people is either multiplied or at least restored, while the avaricious man stands to lose all his wealth and to be reduced to being a beggar.34 The connection between sins and divine punishments is made explicit in VC ii.46, in which Adomnán writes of a plague from which only Picts and the Irish of Britain were saved because of the great merit of Saint Columba, ‘although neither people is without great sins’ which anger God, the eternal judge.35 Returning to former bad deeds, and thus to sinning, can be seen as a punishment in the sense of losing the otherworldly rewards awaiting good Christians, although this might not be a conscious action on the sinner’s part. Nevertheless, when the saint predicts this happening, it VPB 32/31, 56/58. VPB 52/54, 72/73. 32 VPB 31/30. There are also several examples of the sinful behaviour of women in VPB where there is no mention of punishment, see VPB 1/1–4/4, 17/15, 36/35, 48/50, 93/95, 109/112. 33 Sir 34:18, ‘the gifts of the impious are unnacceptable’ (translation from the New Jerusalem Bible). Patrick, Epistola 8. 34 VC ii.20, 21, VBC 26. 35 Cf. The Old Irish Penitential V § 14, in which plague features as a punishment. 30 31

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can be seen as being part of the punishment that the saint and his God inflict on the wicked men. When the saint foresees the punishment as, for example, in VC i.21 and ii.22, this can be seen as a self-fulfilling prophecy, since the destiny of the evil-doer has been revealed to the saint by God, who knows all our actions before they happen. Thus the saint can be seen as taking part in punishing the wicked in these cases, since he acts as God’s mouthpiece in declaring the punishment awaiting the sinner. One of the men who returns to his former evil is the false penitent in VC i.21 who does not obey the saint, and of whom the saint prophesies his return to the woods with thieves, eating a stolen mare’s flesh. Here, there seems to be a connection with a bad way of life and eating horseflesh, although it can also be seen in the context of the man’s initial refusal to eat permitted food, when the saint allows an indulgence to the penitents. This connection between eating certain kinds of food and non-Christian behaviour can also be found in some Continental saints’ Lives, where eating horseflesh or squirrels is seen as a sign of paganism or as a restoration of pagan practices.36 Another man whose return to previous bad deeds is prophesied is the false priest in VC i.36, and it is said that he will return to being a bloody killer after being falsely ordained. The saint predicts that he will return like a dog to his vomit, which echoes Proverbs 26:11: ‘As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly.’37 What is noteworthy is that both men, whose return to bad deeds is predicted in VC, come to the monastery, but are not fully committed to the penitent’s or priest’s way of life. The saint sees their true nature, and predicts their return to their previous sinful ways. In the case of VBC, there is only one clear instance of punishment in VBC 16/17, and even this does not involve the saint herself actively, since the river rises, apparently spontaneously, to sweep away thieves who had stolen Brigit’s cattle. Here the river acts in an almost animistic way, bearing the revenge of God upon the wicked thieves. Brigit herself is nowhere to be seen in this episode, and the punishment seems to 36 Kuznetsova (2000), 130. Eating horseflesh is forbidden in the probably seventhcentury Canones Hibernensis i.13 and in the eighth-century Old Irish Penitential I § 2. For eating horse in early Ireland, see Barber (1981), 315; Ní Chatháin (1991), 123–124; McCormick (1997), 57. 37 VC i.36: sicuti canis ad uomitum reuertetur suum; Prov 26:11: sicut canis qui reuertitur ad uomitum suam. Also 2 Pet 2:22. Cf. Penitential of Finnian 21 about sinners who revert to their sin: sicut canes reuertens ad uomitum suum. The same biblical maxim is also quoted in LRP iii.36.

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be inflicted without her active influence, since she is not presented as causing the river to flood, or even as predicting the destiny of the thieves. It is not quite clear whether the criminals in this case die when the river sweeps them away, but I take this to be the case. Since this is the only episode of punishment in VBC, and the saint herself is not represented as actively involved in it, the type of saint Cogitosus wants to convey obviously does not make extensive use of the powers of punishment. Instead, in the only case of punishment, it is through God, and the nature that He controls, that the thieves are punished on the saint’s behalf. In the few episodes in which Brigit encounters anything resembling wicked men, she converts them to repentance, having shown them the effect of her miraculous powers.38 As for the case of VPB, Brigit’s powers have a similar effect in transforming sinners into penitents more often than in punishing them. In addition to three deaths that can be understood as punishment, there is one case concerning a healed leper who is punished for his lack of humility by being affected by leprosy again.39 In another case, in VPB 79/79, a leper is swept away by the river in a way similar to that of the VBC episode. In all other examples, the saint either prevents a sinful act (i.e. murder in these cases) from happening in the first place, or the sinners are made to repent when they encounter her.40

5.c. Conclusions Penance is presented as a central tenet in Christian life by all three authors, since it is the means of freeing oneself from the effects of sin, and consequently from hell. Adomnán and Cogitosus also agree in emphasizing that the repentance must be genuine, such genuiness being demonstrated by the outer signs of weeping and lamentation. In this respect, the Irish authors are following the theological idea of the ‘baptism of tears’ originally presented by the Eastern theologian Gregory Nazianzen. Adomnán, furthermore, agrees not only with the

VBC 7/8, 22/23, 25/26. VPB (being stricken by leprosy) 76/77, (deaths) 79/79, 80/80, and 118/121. On deaths as punishment, see chapter 6.a. 40 Preventing murder: VPB 64/66, 65/67, and 67/69. Repentance: VPB 34/33, 45/47, 57/59, 66/68, 72/73, and 117/120. 38 39

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Irish penitentials, but also with Augustine and John Cassian in using medical metaphors for penance. When we compare the misdeeds of ecclesiastics and laity, we see that the sins of these two groups differ in severity. VC offers the widest range of evidence in this respect, and in that Life, some laymen are presented as wicked killers, greedy and thieving men, or cruel oppressors of churches and innocents, while the sins of the ecclesiastics are of a milder quality, and thus leniency is shown to them in their punishments. There is also a difference between the sins of the ecclesiastics in Iona and outside it. In the cases where the person’s status is unambiguously that of a Columban monk, they are not really punished at all, but are instead shown to be wise enough to learn from their violations, while the sins of the ecclesiastics located in Ireland are treated more severely. In the Brigidine Lives, the sinners are most often turned into penance and made to change their ways by an encounter with the saint, rather than punished, thus indicating that the power to punish does not play a major role in the representation of the saintly image of Brigit. The consequences of sin include punishments in this life, such as losing wealth due to avarice, but the main repercussion is encountered later in the afterlife. In many cases, however, the encounter with the saint is sufficient to transform the sinners into penitents, thereby helping them to regain the heavenly rewards that await good Christians.

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6. posthumous consequences of actions Now a man came up to Jesus and asked, ‘Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?’ ‘Why do you ask me about what is good?’ Jesus replied. ‘There is only One who is good. If you want to enter the life, obey the commandments.’1

It is the posthumous consequences of good and bad actions that reveal to us the true quality of a person’s life, since in Christianity, the final rewards and punishments are meted out only in the afterlife. Thus it is the person’s final position either in heaven or hell that reveals how they have lived their lives. Besides the actual posthumous consequences that deal with heaven and hell, I will also discuss the good and bad deaths in this chapter. These could technically be seen as happening in this life, but since they clearly point towards the person’s final destination, I will discuss them together with the posthumous consequences.

1

Mt 19:16–17.

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6.a. Good and Bad Deaths Life is a misery, death is uncertain. It may suddenly carry us off. In what state shall we depart this life?2

The destinies of good and bad men at the time of their deaths are most clearly contrasted. There is a connection between the way a man lives and his manner of death, which mirrors his destiny in the afterlife. This connection between way of living and way of dying, and destiny after death, is most evident in Adomnán’s VC. There, the saint predicts to good men that they will never be delivered into the hands of their enemies, and that they will die in peace, in old age, in their own house, and surrounded by friends.3 The good death gives a man time to prepare his soul, and it is very similar to the deaths of many saints. For example, Saint Antony dies peacefully in old age, surrounded by his followers, after giving them instructions in VA 91(58)-92(59). So too does Saint Columba die this way in VC iii.23. On the other hand, bad men in VC have violent and sudden deaths at the hands of their enemies.4 Adomnán provides a clear example in VC i.1 of how even guilty and bloody men are saved (sint liberati) by God de manibus inimicorum, when they sing songs praising the saint, while their fellows, who refused to sing, perish in the assault. When writing about wicked men who die in the hands of their enemies, Adomnán might have in mind Psalm 30:16: In manu tua tempora mea libera me de manu inimicorum meorum et persequentium me.5 The opposite of the mors subita, the sudden death of the wicked men is the mors placida, the peaceful death at old age which is the exemplary good death.6 Adomnán is not alone in using the image of 2

Augustine, Confessiones VI.xi.19. Translation by Chadwick. VC i.10, 13, 15. Death in good old age also features in VC ii.31, iii.9, 14. 4 VC i.1, 22, 36, 39, ii.20, and 24. Stalmans (2003), 177, 181, has come to the same conclusion that the sudden deaths in VC correspond to damnation. See also Stalmans (2001), 45 and Stalmans (1999), 247–248. Adomnán’s interest in the violent and nonviolent deaths has also been noted by Charles-Edwards (2000), 503–504. For good and bad deaths in early Christian writing in general, see Carozzi (1994), 36–37. 5 Ps 30:16: ‘My times are in your hands; deliver me from my enemies and those who pursue me.’ See also Lk 1:73–74: iusiurandum quod iurauit ad Abraham patrem nostrum daturum se nobis ut sine timore de manu inimicorum nostrorum liberati seruiamus illi, ‘the oath he swore to our father Abraham: to rescue us from the hand of our enemies and to enable us to serve him without fear’. Conversely, God can also give enemies into one’s own hands, i.e. grant a victory, as in VC i.1 where Columba appears to King Oswald saying: ‘for the Lord has granted to me that this time your enemies shall be turned to flight and your adversary Catlon shall be delivered into your hands (in manus tradatur tuas)’. 6 Mors subita in VC i.41, ii.22, 23, and mors placida in VC i.10, 13, 15. See also VC ii.25, in which a killer dies dicto citius. 3

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the sudden death as a punishment, since it also features in the Dialogi of Gregory the Great, where a man guilty of seducing a young girl is overtaken by a sudden death (subita morte defunctus est).7 Adomnán’s thinking also agrees with that of Cassian, who recommends preparation for death early on, since sudden death can carry off even children and young people.8 In the Irish context, the image of sudden death as a punishment also features in Muirchú’s VP I 23, in which a man, who opposes the saint and plots to kill him, dies suddenly, dicto citius. However, there is one example of a sudden death in VC i.45 that does not function as a punishment. When the saint’s old uncle dies suddenly, this serves to highlight the saint’s prophecy that he will not meet his uncle alive again, and thus the uncle has to expire suddenly right before their encounter. Furthermore, not all good Christians have a peaceful death in old age. One example of this is the innocent girl who is murdered in front of the young saint and his teacher in VC ii.25. The model for the violent deaths of good Christians can be found in the deaths of martyrs, and ultimately in the death on the cross of Jesus.9 So the murdered innocent girl can be considered to be a martyr, a good Christian who suffers in the hands of wicked men. Three additional examples of the sudden deaths of wicked men occur in VPB. For instance, in VPB 80/80 a man who refuses Brigit permission to pass through his fields and who makes light of his crime immediately (statim) collapses on the ground and dies. When a king rejects a chieftain supported by the saint in VPB 118/121, he immediately (statim) falls from his chariot, dashes his head against the ground and dies. In these episodes, the connection between the way of dying and punishment is clear since death occurs immediately following the sinful deed. In a similar way, a sinful act is immediately followed by death in the Dialogi of Gregory the Great, where a deacon dies right at the moment as Saint Sabinus drinks safely from the cup in which the deacon had planted poison.10 In the third example in VPB, an arrogant leper is called filius perditionis, ‘son of perdition’, by the saint in VPB 78–79/79, which indicates the kind of destiny that awaits him in the afterlife. This

7

G.G.Dial. iv.33, in PL iv.32. Coll. xxi.8: quia necessitate subitae mortis uana spes immaturae non praeiudicaret aetatis, quippe quae infantes, pueros, adolescentes, pari, ut senes, sorte praeriperet. 9 See Vauchez (1990), 314–315. 10 G.G.Dial. iii.5. See also G.G.Dial. iv.54 (in PL iv.55) for another sudden death of a sinner. 8

