The Church of St Ailbe, Emly, Co. Tipperary, on the
site of an earlier cathedral and monastery
Saint Ailbe
Évêque irlandais (6ème s.)
ou saint Elvis
moine puis élu évêque, parce qu’il était un grand prédicateur qui par sa cordialité gagnait les âmes des irlandais.
autre source (en anglais): archidiocèse de Cashel et Emly (Irlande)
À Emly en Irlande, vers 528, saint Ailbe, évêque et abbé, qui parcourut le pays pour prêcher l’Évangile.
Martyrologe romain
SOURCE : http://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/saint/1840/Saint-Ailbe.html
Saint Ailbhe, évêque d'Emly
(Albeus, Elvis, Ailbe)
5ième ou 6ième siècle (mort 526-540?). Bien qu'ils soient nombreux ceux qui pensent erronément que saint Patrick fut le premier à apporter le Christianisme en Irlande, saint Ailbhe fut convertit par des missionnaires Brittons. Certaines traditions rapportent qu'il aurait été Baptisé par un prêtre, alors qu'il était garçonnet, dans le nord de l'Irlande; une autre dit que c'était dans une implantation Brittonique en Irlande. Dans les 2 cas, il avait déjà fait un pélerinage à Rome avait que Patrick n'arrive - certains affirment qu'il y aurait été fait évêque.
A son retour en Irlande, il devint disciple de Patrick, et selon certains, fut consacré comme premier archévêque de Munster par lui. Ailbhe fixa son siège à Emly (Imlech, Comté Tipperary, bien que la cathédrale se trouve à présent à Cashel), siège qui est officiellement enregistré par le Vatican comme ayant été fondé au 4ième siècle, en faisant le plus ancien siège épiscopal continuel d'Irlande.
Il était connu comme un puissant enseignant et un modèle de sainteté, qui gagna nombre d'âmes à la Foi. Bien qu'il aie vécu dans le monde afin de prendre soin des âmes de son troupeau, il prit aussi soin de la sienne. Il fit de fréquentes retraites et récollections. Saint Ailbhe aimait particulièrement prier en bord de mer. Le roi Aengus de Munster lui donna l'île d'Aran (Comté Galway) sur laquelle il ira fonder un grand monastère et établira saint Enda comme abbé. Il rédigea aussi une Règle pour la communauté, dont on possède encore le texte.
Devenu âgé, il voulut quitter son siège et se retirer dans la solitude de Thule (Shetland? Islande? Groenland?) pour préparer son décès, alors le roi fit poster des gardes aux portes pour l'empêcher de partir. Dès lors, saint Ailbhe mourrut au milieu de ses travaux épiscopaux et devint le principal patron du Munster.
Il existe nombre de récits sur saint Ailbhe : qu'il aurait Baptisé saint Dewi (David) du Pays de Galles; qu'un Ange lui aurait indiqué le "lieu de sa résurrection", Emly; qu'il était en constant dialogue avec les Anges. Même son nom est relié à une légende : Ailbhe, qui signifierait "rocher vivant" en Gaëlique, aurait été trouvé abandonné sous un rocher et allaité par une louve, et ainsi appelé par sa famille adoptive. L'histoire continue en racontant que par la suite, alors qu'il chassait avec certains compagnons, une vieille louve serait venue se réfugier auprès de lui (Bénédictins, Delaney, Encyclopaedia, Farmer, Husenbeth, Montague).
Une autre Vie :
< http://www.alvyray.com/Ailbhe/AilbheSaint.htm >
Saint Ailbhe appartient à une période incertaine et pleine de controverses sur l'Histoire d'Irlande. Il y a des preuves qu'il est un des premiers missionnaires Chrétiens en Irlande - avant saint Patrick ! - mais les historiens "Patriciens" les rejettent - peut-être avec une arrière-pensée politique? Qui sait! Cependant, il est reconnu comme le saint patron de l'actuel archidiocèse de Cashel et Emly, qui se trouve dans dans la partie sud du centre de l'Irlande, et comprend les Comtés de Tipperary et Limerick. Il est probablement le fondateur de la première et ancienne cathédrale d'Emly. On trouvera une histoire typique de lui sur le site internet de l'archidiocèse de Cashel et Emly, http://ireland.iol.ie/~pjackson/acesaint.htm , qui nous rapporte qu'Ailbhe réussit à sauver une louve (voir le nom sur la liste) qui allait être tuée et que par la suite la louve mangea à sa table.
Les informations plus sérieuses semblaient se retrouver dans la traduction de la vie de saint Declan d'Ardmore ,
http://www.ccel.org/d/declan/life/declan.html , qui indique clairement qu'Ailbhe et Ciaran (tous 2 saints) précédèrent Patrick dans la mission Irlandaise, que la Vie de saint Patrick confirme que Patrick serait venu en Irlande peu après Ailbhe et Ciaran comme supérieur de la hiérarchie catholique. Malheureusement, la Vie de saint Declan contient de toute évidence des contradictions, rendant ces faits controversés. La Vie de saint Declan, en plus, semble établir Declan comme un autre des missionnaires Chrétiens Irlandais pré-Patriciens. Les autres candidats membres à cette élite sont Ibar, Brigitte, Senan, et peut-être "Mac [ fils de ] Cairthinn" (voir Vie de saint Senan http://www.solaw.com/jg4/senan/ ). Un autre exemple de confusion flagrante est mis en évidence par les noms Celtiques de naissance de la liste ci-dessus qui dit que saint Ailbhe aurait vécu au 6ième siècle. Cela corroborerait l'information du site internet de l'archidiocèse de Cashel et Emly qui indique 528 comme l'année de sa mort. Le site internet fait cependant remarquer que cela contredit alors l'affirmation qu'il aurait précédé Patrick en Irlande, puisque ce dernier y était au 5ième siècle. Mais la Vie de saint Declan continue en disant qu'Ailbhe, Declan, Ibar et Patrick s'étaient rencontrés et en Irlande, et à Rome, auparavant.
