Kilbennan Church and Round Tower 2010 09 16

Saint Benignus of Armagh (died 467) was the son of Sesenen, an Irish chieftain in the part of Ireland that is now called as

County Meath County Meath (; gle, Contae na Mí or simply ) is a county in the Eastern and Midland Region of Ireland, within the province of Leinster. It is bordered by Dublin to the southeast, Louth to the northeast, Kildare to the south, Offaly to the ...

. He was baptised into the

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

faith by

St. Patrick ST, St, or St. may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Stanza, in poetry * Suicidal Tendencies, an American heavy metal/hardcore punk band * Star Trek, a science-fiction media franchise * Summa Theologica, a compendium of Catholic philosophy an ...

, and became his favourite disciple and his

coadjutor The term coadjutor (or coadiutor, literally "co-assister" in Latin) is a title qualifier indicating that the holder shares the office with another person, with powers equal to the other in all but formal order of precedence. These include: * Coadj ...

in the Diocese of Armagh around AD 450. His gentle disposition suggested the name Benen, which was Latinised as Benignus.Grattan-Flood, William. "St. Benignus." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 30 Jan. 2013
/ref> He followed his master in his travels and assisted him in his

missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...

labours, helping in the formation of choral services. His family may have belonged to 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 ...

order. From his musical achievements he was known as "Patrick's psalm-singer". As Benignus had been trained by Patrick in sacred learning from his youth and was well versed in the language and learning of his native land, he was appointed secretary to the Commission of Nine, which a few years before had been directed to compile the Brehon Laws. Benignus is said to have contributed materials for the ''

Psalter of Cashel The ''Saltair Caisil'' ("Psalter of Cashel") is a now-lost Irish manuscript, which seems to have been highly influential in Irish historiographical tradition. Not an actual Psalter, it seems to have contained Munster-orientated genealogies, king-li ...

'', and the ''Book of Rights''. He succeeded St. Patrick's nephew Sechnall as coadjutor and became the first rector of the Cathedral School of Armagh.Healy, John. "The School of Armagh." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 9 May 2013
/ref> He was present at the

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the meaning "assembly" or "meeting" and is analogous with the Latin word mean ...

that passed the canon recognising "the See Of the Apostle Peter" as the final court of appeals in difficult cases. This canon is to be found in the Book of Armagh. St. Benignus resigned his coadjutorship in 467 and died the same year. His feast is celebrated on 9 November. In 433, Patrick clashed with King Laoghaire at Tara over religion. Legend reports that a trial by fire was proposed. A

pagan Paganism (from classical Latin ''pāgānus'' "rural", "rustic", later "civilian") is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Judaism. I ...

druid A druid was a member of the high-ranking class in ancient Celtic cultures. Druids were religious leaders as well as legal authorities, adjudicators, lorekeepers, medical professionals and political advisors. Druids left no written accounts. Whi ...

and Benignus were tied inside a burning timber building, the former was reduced to ash while Benignus was untouched, at this turning point, Christian teaching was established.'The Legend of Tara' by Elizabeth Hickey 1969 Most authorities identified St. Patrick's psalm-singer with the St. Benignus who founded Kilbannon, near

Tuam Tuam ( ; ga, Tuaim , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. Humans have lived in the area since the Bronz ...

. However, Tirechán's collections in the Book of Armagh states that St. Benignus of Kilbannon was the son of Lugni of Connaught. St. Benignus of Kilbannon had a famous monastery, where

St. Jarlath Saint Jarlath, also known as Iarlaithe mac Loga (''fl.'' 6th century), was an Irish priest and scholar from Connacht, remembered as the founder of the monastic School of Tuam and of the Archdiocese of Tuam (Roman Catholic), Archdiocese of Tua ...

was educated, and he presided over Drumlease. His sister Mathona served as Abbess of

Tawney Tawney is a surname that refers to: * C. H. Tawney (1837–1922), English educator and translator *Cyril Tawney (1930–2005), English singer and songwriter *James Albertus Tawney (1855–1919), American politician from Minnesota; U.S. representat ...

, in Tirerrill. In

Cavan Cavan ( ; ) is the county town of County Cavan in Ireland. The town lies in Ulster, near the border with County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland. The town is bypassed by the main N3 road that links Dublin (to the south) with Enniskillen, Bal ...

, he established a monastery on Drom Benen (hill of Benan), today's Drumbannon. Other monasteries are in ''cill benen'' (church of Benan), today's Kilbonane, West Cork.

See also

References

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