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destiny is further evident in the manner of his death, since he is swept away by a river to the deep (in profundum), so that he is sucked down and his body is never recovered. This death reminds us of the biblical destiny of Pharaoh’s army that is drowned and descenderunt in profundum quasi lapis.11 Adomnán also uses the same image in VC ii.22 when narrating how a band of evil-doers sink with their ship, subita praeuentus morte.12 He states that nec ex eis . . . unus euassit, while in Exodus 14:28, it is said of Pharaoh’s army ne unus quidem superfuit ex eis.13 A similar destiny is demonstrated in VBC 16/17, in which a band of cattle-thieves is swept away by a river, although in this case, it is not stated whether they died or not. The importance of preparing the soul for death with penance is highlighted in VC i.27 concerning a man who comes to Iona to seek physical remedies, and to whom the saint recommends true penance instead, since he is going to die soon, by saying: oportunius erat ueram de peccatis hodie penitudinem gerere, nam in huius fine ebdomadis morietur.14 The connection between penance and death also becomes clear in VC i.22 when the saint says of the man who had committed incest and fratricide: Hic homo filius est perditionis, qui quam promisit penetentiam non explebit sed mox ad Scotiam reuertetur, ibique in breui ab inimicis interficiendus peribit.15 The result is that the man will suffer a violent death at the hands of his enemies, which functions as a punishment and indicates that he is destined to hell, since he did not expiate his sins by penance. One model for the bad deaths of wicked men is that of Judas. In Acts 1:18, it is written: ‘With the reward Judas got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.’16 John Cassian uses the death of Judas as a model of a punishment when warning against

Ex 15:5: ‘. . . sank to the depths like a stone’. See also Ex 14:27–28, Neh 9:11. VC ii.22: ‘. . . overtaken by a sudden death’. 13 VC ii.22: ‘. . . not even one escaped of those’; Ex 14:28. ‘Not one of them survived’. 14 VC i.27: ‘. . . the fitter thing for him was to occupy himself with true repentance for his sins. For in the end of this week he will die.’ 15 VC i.22: ‘This man is a son of perdition; he will not fulfil the penance that he has promised, but in a little while will return to Ireland, and will there shortly perish, killed by his enemies.’ 16 For another version of Judas’s death, see Mt 27:5: ‘then he went away and hanged himself ’. 11 12

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avarice, and he makes evident the connection between sin and awful death. In the same context, he discusses the destinies of Ananias and Sapphira from Acts 5:1–11, who also die as a punishment for their avarice.17 Adomnán obviously understands deaths as punishments in the same biblical way as Cassian, since he also quotes the death of Ananias as a model when writing about the murderer who fell dead on the spot in VC ii.25: dicto citius . . . sicut Annanias coram Petro.18 The sins for which wicked men deserve violent and sudden deaths in VC include plundering, killing, committing fratricide and incest, trying to kill the saint, being responsible for the death of a man under protection, and scoffing and mocking the saint.19 Adomnán explicitly demonstrates in VC i.36 that these kinds of violent deaths are a fitting punishment from the bad deeds of these men, when he proclaims of one of them: Talem multo prius terminum promeruit uitae, qui totius regem trucidauit Scotiae.20

6.b. Heaven and Hell 6.b.1. Souls Taken to Heaven Christianity is a religion in which the ultimate rewards and punishments come after death in either heaven or hell.21 Heaven is then the goal of all good Christians, and the reward for their good deeds. This is apparent in VC on the four occasions where souls of laymen are taken to heaven by angels. The first instance in VC iii.9 concerns a righteous and charitable iron-smith who gave alms for the needy. Then, there is a happy and virtuous woman, followed by her pious and righteous husband in VC iii.10. The fourth is a guest at Abbot Comgall’s monastery

Inst. vii.25, 30. VC ii.25: ‘. . . more quickly than speech . . . like Ananias before Peter’. 19 VC i.1, 22, 36, 39, ii.20, 22, 23, 24, 25. 20 VC i.36: ‘He has deserved such an end much sooner, who has slaughtered the king of all Ireland.’ 21 For heaven in Christianity, see Clayton (1990); McDannell & Lang (1990). For early Medieval Irish views on heaven and hell, see Seymor (1923), 184–191; O’Loughlin (1999), 9–17; Edel (2001), 73–77. See also Bray (1992), 20, where she notes that ‘although the Irish Lives have little in the way of description of the afterlife, they do reflect in a few instances the Irish conception of heaven and hell’. 17 18

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in VC iii.13, who is drowned with a group of monks.22 In the latter two cases, the ascent to heaven is preceded by a fight with demons in which the virtuous wife and Comgall’s monks take part, in addition to angels.23 VC ii.25 mentions the ascent of a young girl’s soul to heaven, although the fact is recorded only because the punishment of her killer is tied to the moment of her ascension. Her soul’s ascension to heaven may serve to underline her innocence, and the sinfulness of the killer, called innocuorum . . . persequutor. In VC i.1, Adomnán lists different types of miracles which the saint performed, including his frequently seeing, by the revelation of the Holy Spirit, iustorum animas . . . ab angelis ad summa caelorum, and alias ad inferna a daemonibus ferri.24 Most of the examples concerning souls taken to heaven occur in book three of VC, which is dedicated to angelic and heavenly visions. There angels accompany the saint, confer with him, and help him in a battle with demons who threaten the monastery.25 This means that the context for the examples of souls taken to heaven is Adomnán’s aim of demonstrating Columba’s heavenly connections. Table 4 lists the instances of souls taken to heaven in VC. The first paragraph records the type of person in question, the second indicates their way of dying, the third shows the presence of angels and/or demons at the soul’s departure, and the fourth points to the chapter in which the incident features. The aim here is to offer an overall view of the destinies of the souls and the different factors influencing them in VC. A similar table concerning the souls taken to hell will follow below. Adomnán states of an iron-smith in VC iii.9: qui de propria manuum laboratione suarum praemia emax felix conparauit aeterna.26 This clearly demonstrates that it was the virtues and good deeds of this man that took him to heaven. When writing about this iron-smith who was much 22 I take the man in question to be a layman, since nothing of his ecclesiastical status is mentioned. Furthermore, the man’s posthumous destiny is not as clearly sealed as that of the monks who drowned with him, since his soul has to be rescued from the battling demons, which seems to point to a lower religious status and to a lesser posthumous reward than that of the monks. This will be discussed in more detail below. Stalmans (2001), 47, for example, names the man as a layman with no hint of any ambiguity concerning his status. 23 On the theme of a dispute between angels and demons over the soul, see Carozzi (1994), 34–35. 24 VC i.1: ‘. . . the souls of just men borne by angels to the height of heaven’ and ‘souls of the wicked men being carried to hell by demons’. 25 VC iii 3, 4, 8, 16. 26 VC iii.9: ‘He has been fortunate in procuring with the labour of his own hands the eternal rewards that he desired to buy.’

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Table 4. Souls taken to heaven in VC Type of person

Way of dying

Presence of angels/demons

Chapter

Just men Monk Cailtán Innocent girl Penitent monk Librán British monk Irish cleric Charitable smith Virtuous woman Pious layman St Brendan of Birr Bishop Colmán Monks Guest in a monastery Naturally good pagan St Columba

No information Sickness Murdered In old age Sickness No information In old age No information No information No information No information Drowned Drowned In old age In old age

Angels No angels/demons No angels/demons No angels/demons Angels and demons Angels Angels Angels Angels and demons Angels Angels Angels and demons Angels and demons Angels Angels

i.1 i.31 ii.25 ii.39 iii.6 iii.7 iii.9 iii.10 iii.10 iii.11 iii.12 iii.13 iii.13 iii.14 iii.22, 23

devoted to charity, Adomnán might have had Matthew 5:7 in mind: ‘Blessed are the merciful for they will be shown mercy.’ He also mentions that the righteousness of the pious layman in VC iii.10, whose wife was first taken to heaven, helped to influence the outcome of the battle over his soul. So according to Adomnán, lay people could earn a place in heaven by doing good deeds, such as practicing the Christian virtue of charity. In cases of the souls of ecclesiastics, he does not elaborate on the role of their virtues in their achieving entry to heaven, although he mentions that the British monk, the first to die in Iona, was dedicated to good works, while an Irish cleric was the founder of a monastery.27 Both Saint Brendan of Birr and the holy Bishop Colmán are carried to heaven by choirs of angels in VC iii.11 and 12, which is probably an indication of special reverence (uidi / inter angelorum choros). This seems confirmed in the episode of the death of Saint Columba himself, since angelic companies descend to meet his soul (inter angelicos . . . choros), and the whole island of Iona is lit up with the brightness of angels, which is fitting for a saint who on several occasions during his lifetime was accompanied by angels and heavenly light.28 Similarly in VA 60(32), a choir of holy VC iii.6, 7. VC iii.23. For angels and heavenly light accompanying the saint, see VC iii.2, 3, 4, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21. 27 28

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beings comes to meet the soul of the monk Ammon (beatum dixit sanctorum chorum). In Jerome’s Vita Pauli 14, the soul of Paul is seen ascending to heaven, inter angelorum cateruas, inter prophetarum et apostolorum. The mention in VC iii.13 about the monks of Comgall and the guest who drowned with them seems also to suggest that in Adomnán’s mind, ecclesiastics merited special favour on their passage to the afterlife. He refers to the souls of the monks as holy souls,29 and he adds that the soul of the guest was also delivered from the battling demons with the help of the angels, implying that the angels came first of all for the souls of the monks. In fact, the demons seem to threaten only the soul of the guest, since Adomnán makes Columba say: in aere contra aduersarias belligerant potestates, animam alicuius hospitis simul cum eis dimersi eripere conantes.30 The episode in VC iii.14 concerning a naturally good pagan demonstrates the importance of baptism for salvation, since the angels coming to meet his soul have to wait so that the saint has time to baptize him before death. That old pagan man had lived his whole life in natural goodness, but apparently without baptism he could not be taken to heaven.31 Similarly VPB 120/123 has a druid who is baptized right before his death. This view concerning the importance of baptism is confirmed in the Collectanea III 44 of Tírechán, in which a sick pregnant woman is brought to the saint and he baptises the unborn child using the waters of the womb as baptismal water. After that, the woman dies and is buried near a church, and apparently the child goes with her. It seems to be important that the child is baptized even when still unborn, and thus the message is the same as in Adomnán’s story in VC iii.14 about the naturally good man who had to be baptized before his death in order to go to heaven. In another episode, Tírechán expresses the importance of baptism more explicitly, since there the saint awakens a huge man from the grave, and baptizes him to save him from his previous painful abode.32 In the

29

VC iii.13: sancti angeli sanctis obuiantes animabus. VC iii.13: ‘. . . they [i.e. the souls of the dead monks] are fighting in the air against hostile powers that are trying to carry off the soul of a guest who has been drowned with them’. 31 For other episodes concerning baptism in VC, see i.33, ii.10, 32. 32 Collectanea III 40. The ancient giant awakened from the grave could be based on the idea that the men of old were bigger and stronger. This belief is also evident in Adomnán’s DLS ii.15 when he writes that at present, strong young men can scarcely lift one of the twelve stones carried by the sons of Israel. This concept is confirmed by Augustine who writes in CD xv.9 that ‘in those days earth as a matter of course produced larger bodies than it does now’, elaborating on the longevity of the antediluvian generations in Gen 5. 30

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next episode, Patrick encounters a wrongly placed cross on the grave of a pagan, and his charioteer pities the unbaptized pagan and suggests that maybe it would have been good to pour baptismal water over the grave. Tírechán comments that, since the saint did not respond to his charioteer’s suggestion, perhaps God did not want this man to be saved.33 It is clear from all these episodes that the seventh- and eighthcentury Irish hagiographers took baptism to be a prerequisite for going to heaven. Here they are following biblical commandments, such as John 3:5: ‘no-one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit’. A similar message is conveyed by Sulpicius Severus in VM 7, in which a follower of the saint dies suddenly before being baptized and the saint resurrects him so that he would not die without baptism. The necessity of baptism is likewise made clear by Augustine, who writes that unbaptized children are in the power of the devil.34 In the Irish context, the Penitentials of Finnian and Cummean impose strict penance on the parents of children who were not baptized before they died. Furthermore, a priest who merely blesses a child instead of baptizing him is also condemned. These sins are regarded as homicide, and as great crimes, as they result in the loss of a soul.35 6.b.2. Souls Taken to Hell Table 5. Souls taken to hell in VC Type of person Wicked men Grasping leader Man mocking the saint Evil-doer, oppressor Treacherous man Murderer

Way of dying No information No information Beheaded by enemies Subita mors, drowned Subita mors, dies on the spot Dicto citius, dies on the spot

Presence of demons

Chapter

Demons Demons Demons No demons

i.1 i.35 i.39 ii.22

No demons

ii.23

No demons

ii.25

Collectanea III 41. For discussion of this episode, see Swift (1994), 57–58. De nuptiis et concupiscentia I.xx.22. On Augustine’s teaching concerning the necessity of baptism, see Cramer (1993), 125. 35 Finnian 47, Cummean X.19–20. For the separate burial of unbaptized children in Ireland, see Hamlin & Foley (1983), 43–44. 33 34

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Correspondingly, there are some episodes in VC where the souls of evil men are taken to hell. The first occasion touches upon the destiny of a grasping leader, a chief man of his district. The saint sees the soul of this man being dragged to hell by demons in VC i.35. The second is a man who mocks the saint. The saint predicts that this man will be found by enemies in bed with a whore, and that demons will drag his soul into hell in VC i.39. The third is an evil-doer and oppressor of good men who is drowned and cast to hell in VC ii.22, which Adomnán states to be a well-deserved end. The fourth is a treacherous and cruel man who orders a noble Pict, committed under his protection by the saint, to be murdered in VC ii.23. The saint predicts that the man’s name will be removed from the book of life (de libro uitae), that he will be overtaken by sudden death, and carried off to hell.36 The fifth is the cruel killer, who murders a girl in front of the young saint and his teacher in VC ii.25. About this man the saint states: Eadem hora qua interfectae ab eo filiae anima ascendit ad caelos, anima ipsius interfectoris discendat ad inferos.37 Here the movement up and down is nicely contrasted in the verbs ascendo and discendo, as well as the two possible destinies for a human being after death. This suggests that Adomnán believed hell to be somewhere underground. This view is also shared by Gregory the Great in Dialogi iv.44, where he states that he sees ‘no reason why we should not believe that hell is under the earth’. Three of the evil men whose souls are dragged to hell are specifically said to have met a sudden death. In the two first cases, the same phrase subita . . . morte is used,38 while in the third case, death happens dicto citius.39 There is also one case in VC i.39 in which the death can be understood to be sudden, although there is less specification than in the three cases above. The man is found lying in a bed with a whore by his enemies, who cut off his head.

