Saint Ségéne (also called Segein, Segeni, Segeno, Seghene, Segin, Segine, Ségíne, Segineus, Segini, Seighin; c. 610 – 24 May 688), was the

Bishop of Armagh A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

from 661 to 24 May 688.

Genealogy and birth

St. Ségéne was from Achad Chlaidib (Field of the Sword), possibly the modern townland of Aghnacloy, Barony of

Oneilland East Oneilland East (, the name of an ancient Gaelic district) is a barony in the north-east of County Armagh, Northern Ireland. It is also called Clanbrasil (from ''Clann Bhreasail'', "offspring of Breasal"). It lies in the north-east corner of t ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...

. His father’s name was Bresal.

Priesthood

At this time the Irish Church was preoccupied with the

Paschal cycle The Paschal cycle, in Eastern Orthodox Christianity, is the cycle of the moveable feasts built around Pascha (Easter). The cycle consists of approximately ten weeks before and seven weeks after Pascha. The ten weeks before Pascha are known as ...

Question, i.e. how to compute the date of Easter and Christ’s death. The southern part of Ireland accepted the Dionysian computation - which was now being used at Rome - at the Synod of Magh Lene in 630 AD. However, the Northern clergy were followers of the method proposed by Iona and its affiliate churches, known as the Irish Computation. In order to settle the matter

Tómméne Saint Tómméne (also called Thoman, Thomanus, Thomenus, Thomian, Thomianus, Thomienus, Toimen, Toimene, Tóiméne, Tomiano, Tómíne, Tomini, Tomméin, Tommene, Tommine, Tomyn, Comméne, Comyn, Terenannus) b. c.580 - d.10 January 661, was the Bis ...

, the Bishop of Armagh, with some other Ulster bishops and clergy, sent a letter in the first half of 640 to

Pope Severinus Pope Severinus (died 2 August 640) was the bishop of Rome elected in October 638. He was caught up in a power struggle with Emperor Heraclius, who pressured him to accept Monothelitism. Severinus refused, which for over eighteen months hindered ...

, setting out both sides of the argument and requesting his advice. However, Pope Severinus died on 2 August 640 without having opened the letter. The future

Pope John IV Pope John IV ( la, Ioannes IV; died 12 October 642) was the bishop of Rome from 24 December 640 to his death. His election followed a four-month vacancy. He wrote to the clergy of Ireland and Scotland to tell them of the mistakes they were maki ...

and others in the Vatican hierarchy replied to the letter sometime between August and Christmas 640, beginning as follows: "''Our most beloved and most holy Thomian, Columbanus, Croman, Diman, and Baithan bishops—to Croman, Hernian, Laistran, Scellan, and Segenus, presbyters—to Saran, and the rest of the Irish doctors or abbots.''" Rome was worried that the doctrine of Pelagianism was taking root in Ireland and advised against it in this letter. The "''Segenus, presbyter''" (Segeno presbyteris) mentioned in the letter was probably Saint Ségéne, which means he was a priest in 640, probably ministering in Armagh.

Bishop of Armagh

Upon the death of Saint

, the Bishop of Armagh, on 10 January 661, St. Ségéne was appointed as the 17th

coarb A coarb, from the Old Irish ''comarbae'' (Modern Irish ''comharba'', Latin: ''hērēs''), meaning "heir" or "successor", was a distinctive office of the medieval church among the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland. In this period coarb appears intercha ...

in succession to Saint Patrick. Saint Ségéne reigned as Bishop for 27 years. Armagh was burned during his reign in 672. Some scholars state it was burned twice; however, this is an error as the second fire was in 690, two years after his death. Before Ségéne died, Bishop

Aed of Sletty Aed or AED may refer to: People * Áed (given name) * Aed Carabao (Yuenyong Opakul, born 1954), Thai leader of the band Carabao Science and medicine * Antiepileptic drug * Automated external defibrillator * Atomic-emission detector, in chr ...

, County Laois, placed his Leinster diocese under the protection of Armagh using a procedure of surrender and regrant. This was an important event as it emphasized the primacy of Armagh over Kildare. The Additamenta to the

Book of Armagh The ''Book of Armagh'' or Codex Ardmachanus (ar or 61) ( ga, Leabhar Ard Mhacha), also known as the ''Canon of Patrick'' and the ''Liber Ar(d)machanus'', is a 9th-century Irish illuminated manuscript written mainly in Latin. It is held by the L ...

record Aed’s visit as follows- "''Aed was bishop in Slebte. He went to Armagh. He brought his inheritance (i.e. The diocese of Sletty) to Ségéne in Armagh. Ségéne returned the inheritance to Aed, and Aed offered his inheritance and his kin and his church to Patrick for ever. Aed left his inheritance in the possession of Conchad (i.e. Conchad succeeded Aed as bishop of Sletty). Conchad went to Armagh, and Fland Feblae ishop of Armagh 689-716gave him his church, and Conchad himself took the abbacy.''"'The Problem of St. Patrick' by James Carney, (Dublin 1961), pp.29-30 Aed probably did this for two reasons. Firstly to avoid being taken over by the neighbouring diocese of Kildare, as it would be easier to avoid complying with the demands of faraway Armagh. Secondly to encourage Armagh to observe Easter in the Roman custom, which was then the custom in Sletty.

Death

St. Ségéne died on 24 May 688. The Annals of Ireland give the following obits- * Annals of Clonmacnoise 683- "''Segine Bishop of Ardmagh died''" * Annals of the Four Masters 686- "''St. Seghene, Bishop of Ard-Macha, died. He was from Achadh-claidhibh''". * Annals of Inisfallen 687- "''Repose of Ségíne, abbot of Ard Macha''" * Annals of Ulster 688- "''Repose of Ségéne from Achad Claidib, bishop of Ard Macha''" * Chronicon Scotorum 688- "''Repose of Segéne, bishop of Ard Macha''" * Annals of Tigernach 688- "''The rest of Ségine, bishop of Armagh''" * Annals of Roscrea 688- "''Quies Segeni episcopi Ard Machae''" * Fragmentary Annals of Ireland 688- "''Bishop Ségine, abbot of Ard Macha, died''"

Feast day

After his death Ségéne was venerated as a saint and his feast was celebrated on 24 May, the day of his death. The Calendars of the Saints have the following entries- * Martyrology of Gorman 24 May- "''Segein, bishop of Armagh.''" * Martyrology of Tallaght 24 May- "''Segin Airdmacha''" * Bollandists Acta Sanctorum, Tomus V, Maii xxiv. Among the pretermitted saints, p. 270- "''Festival of Segineus''" * Martyrology of Donegal 24 May- "''Seighin, Bishop, of Ard-Macha, A.D. 687''"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Segene 610s births 688 deaths 7th-century Irish bishops Bishops of Armagh