The Irish standard., 1913-08-02
IRISH MISSIONARIES IN EUROPE
REV. GARRETT PIERSE, PROFESSOR
OF DOGMATIC THEOLOGY IN
ST. PAUL SEMINARY,
ST. PAUL, MINI.

| Her voice is the music of SPRING.
Tho two most prominent evsuts In
Colum ba's life were the battls oe Outl-
dreimhne (Cooldrevney). and the oon-
vention of Drumceat. Tho battle oris,.
mated In a dispute between st. 0us.
, umba ana st. Finnian. A. books wss>
rare and valuable at this time. Col
umba made a furtive copy OF Flnnian's
gospel. F1nnian claimed the copy and
when Columbia refused, the matter
was referred to the High King Of Ire
land. who decided In favor Of F1nnian
on the ground that to every COW be-
longed its own calf. and 20 the copy
belonged to the original and its owner.
Coiumba's Hanlshmsnt.
[, A scion of the royal race of Mall o6
the Nine Hostages, COLUMBIA could not
repress his high spirit angered by this
adverse decision. and he summoned
all his clansmen to fight against the
High King. The battle Of Guild
reimhne was fought. and three thou
sand were slain. In penance for this
thoughtless act COLUMBIA was ordered
by his confessor to leave Ireland for
ever for Scotland. Here he did mis-
sionary work in the Irish colonies of
Dalriada, and amongst the pagan
Picts: he tried to save a. many souls
as he caused bodies to be slain in the
previous battle; and he founded In
Vulnerable Columbian n,onasteries.
The other great public event Of HIS
life-the Convention of Drumceat-
took place to decide the question of
the position Of the Irish bards. These
had made themselves odious owing to
their troublesome exactions, and tho
venomous satire Of their pens. The
convention Was solemn, and repre-
! sentative of all classes. as was the
wont In ancient Ireland. A multitude
of bishops and of priests was pres
ent; the fair forms Of the queen and
her female attendants gracsd tho CO.
casion. Royalty opened tho procssd-
ings; King Hugh led the attack on
I the odious bards.
The whole tide Of feeling was turn
ing against the poets, and there was
need Of a man of great personality
and influence to effect q change in the
i general opinion. That man was at
hand; COLUMBIA entered the lists. "A
bard himself, he championed the
cause of the bards with . rare ora
tory. III the bards wers extesmin.
ated," he argued, who would celo.
brate the great deeds of mighty kings!
J Who would sing a lonely dirge for
u the noble dead7" The views Of Col
umba prevailed; and the human tide
was stemmed, and turned in favor Of
the bards. In the end OF the seventh
century COLUMBIA found q Boswell in
st. Adamnan, whose biography ID,
perhaps. tho complstest work of the
kind in medieval times.
4 A Fearless Advocate.
The great namesake Of the hast
saint-Columbanus- to the
end Of the sixth and the beginning Of
the seventh century. In the case Of
;! either Of these Irish saints there 10
nothing very appropriate about their
assumed name. COLUMBIA. or dove, ex-
cept on the principle of "Lucus a non
lucendo." 1t is like calling the bold
y F1ildebrand a gentle dove. Colum-
banus, after being educated at the
famous school of Bangor, left Ireland
and his kinsfolk with considerable
dif'iculty-his mother stopping him on
the threshold in his wander impulse
for Christ
i Placing the cause of Christ above
the dearest ties of flesh and blood hs
;; journeyed to Metz and Luxeuil, in
the valley Of the Vosges mountains
Here he spoke the Christian truth aa
the cost Of bitter persecution. When
the French clergy found fault with thu
Irish calculation Of Easter, and Will
the irish tonsure, which was In from,
! Of the head, and which they pictur.
esquely called the tonsure of Simon
Magus. Columbanus retorted by ta1l.