Ireland, Iceland, and "Ireland the Great"
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- SpeakerThe speaker introduces the lecture and himself by sharing anecdotes and a rewritten version of the nursery rhyme “Mary Had a Little Lamb”.
- SpeakerThe speaker shares photos reflecting the artisan element of early Irish culture. The speaker highlights the Ardagh Chalice and the Muiredach(name unclear) Cross from the early middle ages. The speaker stresses the beautiful works of art completed in gold, silver and enamel despite the craftsman working in dark, cold, little hovels.
- SpeakerThe speaker introduces the explorations of the Norseman including Iceland and Greenland. In the 8th century Scandinavia there was a huge increase in population. This along with inheritance laws that did not allow for all children to own land sparked a search for new land. The speaker explains the meaning of the word “viking".
- SpeakerThe speaker continues to discuss the explorations of the Vikings who were looking for treasures to bring home. The speaker highlights the word “celtic” and its change in meaning over time. The speaker also explains the Irish “new year” celebration of “Samhain” and the ancient name for Ireland from the goddess Eiriu.
- SpeakerThe speaker explains the Celtic church was not independent of Rome as commonly believed. They had common beliefs with differences such as how the monks cut their hair or tonsure and the date for Easter.
- SpeakerThe speaker notes another difference between the Roman and Irish church was the importance of bishops. In the Irish church the abbots rather than the bishops were the most important. The word abbot means “father” and so the abbot was the father of the monastery. Some of the famous saints of the early Irish church were abbesses such as Saint Brigid.
- SpeakerThe speaker explains the early Irish abbots, monks and abbesses were monastic unlike the bishops. The speaker talks about Saint Brigid, Saint Patrick, Saint Columcille (Columba)and the patron saint of Scotland. Among the Irish monks were culdees who were chaste, not celibate allowing them to marry and some even live with their families in the monastery. Today they would be considered lay members of the order.
- SpeakerThe speaker tells the story of a third order sister he knew as a child. On PEI there are third order brothers and sisters. The speaker describes the death of Saint Oliver Plunkett, the only martyr among the Irish saints. The speaker notes that it was a sorrow for the Irish to leave behind language, family and the land when they left Ireland.
- SpeakerIn early christianity, monks like Saint Anthony sought out God in the desert, that is to find God in nothingness. The speaker also notes Saint Simeon the Stylite who lived for four years on top of a pillar. Since the Irish monks did not have a desert to go to, they went to the “desert” of the sea.
- SpeakerThe speaker notes that the greatest of all the wandering monks was Brendan the Navigator. The speaker says that Brendan is well known among the Irish, but much of what is told about him is a legend or a story.
- SpeakerA source of Brendan’s voyages is the “Navigatio Sancti Brendani Abbatis”or “Voyage of Saint Brendan the Abbot”. The speaker notes that the Navigatio is probably the story of many exploring Irish and it is an account of how to find God and not a travelog. The speaker explains Tim Severin’s re-creation of Bendan’s voyage to Newfoundland was about the truth of science, but the ancients' proof was the truth of faith.
- SpeakerThe speaker introduces “immram” which are stories of sea voyagers mostly written in Irish. Professor James Carney of Dublin says that Navigatio is an “immram” written in prose and in Irish. The speaker notes that prose comes up later in the history of the human race than poetry.
- SpeakerThe speaker tells an anecdote about speaking pig latin.
- SpeakerThe speaker references the Icelandic book “Islendingabok” or “The Book of the Naming of the Land” or “The Naming of Iceland” which shows the Irish were in Iceland first. He reads an excerpt to illustrate and explains that “papar” is Icelandic for “Irish monk”. The Irish monks left once the Norsemen arrived in Iceland due to their heathen practices. Tape break
- SpeakerThe speaker highlights the terms “Old World Charm”, “New World” and “Third World”. He explains sagas seem realistic due to their details which he illustrates with the saga “Laxaela” that tells of Ketill “Flatnose”. Icelandic sagas are always someone’s perception of what they have seen. The speaker likens it to the ending of a Yeats’ poem (“The Circus Animals’ Desertion”) and Satan’s comment “life is hell” from “Paradise Lost”.
- SpeakerThe speaker illustrates, with reference to an Icelandic saga, that the Norse knew the Irish had explored places before they had. In the “Sagas of the Greenlanders” it notes only Christians were allowed to come ashore in Vinland. Leif Erikson, a Christian, came ashore, but did not stay.
- SpeakerThe speaker highlights Thorfinn Karlsefni. The speaker explains that Icelandic names are patronyms. However, Thorfinn is not a patronym, as “finn” is Irish for “fair”, reflecting the change to Christianity for the Norse. The speaker notes that there are all kinds of references in the Norse stories to the Irish.
- SpeakerAs examples, the speaker explains that since pagans could not land in Vinland it was Irish slaves that went ashore returning with grapes and wheat. In another saga Irish slaves returned with a tale of a Norseman murdered by settlers. This same saga referenced Vestmannaeyjar or “islands of the west men” the Icelandic name for the Irish. The idea of grapes and wheat supports the idea that Vinland was discovered by Christians.
- SpeakerThe speaker explains it is a common belief that Newfoundland was discovered by Norsemen and the Norse were not going to say otherwise. The speaker also references “unipeds” both in accounts of North American explorations and in “Ireland the Great”. The speaker emphasizes that all stories contain truth and so he believes that the story of North American settlement is a biography of a holy people.
- SpeakerTo conclude, the speaker tells that while visiting L”Anse Meadows a local showed him a stone at Wicket(name unclear) inscribed with the Christian symbols alpha and omega. Father Larry Boyd identified another inscription as Latin in a 9th to 11th century script. These inscriptions show the first people were Christians. The speaker believes carbon dating the lichen covering the inscription would support this, but there is resistance to changing the belief that the Norse were the first.
- SpeakerEnd of the lecture, applause, audience questions and discussion