La meilleure information que j'aie trouvé vient du livre "The Flowering of Ireland: Saints, Scholars & Kings" par Katharine Scherman, Little Brown & Co, 1981 (reéditée en 1999 pour le St Patrick's Day). Extraits :
p 83: "Mais lui [ Patrick] avait des prédécesseurs. A travers la nimbe de mythe qui entoure l'histoire de l'ancienne Eglise Irlandaise, émergent 4 saintes figures qui y étaient avant que Patrick ne vienne.. On ne sait plus grand chose d'eux, sinon leurs noms - saint Ciaran de Saighir et Ossory, saint Ailbhe d'Emly, saint Ibar de Beg Erin et saint Declan d'Ardmore - et quelques vivantes légendes sur leurs activités miraculeuses."
pp 84-85: "La figure de saint Ailbhe est aussi nébuleuse que celle de saint Ciaran. Sa vie aurait duré 167 ans, de 360 à 527. Il est probablement "composite" : les saints des anciens temps, dont le récit de la vie dépendait de la tradition orale de convertis récents qui étaient encore tous empreimpts de la magie et du mysticisme de leur jeunesse pré-Chrétienne, avaient tendance à se voir mélangés. Leurs actes, enregistrés plus tard par écrit par des moines eux-mêmes enveloppés dans un climat de confiance totale, furent enveloppés d'une aura de brouillard, et nombre de saints se retrouvèrent mélangés en un seul monument hyperbolique à la sainteté.
"Ailbhe naquit d'une jeune servante dans la maison de Cronan, seigneur d'Eliach au Comté de Tipperary. Cronan, pour des raisons non-révèlées, désapprouva cette naissance et ordonna qu'il soit exposé "aux chiens et bêtes sauvages, afin qu'il soit dévoré" (1) Le bébé fut retrouvé par une louve, qui en prit soin jusqu'à ce qu'un passant inconnu, probablement un Chrétien de Grande-Bretagne, remarquant sa beauté et sa grâce Chrétienne potentielle, le prit avec lui pour l'élever dans la foi. Après des études et une consécration à Rome, Ailbe fut dirigé par le pape, en même temps que "50 saints hommes d'Irlande", probablement des accompagnateurs récemment convertis, pour aller faire du prosélitisme parmi les païens d'un endroit inconnu en Europe. Alors, comme "la sagace abeille chargée de miel", il embarqua pour l'Irlande avec ses compagnons dans une barcasse inapropriée à la navigation maritime. En bénissant la mer, il les amena tous avec serénité dans un port au nord de l'Irlande, où il convertit le roi, Fintan, et ramena à la vie les 3 fils de Fintan, morts à la bataille.
Note de l'auteur [1]: "Les citations concernant la Vie de Saint Ailbhe à travers ce chapitre sortent du livre du Révérend John O'Hanlon, "Lives of the Irish Saints" [que je n'ai pas réussi à retrouver : 10 volumes, Dublin: J. Duffy & Sons, 1875].
"Saint Ailbe traversa l'Irlande, comme le fera saint Patrick après lui, convertissant en chemin, et s'installant pour finir à Emly, Comté de Tipperary, près du lieu de sa naisasnce. Là il fonda une église et une école, et promulgua la "Loi d'Ailbe", qu'on suppose être la première codification ecclésiastique en Irlande. Durant sa longue vie, il fut l'ami de nombre de saints hommes, dont bien entendu saint Patrick, qui l'aurait nommé archévêque de Munster. Quand il fut très âgé, il voulut se retirer à Tyle (Thule), l'île appelée à présent Islande, pour fuir les honneurs mondains et méditer parmi les saints ermites déjà établis sur cette blanche terre. Mais le roi Aengus de Munster (convertit par saint Patrick) refusa sa permission et plaça des gardes dans les ports de mer afin qu'il ne puisse pas échapper à ses responsabilités et les abandonnant à la multitude de ceux qui l'adulaient. Ailbe est appelé le "second saint Patrick", et il est un de ceux dont les actions et la personne se mèlent avec l'ombre du saint patron de l'Irlande."
p 86: "A Rome il [Saint Declan] rencontra Ailbé, déjà célèbre, et ils y devinrent de grands amis, ce qui devait durer jusqu'à la fin de leurs jours".
p 94: "Apocryphes comme la plupart des histoires qui tournent autour de la nébuleuse figure du patron de l'Irlande, c'est un fait historique que la structure d'une organisation Chrétienne vaguement modelée sur celle de Rome commença à prendre forme sous l'égide d'une forte personalité, personne seule ou "composite". Cela commença, probablement, lorsque Patrick partit défier la place-forte païenne de Cashel. (C'était le siège du roi Aengus, le Grand-roi de Munster, qui était une des 5 provinces d'Irlande, et à l'époque, avec Tara, la plus puissante). Cashel était la rivale traditionnelle de Tara.. et Patrick savait que la conversion de son roi était aussi importante pour sa mission qu'arriver à convaincre le roi Laoghaire de Tara. L'éloquent jeune homme réussi là où ses anciens, les 4 premiers saints d'Irlande, avaient échoué. Aengus devint son meilleur soutien, et Cashel fut le lieu des premières assemblées ecclésiastiques d'Irlande, quand Patrick y fit venir à lui Declan, Ibor, Ailbe et Ciaran pour l'arrangement des affaires ecclésiales.
Tropaire de saint Ailbe ton 4
Quand l'Illuminateur de l'Irlande revint de sa terre
natale il te trouva toi, O saint Ailbe, prêchant la Foi à Emly,/
Où à la demande d'un Ange tu avais bâtit une église./
O avisé berger des âmes et glorieux ascète,/
O ami des animaux et collaborateur dans la mission
avec le célèbre Patrick,/
Prie le Christ notre Dieu afin que nous devenions nous
aussi des bastions de l'Orthodoxie/
Et un brillant exemple pour nos compatriotes, les
tirant hors de l'ignorance et de l'erreur/
et les amenant à la vraie Foi afin que toutes les âmes soient sauvées.
