Aodh Mac Cathmhaoil, O.F.M. ( la, Hugo Cavellus; anglicised: Hugh MacCaghwell; 1571 – 22 September 1626), was an Irish

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

theologian and Archbishop of Armagh. He was known by Irish speakers at Leuven (Louvain) by the honorary name '' Aodh Mac Aingil'' (''"Mac Aingil"'' is

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

for "Son of an Angel"), and it was under this title that he published the Irish work ''Scáthán Shacramuinte na hAthridhe''.

Life

Mac Cathmhaoil was born at Saul, County Down, and received his earliest education in his native place, trained at one of the

bardic In Celtic cultures, a bard is a professional story teller, verse-maker, music composer, oral historian and genealogist, employed by a patron (such as a monarch or chieftain) to commemorate one or more of the patron's ancestors and to praise t ...

schools still operating in Ulster.''The Catholics of Ulster: A History'' by Marianne Elliot (pages 75-76) He next studied at a famous school in the

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. On his return to Ireland, he was hired by Hugh O'Neill, The O'Neill, 2nd Earl of Tyrone, as a tutor to his sons Henry and Hugh. Mac Cathmhaoil was sent by the Earl as special messenger to the Court of Spain to solicit aid for the Ulster forces. During his stay at

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Herit ...

, where the Court then resided, he frequented the schools of the university and took doctor's degrees in divinity. Soon afterwards he entered the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (also called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. The order adheres to the teachi ...

. He enjoyed a great reputation as a theologian, and his commentaries on the theologian

Duns Scotus John Duns Scotus ( – 8 November 1308), commonly called Duns Scotus ( ; ; "Duns the Scot"), was a Scottish Catholic priest and Franciscan friar, university professor, philosopher, and theologian. He is one of the four most important ...

(1266–1308) were held in high repute. It was principally due to his great influence at the Spanish Court that the Irish Franciscan College of St. Anthony was founded at Leuven (Louvain). After his admission into the Order, Mac Cathmhaoil taught for some time in the

University of Salamanca The University of Salamanca ( es, Universidad de Salamanca) is a Spanish higher education institution, located in the city of Salamanca, in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It was founded in 1218 by King Alfonso IX. It is t ...

. He was appointed as superior and lecturer at St. Anthony's, Leuven, and moved to Belgium. Among his pupils were John Colgan, Patrick Fleming, Hugh Ward, and

Antony Hickey Antony Hickey (also known as Anthony Hickey and Antony Ó hÍceadha; 1586 – 26 June 1641) was an Irish Franciscan theologian. Life Born at the Barony of Islands, County Clare, Ireland, Ó hÍceadha was a member of a bardic family. He was edu ...

. He was summoned to Rome to lecture in the convent of Aracoeli; but his energies were not limited to his work as professor. He was employed by the pope on several commissions. He carried out a papal mission to Ulster in 1613. Over the next three decades, Leuven produced a remarkable outpouring of Gaelic scholarship and devotional texts in Irish. In scouring the north and midlands of Ireland for all available manuscripts, to write an ecclesiastical history of Ireland, his associates (

Mícheál Ó Cléirigh Mícheál Ó Cléirigh (), sometimes known as Michael O'Clery, was an Irish chronicler, scribe and antiquary and chief author of the ''Annals of the Four Masters,'' assisted by Cú Choigcríche Ó Cléirigh, Fearfeasa Ó Maol Chonaire, and Per ...

, a trained historian) and Aodh Mac an Bhaird (Hugh Ward) are credited with saving many of the

Irish manuscripts This is a list of manuscripts produced in Ireland as well as other manuscripts of Irish interest, including both vellum and paper manuscripts. See also *Cín Dromma Snechtai *Irish Manuscripts Commission Notes Sources *General: ** *Brussels: ...

that still survive. Mac Cathmhaoil was elected Definitor General of the Friars Minor of the Strict Observance, which gave him authority over all the friars in Europe who followed that branch of the Reform within Order. In that capacity, he gave substantial help to Friar Luke Wadding in founding and developing the College of San Isidore and Ludovisi's Pontifical Irish College in Rome, for Irish students. On 17 March 1626, Pope Urban VIII, passing over all the other candidates, nominated Mac Aingil as Archbishop of Armagh and

Primate of All Ireland The Primacy of Ireland was historically disputed between the Archbishop of Armagh and the Archbishop of Dublin until finally settled by Pope Innocent VI. ''Primate'' is a title of honour denoting ceremonial precedence in the Church, and in ...

