Finnian from Clonard

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Statue of St. Finnian in Clonard

Finnian von Clonard ( Cluain Eraird ), born as Finnio moccu Telduib (* 470 in Myshall , today County Carlow , Province of Leinster , Ireland; † December 12, 549 ), saint , was an Irish missionary, founder of Clonard Monastery and local bishop . He is referred to as the Teacher of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland .

Other names

Finnian von Clonard is or was also called Finian , Fionán , Findén and Fionnán in Ireland ; Latinized Findianus , Finnianus , Finninus , Finanus , Vennianus , Vinniaus , Uinnianus and Vinnianus ; English also Finian , Vinnian and Winnian .

Early life

Finnian was born in Myshall to Rudraigh, who came from an Irish noble family. His mother Telach came from the province of Leinster. As a young man he came under the influence of the Foirtchernn (Foirtgirn) of Trim , on whose advice he went to Wales to be instructed in the teachings of Saint Patrick by the teachers of Celtic Christianity there. He studied with St. Gildas and St. Cadoc in Llancarfan , Glamorgan .

After his long stay in Wales - according to the Codex Salmanticensis , a chronicle of Irish saints, this should have granted 30 years - he returned to Ireland and went preaching and teaching from place to place. Finnian founded monasteries and schools: his first foundation was in Aghowle, now County Wicklow . Noteworthy is the founding of the monastery on the island of Skellig Michael (Irish Sceilg Mhichíl , also known as Great Skellig ) off the Irish coast , now a UNESCO World Heritage Site after a later expansion of the monastery .

Founding of the Clonard Monastery

Monastery complex in Clonard, founding of Finnians, partially renewed
Celtic Cross, Ireland

Around 520 he went to Cluain Eraird (Clonard, now County Meath ) on the River Boyne . Finnian first built a small church and accommodation out of wood and clay, which was later replaced by a stone building. He was devoted to prayer and study; his ascetic way of life, his piety and his knowledge created a reputation far beyond the region. Lay people and clergy, including bishops, now moved to Finnian in Clonard. According to records, up to three thousand students were taught by Finnian at the same time. Finnian's unsurpassed interpretation of Scripture is credited with the extraordinary popularity of his lectures. He was ordained a bishop in Clonard.

Finnian of Clonard, along with Saint Enda of Aran, is considered to be one of the fathers of Irish monasticism in the Celtic period. Finnian's disciples included the Twelve Apostles of Ireland, including Saint Columban of Iona . The Clonard Monastery gained its importance for the Irish Scottish Church through the large number of students who later founded new monasteries in other places.

Finnian died as a result of a plague . His grave is in his church in Clonard. The Finnian's relics were kept in Clonard until the shrine was destroyed in 887.

Window of the Church of St. Finnian in Clonard
Clonard RC Church St Finian 06 Detail 2007 08 26.jpg
Saint Finnian and his disciples
Clonard RC Church St Finian 07 Detail 2007 08 26.jpg
Finnian blesses the Twelve Apostles of Ireland


Aftermath

For centuries after Finnian's death, Clonard retained its importance as a place of study for scribes. The importance of the monastery only began to decline with raids by the Vikings in the tenth and eleventh centuries. Internal Irish conflicts in the twelfth century, at the time of the petty king Dermod von Leinster , led to the further decline of the monastery. With the relocation of the diocese of Meath by the Norman Bishop Rochfort from Clonard to Trim in 1206, the centuries-old importance of the Clonard monastery disappeared.

Remembrance day

The feast day of St. Finnian of Clonard appears for the first time in a Spanish calendar of saints from the 9th century.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ St. Finnian. In: Monastic Ireland.com. Retrieved February 22, 2013 .
  2. ↑ Finianus, p. (6) . In: Johann E. Stadler , Franz Joseph Heim, Johann N. Ginal (Eds.): Complete Lexicon of Saints ... , Volume 2 (E – H), B. Schmid'sche Verlagbuchhandlung (A. Manz), Augsburg 1861, p.  212 .
  3. ↑ Manuscript from the Middle Ages, Royal Library Brussels
  4. ^ A b David Hugh Farmer: The Oxford dictionary of Saints . 4th edition. Oxford Univ. Press, Oxford 1997, ISBN 0-19-280058-2 , pp. 184-185 (English).
  5. ^ Wallace, Martin: A Little Book of Celtic Saints . Appletree Press, Belfast 1995. ISBN 0-86281-456-1 , p. 19 (English)

literature

Web links

Commons : Saint Finnian of Clonard  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files
personal data
SURNAME Finnian from Clonard
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Vennianus; Vinniaus; Finnio moccu Telduib; Finian; Fionan; Find; Fionnán; Findianus; Finnianus; Finninus; Finanus; Uinnianus; Vinnianus; Vinnian; Winnian
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Irish saint
DATE OF BIRTH 470
PLACE OF BIRTH Myshall , County Carlow
DATE OF DEATH 549