This phrase liber uitae is discussed by O’Loughlin (2001b), 5–6. The phrase also occurs in Augustinian writings, see for example CD xx.8, 15, and 16. See also VA 38(19) and Historia monachorum xxv.2. 37 VC ii.25: ‘In the same hour in which the soul of the girl whom he has slain ascends to heaven, let the soul of her slayer descend to hell.’ 38 VC ii.22, 23. For another mors subita of a sinful man, although no destiny in hell is mentioned, see VC i.41. 39 VC ii.25. 36

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This is worth noting since in the remaining two cases of men taken to hell, neither the sins of the men nor their way of dying is specified.40 Thus in those episodes of VC in which souls are taken to hell, and in which there is some information about the crimes and deaths of the men, the deaths are specified, or at least implied, to be sudden. From Adomnán’s perspective, there clearly is a connection between a sudden and unpleasant death and the soul’s final destiny in hell. Adomnán might here have in mind the aforementioned deaths of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1–11, who fall down and die suddenly as a punishment from their greediness. If we look at the deaths of people taken to heaven in VC, we find that there is no such connection between the way those people died and their final destiny. In those cases where the way of dying is mentioned, three cases involve deaths that happen naturally in old age,41 while in one case, the death is apparently due to a sickness, in another case, the people in question are drowned, and finally one case concerns a person who is murdered.42 Nonetheless, there is an apparent connection between a person’s way of living and his or her destiny in heaven. The people whose souls are taken to heaven are specified as being just, innocent, virtuous, pious, and devoted to charity and acts of righteousness.43 6.b.3. Adomnán’s Vision of the Destinies of Souls When looking at Adomnán’s view on the final destinies of men, one has to go back to the different traditions of thinking about heaven and hell which were available in early medieval Ireland. Here the discussion draws on the work of earlier scholars who have discussed different aspects of Adomnán’s vision of heaven and hell.44 In the Western Church, among the services that the members of the laity were entitled to demand from the Church, were prayers for the dead. Those could be performed by monks, unlike the actual sacraments that demanded a priest, and in some cases, a bishop.45 VC i.1, 35. VC iii.9, 14, 23. 42 VC ii.25, iii.6, 13. 43 VC i.1,l ii.25, iii.9, 10. 44 The main studies on the topic are Stalmans (2001) and O’Loughlin (2001b). See also Stalmans (2003), 181–182, and O’Loughlin (2007), 125–133. 45 For prayers for the dead in early medieval Irish church, see Warren (1881), 102–108. 40 41

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Following Augustine, the dead were divided into those who were so good that they had no need for the prayers of the living, those who were so wicked that no prayers could help them, and those in between whose lot after death could be altered by the prayers, fasts and alms of the living.46 There is also a similar, but fourfold, division to be found in medieval Irish eschatological writings. There people are divided into boni ualde, boni non ualde, mali ualde, mali non ualde. According to Martin McNamara, Irish authors were here borrowing from Augustine’s terminology in his Enchridion, where he discusses the way the souls of the dead benefit from the sacraments and alms of their living friends. Nevertheless, in McNamara’s view, the Irish views on this matter are based on Gregory the Great’s Moralia in Iob about the fate of souls on the Day of Judgement.47 Thomas O’Loughlin has noted the influence of Gregory the Great on Adomnán’s thinking concerning posthumous destinies. To Adomnán’s mind, the wicked have reached their final destiny when they are taken to hell, and there is no future change in their position, while the good in heaven are not yet in their final state, because they are waiting for the final resurrection when their souls are to be reunited with their bodies. According to O’Loughlin, Adomnán sees tombs as the places of final resurrection, and in VC, there is a marked difference between the evildoers whose burial places are not mentioned and the good men whose burials Adomnán takes care to mention.48 The evidence O’Loughlin provides for the importance of tombs in Adomnán’s writings, and for their meaning as the place where the dead wait for resurrection, is convincing.49 Thus the lack of graves, in cases where men are taken to hell, can be explained by Adomnán’s belief that

46 Augustine, Enchridion 110, see also CD xxi.24. For Augustine’s views concerning the posthumous destinies of souls, see Le Goff (1984), 63–81; Carozzi (1994), 13–34. On the power of prayer and mass to help the dead, see also G.G.Dial. iv.52, 57, 59. For discussion of the power of prayers to help the dead, see Charles-Edwards (1992), 75–76. 47 Mor. in Iob xxvi.27. McNamara (1996), 57–59. On Irish views, see also Seymor (1923), 191–197; Grogan (1976), 46–58; Biggs (1989–90), 45–51. 48 O’Loughlin (2001b), 4–8. No burial mentioned: VC i.36, ii.22, ii.23, ii.25. Burial mentioned: VC i.16, i.20, i.33, i.41,ii.27, ii.39, iii.23. 49 On the connection between resurrection and burial, see also Bynum (1996), 48–50. Unfortunately this otherwise excellent book skips the Early Middle Ages jumping from year 400 to the twelfth century.

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good men merited graves where they waited for the final resurrection, while the sad end of the wicked men would be further marked by their lack of a burial. Yet, only one case in VC mentions a burial place in connection with a person whose soul is explicitly stated as having been taken to heaven in VC iii.23, and that is Saint Columba himself. There is a difference, for example, between the two naturally good pagans whom the saint encounters and baptizes. In the first case in VC i.33, Adomnán takes care to mention how the man was buried, though there is no mention of angels or heaven. The second case appears in the section of the Life that deals with the angelic apparitions in VC iii.14, and so there is expected emphasis on the fact that the soul of the naturally good man was carried by angels to heaven after his baptism and death. However, there is no mention of his burial. Therefore, there seems to be a marked difference between those whose graves are mentioned and those whose souls are carried to heaven,50 and only once do these two categories overlap. Saint Columba, who is both taken to heaven, and properly buried in a distinctly marked grave, diverges from the norm since he is a saint. As Adomnán is writing the hagiography of the founder of his monastery, it is natural for him to mention that the saint was buried on the same island. This one occasion when the two categories overlap can consequently be seen as a special case of Adomnán having a good reason to emphasize the saint’s heavenly connections to the angels in the first place, and, secondly, to provide some information on the burial of the saint. Furthermore, if we accept O’Loughlin’s reasoning concerning the meaning of tombs for Adomnán, the two alternatives—angels and burial places—could be interpreted as being indicators of the same thing, that is the soul’s resting place in heaven, thus making it unnecessary to mention both of them within the same episode. Adomnán reveals his belief in tombs as a place of resurrection in VC ii.39 when the saint tells Librán: In uno meorum morieris monasteriorum, et cum electis erit pars tua meis in regno monacis, cum quibus in resurrectionem uitae de somno mortis euigelabis.51 We are later informed 50 Cf. the parable of the rich man and Lazarus. In Lk 16:22 it is stated: ‘The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him to Abraham’s side. The rich man also died and was buried.’ 51 VC ii.39: ‘You will die in one of my monasteries; and your part in the Kingdom will be with my elect monks, and with them you will awake from the sleep of death into the resurrection of life.’

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that, inter sancti Columbae electos humatus est monacos, secundum eius uaticinium in uitam resurrecturus aeternam.52 The same belief is also evident in DLS. There Adomnán describes Adam’s tomb where he is awaiting resurrection, and he comments on the tomb of Mary, that no-one knows for certain where she awaits resurrection.53 The author of VPB shares the same theological view when he writes in VPB 58/60 about a bright cloud, revealed as the spirit of Saint Patrick, coming to visit the places where his body will rest after his death and where his body will remain until the day of judgement. Furthermore, Patrick asks Brigit to make him a linen shroud to cover his body after death, since he wished to rise to eternal life with it. It is evident thus that Adomnán and the author of VPB share the view that tombs had special significance as places where the bodies of the dead wait for the bodily resurrection. This, however, does not contradict Adomnán’s narratives concerning souls being taken to heaven or hell immediately after death, since only souls go there, while bodies stay in the ground, waiting to be joined again with souls at the resurrection. This theological principle of souls going to heaven first is demonstrated by Augustine, who writes that the souls of the pious dead are already in heaven waiting to be united with their bodies.54 Moreover, Gregory the Great explains that those souls that have attained perfecta iustitia are received into heaven as soon as they leave the body, while some souls may be delayed outside heaven because they are still imperfect. The souls of the just, however, will see an increase in their reward at the day of judgement, when they will have bodily bliss in addition to the bliss of the soul hitherto enjoyed. Similarly, sinners will be taken straight to hell even before the day of judgement.55 Nathalie Stalmans has argued that according to Adomnán, the fate of an individual was sealed immediately after death. Against the common view of his time, involving the fourfold division, following Gregory the Great and Augustine, Adomnán presents in VC a simple twofold division into the elect and the damned. According to Stalmans, the fourfold division implies the existence of a purgatory, while in Adomnán’s division, penance before death takes the place of 52 VC ii.39: ‘And he was buried among the elect monks of Saint Columba, according to his prophecy, to rise again into eternal life.’ 53 Adam’s tomb: DLS ii.10. Mary’s tomb: DLS i.12 54 CD xx.9, see also CD xiii.20, and De fide et symbolo x.23–24. 55 G.G.Dial. iv.26 (PL iv.25), 29.

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purgatory as a means of changing the soul’s final destiny.56 Stalmans has commented on Adomnán’s silence on the actions of the living in relation to the destinies of souls (only commemorative masses are mentioned in connection of Colmán and Brendan of Birr who are already in heaven in VC iii.11 and 12). Stalmans has also noticed the absence of angels in the cases of damnation, while demons sometimes are present in cases of soul’s election. For Stalmans, the presence of demons does not denote ambivalence in the destiny of the soul in question, for the soul’s final destiny has already been sealed at the moment of death. For her, the presence of demons demonstrates the omnipresence of demons everywhere in the air, a concept found in other writings such as VA and VM. She has explained the battle between the angels and the demons as resulting from the unlawful attempt of the demons to snatch a soul that does not belong to them.57 Stalmans has rightly pointed out that there is no evidence for belief in purgatory in VC, and that the emphasis instead is on doing penance before death. This emphasis is clearly demonstrated by a pitiable man who comes to Iona seeking physical remedies. He has his death foreseen by the saint, who comments that it would be more fitting for the man to do penance for his sins since he is going to die soon.58 The lack of purgatory in VC, however, is not surprising since the belief in purgatorial places was only arising and there was no coherent doctrine on the subject prior to the twelfth century.59 Furthermore, the emphasis on penance as the primary means of purging oneself of sin is quite in line with other Irish authors who had a central role in the development of the practice of private penance and penitential literature. The argument that Stalmans has put forth concerning the lack of ambivalence in the soul’s destiny even in the cases where the soul has to be snatched a daemonum belligerationibus can be questioned.60 Adomnán mentions in VC iii.10 that it was the devout layman’s righteousness that helped to produce the outcome of a battle with demons.

56 On knowledge concerning purgatory in early medieval Ireland, see Grogan (1976), 48–51. 57 Stalmans (2001), 41–48. For the omnipresence of demons in VA, for example, see 8–10, 23, 25–36, 51–51. For demons in VM, see 6, 17, 18, 21, 22, 24 58 VC i.27. See also VC i.42 for a poet from whom the saint does not want to ask for a song because the poet is going to die soon. Adomnán might be implying that songs would not be fitting preparation for death. 59 Le Goff (1984), 133–136. 60 VC iii.10, 13. ‘from the battling of demons.’

