Wednesday 12 June 2013

The Memory of Saint Colum Cille in Ireland and Scotland


Ireland bore him, Scotland holds his remains. Each country has precious memories of his work and witness. The Irish remember the young firebrand who set his country aflame with his zeal and covered half the land with monasteries and churches. They know his faults and they forgive them. He was a human saint. If his fiery temper led him to do wrong, he made magnificent amends. The Scots have gentler memories of a gentler man, the father of Christianity in their country. Others had come before him, preached their message and built their churches. Their message had been forgotten and their churches had fallen into ruin. But Colum Cille built on a firmer foundation, the rock-like solidity of his faith, and what he built remains to this day.

Desmond Forristal, Colum Cille - The Fox and the Dove (Dublin, 1997, 76-77.)

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