Sharing some links

photo via creative commons by Christophe BENOIT

From time to time I'll pass along some links that I think readers of this blog might be interested in visiting. Today, I'm sharing some of the links from folks who have contacted me or that I found by some means that I cannot now remember. :-/

The Celtic Monk. This blog is written by a clergyman named Andy. I especially found his post on dreams and how the ancient Celtic Christians considered dreams to be messages from God interesting.

Gaelic.com Celebrating all things Gaelic.

Irish Heritage Carnival
A very cool site with links to other blog articles you might enjoy.

Patrick Comerford's Site
Lots of interesting tidbits on Ireland and other sites the author has visited. He is a priest in the Church of Ireland (Anglican) and a former journalist.

I'll share more links in the future. Please let me know if you find this helpful.

*Next week, of course, we celebrate St. Patrick's Day, so I'll be sharing my thoughts on the patron saint. Also, if any of you are local, please drop by tomorrow and see me at the St. Patrick's Day parade in Dublin, OH. I will be at the Tehku Tea Company from 10-3. Pictures are sure to follow. ;-)

Plague

The Yellow Plague killed many Irish in the 6th century, including many monks and abbots. One of the most famous was St. Ciaran, founder of Clonmacnoise, an important early Christian monastic center. He died at a young age, and his death is attributed to this plague. But this disease is most known in Ireland in the 7th century. Bede, the great historian and author of The Ecclesiastical History of the English People, mentions this plague, which spread from Britain to Ireland and seems to have been at its peak in the year 664 when a solar eclipse also occurred.

The disease was likely spread from mosquitoes to mice to men, but at that time where it came from and how it was spread was unknown. It's no wonder the people thought the wrath of God was raining down on them. This period of time is also known as the Dark Ages, and it must have been a horrifying time to be alive.

St. Colman, an Irish abbot living in the 7th century, fled to an island with his followers where they believed the plague could not reach them, beyond the ninth wave of the sea. He composed a poem. Here is a portion of it from my book, Celtic Wisdom, Treasures From Ireland:

The blessing of God come upon us. May the son of Mary cover us. May he protect us this night, wherever we go through out great numbers. Whether at rest or at motion, at sitting or standing, the King of Heaven be against every assault. This is the supplication that we offer up.

photo via creative commons by Sandy Sarsfield

County Cork. St. Colman may have sailed from here to avoid the plague.

Modern medicine has done much good. We no longer fear many of the illnesses that destroyed large populations of the ancient world. But there are still some we haven't defeated. In those cases, St. Colman's prayer is still relevant.

Pangur Ban

photo via creative commons by Samantha Forsberg

For those of you who are not familiar with the poem Pangur Ban, I want to introduce to you to it. It's very popular and found in many books, including my Celtic Wisdom, Treasures From Ireland. It dates from the 8th or 9th century and was written by a monk who was probably taking a break from his regular duties. I love it because it shows the creativity and the humor of these people, like the Book of Kells. Have you ever seen the drawings of the mice in the Book of Kells? (I tried to find an online picture for you, but failed, sorry.)

©Cindy Thomson

So, for your pleasure, here it is, Pangur Ban (Which means White Cat.)

I and Pangur Ban, my cat
'Tis a like task we are at;
Hunting mice is his delight
Hunting words I sit all night.

Better far than praise of men
'Tis to sit with book and pen;
Pangur bears me no ill will,
He too plies his simple skill.

'Tis a merry thing to see
At our tasks how glad are we,
When at home we sit and find
Entertainment to our mind.

Oftentimes a mouse will stray
In the hero Pangur's way:
Oftentimes my keen thought set
Takes a meaning in its net.

'Gainst the wall he sets his eye
Full and fierce and sharp and sly;
'Gainst the wall of knowledge I
All my little wisdom try.

When a mouse darts from its den,
O how glad is Pangur then!
O what gladness do I prove
When I solve the doubts I love!

So in peace our tasks we ply,
Pangur Ban, my cat, and I;
In our arts we find our bliss,
I have mine and he has his.

Practice every day has made
Pangur perfect in his trade;
I get wisdom day and night
Turning darkness into light.
Translated by Robin Flower

Celtic Mothers

photo via creative commons by Geoff Johnson

Today is the feast day of St. Non, St. David's mother. Being a mother, I am naturally interested in these mothers. St. Non was a nun, and in the eyes of the Roman church nuns are virgins. So how did she give birth to St. David? Well, according to the church she was either seduced or raped. The picture above are the ruins of St. Non's chapel. The chapel supposedly sits on the site where the young Non gave birth to David. There is a stone with imprints that are supposedly the fingerprints she left there while giving birth. (Must have been a difficult labor!)

I have no reason to think that the story about the nun being raped isn't true. However, Celtic monks, nuns, abbots, and abbesses could be married in the ancient Celtic world. It was not unheard of.

Another mother of a saint that I'm keenly interested in is Eithne, mother of St. Columba. I've studied a little more about her and I'm struck by the parallels in this story and that of Hannah in the Bible, the mother of Samuel. Eithne also prayed for a child and promised to give that child to God for his service. Eithne sent Columba to a monastery when he was young, but the legends say that she visited him every year and when he was banished to Iona, she followed and lived on a nearby island.

It's hard to let your children grow up, but how hard must it have been to watch from afar as Columba grew up? Ah, the things that historical fiction novels are made up of!