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This would suggest a belief that the man’s destiny was not yet sealed. In turn, this would suggest that demons would have a presence similar to that of angels in those doubtful cases where the soul’s destiny is not sealed, but that they would not be omnipresent everywhere, all the time, as Stalmans has argued. Nonetheless, some other episodes in VC, which are not concerned with the fate of souls, point towards the omnipresence of demons. Adomnán mentions how demons had clouded the senses of the pagans in Pictland, how a demon was hiding on the bottom of a milk-vessel that had not been blessed before filling it, how a sorcerer drew milk from a bull arte diabulica, and how magicians conjured winds arte daemonum.61 The clearest evidence that Adomnán shares the Athanasian view that a monk’s life is a battle against the attacks of omnipresent demons can be found in VC iii.8, in which the saint fights against a band of foul demons who were ready to attack the monastery and to slaughter many of the brothers. The saint is finally able to vanquish them with the help of angels, and the demons are banished to Tiree where they invade the local monastery. Adomnán reveals his Athanasian view in his statement that all save one of the monks at Tiree were saved by prayer and fasting from the attack of the demons.62 Athanasius similarly tells us how Antony suffered constant attacks from demons, and how he ‘defended his whole body by faith, by praying at night and by fasting’.63 Stalmans has briefly mentioned Athanasius’s VA, but she does not further discuss its possible influence on Adomnán’s view on the destinies of souls after death.64 Athanasius recounts in VA 66(38) how Antony saw winged creatures attempting to fly up to heaven, some of them obstructed by a tall and terrifying figure whose head reached the clouds. Soon the saint realized that the winged creatures were souls, and that the devil took hold of those who were subject to him, but he was unable catch the holy ones who thus reached VC ii.11, 16, 17, 34. VC iii.8: ieiuniis et orationibus collectio a daemonum defendatur inuasione. The biblically based theme of spiritual warfare evident in this episode has been discussed in Bruce (2004), 136–140. 63 VA 5(4): hic fide, vigiliis et ieiuniis corpus omne uallabat. See also, for example, VA 7(5), 8(7) –11(10), 21–43, 51–53(26), 55(28)-57(29), 63(35)-64(36), 66(38). On the omnipresence of demons and its Eastern ascetic background, see Stancliffe (1983), 228–241. 64 See Stalmans (2001). She mentions VA in p.42 n. 12, and then twice in p.47. 61 62

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heaven. The difference between this description and that of Adomnán is that in VA, there is one devil instead of a band of demons, there are no angels, and the souls are actively trying to get to heaven. In Adomnán’s vision, however, souls were passively waiting to be saved by the efforts of angels and other helpers. However, Adomnán clearly knew VA, and so this episode could be used to support Stalmans’s argument that in Adomnán’s mind the destinies of the souls were sealed at the moment of their deaths. Another point of interest is VA 60(32), where Antony sees souls taken to heaven. Adomnán’s descriptions bear a very close resemblance to this. In VA Antony suddenly raises his eyes to the sky, seeing a soul moving towards heaven, and angels rejoicing at its approach. Soon he finds out that the soul belonged to a monk named Ammon.65 The monks who were with Antony took a note of the day and the hour, and when visitors came from Nitria, they were able to confirm that the monk Ammon had died exactly at that moment. In the case of Columba, he is twice described looking suddenly up to heaven and seeing a soul being carried to heaven by angels.66 Elsewhere, in VC iii.12, visitors confirm afterwards that the death of the soul seen by the saint took place at the noted moment.67 A further similarity is revealed by the story about Ammon. The latter, after crossing a river miraculously, makes his companion promise that he will not reveal the miracle to anyone while Ammon is still alive. Here the story is about Ammon, not Antony, but it is inserted in the middle of the episode of Antony seeing Ammon’s soul taken to heaven. This theme of a saint asking for his miracles not to be revealed during his lifetime occurs in VC several times, and once it occurs in connection with a soul being taken to heaven.68 65 VA 60(32): Alio rursus in tempore cum sederet in monte, et oculos subito tetendisset in coelum, uidit nescio quam animam, laetantibus in eius occursum angelis, ad coelum pergere. This is shortly mentioned also in Historia monachorum xxii.1, and 9. For other episodes of monks seeing souls being taken to heaven, see Historia monachorum xi.8, xiv.17, and 24. 66 VC iii.6: Alio tempore, cum uir sanctus in Ioua commoraretur insula . . . ad caelum oculis diuitis . . . quia uictores angeli animam huius peregrine . . . ad caelestis patriae gaudia euexerunt; VC iii.10: Alio itidem in tempore uir sanctus in Ioua conuersans insula quadam die subito oculos ad caelum diregens . . . ‘Felix mulier . . . cuius animam nunc angeli dei ad paradisum euehunt’. 67 For other episodes in which the saint’s words are later confirmed by travellers, see VC i.12, 28, 35, 42, 43, ii.40. Cf. also G.G.Dial. ii.35, iv.31. 68 VC iii.6. See also VC i.43, iii.16, 19, 20, 22, 23.

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Another model for episodes concerning souls taken to heaven is Gregory the Great’s Dialogi.69 O’Loughlin has acknowledged the influence of Dialogi iv.31 on VC i.1, 35, and ii.25, as has done Stalmans.70 Gregory the Great writes in Dialogi iv.7 that multi nostrorum mentis oculum fide pura et ubere oratione mundantes, egredientes e carne animas frequenter uiderunt,71 while in VC i.1, Adomnán tells how Columba saw sancto reuelante spiritu, souls of the just borne to heaven by angels, and souls of the wicked being carried to hell by demons. Thus both authors share the view that this ability to see souls leaving the body is given to certain persons from above. This passage from VC ii.25 may be associated with Dialogi iv.24. In the VC episode, a killer of an innocent girl falls dead on the spot and is taken to hell at the same moment as the soul of the girl ascends to heaven. In the Dialogi, a Lombard killer is seized by an unclean spirit and cast to the feet of his victim at the same moment as the body of the murdered deacon hits the ground. Another relevant episode in the Dialogi occurs in iv.37 (iv.36 in PL) in which a soldier dies in Rome and sees a bridge where the dead undergo a final test. The just, unhampered by sin, could walk over freely and without difficulty, while the sinners fall into the dark waters. The soldier, furthermore, sees a man of high rank slipping from the bridge so that he was dangling over the edge. He is seized from below by foul men, but at the same moment, he is drawn back to safety by princely men dressed in white. This episode could be a model for Adomnán’s descriptions of the battle over the destiny of souls being fought between angels and demons.72 In VC, this battle is fought in the air, while in the Dialogi, it occurs at a bridge. In both cases, however, there are those who are pure enough to go to heaven without hindrance For deaths and the posthumous destinies of souls in G.G.Dial. see ii.34, 35, iv.8–13, 15–16, 20, 31–33, 36–37, 40–41. For Gregory the Great’s views concerning the posthumous destinies of souls, see Le Goff (1984), 88–95; Carozzi (1994), 43–61. Straw (1988), 59–60, argues that Gregory’s eschatological views represent a fundamental shift from those of the early Church, since in Gregory’s view, the dead no longer sojourn in refrigerium or tormentum awaiting the Last Judgement, but undergo an immediate judgement and fly to heaven, hell, or places of purgation. 70 O’Loughlin (2001b), 4, and Stalmans (2001), 42. Stalmans, however, has noted the inluence of G.G.Dial. iv.31 only on VC i.35, while she additionally has also commented on the influence of G.G.Dial. ii.35 and iv.8 on VC iii.11 and 12. 71 G.G.Dial. iv.7: ‘It was with spiritual vision, purified by acts of faith and abundant prayers, that many of our people were able repeatedly to observe souls leaving the body.’ 72 VC iii.6, 10, 13. 69

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and those who are sinful enough to be taken automatically down to hell, as well as those souls who are contested. Both authors also share the view that good deeds can influence the outcome of the contest, since Adomnán says in VC iii.10, that the soul of the pious layman was rescued because of his righteousness, while Gregory the Great writes of a struggle between the evils of the flesh and the noble works of almsgiving. This episode in the Dialogi of Gregory the Great could therefore be used to support the view that in Adomnán’s mind, the final destination of some souls was not sealed at the moment of death, and that the battle was not a result of an unlawful attempt on the part of the demons, but a genuine struggle over the destiny of a soul. A further source for Adomnán’s descriptions of souls leaving the body could be the extremely popular apocryphal work Visio sancti Pauli.73 In this vision, Paul sees how good and bad angels appear beside the dead. In the case of a righteous man, the bad angels find no place for themselves and the good ones take possession of the soul, while the soul of the evil man is taken by the bad angels.74 In both cases, both good and bad angels appear and the moral state of the soul is decisive in determining its destiny. This is in essence the same as Adomnán’s view of the destiny of the souls, and thus it could be used to strengthen the argument that the fate of the soul was undecided at the moment of death. While Stalmans has argued for the omnipresence of demons, Clare Stancliffe has pointed out that the Irish did not share the pessimistic Augustinian view that demons lurked everywhere, and that human life was a constant struggle against them. Instead Stancliffe argues that the Irish adopted the more optimistic idea of a progressive revelation, and thus pre-Christians and their gods were not seen as being under the devil’s sway. This lesser role of the devil in Irish traditions is explained by the fact that the Irish did not share the Greco-Roman cultural tradition that was ‘obsessed with the demons’. Nevertheless, Stancliffe comments that Adomnán’s VC is an exception in the sense that demons play a bigger part in it than in any other early Irish hagiographical work, and she explains this by pointing at Adomnán’s greater familiarity with Continental writings.75 My reading of these episodes in VC points towards a twofold division into the elect and the damned, those taken into heaven and those taken 73 I wish to thank John Carey for pointing this out to me. For knowledge of this text in Ireland, see McNamara (1975), 105–110; Carey (1989). 74 Visio Pauli, 14–16. 75 Stancliffe (1992), 101–110. See also Picard (1981), 93–4.

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to hell. Thus, I agree with Stalmans that to Adomnán penance takes the role of purgatory as a means of purging sins. However, this twofold division between those taken to heaven and to hell is so basic that it can be expected to be present in any Christian visions concerning the posthumous destinies of men. The VC episodes could also be interpreted as supporting Augustine’s threefold division if those souls that are taken straight to heaven are seen as those not needing the prayers of the living, while those that have to be rescued from the battling demons would be the ones that can be helped by prayers, and finally, those that go straight to hell would be the ones that cannot be helped at all. This interpretation is supported by the fact that in VC iii.13, Saint Columba calls his brethren together to assist by their prayers the drowned monks of Comgall battling against demons to rescue the soul of their guest. If the interpretation of the threefold division is right, it means that the destiny of at least some souls (the group that could be helped by prayers) would not have been sealed immediately at the moment of death, but soon after it. It also means that demons were not making an unlawful attempt to snatch souls not belonging to them, but that a genuine battle was fought over a soul whose destiny had not been yet sealed. However, it does not necessarily follow from this that Adomnán did not think about the omnipresence of the demons in the Athanasian way, since the two views are not incompatible. Some evidence occurs in VC that supports the view that Adomnán saw demons as omnipresent everywhere, but at the same time, the evidence of the episodes of souls taken to heaven and hell would point towards a threefold division of souls, and attempts on the part of the demons to influence their fate. 6.b.4. Heaven and Hell in the Brigidine Lives The presentation of the posthumous destinies of men is not nearly as well developed and detailed in VBC as it is in VC. Cogitosus tells in VBC 32/36 how at her death, Brigit was freed from care and from the burden of flesh, and how she followed the lamb of God to the heavenly mansions. This description of Cogitosus can be compared to that of Adomnán, who tells how angels were sent to lead Columba’s soul from his body, and how at his death, the saint’s soul left the tabernacle of his body.76 Hence Cogitosus and Adomnán share the same view VC iii.22, 23. See also VC i.2, where it is told that the saint’s death was expected and much wished for by the saint. Compare the description of Columba seeing the angels coming for his soul to that of Antony’s death in VA 92(59). See also Brüning (1917), 245–246; Picard (1996), 271–273. 76

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of the saint’s death as a long-awaited reward, when the saint, after a heavenly life on earth, is finally able to leave behind the corporeal flesh. Both hagiographers also refer to the saint’s feast day as a feast of nativity, thus sharing the view of a saint’s death as a birth into heavenly life.77 The author of VPB also holds this view when he describes in VPB 129/131 that Brigit as having been taken to heavenly Jerusalem where everlasting rewards would be awaiting for her. The Irish hagiographers are here following a common idea in early monasticism, which presents death as ‘the entrance into life’ and as ‘the reward for labour’.78 The description of the church at Kildare by Cogitosus might also bear some relevance to the discussion of heaven.79 Although the description is part of the propaganda, whereby Kildare seeks to promote itself as a great ecclesiastical centre and place of congregation, with power of jurisdiction over other churches in Ireland, it can also carry other layers of meaning.80 This image of a fine church building and its congregation, while presented as being contemporary, may rather represent Cogitosus’s ideal construction of a church, with all people in their own places according to rank, status, sex, and local origin, all praying together and being one in spirit. It may also be an image of an ideal society where all the people come under the one roof of the church, and where the highest place at the altar is taken by the chief ecclesiastic.81 The description of the church could also be a reflection of the heavenly order, where the rewards of the blessed are divided 77 VBC 32/36 ad solemnitatem natiuitatis s. Brigidae. Adomnán writes in VC ii.45 about the celebration of mass in Iona at the saint’s natal day (in tua celebrimus eclesia tui natalis misarum sollemnia) and in VC iii.11 about Saint Brendan’s death (Hodie enim natalis beati Brendini dies.) 78 See G.G.Dial. i. prol.: quod mortem quoque, quae pene cunctis poena est, uidelicet ut ingressum uitae et laboris sui praemium amabat. In this prologue, Gregory the Great says that he used to cherish death as ‘the entrance into life’ when he was living in a monastery, and grieves for the present where his days are filled with distractions and worldly affairs. 79 VBC 32/35. This is probably the most discussed part of VBC, see Thomas (1971), 145–146; Radford (1977), 5–10; Doherty (1984), 312–314; Mytum (1992), 86–88. For drawings of the two models by Radford and Thomas, see Harrington (2002), 76. 80 On Kildare’s claims, see McCone (1982), 109–111, 133–144; Charles-Edwards (2000), 428–438. 81 Cf. Gregory the Great, LRP ii.4, in which the image of a pomegranate is used to symbolize the unity of faith, since as there are many seeds within a pomegranate protected by an outer rind, so there are numerous people of varying merits retained in one Church. For example Stalmans (2003), 100–102, states that this episode presents the church in Kildare as a microcosm of the whole of Ireland.

