OMNIUM SANCTORUM HIBERNIAE

Tag: Saints of Dublin

  • The Death of Saint Laurence O'Toole

     

    “…Having embarked from England, St Laurence landed on the coast of Normandy, at a creek which at the present time derives its name “St. Laurent’ from him. Shortly afterwards he was seized with the illness which proved fatal to him; and as he found himself unable to proceed on his journey, his progress was arrested at an elevated spot in the neighbourhood of the abbey of Eu. Seeing the towers of this abbey arise in the distance, he made inquiry from some shepherds on the road-side, to what religious order the community belonged. He was told that the abbey was occupied by monks regular, of the order of St. Victor. “Here then”, said the archbishop, “shall my labours terminate”. He approached the abbey gate, and knocked for admission. He was joyfully embraced on entering by the Abbot Osbert, and by his community. But, feeble as was the health of the good archbishop, he must needs repair immediately to the church, where he offered his thanksgivings to God, for having favoured him with a safe voyage, and for having preserved him from the dangers of the sea.

    He began to sink into such a state of exhaustion, that in a short time he was confined to bed, and became unable to rise from it, through excessive weakness. Yet, even in this state, he was not unmindful of the duties he owed his country. At his request, a venerable and prudent man named David, the tutor of his royal companion, was despatched to Henry, charged with the recommendations of the dying archbishop, and as the bearer of an earnest suit in behalf of the Irish subjects of the king. The latter, touched with commiseration on learning the condition of the patriotic prelate, or convinced of the justice of his demand, sent the messenger back, after four days’ delay, with cheering assurances, to soothe the last hours of the dying saint. When his sorrowing attendants discovered the hopelessness of his recovery, they deemed it expedient to remind him of the necessity of making a testamentary disposal of his effects. “God knows”, he replied, “out of all my revenues, I have not a single coin to bequeath”. With sentiments of extraordinary fervour, he prepared for the reception of the holy Eucharist and extreme unction. He frequently cried out in the words of the Psalmist: “have mercy on me, O my God, have mercy on me, since my soul hath trusted in thee”, so long as he felt able to articulate. Shortly before his death his attendants heard him exclaim, in the Irish language: “Ah! foolish and insensible people, what now shall become of you? Who will relieve your miseries? Who will heal you?” Probably at the moment, his thoughts reverted to the paupers his charity had supported during his life-time, and especially during the three years of famine, when, according to his biographer, he gave alms to 500 people each day, besides furnishing clothes, provisions, and necessaries to 300 others, in various parts of his diocese, and being at the expense of maintaining and protecting 200 children, who were left at his door by their destitute parents.

    St. Laurence O’Toole ended his mortal captivity on the 14th day of November, 1180. His biographer tells us that he died on the feria sexta , or Friday, at the close of the midnight hour…..

    Rev. John O’Hanlon, The Life of St. Laurence O’Toole, (Dublin, 1877) , 93-97.

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  • Saint Dubhlitir of Finglas, May 15

    May 15 is the commemoration of an eighth-century County Dublin saint, Dubhlitir of Finglas. In common with other monastics from this foundation his passing was recorded in the Irish Annals, as Canon O’Hanlon explains:

    St. Dubhlitir, Abbot of Finglas, County of Dublin.

    [Eighth Century.]

    The death of Faelchu, of Finnghlais, is noticed at A.D. 758. He is supposed to have been identical with a saint similarly designated [feastday September 24]. Again, Caencomhrac, bishop of this place, died A.D. 786 [according to the Annals of the Four Masters]. Contemporaneously with this bishop, and possibly ruling over a monastery during his term of incumbency, Dublitir lived. When he began to govern the monks there has not been ascertained; or what age he had reached, at the date assigned for his death, must yet remain an open question. St. Dubhlitir appears to have lived as a contemporary with St. Aengus the Culdee. Tallagh and Finglas were not very distantly separated, and both of these holy men may have enjoyed the privilege and happiness of a personal acquaintance. As St. Aengus survived, however, it seems pretty certain, he must have known perfectly well the character of this deceased guardian over Finglas Monastery. In the “Felire of Aengus,” as preserved in the “Leabhar Breac,” and in that copy formerly belonging to St. Isidore’s convent, at Rome, a special eulogy has been pronounced, in reference to this holy Abbot, in common with other saints, mentioned in the stanza. The original Irish rann has been obligingly copied and collated, while the English translation has been supplied, by William M. Hennessy, Esq., M.R.I.A.:-

    “The grace of the seven-fold Spirit
    Poured on great-bright clerics,
    Timothy, the rich Saran,
    On the festival of renowned Dubhlitir.”

