Cumméne Fota or Fada, anglicised Cummian (''fl''. ''c''. 591 – 12 November 661 or 662), was an Irish bishop and ''fer léignid'' (

lector Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as french: lecteur, en, lector, pl, lektor and russian: лектор. It has various specialized uses. ...

) of ''Cluain Ferta Brénainn'' (

Clonfert Clonfert () is a small village in east County Galway, Ireland, halfway between Ballinasloe and Portumna. The village gives its name to the Diocese of Clonfert. Clonfert Cathedral is one of the eight cathedral churches of the Church of Ireland, ...

). He was an important theological writer in the early to mid 7th century.

Life

Cumméne Fota was son to Fiachna, king of West Munster. He early embraced a monastic state, and after some years was made abbot of Keltra, an isle in the lake Dergdarg, upon the river Shannon, sixteen miles from Limerick.Butler, Alban. "Saint Cumin, Bishop in Ireland". ''Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Principal Saints''
1866. CatholicSaints.Info. 26 July 2014

De controversia paschali

He is famous for a

Paschal Paschal is used as a name. Paschal, a variant of Pascal, from Latin ''Paschalis'', is an adjective describing either the Easter or Passover holidays. People known as Paschal include: Popes and religious figures * Antipope Paschal (687), a riv ...

letter (''De controversia paschali'') which displays his high level of learning. It was written around 632 to

Ségéne mac Fiachnaí Ségéne mac Fiachnaí (or Ségéne of Iona) (died 12 August 652) was the fifth abbot of the Iona Abbey in Scotland (623–652). Ségéne was of the Cenél Conaill, the same kindred as Columba, and he was the nephew of a previous abbot, Lasrén. ...

, abbot of Hy, in an attempt to persuade the monks of that house, whose authority bore great sway in the Pictish and Irish churches, to join with the Roman universal church as to the time of celebrating Easter.Ó Cróinín, Dáibhí and Maura Walsh, ''Cummian's Letter De Controversia Paschali'' (Toronto, 1988) It consists of five manuscript folios, contains quotes from the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

and

Vetus Latina ''Vetus Latina'' ("Old Latin" in Latin), also known as ''Vetus Itala'' ("Old Italian"), ''Itala'' ("Italian") and Old Italic, and denoted by the siglum \mathfrak, is the collective name given to the Latin translations of biblical texts (bot ...

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus ...

; patristic commentary by

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Afr ...

Jerome Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is co ...

Cyprian Cyprian (; la, Thaschus Caecilius Cyprianus; 210 – 14 September 258 AD''The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite: Vol. IV.'' New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1975. p. 1406.) was a bishop of Carthage and an early Christ ...

Origen Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and the ...

Ambrosiaster Ambrosiaster or Pseudo-Ambrose is the name given to the unknown author of a commentary on the epistles of Saint Paul, written some time between 366 and 384AD. This commentary was erroneously attributed for a long time to St. Ambrose, hence the na ...

and

Gregory the Great Pope Gregory I ( la, Gregorius I; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great, was the bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 to his death. He is known for instigating the first recorded large-scale mission from Rome, the Gregoria ...

; extracts from

Canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is t ...

, ecclesiastical history and

synodal 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 meani ...

decrees from Nicea and Arles in their original, uncontaminated forms, in addition to ''a decretum that enjoined on the Irish that, if all else failed, they should take their problems to Rome.'' Cummian was afterward made bishop of Clonfert. He also owned - among a library of at least forty manuscripts - ten Paschal tracts including one he attributed to ''"santus Patricius, papa noster"'' and possibly a letter of

Pelagius Pelagius (; c. 354–418) was a British theologian known for promoting a system of doctrines (termed Pelagianism by his opponents) which emphasized human choice in salvation and denied original sin. Pelagius and his followers abhorred the moral ...

. He may have written a computistical manual, and a commentary on

Mark Mark may refer to: Currency * Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina * East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic * Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927 * Finn ...

. As Cummianus Longus he may be the author of a penitential, and a hymn on the apostles. In 1162 his relics, along with those of Bishop Maeineann of Clonfert "were removed from the earth by the clergy of Brenainn, and they were enclosed in a protecting shrine." He is said to have been a foster-son of Saint Ita.

References

External links

* 662 deaths 7th-century Irish bishops People from County Galway Burials at Bobbio Abbey 7th-century Irish writers Medieval saints of Connacht Year of birth uncertain Medieval European scribes Irish scribes Irish Latinists 7th-century Latin writers Irish scholars and academics {{bishop-stub

Life

De controversia paschali

See also

References

External links