Table Of ContentIn Search of Irish Saints
THE PEREGRINATIO PRO CHRISTO
ROISIN NI MHEARA
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FOUR COURTS PRESS
418461
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© Roisin Ni Mheara 1994
All rights reserved.
Without limiting the rights under copyright
reserved above, no part of this publication may be
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or transmitted, in any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical,
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the above publisher of this book.
ISBN 1-85182-138-4
A catalogue record for this book is available from the Bntish Library.
Printed in Ireland by Betaprint, Dublin
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 8
INTRODUCTION 9
THE WESTERN SEABOARD AND BURGUNDY
Merovingian Gaul 13
Brittany 24
Burgundy 39
Northern France 44
Belgium and Holland 62
THE RAINE DANDIS
Saarland and the Palatinate 79
The Mainstream (Oberrhein) and Alsace g2
The Upper Rhine (Hochrhein) 115
INDEX 125
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To the town mayor of Luxeuil-Les-Bains, M.
Bernard Hagemann, and to local historians Herr
I am deeply appreciative of assistance received Bernhard Uttenweiler (Ettenheim), M. Ernst Esch-
from a wide range of institutions. Apart from bach (Molsheim), M. Jean Boutouiller (Plestin-les-
permission given to reproduce material from their Gréves, Brittany), as well as to my son, Dr Roderich
libraries and archives —the evidence of which Jakobi (Vienna), thanks are equally due for their kind
graces these pages — their courtesy often extended co-operation.
to imparting invaluable information. If space does These acknowledgements would not be com-
not allow all to be named, special thanks must go to plete without saluting the memory of the Irish
the Benedictine abbey Notre-Dame-de-Jouarre (ar- primate Cardinal Tomas O Fiaich, scholar and pio-
chivist, Sr. Telchilde de Montessus; the municipal neer in the field of research here under scrutiny. It
library of Laon (librarian, Mme S. Martinet); the was his fervent wish that this guidebook should
Landesamt ftir Denkmalpflege, Mainz (Dr Giinther appear and but for his untimely death in 1990 he
Stenzl); the dean of the collegiate church, Fosses- would have been its main contributor.
la-Ville, M. P Abbé Pol Bero; M. le Pasteur Auguste Finally, I wish to record my gratitude to the
Koch, St Thomas’, Strasbourg; and the church publishers for the great care and efficiency shown in
authorities of St Wendel, Saarland. Equally obliging preparing this book. Coir seolta acu leis!
were guardians and secretaries of private societies
such as the Association Internationale des Amis de PHOTOGRAPHIC CREDITS
Saint Colomban, Luxeuil; Les Amis de Saint-
Black and White Illustrations A. Bernard 15,
Florent Niederhaslach, Alsace; the Cercle d’Etudes
16, 17, 18, 19; P. Bero 64; v. Birkenbach 86J;. B outouiller
Archéologiques et Historiques du Pays de Lagny-
26, 27; R. Demont 62; E. Eschback 105; Ettenheimer
sur-Marne; the Centre Culturel de Plestin-les-
Bote, Red. 112; R. Jakobi 29, 34, 35, 38, 103, 104, 105,
Gréves, Brittany; and the Historischer Verein,
106, 109, 115, 116, 120, 121, 122; Ph. Kahn 39, 42, 43,
Ettenheim. Permission was also gratefully received
44; Keller, Eds. 123;J .L aubignat 20; H.W. Luther 84; R.
for the reproduction of manuscripts in the care of
Matt 119; F Mehling 24, 25, 28, 30, 32, 33; R. Muré
the Bibliotheque Nationale de Paris, the Biblio-
108; S. Pfefferle 113; Pretzfeld, Pfarrarchiv 85; K. Reindl
theque Municipale of Péronne and the Schottenstift-
88; Rheinmiinster BMA 96; Sackingen, Pfarrarchiv
bibliothek in Vienna; Prof R. Thirion-Ninane
118; S.A.E.P.: Ingersheim 42; Simon, Eds. 81, 82; G.
graciously permitted the publication of one of her
Stanzl 89, 90; Stollenhofen G-Amt 97; G. Straeter 89;
diagrams of the sarcophagus of Chrodoara d’Amay R. Thirion-Ninane 71; B. Uttenweiler 109, 111; A.A.
— a discovery made by her husband in 1977. Van der Heyden 23, 45, 58, 59, 60, 63, 65, 66, 68, 60,
Of the photographic illustrations listed below 70, 71, 72, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78; S. Ware 36; Zodiaque,
special mention must be made of the editor of the Eds. 51, 52.
Munich publishing firm Knaur, Herr Franz
Coloured Plates A. Bernard 9; P. Bero 14; J.