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according to their holiness.82 Thus the holiest souls would be those of Brigit and Bishop Conleth, whose bodies lie in the richly adorned tombs beside the altar, and those of the chief ecclesiastics and the abbess with her nuns and widows, who have access to the holiest part of the church. In contrast, the ones with lesser rewards form the rest of the congregation, who are also divided according to their sex and rank, and who can partake by watching the proceedings at the altar. The view that there will be distinct ranks of souls in the heaven according to their merits is based on John 14:2, where it is stated that there will be many rooms in heaven. Gregory the Great says that ‘the dwelling-places in heaven are numerous in order to keep the ranks of good souls distinct and allow them to enjoy the companionship of those of like merits’, while Augustine states that there will be degrees of honour and glory in heaven.83 This view that the church prefigures the heavenly order can furthermore be supported by the fact that Cogitosus refers to ‘a new reality’ that ‘is born in an age-old setting’, although that could also be a reference to the ideal Christian society created on earth.84 The description of the church in Kildare by Cogitosus could also be based on Apocalypse 4:2–6, where heaven is described as a temple.85 The holiest part is the jewel-encrusted throne, while in the VBC description of Kildare, the holiest places are the two tombs on both sides of the altar, adorned with gold, silver, gems and precious stones. The posthumous destinies of souls also feature in VPB 88/90, in which Brigit offers a king eternal life, as well as kingship for his descendants forever, in return for a sword, and for the release of a servant. 82 See Goetz (1995), 454, in which he discusses the Christian concept of social order (i.e. Christian society manifested in the Church) as part of the divine system of the world, and as a reflection of the celestial order. See also Markus (1990), 21–22 for the Church as a community joining heaven and earth. 83 G.G.Dial. iv.36. Augustine, CD xxii.30. The development of the idea of the Church prefiguring heaven was influenced by the thought of Clement of Alexandria (ca.160–215), for whom the hierarchy of the Church was an imitation of the steps towards heavenly glory, and the ecclesiastical titles on earth imitations of the heavenly titles, Stromata vi.13. 84 The Trias-edition does not include this sentence, but it can be found in the AASS-edition VIII.37: Et in ueteri noua res nascitur actu. 85 On heaven as a sacred space, see McDannell & Lang (1990), 41–43. Cf. Clancy (2000), 220–221, where he briefly discusses the depiction of the heavenly city in Fís Adomnáin, concluding that ‘the elaborate depiction of the heavenly city, its towers and porches and gates, I believe, is intended to echo the new building of Derry’s great church’. If Clancy is right, this echo would be a reversal of the situation in VBC, where the description of the church in Kildare echoes the heavenly city.

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The king, however, replies that he has no desire for a life he cannot see and that he has no concern for the sons who will come after him but that he would prefer long life and victory in every battle. It is curious that the king’s choice of blessings is presented as being just as acceptable as those offered by the saint. This suggests that the Christian choice of eternal life appears as one of two equally valid options. The aim of this episode is to show the saint’s powers to grant victory to kings in battle, when she appears over the host. Columba similarly appears to the English king, Oswald, in a vision the night before battle promising that the Lord has granted him victory in VC i.1.86 Thus Cogitosus and Adomnán agree in their presenting kings as being dependent on God’s favour to gain victory over their enemies. This, however, does not explain why God favoured the king in VPB although he did not show any interest in his posthumous destiny. Another curious incident featuring heaven occurs in VPB 77/78. There Brigit encounters a student running ad regnum Dei.87 The saint says to the student that she herself wished she were worthy to run with him. The saint and the student both promise to pray for each other so that the student might not be impeded on his way, and that the saint would reach heaven with a thousand companions. Brigit’s prayers apparently have the effect that the student does penance and lives as a devout person for the rest of his life, thereby implying that he was finally able to reach his goal because of his good Christian lifestyle. This episode, therefore, bears witness to the importance of doing penance in order to get to heaven, as well as demonstrating the power of Brigit’s prayers. Hell features in VPB 97/99, where the saint’s pupil Darlugdach burns her feet in order to avoid sinning with a man. There the saint congratulates the virgin for burning her feet in the present life so that the fire of fornication (ignis fornicationis) will not burn her ever again and neither will the fire of hell (ignis gehenne) in the life to come. The author is here using an image that occurs in the Bible only in the New Testament. This image is featured, for example, in Matthew 18:9 with the advice that it is better to gouge one’s eye out than to burn in the fire of hell (in gehennam ignis).88 Furthermore, the same image is used 86 See also VC i.8 on God granting victory to kings, and VC i.14, 36, iii.15 on kings chosen by God. On the vision of kingship in VC, see Stalmans (2003), 155–160. 87 Stalmans (2003), 284, discusses this episode briefly by noting that it demonstrates a belief in paradise as a concrete place that is accessible on earth. 88 This episode has already been discussed in chapters 3.d.2. and 4.c.3.

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in Mark 9:42–46 in a similar context, and in Matthew 5:22, in which it is stated that sinners who hate their brothers are in danger of the fire of hell. Thus the VPB author’s reference to the fire of hell is in line with the biblical use of the term, since both in VPB and in the New Testament examples it features as the punishment awaiting sinners, and more precisely, as a punishment that can be avoided by radical physical measures in this life.

6.c. Conclusions The evidence of the episodes concerning souls taken to heaven or hell in VC can be read together with the episodes about good and bad people, bearing in mind especially the information about the manner of their dying. In VC, wicked men meet violent deaths, often at the hands of their enemies, while the model of a good death is dying in old age, at home and surrounded by family and friends. So the episodes featuring heaven and hell take the destinies of souls one step further, revealing the otherworldly aspect, and this reflects the final destiny of all men and women. If we combine these statements about good and bad men and their respective destinies, both in this world and in the beyond, we can conclude that Adomnán is clearly trying to convey an integrated worldview concerning good and bad Christians, and the rewards and punishments that they merit from God. These episodes concerning the rewards and punishments of the good and bad deeds of the Christians in VC can be interpreted as conveying a clear moral message concerning the good Christian life and its antithesis. This mode of interpretation would agree with Cassian’s tropological sense, which is moralis explanatio, ad emendationem uitae et instructionem pertinens actualem.89 Adomnán’s representation of the posthumous destinies of souls seems to be based on the Augustinian tripartite division of souls, in which the souls are divided into those who do not need the prayers of the living, those who can benefit from these prayers, and those who 89 Coll. xiv.8: ‘. . . moral explanation pertaining to correction of life and to practical instruction’. See also O’Loughlin (1999), 16, in which he discusses the different levels of interpretation applied in the Navigatio sancti Brendani, concluding that the most basic level would be the moral sense, in this case learning to avoid punishment through the examples of the horrors of hell.

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cannot be helped at all. Other possible models for the episodes concerning the souls taken to heaven and hell in VC include Gregory the Great’s Dialogi, Athanasius’s VA, and Visio sancti Pauli. The Lives of Brigit do not contain a discussion of the destinies of men in as much detail as in VC, but the authors seem to share the same basic presuppositions concerning the posthumous destinies of souls. The authors of VPB and VC agree in seeing the sudden and violent deaths of sinners as a part of their punishment, and Adomnán clearly indicates that these deaths also reflect the person’s final destiny in hell. All three Lives also share the view that the saint’s death is a long awaited reward when (s)he is released from the burden of flesh and taken to a rightful place in heaven among the patriarchs and apostles. Both VPB and VC, furthermore, present tombs as places of resurrection, where the bodies of the dead wait for the Final Judgement. Moreover, Cogitosus uses the description of the church in Kildare not only to convey his ideas of an ideal society where all men would be united in their worship of God and come together under the one roof of the Church, but also to reflect a perfect order in heaven where men are rewarded according to their various merits.

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7. how to be a good christian The aim of this study was to answer to the question of what it means to be a good Christian in the earliest Lives of saints Brigit and Columba. This was analysed firstly through the portrayal of the saint, and secondly, through the representation of the minor characters, both good and bad, in these Lives. A secondary aim was to illustrate how the reading of hagiography through the lens of theology can help us towards attaining a better understanding of hagiographical literature. The minor characters that populate the Lives include several members of the laity and it is especially these characters that I wanted to highlight, since their existence seems to be ignored in most studies. Studying the portrayal of these characters might not reveal much about the real lives of the lay people in early medieval Ireland, but it shows the attitudes that the ecclesiastical authors of the texts had towards them. The authors use the minor characters as archetypes to express a moral message concerning good and bad behaviour and its consequences. Thus the minor characters can be used to convey a moral message in the same way as the saint is portrayed as being a paragon of a perfect Christian. This tendency to use the minor characters to convey the tropological meaning of the Life is especially clear in VC, where Adomnán does not only relate the rewards and punishments of good and bad deeds in this life, but also includes their consequences in the hereafter, thereby revealing the soteriological implications of morality.

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When dismissing the application of pastoral care to the wider laity in early medieval Ireland, Donnchadh Ó Corráin has concluded the following concerning clerical attitudes towards the laity: ‘if we may judge from the lives of the saints the ordinary layman was regarded as a sinner at best, beyond redemption at worst’.1 The hagiographical sources studied in this work do not give a clear answer to the question concerning the application of pastoral care to the wider laity, but they can illuminate, on their part, the question of ecclesiastical attitudes towards the laity. The image of laity portrayed in the earliest Lives of Brigit and Columba is not as negative as Ó Corráin suggests to his readers. The main virtue promoted in VBC is charity, and Brigit could be seen as an embodiment of that virtue. Clare Stancliffe has stated that the inspiration for hagiography can come from two sources, the first being an abstract idea or ideal, and the second a person whom the author knows and admires. Brigidine hagiography could be seen as belonging to the first category, since the Lives do not provide much information about the historical person in question (whose existence has sometimes been doubted by scholars), and she is presented as the embodiment of the virtues of charity and compassion. Thus the aim of the authors may be to present her simply as an example of the right Christian attitude towards fellow men.2 Although Brigit’s generosity has a thaumaturgical element, it is exemplary and could be also imitated by the laity. This implies something about the audience Cogitosus had in mind when writing the Life. From his description of Kildare in his own time, we can clearly see that he is promoting it as a great ecclesiastical city, rather than as an enclosed monastery, as well as a place of pilgrimage. This means that the motives of the writing of the Life have to do with the claims to status launched on behalf of Kildare. The description of Brigit as an embodiment of virtue, functions to highlight the saint’s powers, which are still present in the Kildare of Cogitosus’s own time. We can therefore ask to whom did Cogitosus want to promote Kildare, and to whom was Brigit presented as a model of virtue to be imitated. In his preface, Cogitosus refers to the 1 Ó Corráin (1981), 334. The same sentiments are echoed at Etchingham (1999a), 311, in which he writes that ‘the generality of layfolk are, therefore, often presumed to be unclean and imperfect, and are distinguished from what appear to be elements of an elective Christian elite’ and in p.316, he continues saying, ‘much of the laity seems to have been regarded as excluded from the true Christian community by their sinfulness’. 2 Stancliffe (1983), 316–317. See also Delehaye (1988), 50.