On trouvera la Règle de saint Ailbe dans le livre "The Celtic Monk: Rules & Writings of Early Irish Monks" Uinseann O'Maidin OCR, pub. Cistercian Studies Series Number 162, 1996. ISBN: 0879076623 (pb) and 0879075627 (hb).
THE CELTIC MONK (en anglais) [ note del'éditeur : Règles et Ecrits des Anciens Moines Irlandais, traduits et annotés par Uinseann Ó Maidin, OCR. 1996 216 pp
http://www.spencerabbey.org/cistpub/catalogue/in_detail/books/cs_series/celtic_cs162.html
paroisse catholique-romaine actuelle à Emly : http://www.tipp.ie/townsandvillages/tipperary/emly.htm
anciennement : http://www.tipp.ie/emly.htm
St Ailbe's Cross, Emly, Co. Tipperary, remnant of an
early cathedral and monastic site
Also known as
Ailbhe
Albert
Albeo
Albeus
Elvis
The Patrick of Munster
Profile
Disciple of Saint Patrick.
Effective evangelist throughout Ireland with
the support of King Aengus
of Munster.
Noted for his charity and his excellent preaching.
Little else is known for sure, but many stories and much speculation have
attached to Ailbhe. He may have been the first bishop of Emly, Ireland.
He may have founded a monastery at
Killeaney, Inishmore, Ireland.
One old story stays that he was born to parents so poor that
they were unable to feed him, and abandoned him in the deep woods; a she-wolf,
running from hunters,
settled beside the baby and
suckled him as one of her cubs; the hunters found
them, saved the baby and
spared the wolf.
Born
c.541 of
natural causes
Cashel
and Emly, Ireland, archdiocese of
bishop holding
the cathedral of Cashel, Ireland
Additional Information
Book of
Saints, by the Monks of
Ramsgate
Book
of Saints and Friendly Beasts, by Abbie Farwell Brown
Lives
of the Saints, by Father Alban Butler
Saints
of the Day, by Katherine Rabenstein
books
Battersby’s Registry for the Whole World
Dictionary of Saints, by John Delaney
Our Sunday Visitor’s Encyclopedia of Saints
other sites in english
sitios en español
Martirologio Romano, 2001 edición
fonti in italiano
websites in nederlandse
nettsteder i norsk
MLA Citation
“Saint Ailbe of Emly“. CatholicSaints.Info. 9
November 2020. Web. 1 March 2021.
<http://catholicsaints.info/saint-ailbe/>
Article
AILBHE (ALBEUS) (Saint) Bishop (September 12) (5th
century) An Irish Saint, concerning whose life and Apostolic labours there are
few reliable particulars extant. He must have been contemporary with Saint
Patrick in the fifth century, and have worked chiefly in the South of Ireland,
where he is venerated as Patron Saint of Munster and as first Bishop of the See
of Emly, later united to Cashel.
MLA Citation
Monks of Ramsgate. “Ailbhe”. Book
of Saints, 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 14 May 2012.
Web. 1 March 2021. <http://catholicsaints.info/book-of-saints-ailbhe/>
St. Ailbe
Bishop of Emly in Munster (Ireland); d. about 527, or 541. It is very difficult to sift out the germs of truth from among the mass of legends which have gathered round the life of this Irish saint. Beyond the fact, which is itself disputed, that he was a disciple of St. Patrick and was probably ordained priest by him, we know really nothing of the history of St. Ailbe. Legend says that in his infancy he was left in the forest to be devoured by the wolves, but that a she-wolf took compassion upon him and suckled him. Long afterwards, when Ailbe was bishop, an old she-wolf, pursued by a hunting party, fled to the Bishop and laid her head upon his breast. Ailbe protected his old foster-mother, and every day thereafter she and her little ones came to take their food in his hall. The Acts of St. Ailbe are quite untrustworthy; they represent Ailbe as preaching in Ireland before St. Patrick, but this is directly contradicted by St. Patrick's biographer, Tirechan. Probably the most authentic information we possess about Ailbe is that contained in Cuimmon's eulogium: Ailbe loved hospitality. The devotion was not untruthful. Never entered a body of clay one that was better as to food and raiment. His feast, which is 12 September, is kept throughout Ireland as a greater double.
Sources
The Acts of St. Ailbe may be found in the Codex Salmanticensis, edited in 1588 by the Bollandists under the title of Acta Sanctorum Hiberniae, at the charges of the Marquis of Bute (cf. SUYSKEN, in Acta SS., Sept., IV, 26-33); HEALY, Irish Schools and Scholars; LANIGAN, Eccl. Hist. of Ireland.
Thurston,, Herbert. "St. Ailbe." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 12 Sept. 2016 <http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01234b.htm>.
Ecclesiastical approbation. Nihil Obstat. March
1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor. Imprimatur. +John Cardinal
Farley, Archbishop of New York.
Copyright © 2020 by Kevin Knight. Dedicated to the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
SOURCE : http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01234b.htm
Sep 12 –
St Ailbe of Emly (d. 528) the Patrick of Munster
The Book of Saints and Friendly
Beasts – The Wolf-Mother of Saint Ailbe
This is the story
of a poor little Irish baby whose cruel father and mother did not care anything
about him. But because they could not sell him nor give him away
they tried to lose him. They wrapped him in a piece of cloth and took him up on
the mountain side, and there they left him lying all alone on a bush of
heather.
Now an old mother wolf was out taking her evening walk
on the mountain after tending her babies in the den all day. And just as she
was passing the heather bush she heard a faint, funny little cry. She pricked
up her pointed ears and said, “What’s that!” And lo and behold, when she came
to sniff out the mystery with her keen nose, it led her straight to the spot
where the little pink baby lay, crying with cold and hunger.
