We conclude the octave of posts in honour of the 1400th anniversary of the death of Saint Columbanus with a review of his life and legacy from the late Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich, whose collection Columbanus in his Own Words introduced me to the saint. For those who don’t read Irish it provides an overview of the saint’s missionary endeavours, compares him with other great historic travellers, hails his contribution to Irish and European history and concludes with the view of Robert Schumann, also mentioned in yesterday’s post, that he may be regarded as the patron saint of those trying to build a united Europe. In these times when the Christian foundations of European civilisation are under such pressure, this is indeed the moment to rediscover him as an intercessor for this continent, 1400 years after his passing from it:

…Leanbh de chuid Laighean, dalta de chuid mhanachas na hÉireann ina óige, d’fhág sé a thír dhúchais mar aon le dosaen deisceabal timpeall 590 agus thug aghaidh na loinge soir ó dheas. Chaith sé tamall beag sa Bhreatain Mhór ar an bhealach agus tháinig i dtír ar chósta thuaidh na Fraince. Bhunaigh sé trí mhainistir sa Bhurgainn go gasta i ndiaidh a chéile–Annegray, Luxeuil agus Fontaine.

Níorbh fhada go raibh na sluaite ag teacht chuige go Luxeuil, daoine a tháinig faoi dhraíocht a phearsantachta láidre féin nó a d’éirigh geallmhar ar an riail bheatha a leag sé amach dóibh. Ansin d’fhill cuid acu ar a gceantair dhúchais agus thug siad in éineacht leo blúirín éigin de spiorad agus de riail bheatha Luxeuil. Ní raibh glúin amháin imithe go raibh tionchar Luxeuil le mothú i ngach cearn den Fhrainc agus i bhFlondras féin. Bhí mainistreacha nua a mbunú ag manaigh Fhrancacha a oileadh i Luxeuil, agus bhí cuid de na seanmhainistreacha ag cur athchóiriú orthu féin, ag iarraidh féiníobairt agus pionós na rialach nua a shnaidhmeadh leis an chóras eile a tháinig anuas chucu ó aimsir Mháirtín Tours.

Ní raibh Columbán féin beo leis an fhómhar iontach seo a fheiceáil. Ruaigeadh as an Bhurgainn é i 610, agus rinneadh seachránaí ar son Chríost de feasta. Trí Besançon, Avallon, Auxerre, Nevers, Orleans, Tours, Nantes, thrasnaigh sé féin agus a chomplacht bheag Éireannach an Fhrainc go hiomlán, agus iad ar a mbealach chuig an chósta chun go gcuirfí ar bórd loinge iad a thabharfadh ar ais go hÉirinn iad. Ach tháinig an doineann i gcabhair orthu agus d’éalaigh siad. Ansin thug Columbán aghaidh ar an cheantar níos faide ó thuaidh, an Ile-de-France inniú. Chuala Páras a ghlór agus ceantar an Brie, agus má breacadh an limistéar seo le mainistreacha sa chéad ghlúin eile–Faremoutiers (627), Jouarre (630), Rebais (c. 636)–is ó Cholumbán a fuair lucht a mbunaithe an dreasú.

Faoi dheireadh shroich sé an Réin i gcomharsanacht Mainz. Lean sé bealach na n-abhann agus na loch feasta–suas an Réin, isteach san Aar agus sa Limmat, thart timpeall ar Loch Zurich agus Loch Constance agus ar aghaidh go Bregenz sa chúinne thoir den loch. Chaith sé tamall sa cheantar sin, atá ar theorainn na hEilvéise agus na hOstaire agus na Gearmáine inniú; ansin thug a aghaidh ó dheas ag tarraingt ar an Iodáil. Ní raibh fonn ar Ghall, duine den dáréag a d’fhág Éire in éineacht leis, dul ar thuras eile agus d’iarr sé cead ar a mháistir fanacht san áit a raibh sé agus leanúint ar aghaidh ag craobhscaoileadh an tsoiscéil ar bhruach Loch Constance. Rud nach bhfuair sé, mar bhí eagla ar Cholumbán gurbh í an leisce roimh an turas a thug ar Ghall an cead a iarraidh. Ach d’fhan Gall, agus d’imigh Columbán agus a chomplacht ina éagmais. Trasna na nAlp agus síos trí mhachairí na Lombáirde leis, gur bhunaigh sé a eaglais dheireanach i mBobbio. Is ann a d’éag sé ar an 23 Samhain 615.

