July 18 St. Theneva

St. Theneva was a British princess when she became pregnant before marriage. Her family threw her from a cliff (because, you, murdering a pregnant women is less of a sin than adultery). She survived the fall unharmed, and was soon met by an unmanned boat. She knew she had no home to go to, so got into the boat; it sailed her across the Firth of Forth (I do so love saying that out loud) to land at Culross where she was cared for by Saint Serf; he became foster-father of her son, Saint Kentigern.

March 19 Blessed Clement of Dunblane

Blesssed Clement was a Scotsman by birth who met St. Dominic while they were both studying in Paris. One of the first Dominicans, Clement’s energy  and zeal led him back to Scotland at the request of  the king, Alexander II. He made friends with war leaders and farmers alike. His small band of Dominicans were granted permission to use Robert Bruce’s private mill, but also stayed with village and farm folks during his unceasing travels throughout Scotland. He raised money to build monasteries, rebuild churches and cathedrals, served on papal commissions, moved the Bishops seat from often unreachable Isle of Iona to Dunblane,  and wrote three books. He received perhaps the highest praise for a Dominican from a Protestant historian of the time – “This man was an excellent preacher, learned above many of that time, and of singular integrity of conversation”.

His relics are reported to be in the choir of the Dunblane Cathedral. They can be found along the south wall, below the Great South Windows.  One of which is called the Chaos Window, showing fire, storms, cold and snow – at the bottom of which the five members of Scott’s ill-fated expedition to the South Pole in 1912 are named. If you are interested in church architecture, stained glass windows or art, take a minute to check out the Cathedral’s website.

March 10 Saint John Ogilvie

I have a small confession. I have a slight bend to sarcasm. It tends to sneak out at importune times, embarrassing my loved ones. As a result I have a soft spot in my heart for those of similar bent. My second confession of the day, I have little emotional response to people’s last words. The softly spoken words of love and devotion leave me cold. When reading fiction, I often stop reading the book when the author resorts to such writing.

All this confessing leads me to my new found love of St. John Ogilvie. He was a Scotsman raised in a wealthy, Calvinist family around 1600. He converted to Catholicism, moved to France and joined the Jesuits. While serving in France, Catholics in Scotland were being massacred. When they had laid waste to the Catholic followers, they focused on the priest trying to minister to the remaining faithful. Priests and believers begged for the Jesuits to send priests but warned they must be strong to face the dangers of the job. St. John requested for years to return to his homeland. After being repeatedly denied, he finally made his case before the Jesuit Superior and was granted permission to serve in Scotland.

He lasted 11 months, disguising himself as a soldier named Watson. When finally betrayed he was tortured to get the names of others priests and organizers. He became known for taunting his torturers. “Your threats cheer me; I mind them no more than the cackling of geese.” is one of his famous one liners. When asked if he feared to die, he responded with “No more than you do to dine.”. His sarcasm and dark humor so amused the Scottish judges, it took three trials before they were able to convict him with a straight face. He was finally convicted of treason for being loyal to the Pope, and denying the king‘s supremacy in spiritual matters. His dying words?  “If there be here any hidden Roman Catholics, let them pray for me but the prayers of heretics I will not have”.

January 19 St. Fillan

Patron Saint of the Mentally Ill

One of the heroes of the Scottish Church, St. Fillan was actually born in Ireland, the son of St. Kentigerna. They moved to Scotland when St. Fillian was quite young, but once an Irishman, always an Irishman.

St. Fillan alternated between living in a cave – praying and writing – and traveling the Scottish countryside. His travels led to many legends, from convincing a fox of his moral wrongs to saving the faithful from the Loch Ness monster. What is known is that he blest a pool of water in his home base town of Auchentyre and staff of his survives to this day in the National Museum of Scotland.

His blessed pool and his cave became a pilgrimage spot for the mentally ill. After being blessed by the waters, the individuals were bound and put in St. Fillan’s hermitage cave. If the bindings were loosened by morning, the person was considered cured. It is rumored Houdini learned some of his tricks from cave writings left by the poor souls. As the cave was only accessible by boat, later uses of the cave included a pirate’s hideout and a fish net storage. Today the cave can be reached by a walking path with fish and chips stops along the way. This, for me, is an imminently doable pilgrimage.

January 14 St. Kentigern

Patron Saint of Glasgow and Salmon

First, a word about the date: In the West (including Scotland) the Feast of St. Kentigern is celebrated on January 13. The Eastern churches celebrate on January 14. I had two great stories for January 13, so St. Kentigern got the boot.

Second, no one calls St. Kentigern by his proper name. He is known as St. Mungo. Mungo is derived from an ancient word meaning “dear one”. This is a man known by the familiar, not stuffy detached impressions.

St. Mungo was a member of a small monastery at what is now Glasgow, Scotland in the 500s. He became close to both the ruling war lords and kings, as well as the local poor. He was offered the seat of Bishop, but turned it down, preferring to keep his lower profile. Legend has it that the local king and queen had a spat over a ring given the queen by a knight. Instead of beheading his best warrior, the king tossed the ring in the river. St. Mungo ordered a salmon be caught that evening. Inside the salmon’s mouth was the ring. Upon returning the ring, the king and queen felt God was telling them to make up and be nice. As a result, peace reigned and Glasgow grew. Two salmon forming a ring are on the modern Glasgow seal.

To celebrate St. Mungo’s Day, a mass is celebrated, the legends are told, much salmon and scotch is consumed. I assume beer is also involved. Today, offer a prayer for those working in the background to preserve peace. And make your favorite salmon recipe. Serve with a nip (or two or three) of scotch.