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* With revised Latin text and English translation* New historical notes and rewritten IntroductionColumba is one of the best-known saints of the early Celtic church; through his foundation of the abbey of Iona he had a far-reaching influence on medieval Christianity. In about 700, a century after his death, the Life of Columba was written by Adomnan, ninth abbot of Iona. It has long been valuedas the major primary source on the subject, for the light it throws on early medieval Scotland and Ireland, and as an important work of literature.The 1961 edition of the Life, by Alan and Marjorie Anderson, has long been unavailable. Marjorie Anderson has now revised both the Latin text and the English translation, provided new historical notes, and rewritten the Introduction to take account of recent work in the area. This new edition of asource indispensable for the study of the early medieval church meets a major scholarly need.… (more)
User reviews
The translation (by Richard Sharpe from penguin Classics) is very readable, and occasionally amusing. It also has 270 pages of introduction, maps, genealogical tables, notes, further reading and index - two thirds of the book, with only one third being the actual text. But the historical and linguistic information in the notes and introduction is fascinating as well as extensive, and I really enjoyed reading it all.
My favourite story has to be this one:
{II 29} Of a knife which St Columba blessed with the sign of the Lord's cross.
Once, one of the brethren ... came to the saint while he was engaged in copying a manuscript and asked him:
'Please bless this implement which I have in my hand.'
St Columba did not look up, but continued to keep his eyes on the book from which he was copying. However, he reached out his hand a little way and, still holding his pen, made the sign of the cross. ... later St Columba asked Diarmait, his loyal servant:
'What was the implement I blessed for our brother?'
'A knife', said Diarmait, 'for the slaughtering of bulls or cattle.'
'I trust in my Lord,' added St Columba, 'that the implement I have blessed will not harm man or beast.'
No more than an hour had gone by before the saint's word was proved entirely true. ... Though {the monk with the knife} tried three times {to slaughter a bullock}, pressing very hard with the knife, yet he found he was unable to get the knife through the skin. (pp177-8)
I love the picture of this preoccupied monk not bothering to look up from the book he's working on, but instead issuing blessings willy-nilly which he then has to go to all the bother of a miracle to clarify/undo.
Recommended for medievalists and church history geeks. :D
I began reading this book