Tags
blackthorn, Bridei, coracle, Crimthan, High King Ireland, oratory, St Columba, St Patrick, white martyrdom
Not a St Patrick poem, but an Irish one, nevertheless. A
re-blog:
(St Columba banging on the gate of Bridei 1906,
J R Skelton)
WHITE MARTYRDOM
From Crimthan, sly fox, to Columba,
dove of the church, was a coracle ride
and a conviction that the battle was His.
So the prince swapped his pillow for a stone,
his blackthorn cudgel for an olive branch,
dying daily till oratory steps
were illuminated with a white light.
And he who refused all wool and linen
was comforted by robes of righteousness
for his ultimate peregrination
in the hold of one who calmed the waters
and who was true High King of all Ireland.
* Celtic Christians called a spiritual journey which involved
self-sacrifice “white martyrdom”.
English: Stained glass window in Oban. This is the Christian saint Columba in stained glass form. He was born in Ireland and helped spread Christianity in Great Britain, especially in the Kingdom of the Picts. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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