March 20 St. Clement of Ireland

First a quick biography: Born in Ireland ca. 750 AD, educated as a priest in France, returned to Ireland to start educating the masses. Had such great success that Charlemagne asked him and his companion, Ailbe,  to return to France to serve the court. Started a palace school and a school in Paris. These became the seeds of the education culture in Paris that grew into the famed University of Paris. Died in 818 Ad while in retirement in Auxerre, France.

For me, there are two interesting facets of his life. One was the impact of the Irish intellect on the French Court. St. Clement and Ailbe brought intellect and logic to the forefront of the Court’s psyche. St. Clement influenced not only the current court of Charlemagne, but many future courts through his students such as Bruno, Modestus, and Candidus. His legacy of learning and thought was the foundation upon which Paris grew into a modern and urbane center of culture and learning. Yet another contribution of the Irish.

Second interesting fact: St. Clement was deposed from the priesthood for his belief that when Christ descended into Hell, he restored all the damned. This doctrine came from his belief as a Christian Universalist. CU’s believed  that all immortal souls, because of the love and mercy of God, will ultimately be ‘reconciled’ with God. Despite being removed from the priesthood, he was still made a saint.

A small side note, the first biography of St. Clement was written while he was still alive by an unnamed Irish monk and the book was dedicated to Charles The Fat.