The heart of the kind mother wolf was touched, for she
thought of her own little ones at home, and how sad it would be to see them so
helpless and lonely and forgotten. So she picked the baby up in her mouth
carefully and ran home with him to her den in the rocks at the foot of the
mountain. Here the little one, whose name was Ailbe, lived with the baby
wolves, sharing their breakfast and dinner and supper, playing and quarreling
and growing up with them. The wolf-mother took good care of him and saw that he
had the best of everything, for she loved him dearly indeed. And Ailbe grew
stronger and stronger, taller and taller, handsomer and handsomer every day,
living his happy life in the wild woods of green Ireland.
Now one day, a year or two after this, a hunter came
riding over the mountain on his way home from the chase, and he happened to
pass near the cave where Ailbe and the wolves lived. As he was riding along
under the trees he saw a little white creature run across the path in front of him.
At first he thought it was a rabbit; but it was too big for a rabbit, and
besides it did not hop. The hunter jumped down from his horse and ran after the
funny animal to find out what it was. His long legs soon overtook it in a clump
of bushes where it was hiding, and imagine the hunter’s surprise when he found
that it had neither fur nor horns nor four feet nor a tail, but that it was a
beautiful child who could not stand upright, and whose little bare body ran on
all-fours like a baby wolf! It was little Ailbe, the wolf-mother’s pet, who had
grown so fast that he was almost able to take care of himself. But he was not
quite able, the hunter thought; and he said to himself that he would carry the
poor little thing home to his kind wife, that she might take care of him. So he
caught Ailbe up in his arms, kicking and squealing and biting like the wild
little animal he was, and wrapped him in a corner of his great cloak. Then he
jumped on his horse with a chirrup and galloped away out of the woods towards his
village.
But Ailbe did not want to leave his forest home, the
wolf-den, and his little wolf brothers. Especially he did not want to leave his
dear foster mother. So he screamed and struggled to get away from the big
hunter, and he called to the wolves in their own language to come and help him.
Then out of the forest came bounding the great mother wolf with her four
children, now grown to be nearly as big as herself. She chased after the
fleeting horse and snapped at the loose end of the huntsman’s cloak, howling
with grief and anger. But she could not catch the thief, nor get back her
adopted son, the little smooth-skinned foundling. So after following them for
miles, the five wolves gradually dropped further and further behind. And at
last, as he stretched out his little arms to them over the hunter’s velvet
shoulder, Ailbe saw them stop in the road panting, with one last howl of
farewell. They had given up the hopeless chase. And with their tails between
their legs and their heads drooping low they slunk back to their lonely den
where they would never see their little boy playmate any more. It was a sad day
for good wolf-mother.
But the hunter carried little Ailbe home with him on
the horse’s back. And he found a new mother there to receive him. Ailbe never
knew who his first mother was, but she must have been a bad, cruel woman. His
second mother was the kind wolf. And this one, the third, was a beautiful
Princess. For the hunter who had found the child was a Prince, and he lived in
a grand castle by a lake near Tipperary, with hundreds of servants and horses
and dogs and little pages for Ailbe to play with. And here he lived and was
very happy; and here he learned all the things which in those days made a
little boy grow up into a wise and great man. He grew up so wise and great that
he was made a Bishop and had a palace of his own in the town of Emly. People
came to see him from far and near, who made him presents, and asked him
questions, and ate his dinners.
But though he had grown so great and famous Ailbe had
never forgotten his second mother, the good wolf, nor his four-footed brothers,
in their coats of gray fur. And sometimes when his visitors were stupid and
stayed a long time, or when they asked too many questions, or when they made
him presents which he did not like, Ailbe longed to be back in the forest with
the good beasts. For they had much more sense, though they had never kissed the
Blarney Stone, which makes one talk good Irish.
A great many years afterwards there was one day a huge
hunt in Emly. All the lords for miles around were out chasing the wild beasts,
and among them was the Prince, Ailbe’s foster-father. But the Bishop himself
was not with them. He did not see any sport in killing poor creatures. It was
almost night, and the people of Emly were out watching for the hunters to
return. The Bishop was coming down the village street on his way from church,
when the sound of horns came over the hills close by, and he knew the chase was
nearing home.
Louder and louder came the “tantaratara!” of the
horns, and then he could hear the gallopy thud of the horses’ hoofs and the
yelp of the hounds. But suddenly the Bishop’s heart stood still. Among all the
other noises of the chase he heard a sound which made him think – think –
think. It was the long-drawn howl of a wolf, a sad howl of fear and weariness
and pain. It spoke a language which he had almost forgotten. But hardly had he
time to think again and to remember, before down the village street came a
great gaunt figure, flying in long leaps from the foremost dogs who were
snapping at her heels. It was Ailbe’s wolf-mother.
He recognized her as soon as he saw her green eyes and
the patch of white on her right foreleg. And she recognized him, too, how I
cannot say, for he had changed greatly since she last saw him, a naked little
sunbrowned boy. But at any rate, in his fine robes of purple and linen and rich
lace, with the mitre on his head and the crozier in his hand, the wolf-mother
knew her dear son. With a cry of joy she bounded up to him and laid her head on
his breast, as if she knew he would protect her from the growling dogs and the
fierce-eyed hunters. And the good Bishop was true to her. For he drew his
beautiful velvet cloak about her tired, panting body, and laid his hand
lovingly on her head. Then in the other he held up his crook warningly to keep
back the ferocious dogs.
“I will protect thee, old mother,” he said tenderly.
“When I was little and young and feeble, thou didst nourish and cherish and
protect me; and now that thou art old and gray and weak, shall I not render the
same love and care to thee? None shall injure thee.”
Then the hunters came tearing up on their foaming
horses and stopped short to find what the matter was. Some of them were angry
and wanted even now to kill the poor wolf, just as the dogs did who were
prowling about snarling with disappointment. But Ailbe would have none of it.
He forbade them to touch the wolf. And he was so powerful and wise and holy
that they dared not disobey him, but had to be content with seeing their hunt
spoiled and their prey taken out of their clutches.
