Читать книгу 366 Celt: A Year and A Day of Celtic Wisdom and Lore - Carl McColman - Страница 81

The patron saint of Scotland is Saint Andrew, who of course was one of Jesus’ disciples and never set foot in the British Isles. Andrew is associated with Scotland because, according to legend, a ninth-century Scottish king, preparing to go to war against his English rival, received a vision of Saint Andrew’s cross. The king promised to make Andrew the patron of Scotland if he emerged victorious that day, which he did. But if there were to be a Celtic contender for the position of Scoland’s patron, it would likely be Columcille (Columba), an Irish-born missionary who founded the legendary monastery of Iona, a small island in the Hebrides. Columcille came from a prominent Irish family, and had a distinguished career as an Irish monk; but when a conflict over a manuscript that Columcille secretly copied led to violence, the mortified priest chose exile and, following the dictates of his spiritual mentor, dedicated his life to evangelism. Iona became a leading spiritual center in Scotland, and a site where many Scottish kings were buried (including Shakespeare’s Macbeth). True to his Celtic blood, Columcille once said that he feared the sound of an axe in the woods of Derry more than he feared hell itself.