. The consecration took place on 7 June, in the church of St. Isidore. Thomas Walsh,

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, was consecrated at the same time. The consecrating prelate was Cardinal Gabriel de Trejo, a great friend of the Irish. Mac Cathmhaoil's health had been much weakened by his duties and the austerities he practised. In making the visitations of the

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of the Order, he had always travelled on foot. He also spent much time in prayer and fasting. While preparing for his departure, he caught a fever and died. Mac Cathmhaoil was buried in the Church of St. Isidore. His friend John O'Neill, 3rd Earl of Tyrone, arranged for a monument to be placed on his grave. The Latin playwright, Nicolaus Vernulæus (1583–1649), delivered a panegyric before the university commemorating the virtues and learning of the archbishop, saying that he was conspicuous for his virtues, and that his holiness of life and profound learning made him the miracle of his time. This address was later published in

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in 1657.

Works

Mac Cathmhaoil composed four

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a carol (a song or hymn) on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French ori ...

s in Irish. His major works were in Latin about theology. In his ''Apologia pro Johanne Duns-Scoto'', he engaged in Franciscan defence of

against the Dominican-inspired attacks of

Bzovius Abraham Bzowski (Bzovius) (1567–1637) was a Polish Dominican historian. He carried on the work of Baronius. The ''Catholic Encyclopedia'' calls his contributions for 1198 to 1571 "less notable" than some of other continuator A continuator, in ...

and

Cornelius Jansen Cornelius Jansen (, ; Latinized name Cornelius Jansenius; also Corneille Jansen; 28 October 1585 – 6 May 1638) was the Dutch Catholic bishop of Ypres_in_Flanders.html" ;"title="atholic-Hierarchy]/ref> Its seat was Saint Martin's Cathedra ...

, claiming Scotus as an Irishman. He also wrote a work in the

Irish language Irish ( Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was ...

, which was printed at the Irish press in the college of St. Anthony's, Leuven, in 1618, entitled ''Scáthán Shacramuinte na hAthridhe'', or ''Tractatus de poenitentia et indulgentiis'', that is, ''The Mirror of the Sacrament of Penance''. (The Latin title did not appear in the text and was used only for cataloguing purposes in Latin libraries.) * ''Scáthán Shacramuinte na hAthridhe'' r ''Tractatus de poenitentia et indulgentiis''(Louvain 1618) * ''Scoti Commentaria in quatuor libros Sententiarum'' (2 vols., folio, Antwerp 1620) to this work is prefixed a life of Scotus * ''Scoti Commentaria seu Reportata Parisiensia'' * ''Apologiam pro eodum vindicando ab injuriis allatis per Abrahamum Bzovium''; against

. * ''Apologiam Apologiae supradictae pro Johanne Scoto Scriptae, in respondet Nicolao Jansenio Belgae Ord. Praedicatorum, Abrahami Bzovii partes suscipienti, no sine gravi Scoti et regni Hiberniae injuria. Prodiit Parisiis sub nomine Hugonis Magnesii discipuli Cavelli apud Michaelum Sonnium, anno 1623 (Paris 1623) * ''Quæstiones quodilibetales'' * ''Quæstiones in libros de anima'' * ''Quaestiones in Metaphysicam &c'' (Venice 1625)

Criticism

* Paul Walsh, ''Gleanings from Irish MSS'' (1930; 2nd edn. 1933). * Tomás Ó Cléirigh, ''Aodh Mac Aingil agus an Scoil Nua-Gheadhilge i Lobháin'' Louvain (Baile Atha Claith: An Gúm 1936; 1985). * Canneach Ó Maonaigh, ed., ''Scáthán Shacramuinte na hAithridhe'', Institúid Ardléinn, DIAS 1952 1952, p. 5; Cronin, p. 61. *Michael Cronin, ''Translating Ireland: Translations, Languages, Cultures'' (Cork UP 1996), p. 61.

References

*
Franaut entry

* ''The Little Brother from Down – Aodh Mac Aingil as a good Franciscan'', by Patrick Conlan, O.F.M., in ''Seanchas Ard Macha'' volume 19/2, pp. 63–70, 2002 ;Attribution

External links

The head of Aodh Ruadh son of O'Néill taken from a tomb in Rome sang this – a poem/song by Aobh "MacAingil" MacCathmhaoil
{{DEFAULTSORT:Maccathmhaoil, Aodh 1571 births 1626 deaths Christian clergy from County Down University of Salamanca alumni Irish Friars Minor 17th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in Ireland 17th-century Irish-language poets 17th-century Irish writers 16th-century Irish Roman Catholic priests Irish diplomats University of Salamanca faculty Irish expatriates in France Irish expatriates in Belgium Irish expatriates in Spain Irish expatriates in Italy Irish Catholic poets Poet priests Scotism Early modern Christian devotional writers Irish Roman Catholic hymnwriters Roman Catholic archbishops of Armagh Irish scholars and academics