But before the hunters and their dogs rode away, Saint
Ailbe had something more to say to them. And he bade all the curious townsfolk
who had gathered about him and the wolf to listen also. He repeated the promise
which he had made to the wolf, and warned every one thenceforth not to hurt her
or her children, either in the village, or in the woods, or on the mountain.
And turning to her once more he said: –
“See, mother, you need not fear. They dare not hurt
you now you have found your son to protect you. Come every day with my brothers
to my table, and you and yours shall share my food, as once I so often shared
yours.”
And so it was. Every day after that so long as she
lived the old wolf-mother brought her four children to the Bishop’s palace and
howled at the gate for the porter to let them in. And every day he opened to
them, and the steward showed the five into the great dining hall where Ailbe
sat at the head of the table, with five places set for the rest of the family.
And there with her five dear children about her in a happy circle the kind
wolf-mother sat and ate the good things which the Bishop’s friends had sent
him. But the child she loved best was none of those in furry coats and fine
whiskers who looked like her; it was the blue-eyed Saint at the top of the
table in his robes of purple and white.
But Saint Ailbe would look about him at his mother and
his brothers and would laugh contentedly.
“What a handsome family we are!” he would say. And it
was true.
– from The Book of Saints
and Friendly Beasts, by Abbie Farwell Brown, illustrations by
Fanny Y. Cory, 1900
SOURCE : https://catholicsaints.info/the-book-of-saints-and-friendly-beasts-the-wolf-mother-of-saint-ailbe/
Sant’ Ailbe Vescovo irlandese
VI sec.
Sant’Ailbe è stato un monaco del monastero di
Sant’Elvis che fu eletto vescovo che visse nel VI secolo.
Su di lui sappiamo poco. E’ ricordato come un grande predicatore che riuscì a
conquistare le anime degli irlandesi grazie alla sua cordialità.
Nel martirologio della diocesi di Cashel ed Emly in Irlanda si ricorda Sant’Ailbe, quale vescovo e abate, che intorno al 528 viaggiò nel paese per predicare il vangelo.
La festa per Sant’Ailbe è fissata nel giorno 12 settembre.
Autore: Mauro Bonato
SOURCE : http://www.santiebeati.it/dettaglio/98527
Ailbe (ook Ailbhe of Albeus) van
Emly (ook van Munster) bij Tipperary, Ierland; abt &
bisschop; † ca 530?.
Feest 12 september.
Sint Ailbe wordt gerekend tot de van oorsprong Ierse
bisschoppen die aan Sint Patrick († 461; feest 17 maart) voorafgaan. Toch is
dat moeilijk aan te nemen gezien hun sterfdata. De Bollandisten menen te weten
dat de grote Sint David van Wales († 601; feest 1 maart) nog door Sint Ailbe is
gedoopt. Dat kan kloppen met de sterfdatum van Ailbe. Gaat hij dan toch niet in
weerwil van die hardnekkige traditie aan Sint Patrick vooraf?
Zijn levensbericht is als vele vroege Ierse heiligen omweven met legendes.
Legende van de geboorte
De etymologische verklaring van zijn naam zou wijzen op een combinatie van de
Ierse woorden ‘ail’ (= rots) en ‘beo’ (levend). Dat zou te maken hebben met de
omstandigheden rond zijn geboorte. Zijn moeder was als slavin in dienst bij een
regionale koning. Hij wilde het kind niet en gaf opdracht het te doden. In
plaats daarvan werd het onder een rots (‘ail’) te vondeling gelegd. Daar werd
het gevonden door een wolvin die het onder haar bescherming nam en temidden van
haar eigen kroost in leven (‘beo’) hield.
Hij zou in Rome tot bisschop gewijd zijn. Althans, ook
dat wordt vermeld in een legende.
Legende van de overtocht
Ailbeus wilde naar Rome gaan om daar de Heilige Schrift te leren lezen. Bij de
Nietzee aangekomen vond hij daar meerdere mannen die een boot hadden, maar er
was er niet een die hem zijn boot wilde afstaan.
De legende heeft het werkelijk over de Nietzee.
Bedoeld zal zijn de zee tussen Zuid-Ierland en West-Frankrijk.
Wel was er een die zei: ‘Neem die boot maar waar geen
bekleding omheen zit.’ Ailbeus nam dus die boot en voer de zee op, zonder dat
het vaartuig water maakte. Toen riep die man hem achterna: ‘Je gaat er toch
niet met mijn boot vandoor?’ Albeus antwoordde: ‘Je zei zelf dat het mocht.’
Daarop spreidde hij zijn monniksmantel over het water uit zodat die als boot
dienst kon doen. Hij nam er op plaats en gaf de boot nog een laatste zegen. Die
keerde geheel op eigen gelegenheid terug naar zijn ligplaats. Biddend op zijn
mantel gezeten koos Albeus vervolgens zee.
Legende van de wijding
De heilige Albeus hoopte door paus Clemens bisschop gewijd te worden.
Historisch gesproken kan die naam niet kloppen.
Clemens I was paus in de jaren 88-97 van de eerste eeuw; Clemens II
(1045-1047). De legende let dan ook niet zozeer op de historische samenhang.
Veeleer wil zij ons ervan overtuigen dat de heiligheid van Ailbe aansluit op de
oudste tradities van de Kerk.
Toen hij zijn verzoek aan de paus had gedaan, antwoordde deze: ‘Ik ga je niet wijden. Het is onmogelijk dat mijn hand tussen de hemel en u zou komen. Als ik u de handen zou opleggen, zouden ze gewoon van mijn armen afvallen. Dat komt door de enorm grote genade waarmee de Almachtige God u gezegend heeft. Daarop zei Albeus: ‘Wat moet ik dan doen?’ Clemens antwoordde: ‘U zult de bisschopswijding ontvangen uit handen van engelen. Op het feest van Petrus en Paulus [29 juni] zal de engel Victor u tot bisschop wijden. En zo gebeurde het ook. Op het apostelfeest wijdde een engel des Heren voor de ogen van paus Clemens de zalige Albeus tot bisschop.
