St Columba (521-597) was born into a royal Irish family in Donegal, Ireland. He entered life at a monastery in Ireland as a boy. He founded several important monasteries in Ireland. Legend has it that he was sent away from Ireland due to a family feud. Some even describe this feud as a war between the clans. Forced to leave, Columba and twelve other monks were sent to sea in an open boat without a destination in mind. They landed on the stark barren island of Iona, off the western coast of Scotland. The monastery he found in Iona became very famous throughout all of Europe. It still exists today as a site of pilgrimage. Columba is considered one of the founders of Catholicism in Scotland. Columba became a great religious leader in Ireland and Scotland. Some of the poems and hymns that he wrote still exist today. Columba is considered one of the Fathers of Catholicism in Scotland and northern England and is revered as such today. Just as we have the Knights of Columbus here in the United States, Scotland has the Knights of St Columba, which were founded in Glasgow, Scotland in 1919.
Below is a stanza of a poem extolling God’s creation. Below is also a link to a video about the life of St Columba. Have a blessed week everyone.
Father Lincoln
Formed he the stars, put in their place
as lamps to light the firmament;
the angels joined in eulogy,
for his wondrous creation of
that boundless mass, praising the Lord,
the craftsman of the heavens above,
in proclamation that wins praise,
with utterance meet that knows no change,
and sang in noble harmony,
discharging thanks unto the Lord,
doing this out of love and will,
not from the gift that nature prompts.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sl8q8fHriMw
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