Mehling, for his generosity in providing material,
Boutouiller 13; C.D.D.P. Melun 3; M-C Fockedey 11, 12;
as also of Mr A.A. Van der Heyden (Naarden, Hol-
Hansi, Eds. 24; R. Jakobi 1, 6, 10; Ph. Kahn. 19, 20; Keller,
land), M. Ph. Kahn (Luxeuil), M. A. Bernard (St-
Eds. 8; H.W. Luther 7, 15, 21, 23; M. Oehler 4; S.
Benoit), and Herr H.W. Luther (St Wendel), whose
Pfefferle 2, 20; A.A. Van der Heyden 5; S. Ware 16, 17, 18.
personal commitment to this project far exceeded
their photographic work. Maps and diagrams by the author.
INTRODUCTION
peers lay in darkness when Ireland enjoyed her Golden Age. Ireland
erupted, sending a shower of light down over the scorched earth
beyond the sea. Perhaps Ireland just had to overflow.
This book does not aim to give an exhaustive account of the Early
Irish mission, which abounds in obscurities and contradictions. It is
impossible to trace or ever hope to count the multitude of sandaled feet
swarming out into the chaos of post-Roman Europe. Indeed, many of
those sandaled feet belonged to hermits seeking anonymity, who would
greatly resent being dragged into the limelight of a mercilessly inquisi-
tive age.
Our aim is to provide the traveller abroad, should he wish to deepen
his understanding of Ireland’s role in the making of Europe, with a
selection of what he can expect to find. He has a wide choice as to where
to go. Patience and perseverance are needed, for the imprints of those
tireless ‘wanderers in Christ’ will lead him off the beaten track. Time
allowing, he can peer into a library or a monastic scriptorium of fame,
where manuscripts are kept that bear testimony. He can experience the
living memory of an Irish patron saint in a folk procession, or on a
pilgrimage. He can stand before a sarcophagus and ponder on the
lighted candles that vouch for this abiding devotion. He can marvel at
the splendour of many a priceless shrine. He can also visit wells famed
for their healing qualities, and explore forest caves that echoed the
prayers of a lonely recluse. Climbing a height, he may then look down
on a wide country that same Irish hermit christianized.
This is an Irish heritage and ours for the taking. Covering a wide
field, much research needs to be done. What quality had the Irish
Mission that made it so prestigious? The answer is simple: it was a
mobile apostolate, and one of compassion. Arriving on the Continent
in a period of change, confusion and human misery, the Irish put
charity first. Beside their cells they built oratories and, annexed to these,
shelters. Hermitages with hospices developed, the first of their kind to
afford asylum. The common man found sympathy and was taken into
the Christian fold. In return, these aliens were given a sanctuary in the
very heart of the people; one so enduring that in later times priests
2
In Search of Irish Saints
were tempted to heighten the esteem ofa local saint in the eyes of the
community by fitting him or her out with a pedigree of far-off
‘Scotia’.
Another important factor was Irish asceticism. Spiritual contempla-
tion being part of his discipline, the hermit shunned no danger, often
accepting martyrdom as the price to be paid for a retreat in the wilds.
This immolation brought people face to face with human sacrifice at
its purest. Reports of miracles that ensued are nothing less than thirst
for divine consolation.
In a land of ecclesiastical ruins such as Ireland, it is not hard to
envisage those early days when ‘churches were dark and hearts were
bright’, as a German historian put it. ‘But now,’ he added ruefully,
‘churches are bright and hearts are dark.’ Aventinus was writing in the
16th century, when lofty edifices had long since replaced the narrow,
dark, clammy sanctuaries our peregrini filled with light. New saints,
fashionable in Rome, were thrust on the people.
Then, as if to ban mysticism completely, the baroque period took
over, bringing a haughty accent into the churches, proclaiming lust-
fully and gaudily their doctrinal triumph. Further and further away we
drift from that humble core, from the essential creed. Even when
remembered and remodelled in the hands of an artist of note, your
Irish saint, smothered in gold and silver drapings, seems sadly out of
place.
Nevertheless, the baroque artist was a faithful recorder and icono-
graphically sound. An Irish saint, banished from the altar of the church
he probably founded, can usually be identified in whatever corner,
crypt or country chapel he may have landed. An open book in his hand
identifies the evangelist or man of learning. A pack animal in his
company recalls the hard manual labour involved in creating a monastic
settlement. A wild beast at the saint’s knee indicates the dangers of
lonely regions. A dragon, or devil in chains, at his foot is a sign reserved
mainly for early pioneers combating the Antichrist. The staff, or Irish
cambutta, grasped in the right hand, denotes his travels and the itin-
erant nature of his ministry; if this is a crozier, it reveals his standing
as a bishop, abbot, or that vague generalization, episcopus vagans. And
should the saint have lost his life serving the Cause, he will be given a
sword, axe, rope, or whatever deadly instrument was involved. Women
are often given the palm of martyrdom to hold, transformed into the
palm of victory.
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