Na de wijding zei Albeus tegen Clemens: ‘We moeten het volk van Rome vandaag
een traktatie aanbieden. Als u de ene helft van het volk trakteert, zal ik met
Gods hulp aan de andere helft een traktatie geven. Clemens antwoordde: ‘Ik ga
geen traktatie geven. Het lijkt me beter dat u ons op uw wijdingsdag allemaal
trakteert. Toen sprak Albeus een gebed uit tot God en God liet vijf
verschillende regens neerdalen over de stad: een regen van honing, een regen
van vissen, een regen van olie, een regen van schitterend wittebrood uit het
beste tarwe gebakken, en een regen van jonge wijn. Daarmee werd de bevolking
van Rome drie dagen en drie nachten lang gevoed, terwijl het God loofde en
eerde omwille van zijn heilige Albeus. Dat was dus de wijdingsmaaltijd van
Albeus, waarover nog jarenlang nagepraat werd door de bevolking van Rome.
Teruggekeerd in Ierland stichtte Ailbe de kerk en de
abdij van Emly, zo’n twintig kilometer ten westen van de stad Cashel. Hij
schreef er ook een eigen kloosterregel voor.
De bijbehorende kloosterschool kwam vooral in 6e eeuw
tot grote bloei. Dat bleef zo drie eeuwen lang totdat ze werd geplunderd
tijdens de invallen van de Noormannen.
Zelf trok hij rond om overal in Zuid-Ierland het
evangelie te verkondigen. Koning Angus van Munster schonk hem Inishmore, dat
behoort tot de Aran-Islands, zodat zijn collega abt Enda († 530; feest 21
maart) daar een nieuwe kloostervestiging kon beginnen. Heeft daar de legende
betrekking op van de hemelse geuren?
Legende van de geuren
Eens ging de heilige Albeus naar Duru Arann in het land Ossirgi en bleef daar
drie dagen en drie nachten uitrusten zonder iemand te willen tegenkomen. Maar
op de vierde dag ging koning Scaulan de Grote er op uit om hem te ontmoeten. Op
datzelfde moment kwam er plotseling zo’n heerlijke, zoete geur uit de mond van
de heilige dat de koning er dronken van werd. Hij werd door slaap overmand en
bleef drie dagen en drie nachten aan één stuk door slapen. Toen bleek dat
diezelfde geur ook uit de mond van de koning kwam en zich verspreidde over alle
leden van zijn gevolg. Op hun beurt werden zij er dronken van en sliepen drie
dagen en drie nachten aan één stuk door. Toen koning Scaulan opstond uit zijn
slaap, schonk hij die plek voor altijd aan de heilige Albeus.
Tot slot is er een legende die teruggrijpt op de
legende van zijn geboorte.
Legende van de opgejaagde wolf
Op een dag besloot de Clan Arad alle schadelijkje wolven uit zijn gebied te verjagen. Ze organiseerden dus een massale jachtpartij. De wolven vluchtten alle kanten op. Eén wolvin die door de jagers op de hielen werd gezeten, vluchtte trillend over haar hele lijf naar Albeus. Die nam haar in bescherming met de woorden:
‘Wees maar niet bang, je hebt groot gelijk dat je naar mij toe komt en hier bescherming zoekt tegen je belagers. Want jullie waren het die mij als kind liefdevol in bescherming hebben genomen, toen ik door de mensen verstoten was. Ga dus terug naar het gebied waar je vandaan komt, en breng niemand schade toe. Leer dat ook aan je jongen. Op het uur van de maaltijd mag je elke dag terugkomen om het brood hier met de broeders te delen.’En inderdaad, elke dag kwam die wolvin met haar vier jongen naar het klooster en nam met de broeders deel aan de maaltijd.
[Peg COGHLAN ‘Irish Saints’ Dublin, Mercier Press, 1999 ISBN 1-85635-253-6; D'A.1985p:3; Fre.1964p:170; Frm.1996; Ggd.1911p:87; Grant.Dawn:178(schrijn); Brian LACEY ‘O’Brien Pocket History of Irish Saints’ Dublin, O’Brien Press, 2003 ISBN 0-86278-746-7; Wfe.z.j.; Dries van den Akker s.j./2007.09.06]
© A. van den Akker s.j.
SOURCE : http://www.heiligen-3s.nl/heiligen/09/12/09-12-0530-ailbe.php
Den hellige Ailbe av Emly (d. ~526)
Minnedag: 12.
september
Skytshelgen for
Munster; for erkebispedømmet Cashel and Emly; for ulver; en av Quattuor
sanctissimi episcopi
Den hellige Ailbe (Ailbhe; lat: Albeus, Albaeus,
Ailbeus), også kjent som Elvis (wal: Eilfyw, Eilfw), var en irsk biskop tidlig
på 500-tallet. Han skal ha vært medlem av Dál Cairpri Arad, en relativt liten
folkegruppe i Munster (Momonia), nå den sørlige provinsen i Irland. Hans far
var Olchais (Olc Náis, Olga) og hans mor var Sant, som også skal ha født
Colmán, en sønn av Aonghas sønn av Nad Fraoich, konge av Munster. Lite er kjent
om hans liv, men vi har en legende med elementer lånt fra sagnet om Romulus og
Remus.
Legenden forteller at Ailbes far var en høvding ved
navn Olchais. Han elsket en tjenestejente som arbeidet for høvdingen Cronan for
klanen Eliach (nå Eliogarty) i grevskapet Tipperary. Da jenta ble gravid, rømte
Olchais i frykt for at han skulle bli straffet. Så da barnet ble født og det
ikke var noen far til å forsørge ham, beordret Cronan at gutten skulle
etterlates bak en klippe for å overlates til hunder og ville dyr. Men barnet
ble oppdaget der av en ulvetispe, som diet ham og passet på ham til han ble
funnet av en mann ved navn Lochan, muligens en kristen fra Britannia. Han kalte
gutten Ailbe etter klippen («ail») der han ble funnet. Ailbe sies å bety
«levende klippe» på gælisk.
