St. Bridget of Fiesole is an Irish Saint whose festival is celebrated in Italy on 1 February.
Life
Born in Ireland to noble parents, she was sister to
Andrew
Andrew is the English form of a given name common in many countries. In the 1990s, it was among the top ten most popular names given to boys in List of countries where English is an official language, English-speaking countries. "Andrew" is freq ...
of
Fiesole
Fiesole () is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a scenic height above Florence, 5 km (3 miles) northeast of that city. It has structures dating to Etruscan and Roman times.
Sin ...
. She and her brother were pupils of
Donatus, later bishop of
Fiesole
Fiesole () is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italian region of Tuscany, on a scenic height above Florence, 5 km (3 miles) northeast of that city. It has structures dating to Etruscan and Roman times.
Sin ...
. In 816 Andrew accompanied Donatus on a pilgrimage to Italy, where after seeing the holy sites, they intended to establish a hermitage. Instead, in 829 Donatus became bishop of Fiesole and made Andrew his archdeacon.
Donatus died around 876, and Andrew a few years later at the Monastery of San Martino di Mensola at Fiesole, which he had founded at Donatus' suggestion. Andrew was anxious to see his sister before dying. Bridget left Ireland to pay him a visit and arrived in time to find him still alive but near his end. Pious accounts would later relate that she had been conveyed by angels.
[Thurston, Herbert. "St. Andrew the Scot." The Catholic Encyclopedia]
Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 25 December 2012
After her brother's death, she is said to have retired to a secluded life in a cave in the
Appeninnes, where she closed her life some time in the ninth century. Soon after a church was built over her cave, which contained her grave.
Monks of Ramsgate. "Brigid". ''Book of Saints''
1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 26 November 2016 She is mentioned in the ''Martyrology of Tallaght
The ''Martyrology of Tallaght'', which is closely related to the '' Félire Óengusso'' or ''Martyrology of Óengus the Culdee'', is an eighth- or ninth-century martyrology, a list of saints and their feast days assembled by Máel Ruain and/o ...
''.
Further reading
* Simon Young, ''Donatus, Bishop of Fiesole 829-76, and the Cult of St Brigit in Italy'', ''Cambrian Medieval Celtic Studies
''Cambrian Medieval Celtic Studies'' is a bi-annual academic journal of Celtic studies, which appears in summer and winter. The journal was founded as ''Cambridge Medieval Celtic Studies'' in 1981 by Patrick Sims-Williams, who has remained the jour ...
'', 35, 1998, pp. 13–26.
* Simon Young, ''On the Irish peregrini in Italy'', ''Peritia
''Peritia'' is an annual peer-reviewed academic journal covering Celtic and Insular medieval studies in the context of the European Middle Ages and European medieval studies in general. It is published by the Medieval Academy of Ireland.
History ...
'', 16, 2002, pp. 250–255.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridget of Fiesole, Saint
9th-century Irish people
9th-century Irish women
9th-century Christian saints
Female saints of medieval Ireland