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brethren who had compelled him to undertake the task of writing Brigit’s Life, so we can infer that his most immediate audience would have consisted of his fellow monks. However, from his description of the greatness of Kildare and the people flocking there on pilgrimage, we can see that he clearly had a wider audience in mind, and besides fellow ecclesiastics, this audience might have also included members of the laity. The archiepiscopal claims he is promoting on behalf of Kildare imply an audience consisting of other churchmen in Ireland, but possibly also of people in positions of secular power. Cogitosus’s presentation of Brigit as an embodiment of charity, a virtue that is especially fitting to the members of the laity, further points towards the possibility of a lay audience. Brigit’s generosity is centred on her acts of giving food to the needy, which would make her an especially appropriate model for women to follow. Episodes such as these that demonstrate the exemplary qualities of Brigit could be targeted to the laity attached to the church in Kildare, either as monastic tenants, or by more spiritual ties of affection. In the end of his work, Cogitosus also mentions the people flocking to Kildare to join the celebrations of Brigit’s feast day, which could imply that he expected the Life to be read on a similar occasion. However, the language of the Life, Latin, means that most members of the laity would not have been able to understand the Life when hearing it. Consequently, this leaves us with an ecclesiastical primary audience, and the possibility of using the Life when preaching to the laity in the vernacular. Similarly, Thomas O’Loughlin has concluded that although Navigatio sancti Brendani is a monastic tale, the monastic audience would have also included laymen, women, and children, and that the message of the tale could thus be targeted to a very varied audience.3 Thomas Owen Clancy has, furthermore, stated that in the episode concerning the converted robber, Mac Cuill, which occurs in VP I 23, we find ‘Christian literature which is about, and probably directed towards, ordinary people’.4 In both of these cases, although the texts are written in Latin, this does not prevent them from being used when teaching the people in the vernacular.5 It is therefore possible that O’Loughlin (1999), 17–20. Clancy (2000), 203. 5 Van Egmond (1999), especially pp.63–64, has evaluated the evidence for the lay audience of early medieval hagiography, and raises the possibility of vernacular preaching based on Latin texts, especially in hagiographical sermons aimed at pilgrims visiting monasteries. This would fit well with the image of Kildare as an ecclesiastical centre attracting pilgrims. For our evidence of preaching in early medieval Ireland, see Tristram (1995), 16–19, 29–38; O’Loughlin (2001a), 18–39. 3 4

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these texts were intended for a varied audience that also included lay people and that there would be different layers of meaning in the texts that different members of the audience could understand. If the portrayal of the good Christian life in VBC centres almost solely on the image of the saint, the other Brigidine Life considered in this study, VPB, offers a more exhaustive illustration of good Christian qualities, and their antithesis. Of the two Brigidine Lives, VPB comes closer to VC in its use of minor characters in the Life to illustrate moral principles concerning the good Christian life, and in its incorporation of theological themes in the Life. Consequently, VPB can be seen as presenting a more complex image than VBC, which may in turn imply that VPB is addressing a more purely ecclesiastical audience.6 The question of the audience of VPB is a difficult one since Life does not include a preface where it might be possible to find some indication of the primary audience that the author had in mind. Both VPB and VBC, nonetheless, agree in presenting Brigit as the embodiment of the virtue of generosity and as an illustration of an altruistic attitude towards one’s fellow men. In this respect, Brigit can be seen as a fitting model for both the laity and ecclesiastics to follow, since this attitude of caritas can be expected from both groups. The author of VPB, however, reveals his more monastic-centred view when he promotes virginity in the cases of Brigit and Darlugdach, and recommends distancing oneself from the world like Saint Ita. Although Cogitosus also promotes virginity as the better choice, this theme is more pronounced in VPB, where the saint’s struggles to preserve her virginity are related, as well as those of other virgins such as Darlugdach and the chieftain’s daughter. Moreover, the monastic focus of VPB is evident in the portrayal of the saint’s surroundings, since in that Life, she is constantly accompanied by her nuns, while in VBC, her lifestyle more closely resembles that of lay women as she is presented doing domestic tasks herself. The relationship of Saint Columba and the members of the laity also focuses on the miracles of the saint. The miracles performed in the encounters between Columba and lay people can be seen as serving a moral and didactic purpose, besides strengthening the renown of the 6 Dorothy Ann Bray (2007) has come to the opposite conclusion in her preliminary analysis of VPB, concluding that VPB is meant to appeal to a wider audience, both lay and ecclesiastical, while VBC is using more scriptural models and thus writing to a more learned audience. I wish to thank her for providing me with a copy of her paper.

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saint by telling about his powers. In these encounters, the good and the bad men are clearly divided, and the result is that the characters are archetypes that can be used to give a lesson on the behaviour that is fitting for Christians. Adomnán presents his audience with a welldeveloped moral lesson based on his theological learning. This moral lesson concerning good Christian life is not conveyed so much through the portrayal of the saint, but through the portrayal of the diametrically opposed destinies of other, minor, characters in the Life. This moral lesson is probably mainly targeted to a monastic audience, but some of the episodes would also provide fitting models for the laity. The passage of VC ii.41 could be seen as being especially directed at a lay audience, since it includes a lesson on the value of marriage and the duties of the wife towards her husband. It is possible to imagine Adomnán’s audience as including the penitents in the communities attached to Iona, as well as the actual monks, although the same problem concerning the language in which this message could be delivered also applies in this case, as it does in the case of the Brigidine Lives. Adomnán sees the sudden and violent deaths of sinners unequivocally as divine punishments, and this mors subita is contrasted with the mors placida of the virtuous people. This vision of the respective destinies of good and bad men is clearly spelled out in the episodes dealing with souls taken to heaven and hell. These episodes of souls taken to heaven provide us with traces of a possible hierarchy that distinguish the ecclesiastics, or at least some of them, from the members of the laity. However, Adomnán’s vision of the laity is in general quite positive, and he presents them as being able to reach heaven by their virtues. We can conclude therefore that the married status of the laity is not a hindrance, and neither are riches if they are used according to the Christian principles of charity. The role of the churchmen—represented by Saint Columba in the Life—in regard to the laity is that of a spiritual guide pointing towards heaven and directing them to repent of their sins. Penance plays an important role in this vision, since it is the means of purging sins and healing the soul, and thus of attaining heaven. This vision of Christian behaviour which is rewarded in heaven applies both to the ecclesiastics and the laity alike. This is a fitting lesson, therefore, for the Columban monks who would have been Adomnán’s primary audience, and whose task it was to contend for heaven, and to help others by their prayers, if not by their pastoral functions, to reach the same goal. Brigit is a model virgin, and her Lives highlight the choices open for a young woman in the society; she can either enter the church and

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live as a virgin, or marry. However, virginity seems to have been perceived more as a spiritual than as a physical state, and not all religious virgins were necessarily confined to monasteries; some probably continued to live in their family estates. All three authors imply that virginity was seen as being a higher state than married life. The only named and independent woman in VC besides the mother of the saint is the holy virgin, Mogain, thus implying a different perception of her than of other women. Nevertheless, Adomnán’s opinion of marriage seems to be markedly positive, since he makes the saint promote the good of marriage, emphasizing its biblical foundations, unlike the Brigidine authors to whom marriage seems to be clearly the lesser choice. In VBC, all the cases of sinning are comitted by the laity, while in VC and VPB, both the laity and the ecclesiastics are guilty of sinful behaviour, although their respective sins clearly differ in gravity, thus demonstrating that the mental categories of sin and virtue do not automatically overlap with the ecclesiastical and secular categories. Sins involving violence, such as plundering and murders, are furthermore the prerogative of laymen (not women). In contrast, when it comes to punishments, leniency is shown to ecclesiastics, which demonstrates the milder nature of their sins. A sin that applies to both the laity and the ecclesiastics is pride. This sin is stressed in the emphasis on monastic obedience and humility in the case of the nuns and churchmen, and in the examples of royal pride and disrespect towards a saint in the case of the laity. Another prominent sin associated with laymen in VC is avarice, in which respect it can be compared to the Brigidine Lives where its opposite, generosity, is repeatedly emphasized. This suggest that charity can be seen as the key in understanding the vision—shared by all three authors—of a Christian society where men would practice caritas towards each other. The authors of the Lives do not exclude anyone from the good Christian life, and thus from heaven, as long as the sinners repent and mend their ways. Repentance, therefore, is presented as a key to true Christian life, since only the saints can be expected to be without sins. The saints are able to recover the paradisiacal state of man and enjoy a foretaste of the heavenly life by their contemplative powers and by their purity of body and soul. As such, they are beacons that show the way towards the heavenly kingdom for other, less perfect, Christians to follow. In the person of the saint, the two spheres concretely come together, and through the saint’s presence a glimpse of the heavenly

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reality can be perceived on earth. This means that the saint is the perfect Christian who has already reached the heavenly state, as far as is possible in this life. Yet, not all Christians are expected to strive towards the highest perfection embodied by the saint, since heaven can also be reached by lesser mortals as long as they practice virtues in their lives, such as generosity, compassion, humility, chastity, and righteousness. Married lay Christians, both men and women, can thus also reach heaven, although their rewards there might be less than those of the saints and virgins. As far as these three authors can be taken to be representatives of the ecclesiastical attitudes towards the laity in seventh- and eighth-century Ireland, there does not seem to have been that kind of clear condemnation of a lay way of life that Ó Corráin implies. The attitudes of these three authors naturally reflect their aims in writing the Lives, but they can be seen to support each other in seeing lay people in general in a positive light and as being able to achieve a place in heaven by their virtues. The dividing lines between the ecclesiastics and the laity are not always apparent in the three Lives, in which people apparently living in ‘the world’ can be chaste virgins, and some people are denoted as very religious without defining their status either as ecclesiastics, or as laity. This demonstrates the fluidity of these categories in the mind of these authors, and provides further evidence of the multiplicity of the different types of churches and of the people labelled as religious in early medieval Ireland. Thus the laity and the ecclesiastics cannot be seen as two totally separated groups of people, but instead they can be regarded as the two opposing ends of a spectrum including all types of people, who together formed the Church and who were enveloped in the same culture. Furthermore, this is evident in the way the saints—the living embodiments of exemplary virtues—can be held as fitting models for both the laity and the ecclesiastics to follow. The emphasis on different virtues can vary between the two groups, but fundamentally all Christians were expected to follow the same ideals of imitatio Christi exemplified by the saints, and thus to strive for heaven. The representations of the good Christian life by the three Irish hagiographers demonstrate their theological learning and reveal the nuanced and complex thinking embodied in the hagiographical narratives. It can be argued that the same narrative might include different messages for different audiences, the primary one being more learned and ecclesiastical, and the secondary being the lay population attached to the monasteries. For the lay audience, the more simple message of

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good Christian conduct could be preached in the vernacular through the hagiographical exemplars concerning the destinies of good and bad Christians. The repetition of these exemplars can be seen as a integral part of religious education and as a vehicle for imposing Christian morals on the population. Of the three Lives considered in this study, the tendency to provide exemplars fitting for the lay population through the portrayal of the saint is most evident in VBC, while VC is the one most monastic in character. However, the same lessons concerning good Christian living and its antithesis can also be conveyed through the portrayal of the other characters in the Life, and as a result, VPB and VC can also be understood at least to some extent to provide models of behaviour befitting the laity. This moral message concerning ideal Christian behaviour and the subsequent rewards awaiting good Christians in heaven could have been preached to the laity who were attached to the monasteries and who were visiting there as pilgrims. This fits well with the image of the monastery presented in VBC, the Life that incidentally also provides the most straighforward model for the laity to imitate, while in VC, the monastery seems to be more removed from the world, although even there the ties still exist. In brief, the image of the monastery and the value of the Life as a straightforward model for the laity coincide in the cases of VBC and VC. VPB portrays a similar image of the saint’s monastery as does VBC—as a place where lay people constantly come seeking help in their various problems and of the saint as an embodiment of charity. The image of the monastery in VPB, however, is not as clear as in VBC, since the focus in VPB is not depicted explicitly as being in one single location. The image of the saint in VPB is also a fitting model for the laity in terms of generosity, but even there the lesson seems to be directed apparently more to the nuns, who are the protagonists besides the saint in many of the incidents. VPB furthermore seems to place emphasis on the saint’s virginity, and thus detachment from the secular world. This contrasts with VBC, in which the saint’s lifestyle and occupation closely resemble that of ordinary laywomen. In addition, VPB includes examples of the sinful behaviour of ecclesiastics, namely nuns, which could be seen as an indicator of the monastic focus of that Life. VC similarly provides negative examples to contemplate for the monks, who probably were its main audience. Thus it is possible to say that the moral lesson given in the Life reflects the targeted audience. In the case of VBC, the image of ideal Christian behaviour is clearly suitable for members of the laity,

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and one has to at least raise the possibility that the Life was meant to be read or used as a help when preaching to an audience consisting both of the ecclesiastics and laity in Kildare. The question of the audience of VPB, on the other hand, is hard to answer, since the Life does not include a preface, in which such considerations could be addressed; but the Life seems to be providing a fitting model for female religious, whether in a strictly speaking monastic enviroment, or in their homes. Of the three Lives, VC fits most clearly into the traditional monastic mold, both in its intended audience and its exemplary value. All the three Lives, however, reflect many aspects of their authors’ understanding of Christian morals, as applicable to all men and women regardless of their religious status. Since the hagiographical authors were monastic scholars, it can be assumed that they would base their narratives concerning the saints not only on their reading concerning other saints and biblical characters, but also on their understanding of theological principles concerning holiness and Christian life. It is from this theological background that the influence can be seen of some of the Latin Fathers, Augustine first and foremost, while other scholars of the patristic era, such as Gregory the Great and Sulpicius Severus, provide more straightforward hagiographical models as well as theological and practical principles concerning holiness and good Christian life. John Cassian’s influence is apparent in the image of monastic life and its goals presented in the Irish Lives considered in this study. Thus the influence of the patristic Fathers works on many levels and in many ways in the Lives, and in order to be appreciated fully, it also has to be studied on the level of ideas, not only as verbal borrowings. This study has demonstrated some of the common strands of thinking shared by the Irish authors of early Brigidine and Columban hagiography and by some of the Latin patristic Fathers. It is clear that Adomnán was well-versed in Christian learning, as has already been amply demonstrated by Thomas O’Loughlin.7 Cogitosus and the anonymous author of VPB also used their reading as a base on which to build the image of their saint. Since the emphasis in this study was on theological ideas, it is harder to pinpoint exact points of borrowing than when discussing verbal loans between different hagiographical texts. I hope to have demonstrated, however, that the Irish authors 7 See O’Loughlin (2000a), 68–85, and his bibliography pp.85–86 for further references.