Legenden forteller videre at da Ailbe senere i liver
var på jakt sammen med noen ledsagere, løp en gammel ulvetispe til ham for
beskyttelse. Den la hodet i fanget hans og biskopen nektet mennene sine å drepe
den: «Å, min venn. Da jeg var hjelpeløs og uten venner, beskyttet du meg, og nå
vil jeg gjøre det samme for deg, gamle mor!» Deretter fikk ulvinnen tilbringe
resten av sine dager i hans hall (Rev John O’Hanlon, Lives of the Irish
Saints, 10 volumes, Dublin, 1875).
En annen versjon forteller at han ble forlatt av sine
foreldre i skogen, hvor han ble oppdaget av noen briter som tok ham med seg da
de vendte tilbake til Wales. Ifølge de walisiske genealogiene var Ailbe eller
Elfyw sønn av Dirdan, «en adelsmann fra Italia», trolig fra Letavia i Armorica,
som ofte blandes sammen med Latium. Hans mor var Danhadlwen (Danadlwen,
Banhadlen), en etterkommer av den hellige Vortimer, datter av Cynyr av
Caergawch og søster av St Non. Dette ville bety at han tilhørte samme
generasjon som David og var fetter til de hellige David, Cybi og Sadyrnin.
Biografien om den hellige Declan av Ardmore sier
at de hellige Ailbe og Kieran av Saighir misjonerte
i Irland før Patricks ankomst. Men Declans biografi inneholder åpenbare
motsigelser, så dette er omdiskutert. Biografien om Declan synes også å
etablere ham selv som en annen av misjonærene før Patrick. De fire «biskopene»
fra Munster som skal ha virket i Irland før Patrick organiserte den irske
kristenheten, fikk biografier skrevet som hevdet at de grunnla klostre og
forkynte evangeliet i Munster før deres yngre samtidige Patrick (ca 389-461).
Disse fire pre-patrisiske helgener av Munster har fra 1600-tallet vært
kjent som Quattuor sanctissimi episcopi («De fire helligste
biskoper»). I tillegg til Ailbe, Declan og Kieran var det snakk om den
hellige Ibar
av Begerin (d. 500). Noen kilder bytter ut Ibar av Begerin med hans
nevø, den hellige Abban av Moyarney (Adamstown)
(d. 520? 620?) på denne listen. Ibar hadde ingen egen biografi, men det hadde
Abban, og det er fra den biografien vi har opplysningen at Ibar var Abbans
onkel og lærer. De relevante biografiene finnes alle i den såkalte Dublin
Collection, som bærer preg av redigering.
Det som synes sikkert, er at Ailbe forkynte over hele
Irland og det med slik autoritet at mange ikke bare ble omvendt nominelt til
kristendommen, men også inspirert av hans eksempel til å leve som sanne
kristne. Det het at han gjorde mennesker ikke bare til kristne, men til
helgener. Han foretok ofte retretter og engasjerte seg i regelmessig
kontemplasjon.
Hans biografi tilskriver ham et besøk til Dál nAraidhe
i Ulster, hvor han blir sagt å ha grunnlagt sin første kirke i Kilroot (Ceall
Ruaidh) i grevskapet Antrim i den delen av den nordlige provinsen Ulster i
Irland som nå er en del av Storbritannia. Men Ailbes viktigste kirke og
begravelsessted var Emly (Imlech Ibair, Imleach Iobhair) i baroniet Clanwilliam
i grevskapet Tipperary i Munster, hvor han grunnla et kloster og et bispesete.
Emly var den viktigste kirken i Munster i flere århundrer. Abbeden av Emly
nevnes som en autoritet på påskespørsmålet i Cummians brev på 600-tallet til
abbed Ségéne av Iona. Utvilsomt ble Emly styrket av støtten fra Eóganachta.
Annalene har registrert abbeder fra Eóganacht Áine, Eóganacht Locha Léin,
Eóganacht Airthir Chliach og Eóganacht Chaisil.
Ailbe feires som skytshelgen for det nåværende
erkebispedømmet Cashel and Emly. Katedralen er i dag i Cashel, som Vatikanet
offisielt angir at ble grunnlagt på 300-tallet, noe som gjør det til det eldste
kontinuerlige bispesetet i Irland. Han skal ha skrevet en monastisk regel for
kommuniteten i Emly (Uinseann O’Maidin OCR, The Celtic Monk: Rules &
Writings of Early Irish Monks, Cistercian Studies Series Number 162, 1996).
Ailbe elsket spesielt å be ved sjøen. I henhold til
hans legende spurte han kong Aengus (Angus, Oengus) av Munster på vegne av den
hellige Enda om
å gi ham Aran Islands i grevskapet Galway. Aengus hadde aldri hørt om disse
øyene, men da han så dem i en drøm, var han glad over å kunne gjøre det. Ailbe
grunnla et kloster der og installerte Enda som abbed der. Uansett hvilken sannhetsgehalt
denne historien har, gjorde klosteret som ble grunnlagt i Killeany (Cell Énda –
St. Endas kirke) på Inis Mor at øyene senere fikk tittelen «Aran of the
saints».
Da Ailbe ble
gammel, ønsket han å trekke seg tilbake til ensomheten i Tyle (Thule)
(Shetland? Island? Grønland?) for å forberede seg på døden. Men
kongen utplasserte vakter i havnene for å forhindre hans flukt. Dermed døde
Ailbe mens han sto midt i sitt biskoppelige arbeid. Annalene fra Innisfallen
opplyser at Ailbe døde i 528.