Bhí turas déanta aige ab fhiú a chur ar aon chéim le haistir mhóra na staire, le anabasis Xenophon, le taisteal Marco Polo chun na Síne, le marcaíocht Tschiffely thar na hAndes, le turasanna Stanley agus Livingstone san Afraic. Ach bhí rud níos mó ná sin déanta aige. Bhí ré nua oscailte aige i stair na hÉireann agus i stair na Mór-Roinne. I stair na hÉireann, mar ba cheannródaí é i measc na nGaelnaomh a d’imigh thar sáile. I stair na Mór-Roinne, mar ba as a shaothar a shíolraigh cuid de na tréithe ba láidre i manachas na Fraince, agus ba as an mhanachas céanna a gineadh cultúr Críostaí na hEorpa.

Go dtí sin ba bheag den obair thréadach a dhéanadh manaigh na Fraince i measc na dtuataí, agus is sna bailte móra amháin a bhí na mainistreacha le fáil. Columbán agus a chuid deisceabal a cheangail an mhisinéireacht leis an mhanachas, agus a chuir tús le bunú na mainistreacha faoin tuath, ar thalamh a bhronn an uasalaicme orthu, sa dóigh go bhféadfadh siad leas a bhaint as an talmhaíocht mar shlí bheatha. ‘Dá mhéad solas a ligtear isteach ar dhorchadas na meanaoise’, a scríobh an Pápa Pius XI i 1923, ‘is ea is soiléire a éiríonn sé go bhfuil athbhreith na heagnaíochta agus na sibhialtachta Críostaí i gcodanna éagsúla den Fhrainc, den Ghearmáin agus den Iodáil le cur i leith shaothar agus dúthracht Cholumbán’. Nasc idir náisiúin éagsúla a bhí sa naomh de bharr a shaothair agus a thaistil; is dócha gur ar an ábhar sin a dúirt Robert Schumann faoi, dornán blianta ó shin: ‘Is é Columbán naomhphatrún na ndaoine go léir atá ag iarraidh an Eoraip aontaithe a thógáil’.

An Cairdinéal Tomás Ó Fiaich, Gaelscrínte san Eoraip, (Baile Átha Cliath, 1986.)

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Although there is no doubt of the historic importance of Saint Columbanus, it must also be acknowledged that he was in some ways a controversial figure. To my yellowing copy of Columbanus in his Own Words mentioned in the first of this series of posts, I have now added a nice crisp copy of a new title on the same lines, Alexander O’Hara’s Saint Columbanus – Selected Writings, which you can preview on the publisher’s website here. Dr O’Hara will also be bringing out a complete English translation of the Life of Columbanus by Jonas of Bobbio, inevitably alas, a rather more expensive tome of which details can be found here. Below is a short extract from the introduction to the Selected Writings in which the author looks at some of the differing reactions which the strong personality of Saint Columbanus has provoked:

The Irish saint and monastic founder, Columba the Younger, or Columbanus (‘the Little Dove’) as he was more affectionately known (c.550-615), can appear a stern and unsympathetic character. He was a man of extremes who provoked mixed reactions both from his and from our own, more recent, contemporaries. The Oxford medieval historian, J.M. Wallace-Hadrill dismissed him as a ‘savage old saint’ while Robert Schumann, one of the architects of the European Union, lauded him as a pioneer of European civilization and unity. More recently, Pope Benedict XVI spoke of him as being ‘one of the Fathers of Europe’. In his day many regarded Columbanus as a saint, but others vilified him as a troublesome upstart who dared to speak out on Church affairs. Although a divisive figure, he is nonetheless one of the most enigmatic and fascinating figures from the early medieval ‘Age of Saints’.

Alexander O’Hara, ed., Saint Columbanus – Selected Writings, (Dublin, 2015), 16.

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