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operated within the same mental horizon as the patristic Fathers, reflecting their common understanding of Christian life and its goals. Some of these ideas might be due to the Irish authors’ knowledge of the patristic writings, but they might also derive from the biblical learning shared by the two groups of authors. Whatever the source of this knowledge, it is important to appreciate the extent to which the Irish authors shared the same learning and understanding of Christian life as the leading writers of Western Christendom despite the differences in their respective milieux. Nevertheless, one must not lose sight of the fact that, although the Irish authors were working within the same tradition as the patristic Fathers, they were also involved in the debates and concerns of their own immediate environment. As a result, the Lives of the Irish authors have to be understood from both points of view, that is, as part of the common Christian heritage, as well as works of literature written for an Irish audience and in an Irish milieu.

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ancient and medieval authors Adomnán, De locis sanctis, D. Meehan (ed. & trans.), Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, III; Dublin 1958: repr. 1983. —Vita Columbae, A.O. and M.O. Anderson (eds. & trans.), 1961: 2nd edn Oxford 1991. Another translation in R. Sharpe (trans.), Harmondsworth 1995. anon, Amra Choluimb Chille, W. Stokes (ed. & trans.), Revue Celtique 20 (1899), 30–55, 132–182, 248–289, 400–437; 21 (1900), 133–136. anon, Annals of Ulster, S. Mac Airt & G. Mac Niocall (eds. & trans.), Dublin 1983. anon, Canones Hibernensis, ‘Irish Canons,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 160–175. anon, Críth Gablach, D.A. Binchy (ed. ), Mediaeval and Modern Irish Series, xi; Dublin 1941: repr. 1979. anon, (Latin translation by Rufinus) Historia monachorum, PL 21, 387–462. Translation in N. Russell (trans.), The Lives of the Desert Fathers. The Historia monachorum in Aegypto, London 1981. anon, Martyrology of Tallaght, R.I. Best & H.J. Lawlor (eds.), London 1931. anon, Old Irish Penitential, in D.A. Binchy (trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 258–277. anon, Sinodus Luci Victorie, ‘Synod of the Grove of Victory,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 68–69. anon, Synodus I S. Patricii, ‘First Synod of St. Patrick,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 54–59. anon, Synodus II S. Patricii, ‘Second Synod of St. Patrick,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 184–197. anon, Visio sancti Pauli, T. Silverstein & A. Hilhorst (eds.), Apocalypse of Paul. A New Critical Edition of Three Long Latin Versions, Genève 1997. Translation in J.K. Elliott (trans.), The Apocryphal New Testament, Oxford 1993. anon, Vita prima sanctae Brigitae, J. Colgan (ed.), Trias Thaumaturga (Tertia vita S. Brigidae), Louvain 1647: repr. Dublin 1997. Translation in S. Connolly (trans.), JRSAI 119 (1989), 14–49. Athanasius, (Latin translation by Evagrius) Vita Antonii, PL 73, 126–170. Translation in C. White (trans.), Early Christian Lives, Harmondsworth 1998, 7–69. Augustine, Confessiones, PL 32, 659–868. Translation in H. Chadwick (trans.), Oxford World Classics; Oxford 1991. —Contra Faustum Manichaeum, PL 42, 207–518. Translation in R. Stothert (trans.), NPNF, iv; Edinburgh: repr. 1996, 155–345. —De beata vita, PL 32, 959–976. Translation in L. Schopp (trans.), FC, 1; New York 1948, 43–84.

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—De bono coniugali, P.G. Walsh (ed. & trans.), ‘Augustine: De bono coniugali. De sancta virginitate,’ Oxford 2001, 2–63. —De bono viduitatis, PL 40, 431–450. Translation in C.L. Cornish (trans.), NPNF, iii; Edinburg: repr. 1993, 441–454. —De civitate Dei, PL 41, 13–804. Translation in R.W. Dyson (trans.), Cambridge Texts in the History of Political Thought; Cambridge 1998. —De coniugiis adulterinis, PL 40, 451–486. Translation in C.T. Huegelmeyer (trans.), FC, 27; New York 1955, 61–132. —De continentia, PL 40, 349–372. Translation in C.L. Cornish (trans.), NPNF, iii; Edinburgh: repr. 1993, 379–393. —De doctrina christiana, R.P.H. Green (ed. & trans.), Oxford 1995. —De fide et symbolo, PL 40, 181–196. Translation in J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 353–369. —De Genesi ad litteram, PL 34, 219–486. —De libero arbitrio, PL 32, 1221–1310. Translation in J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 113–217. —De natura boni, PL 42, 551–572. Translation in J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 326–348. —De nuptiis et concupiscentia, PL 44, 413–472. —De opere monachorum, PL 40, 547–582. Translation in H. Browne (trans.), NPNF, iii; Edinburgh: repr. 1993, 503–524. —De sancta virginitate, P.G. Walsh (ed. & trans.), Augustine: De bono coniugali. De sancta virginitate, Oxford 2001, 66–147. —De utilitate credendi, PL 42, 65–92. Translation in J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 284–323. —De vera religione, PL 34, 121–172. Translation in J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 225–283. —Enchridion de fide, spe, et caritate, PL 40, 231–290. Translation in J.F. Shaw (trans.), NPNF, iii; Edinburgh: repr. 1993, 237–276. —Epistolae, PL 33, 61–1091. Translation in J.G. Cunningham (trans.), NPNF, i; Edinburgh: repr.1994, 219–593. —Epistolae ad Romanos inchoata expositio, P.F. Landes (ed. & trans.), Augustine on Romans. Propositions from the Epistle to the Romans. Unfinished Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, Texts and Translations, 23; Early Christian Literature Series 6; Chico 1982, 52–89. —Expositio quarundem propositionum ex epistola ad Romanos, in P.F. Landes (ed. & trans.), Augustine on Romans. Propositions from the Epistle to the Romans. Unfinished Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans,

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Texts and Translations, 23; Early Christian Literature Series, 6; Chico 1982, 2–49. —Soliloquies, PL 32, 869–904. J.H.S. Burleigh (trans.), Augustine: Earlier Writings, The Library of Christian Classics; Philadelphia 1953, 3–63. Bede, Historia ecclesiastica gentis anglorum, B. Colgrave & R. A. B Mynors (eds. & trans.), Oxford 1969. Cassian, Collationes, PL 49, 477–1328. Translation in B. Ramsey (trans. ), New York 1997. —De institutis coenobiorum, PL 49, 53–476. Translation in B. Ramsey (trans. ), New York 2000. Clement of Alexandria, Stromata, A.C. Coxe (trans.), ANF, ii; Edinburgh: repr. 1994, 299–520. Cogitosus, Life of Brigit, J. Colgan (ed.), Trias Thaumaturga (Secunda vita S. Brigidae), Louvain 1647: repr. Dublin 1997. Translation in S. Connolly & J-M. Picard (trans.), JRSAI 117 (1987), 11–27. Columbanus, Instructiones, ‘Sermons’, in G.S.M. Walker (ed. & trans.), Sancti Columbani Opera, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, II; Dublin 1957: repr. 1997, 60–121. —Epistulae, ‘Letters’, in G.S.M. Walker (ed. & trans.), Sancti Columbani Opera, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, II; Dublin 1957: repr. 1997, 2–59. —Regula monachorum, ‘Monks’ Rule,’ in G.S.M. Walker (ed. & trans.), Sancti Columbani Opera, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, II; Dublin 1957: repr. 1997, 122–143. —Regula coenobialis, ‘Communal Rule,’ in G.S.M. Walker (ed. & trans.), Sancti Columbani Opera, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, II; Dublin 1957: repr. 1997, 142–169. —Paenitentiale S. Columbani, ‘Penitential of Columbanus,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 96–107. Cummean, Paenitentiale Cummeani, ‘Penitential of Cummean,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 108–135. Finnian, Penitentialis Vinniani, ‘Penitential of Finnian,’ in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Irish Penitentials, Dublin 1975, 74–95. Gregory the Great, Dialogi, PL 77, 149–430 (VB in PL 66, 125–204). Translation in O.J. Zimmerman (trans.), FC, 39; New York 1959. —Liber regulae pastoralis, PL 77, 13–128. Translation in H. Davis (trans.), Ancient Christian Writers, 11; Westminster, Maryland 1950. —Moralia in Iob, PL 75, 509–1162, PL 76, 9–782. Translation in A. Bocognano (ed. & trans.), SC, 212, Paris 1974; SC, 221, Paris 1975. Gregory of Tours, Liber vitae patrum, MGH I, (1884), 661–744. Translation in Edward James (trans.), Life of the Fathers, Translated Texts for Historians, 1; Liverpool 1991: 2nd edn. Irenaeus of Lyons, Proof of the Apostolic Preaching, J.S. Smith (trans.), ACW 16; London 1952.

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Jerome, Vita Pauli, PL 23, 17–28. Translation in W.H. Fremantle (trans.), NPNF vi, Edinburgh: repr. 1996, 299–303. Muirchú, Vita S. Patricii, L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Patrician Texts in the Book of Armagh, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, x; Dublin 1979, 62–123. Patrick, Confessio, in D.R. Howlett (ed. & trans.), The Book of Letters of Saint Patrick the Bishop, Dublin 1994, 51–93. —Epistola ad milites Corotici, in D.R. Howlett (ed. & trans.), The Book of Letters of Saint Patrick the Bishop, Dublin 1994, 24–39. Pseudo-Augustine, De mirabilibus sacrae scripturae, PL 35, 2149–2200. Selected translation in J. Carey (trans.), King of Mysteries. Early Irish Religious Writings, Dublin 1998: rev. 2nd edn 2000, 52–74. Sulpicius Severus, Dialogi, PL 20, 183–222. Translation in A. Roberts (trans.), NPNF, xi; Edinburgh: repr. 1991, 24–54. —Vita Martini, J. Fontaine (ed. & trans.), SC 133, Paris 1967; SC 134, 1968; 135, 1969. English translation in C. White (trans.), Early Christian Lives, Harmondsworth 1998, 134–159. Tírechán, Collectanea de sancto Patricio, in L. Bieler (ed. & trans.), The Patrician Texts in the Book of Armagh, Scriptores Latini Hiberniae, x; Dublin 1979, 122–167.

bibles Biblia Sacra iuxta Vulgatam versionem, Robertus Weber (ed.), Stuttgart 1969: 3rd edn 1985. Holy Bible, New International Version, London 1996: first published 1973. The New Jerusalem Bible, London 1985.

databases CETEDOC, Library of Christian Latin Texts CLCLT –3, (Brepols 1996).

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Anderson, A.O. & M.O. Anderson (1991) ‘Introduction,’ in A.O. Anderson & M.O. Anderson (eds.), Adomnán’s Life of Columba, Oxford: 2nd edn, xv–lxxx. Atherton, M. (ed.), (2002) Celts and Christians. New Approaches to the Religious Traditions of Britain and Ireland, Cardiff. Auslander, D.P. (2002) ‘Matters of Time. Manipulation of Memory in Early Irish Hagiography,’ Foilsiú 2, 43–52. Babcock, W.S. (1990) ‘Sin,’ in E. Ferguson (ed.), (1990), 848–853. Barber, J.W. (1981) ‘Excavations on Iona, 1979,’ Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland 111, 282–380. Bergholm, A. & K. Ritari (forthcoming) ‘Methodological Issues in the Interpretation of Early Irish Narrative Sources,’ in P. BernhardtHouse (ed.), Beyond the Boundaries: New Approaches to Insular Celtic Narrative. Berschin, W. (2001) ‘Radegundis and Brigit,’ in Carey, Herbert & Ó Riain (eds.), (2001), 72–76. Bieler, L. (1952) ‘The Island of Scholars,’ Revue du moyen âge latin 8, 213–231; repr. in R. Sharpe (ed.), Ireland and the Culture of Early Medieval Europe, London 1987 —(1962) ‘The Celtic Hagiographer,’ SP 5, 243–265 —(1974) ‘Muirchú’s Life of St Patrick as a Work of Literature,’ Medium Aevum 43, 219–233. —(1975) ‘Hagiography and Romance in Medieval Ireland,’ Medievalia et Humanistica 6, 13–24. —(1979) ‘Introduction,’ in L. Bieler (ed.), The Patrician Texts in the Book of Armagh, Dublin, 1–56. Biggs, F.M. (1989–90) ‘The Fourfold Division of Souls: The Old English “Christ III” and the Insular Homiletic Tradition,’ Traditio 45, 35–51. Binchy, D.A. (1962) ‘Patrick and His Biographers: Ancient and Modern,’ Studia Hibernica 2, 7–173. Binchy, D.A. (ed.) (1978) Corpus iuris Hibernici, Dublin. Bischoff, B. (1976) ‘Turning-points in the History of Latin Exegesis in the Early Middle Ages,’ in Martin McNamara (ed.), Biblical Studies. The Medieval Irish Contribution, Dublin: originally published in German 1966, 74–160. Bitel, L. (1984) ‘Women’s Donations to the Churches in Early Ireland,’ JRSAI 114, 5–23. —(1986) ‘Women’s Monastic Enclosures in Early Ireland: a Study of Female Spirituality and Male Monastic Mentalities,’ JMH 12, 15–36. —(1987) ‘Sex, Sin, and Celibacy in Early Christian Ireland,’ PHCC 7, 65–95. —(1990) Isle of the Saints. Monastic Settlement and Christian Community in Early Ireland, Cork: repr. 1995. Blair, J. & R. Sharpe (eds.), (1992) Pastoral Care before the Parish, Leicester.