    However fanciful etymological derivations of Irish names may be regarded, the present holy man’s name can literally be Anglicized “black-letter.” This term is usually applied to students, who closely apply themselves to books; and, in a double sense, it was most probably appropriate to St. Dubhlitir, whose feast has been assigned for the 15th May. This Dubhlittir, no doubt, was the person referred to in the following entry, in the “Annals of Ulster,” at A.D. 779 (780): “An assembly of the synods of the Ui-Neill and the Leinstermen, where there were many anchorites and scribes, over whom Dubhlitter was President”. He is briefly alluded to by Colgan, in the Bollandist collection, and also in Manuscript Book of “Extracts,” among the Records for Dublin County, at present kept in the Library of the Royal Irish Academy. On this day, likewise, the commentator on St. Aengus, and also the Martyrology of Donegal, register Dubhlitir, Abbot of Finnglais-Cainnigh, near Ath-cliath. It must be regarded as the correct date for his death. The present saint’s name occurs, at the 15th of May, in the published Martyrology of Tallagh. The year when his demise took place is set down, in the Annals of the Four Masters, as 791. The Annals of Ulster write it, at A.D. 795. His remains were deposited, probably, within the old church walls, or under some now unnoticed sod of the present cemetery, which rises high over the “bright stream,” that rushes onward to join the classic Tolka River. The present holy man was also venerated in Scotland, at the 15th of May, as we find from the entry in the Kalendar of Drummond. A considerable share of misunderstanding has prevailed—while even distinguished Irish historians and topographers appear to have fallen into errors- in reference to the special Patron Saint of Finglas. The original name of this village seems to have been derived from the small, rapid, and tortuous “bright stream,” that runs through a sort of ravine, beside the present cemetery. Towards the close of the eighth, or in the beginning of the ninth century— as we find in the “Feilire of Aengusa”—this place had been denominated Finnghlais-Cainnigh, after some earlier patron, called Cainnigh or Canice. He is generally thought to have been the Patron Saint of Ossory, as no other one, bearing such a name, can be found in connexion with this spot. Whether or not, a monastery had been founded by Cainneach, while under the tuition of Mobhi Clairenech, Abbot of Glasnevin, and who died in 544, can scarcely be determined. It seems probable, at least, that a cell, or monastic institute, had been here erected by St. Canice, and before the close of the sixth century…

  • The Church at Killiney

    March 6 is the commemoration of a group of County Dublin holy women, the Daughters of Leinin. Canon O’Hanlon’s account of them can be found here but below is another nineteenth century account, this time of the church that still bears their name at Killiney. It was one of the places visited on a field trip of the 1890s to sites in the greater Dublin area. I have reproduced the accompanying figural illustrations from the Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. It would be interesting to know what more recent archaeological opinion has to say of the dating of the church and the claimed Syrian parallels for the engraved crosses found at this and other Irish sites.

    KILLINEY.

    The name of this place, originally written Cill-Ingen, or Cill-ingen-leinin, as explained by Dr. Joyce, refers to certain daughters of Lenin, five in number. Though the father is said to have been a person of high position, and even of royal descent, we know nothing further of him, nor of his daughters, except that the latter are recorded to rank amongst the saintly women of Ireland. They appear to have flourished some time in the seventh century of our era. Whether the older portion of the existing ruin belongs to their time, or is of their foundation, it is not necessary here to discuss; but Petrie, in his great work on the “Ancient Architecture of Ireland,” pronounced his opinion that it must be assigned to the sixth or seventh century. At any rate the church belongs to two distinct and widely separated periods, and, in an examination of the ruin as it stands, the student of Irish ecclesiastical architecture will find an interesting and highly instructive study (see fig. 3, p. 409). The original building, except wanting a roof, is still almost entire. It consists of nave and chancel connected by a semicircular arch, truly Roman in character, though the jambs of course incline in Celtic style (see fig. 1, p. 409). The extreme dimensions of the church upon the interior are 85 feet; the nave measures but 12 feet 8 inches, and the chancel 9 feet 6 inches, in breadth.

    In our Journal, Part 2, vol. ii., Fifth Series, Second Quarter, 1892, will be found a description in detail of all the features of this venerable Cill, but a notice of its characteristic doorway may very fittingly be here reproduced: – It occupies a position in the centre of the west gable, is flat-headed, a splendid example of its class, measuring 6 feet 1 inch in height, by 2 feet in breadth, at the top, and 2 feet 4 inches at the base. In one respect this doorway is very remarkable, presenting, as it does, what Bishop Graves would style a “Greek cross,” carved in relief upon the under side of its lintel (see fig. 4, p. 409). Only one other instance of the kind, as far as I know, can be pointed to, although at Fore, in the county Westmeath, Inismurray, county Sligo, and elsewhere, the sacred emblem may be seen sculptured over the opening on the exterior of the wall. A cross of the St. Andrew type occurs on the nether side of the lintel of Our Lady’s Church, Glendalough, a structure, which there is reason to believe was erected by St. Kevin, himself, and in which, according to tradition, he was buried. In  Comte Melchior de Vogue’s exquisitely illustrated work on the “Architecture of Central Syria ” (a copy of which may be seen in our National Library) will be found engravings of a considerable number of crosses which occur carved over the doorways or on the friezes of churches and monastic buildings of that country. These crosses are wonderfully like those which we find similarly placed upon portions of several of our earlier, if not earliest, Irish churches.

    A comparatively modern addition on the northern side of the nave, which appears to have been erected as a kind of aisle, is connected with the ancient church by several openings broken through the north side wall. It will be well to compare its architectural features with those of the original structure. (See fig. 3, p. 409.)

    So much for Killiney Church; but before leaving, visitors should search for the rude and very ancient stone font (see fig. 5, p. 409), which probably still remains, though I could not find it when examing the ruins on a recent occasion.

    Not many years ago, the time-stained teampull or cill under notice was approached from the main road by a rude “boreen” on the left-hand side of which stood a hoary thorn tree, which must have been several centuries old ; beside it was a carn, station, or altar, like those one sometimes meets with in the south or west. Both were considered by ancient people of the neighbourhood as very sacred. Alas! they have totally disappeared before the march of “improvements” as has also the original “Mur” or well-marked earthen rath by which the venerable cemetery was environed. Instead of this we find a hideous stone wall, built in the style usually adopted by the taste and feeling of Poor Law Guardians, who, all over the country, are destroying every trace of the picturesque which remained with our ancient parish churches.

    NOTE ADDED IN THE PRESS.

    Happily the font of Killiney Church has been found, and may be seen within the nave of that venerable cill.

    JRSAI VOL. VI. FIFTH SERIES (VOL. XXVI. CONSECUTIVE SERIES), 1896, 409-411; 418.