Ailbe betraktes som den fremste skytshelgenen for
Munster. Det finnes mange fortellinger om ham, for eksempel at han døpte den
hellige David
av Wales (ca 520-601), skytshelgen for Wales. Den walisiske
tradisjonen hevder at han etter dåpen oppfostret gutten, samtidig som han
tjente som biskop av Menevia (i dag St David’s) og grunnla St Elvis i
Pembrokeshire (nå i ruiner) før han dro for å misjonere det sørlige Irland. En
annen historie forteller at en engel viste ham «stedet for hans oppstandelse» –
Emly, at han var i konstant dialog med englene.
Det synes å være lite bak antakelsen om at Ailbe
forkynte i Irland før Patrick (385-461). Denne og andre lignende ideer ble
nesten sikkert lansert for å indikere at Ailbe var like stor som, eller kanskje
større enn Patrick. Sent i livet skal han ha trukket seg tilbake til det
mytiske «Løftets land», en blanding av det kristne Paradis og den keltiske
lykkelige verden etter denne. Han døde trolig tidlig på 500-tallet, rundt 526
er nevnt, men også 531 og 541. Hans minnedag er 12. september i erkebispedømmet
Cashel and Emly, som han er skytshelgen for, men 13. september nevnes også. I
den nyeste utgaven av Martyrologium Romanum (2004) står han den 12. september,
og det samme gjør han i martyrologiet fra Tallacht og i Félire Óengusso.
Han minnes over hele Irland. Han fremstilles som biskop med en modell av sin
katedral i hånden. Ofte avbildes også legenden om ulven, som gjør at han er
skytshelgen for ulver.
Ailbes biografi er inkludert i Vitae Sanctorum
Hiberniae (VSH), en latinsk samling av biografier om middelalderske irske
helgener som ble samlet på 1300-tallet. Det finnes tre større
manuskriptversjoner av VSH, fra Dublin, Oxford og Salamanca (Codex
Salmanticensis), men de stammer alle fra den samme originalteksten. Charles
Plummer kompilerte en utgave av VSH basert på de to bevarte Dublin-manuskriptene
i 1910. William Heist kompilerte en utgave av det eneste Salamanca-manuskriptet
i 1965. Ytterligere materiale finnes i biografiene til andre helgener som
Patrick, Kieran av Saighir, Colman av Dromore, Kolumba av Tir-da-glas, Declan
og Findchua (Finchú, Fionnchú, Fanahan). Alle inneholder utallige mirakuløse
begivenheter og åpenbare selvmotsigelser og anakronismer.
Biografien i Codex Salmanticensis synes å
være nyskaperen når det gjelder Ailbes pre-patrisiske status og hans
uavhengighet av Patrick, noe som nedtones i de andre to utgavene og direkte
motsies av dødsdatoen som gis i Ulster-annalene. Det har vært hevdet at den
originale biografien ble skrevet relativt tidlig, kanskje så tidlig som
700-tallet. En kommentator har foreslått at den ble skrevet rundt tiden for den
første promulgeringen av Ailbes liv i 784. Denne biografien bygger bevisst
Ailbe på Patrick, som han til tider overgår. Bildet er temmelig forskjellig fra
Tírecháns Collectanea fra 600-tallet, hvor Patrick ordinerer Ailbe. I
Ailbes biografi konsekreres grunnleggeren av Emly til biskop i Roma, blir
besøkt av Patricks engel, Victor, og anerkjennes av biskopene Declan og Ibar.
Patrick selv, i motsetning til i de fleste versjonene av hans legende, spesielt
i Vita Tripartita fra tidlig på 900-tallet, overlater kong Óengus mac
Nad Fraích av Munster i Ailbes omsorg.
Emlys ambisjoner er temmelig klare. Selv om det
pre-patrisiske motivet dominerer, assosieres helgenen også med andre
tradisjoner. Ailbes far kalles Olchú (Olcán, Olchais), bokstavelig «stor hund»,
hans mor Sant eller Sanclit. Ailbe, sønn av «den store hunden» forlates som
avkom etter ulovlige seksuelle forbindelser ales opp av ulver, mye som Romulus
og Remus. I det senere laget av den irske biografien av Mac Creiche kalles Ailbe
for «warhound» for «Slíab Crot» (Slieve Grud i grevskapet Tipperary). Ailbe
nevnes også i konteksten av en reise til en annen verden i et litani av
pilegrimshelgener fra sent på 700-tallet. Det har blitt foreslått at dette ble
skrevet i Lismore og er et godt bevis på den utbredte naturen av Ailbes kult. I
tillegg møter vi Ailbes kommunitet mens de nyter det evige liv på en øy i en
annen verden, i Navigatio sancti Brendani fra sent på 700-tallet.
Emly selv beholdt sin betydning gjennom hele den
tidlige middelalderen. Det var et litterært sentrum og produserte for eksempel Riagol
Ailbi Imlecha fra sent på 800-tallet, en monastisk regel, skrevet
retrospektivt om Ailbe. Teksten fra synoden i Vest-Munster antyder at abbeden
av Emly har autoritet over hele Munster. Et annet tegn på Emlys innflytelse er
antallet av deres abbeder som er registrert i annalene. Flann mac Fairchellaig
(d. 825?) var utvilsomt den mest berømte. Han var også abbed av Cork og
Lismore. Kirken hadde en nedgangsperiode etter fremveksten av Dál Cais på 900-
og 1000-tallet. Marcán (d. 1010), Brian Bórumas bror, ble abbed av Emly og
flere andre kirker. Opprettelsen av en kirke i nærliggende Cashel var enda et
slag, men Emly kom seg tilstrekkelig på 1100-tallet til å bli et bispesete.
Kilder:
Attwater/Cumming, Farmer, Butler (IX), Benedictines, Delaney, Bunson, Pennick,
Baring-Gould (1), Ó Riain, MR2004, KIR, CE, CSO, Patron Saints SQPN,
Heiligenlexikon, santiebeati.it, ODNB, en.wikipedia.org, celt-saints, zeno.org,
heiligen-3s.nl, cashel-emly.ie, honan.ucc.ie, alvyray.com - Kompilasjon og
oversettelse: p.
Per Einar Odden
Opprettet: 1. november 2000