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Index of Biblical References Genesis 1:28 2:20-25 2:24 3:16 5 21:8-14

53, 92 90 90 89 156 127

Exodus 3:6 13:21-22 14:24 14:27-28 14:28 15:5 20:15

37 34 34 151 151 151 124

Leviticus 19:18 19:32 25:17

48, 65 132 132

Numbers 14:14 17 18:6-7 19:13

34 51 51 57

Deuteronomy 5:19 6:2 10:12 31:6 31:12

124 132 132 132 132

Joshua 1:18

132

1 Samuel 26:16

2 Samuel 12:5

113

1 Chronicles 19:13 22:13 28:20

132 132 132

2 Chronicles 32:7

132

Nehemiah 9:11 9:12 9:19

151 34 34

Job 1:8 2:3 29:12-14 31:1 31:7 31:16-23 35:11

132 132 64 131 131 64 54

Psalms 30:16 31:5 50:19 90:8

149 137, 139 137, 139 136

Proverbs 3:7 24:21 26:11 31:30

132 132 145 132

Wisdom of Sirach 34:18 144 113

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Ezekiel 1:4

36

Malachi 4:2 3

5

Matthew 5:7 5:22 5:28 5:43 8:2-4 9:22 9:29 9:30 10:8 11:15 13:43 14:21 14:34 15:38 17:2 17:5 18:9 19:5-6 19:16-17 19:19 19:21 22:39 23:12 23:23 25:34-40 25:40 27:5

65, 76, 154 132, 171 131 65 78 73 73 66 78 78 36 80 36 80 35 35 131, 170 90 148 65 63, 64, 79 48, 65, 73 66 65 64 76 151

Mark 1:40-42 1:43-45 1:44 2:17 2:19-20 9:2 9:7 9:9

78 66 66 140 108 35 35 66

206

9:42 9:42-46 9:44 9:46 10:7-9 10:21 10:52 12:31 12:33 12:42-44

132 171 132 132 90 64 73 48, 65, 73 65 75

Luke 1:26-38 1:73-74 2:9 3:11 4:27 5:12-14 5:14-15 5:12-23 5:31-32 5:34-35 7:22 7:36-50 9:29 9:34 10:25-37 10:27 12:33 13:3 13:5 15:20 16:19-31 16:22 17:11-19 17:19 18:42 20:36 21:1-4

31 149 35 64 78 78 66 78 140 108 78 137 35 35 65 48, 65, 73 64 137 137 65 79 160 78 73 73 49 75

John 3:5 8:12 13:5

156 35 129

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14:2 17:12

169 113

Acts of the Apostles 1:18 151 5:1-11 152, 158 9:3 35 9:7 41 22:6 35 26:13 35 Romans 7:24 13:9-10

56 65

1 Corinthians 5:1 7:3-5 7:8-9 7:27-38 13:12 15:53 16:13

124 90 94 94 49 50 132

Galatians 4:4 4:14 5:17

89 49, 65 56

Ephesians 5:23

88

207

Colossians 3:12

65

2 Thessalonians 2:3

113

1 Timothy 2:3-4 6:10

116 79

James 2:8 2:13 3:6 5:20

65 65 132 115, 116

2 Peter 1:13 2:22

57 145

Apocalypse 4:2-6 7:14 13:16 13:16-17 14:1 14:3 14:9 14:11 16:2 19:20 20:4 21:23

169 57 118 118 118 44 118 118 118 118 118 35

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General Index Adam 58, 88, 90, 161 Áes dána 16 Ailerán 20 Ammon 155, 164 Amra Coluim Chille 5 Ananias 152, 158 Anderson, Alan Orr & Marjorie Ogilvie 24, 72, 114 angels 30-33, 36-41, 44, 46, 49, 58-59, 91, 108, 133, 152-155, 160, 162-167 annals 18-19, 21 Antony, Saint 8, 25, 43, 59, 66, 71, 111, 122, 132, 149, 163-164 Armagh 21, 27 Athanasius 24-25, 45, 66, 111, 122, 134, 163, 172 Vita Antonii 24-25, 45, 66-67, 122, 132, 149, 154, 162-164, 172 Augustine 3, 5, 26, 38, 41-42, 44, 46-47, 49-50, 52, 54, 55, 59, 61, 64, 66-67, 70, 72-73, 76, 79, 91-92, 94-95, 102, 111, 118, 120, 122, 124, 129, 130, 132, 134, 137, 139-140, 147, 156, 159, 161, 167, 169, 181 De civitate Dei 49, 50, 64, 76, 132 De doctrina Christiana 42, 120 De sancta virginitate 3, 50, 94 Enchiridion 41 avarice 78-79, 144, 147, 152, 178 Baithéne 37, 54, 68-69, 139 baptism 2, 64, 115, 137, 155-156, 160 baptism of tears 138, 146 Basil 5, 79 Benedict, Saint 34, 40-41, 59, 132-133 Bitel, Lisa M. 79, 121

Boniface, Saint 63 Brendan of Birr, Saint 32, 36, 38, 57, 154, 162 Brendan moccu Altae, Saint 32, 35-36, 38 Broichan 65, 110, 112 Brude, King 110, 112 Brüning, Gertrud 40 caritas 66, 176, 178 Cassian 5, 8, 26, 42, 45-46, 52, 59, 67, 70-71, 101, 106, 108, 111-112, 122, 129-130, 132-135, 140, 147, 150-152, 171, 181 Collationes 26, 42, 133 Institutiones 26, 42, 108 charity 20, 62-63, 66, 70, 73-76, 78-79, 96, 101, 108, 144, 154, 158, 174-175, 177-178, 180 Charles-Edwards, Thomas 10, 114 Clancy, Thomas Owen 175 Clonmacnoise 49 Colgan, John 20, 22 Colmán, Bishop 154, 162 Columbanus, Saint 17, 27, 50, 55-56, 67, 70-71, 122, 129, 134 Life by Jonas 17 Regula monachorum 70 Comgall, Saint 38, 152-153, 155, 167 Conleth, Bishop 169 Connolly, Sean 20, 22 contemplation 42, 45-47, 51-52, 133 Coroticus 26, 118-119 Darlugdach 81, 86, 121, 131-135, 170, 176 Delehaye, Hippolyte 61 De locis sanctis 5, 7, 31, 35, 116-117, 161 De mirabilibus sacrae scripturae 91

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demons 31, 38, 41, 77-78, 89, 91, 119, 130, 133, 142, 144, 153-157, 162-167 druids 33-34, 39, 51, 85, 110, 117, 127, 155 Dorbbéne 23 Egypt 71, 108 Erc, Bishop 41, 75, 104 Etchingham, Colmán 114 Evagrius 24-25 Eve 88-90 faith 2, 20, 51, 71-73, 127, 132, 135, 163 Fall 50, 55, 89, 91-92 Fintan, saint 68 Geary, Patrick 9 generosity 7, 62-64, 71, 73, 75-79, 100-101, 126, 128, 144, 174-176, 178-180 Gregory the Great 5, 8, 24-26, 34, 39-41, 43, 47, 57-58, 61, 63, 66-67, 92, 94, 106, 110-112, 122, 125, 128, 129, 132, 134, 137-138, 144, 150, 157, 159, 161, 165-166, 169, 172, 181 Dialogi 5, 8, 24-26, 34, 39-41, 58, 61, 63, 94, 110, 132, 134, 144, 150, 157, 165-166, 172 Liber regulae pastoralis 26, 43, 92, 106, 138 Moralia in Iob 26, 57, 159 Vita Benedicti 24-25, 128 heaven 3, 14, 28-30, 34, 35-36, 38-39, 42-44, 46, 48-49, 53-59, 76, 79, 87, 91-93, 95, 100, 102, 118, 126, 135, 148, 152-156, 158-172, 177-180 heavenly apparitions 30-34, 36-38, 43, 58-59, 107 heavenly life 44-47, 49-52, 54, 59, 62, 65, 168, 178

heavenly light 30-33, 35-38, 43, 58, 141, 154 heavenly song 44, 49 hell 14, 28, 38, 110, 113, 116, 118, 146, 148, 151-153, 156-159, 161, 165-167, 170-172, 177 fire of hell 94, 132, 134, 170-171 Herbert, Máire 24-25 Hillgarth, J.N. 10 Hinba 43, 107 Historia monachorum 25, 45 holiness 5, 7-9, 27, 29, 31-32, 34, 47, 55, 58-59, 97, 169, 181 Holy Spirit 34, 37, 44, 48, 51, 59, 65, 104, 153 Howlett, David 20-21 humility 64, 66-67, 71-72, 101, 109, 111, 113, 129-130, 137, 146, 178-179 Ibor, Bishop 71, 130 Imitatio Christi 8, 179 Iona 23-25, 32, 36-37, 52, 69, 87-88, 122-123, 140-143, 147, 151, 154, 162, 177 Irenaeus of Lyons 92 Ita, Saint 52, 81, 86, 176 Jerome 5, 24-25, 55, 133-134, 155 Vita Pauli 25, 55, 133-134, 155 Jerusalem heavenly Jerusalem 168 new Jerusalem 35 Judas 113, 151 Kildare 19-21, 25, 63, 84, 87, 95-97, 168-169, 172, 174-175, 181 Lazarus 79 lepers 72, 74, 77-78, 113, 128, 144, 146, 150 Librán 69, 138, 154, 160 lust 92, 121-123, 131-135 Mac Cuill 119, 175 Maney, L.J. 21

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Markus, R.A. 1 Martin, Saint 8, 41, 43, 59, 64, 67, 76, 107, 113, 118, 129 Mary, Virgin 50, 89, 93, 98, 161 McCarthy, Daniel 19-21 McCone, Kim 21, 51, 75, 104, 114 McNamara, Martin 159 Mogain, Virgin 31, 81, 87, 92, 97, 102, 178 Muirchú 2, 6-7, 17-18, 26-27, 39, 117, 119, 150 Life of Patrick (Vita Patricii) 2, 6-7, 39, 117, 119, 150, 175 Navigatio sancti Brendani 175 Newhauser, Richard 79 Northumbria 23 obedience 2, 20, 61, 69-70, 100-101, 107, 111, 130, 134, 178 Ó Briain, Felim 75 Ó Corráin, Donnchadh 174, 179 O’Loughlin, Thomas 2-3, 6-7, 138, 159-160, 165, 175, 181 Oswald, King pagans 1, 18, 22, 34, 39, 51, 78, 112, 114-120, 135, 145, 155-156, 163 naturally good pagans 154-155, 160 paganism 51, 114-118, 120, 135, 145 paradise 50, 53, 55, 58, 70 paradisiacal state 48, 50-51, 53, 59, 178 Patrick, Saint 3, 6, 18, 21, 26-27, 35, 56, 97, 118-119, 124, 131, 135, 144, 156, 161 Confessio 3, 26, 97 Epistola 26, 118-119, 124 Paul, Saint 49, 55, 89-90, 94, 102, 155, 166 penance 28, 95, 103, 107, 116, 122-123, 126, 129, 136-140,

146-147, 151, 156, 161-161, 167, 170, 177 penitents 52, 64, 69, 72, 107-109, 119, 134, 137-138, 142, 145-147, 154, 177 penitentials 3, 5, 80, 121-122, 126, 140, 147, 162 Old Irish Penitential 122 Penitential of Cummean 106, 129, 140, 156 Penitential of Finnian 66, 74, 95, 115, 138-139, 156 Picard, Jean-Michel 22-23 Picts 65, 78, 112, 117, 119, 144, 157 Pictland 87, 112, 163 pilgrimage 55, 63, 174-175 pilgrims 52, 180 pride 67, 107-109, 111-113, 129-130, 134-135, 178 purgatory 161-162, 167 purity 39, 42-45, 49, 51, 58-59, 65, 98, 105, 134, 178 repentance 115-117, 126, 131, 136-141, 143-144, 146, 178 resurrection 35, 49-50, 159-161, 172 Rome 165 Rufinus 25, 45 Sabinus, Saint 150 salvation 2, 16, 28, 62, 92, 112, 120, 138, 155 Sapphira 152, 158 Second Synod of Patrick 138 Sharpe, Richard 20-21, 24, 72, 114, 116-117 Stalmans, Nathalie 21, 63, 161-167 Stancliffe, Clare 63, 166, 174 Stephen, Saint 41 Sulpicius Severus 5, 24-26, 41, 60, 67, 70-71, 75-76, 101, 107, 113, 118, 129, 134, 156, 181

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Dialogi 26, 41, 67, 71, 107, 113, 129 Vita Martini 5, 24-25, 60, 64, 66-67, 75-76, 101, 118, 156, 162 Terryglass 112 Tírechán 6, 17-18, 26, 155-156 Collectanea 6, 26, 155 Tiree 163

transfiguration 35 Uí Néill 21, 24, 27, 123 Uinniau 32, 36, 66 Ultán 20 vainglory 67, 112 virginity 20, 41, 50-51, 59, 68, 81, 85, 93-95, 98, 102, 122, 126, 131, 176, 178, 180, Visio sancti Pauli 166, 172

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