> From: Pippin Michelli [SMTP:[log in to unmask]]
>
> I've been wondering when anyone would comment that the Irish trace
> themselves back to Adam. In the Annals of Innisfallen (the only ones I
> have
> readily to hand) this is done through Míl son of Bile who married
> Pharoah's
> daughter Scotta. When Pharoah drowned chasing the Jews out of Egypt, Míl
> and his family left Egypt by way of North Africa and Spain on their way to
> conquer Ireland. Míl died on the way, and his sons took Ireland. Míl is
> given a genealogy in typical Irish (and Biblical) fashion, that traces him
> back to Adam. These events are gridded into Old Testament history, in
> which
> Moses is covered in unusual detail, including his birth and death. This
> by
> implication seems to rank him as one of Ireland's saints since only the
> saints get births and deaths recorded until long after Patrick's time.
>
Kings are recorded in other annals.
> Thus not only could the Irish produce a lot of parallels for Patrick, as
> pointed out by Larry Swain,
>
These are cited in Nagy's _Conversing with Angels and Ancients_.
What is interesting is the difference between the precedents mentioned by
Patrick in his own writings vs. those used by his later biographers--as I
pointed out earlier.
> but the frame of reference for their world-view
> demanded that they find these. Furthermore, linking Patrick to Moses was
> clever. Patrick was not called the "Apostle to Ireland" before the 11th
> century. The original Apostles to Ireland were twelve saints, led by
> Finnian and including Columcille and not including Patrick.
>
What source are you thinking of in this respect? My impression is
that the saints named in this list of twelve varies and sometimes includes
Patrick.
> Since the
> ever-mutating hagiographies of the saints evidently held the claims of the
> kin groups to territory and jurisdiction (and prestige and status was
> vital),
>
I would say that the kin-group claims were not directly tied to the
saints in all cases. Frequently, the purpose of the hagiography was to
promote the fortunes and claims of the monastery or monasteries founded by
the saint in question. Those claims sometimes were in harmony with those of
related kin-groups; sometimes they were in opposition, which could lead to
monasteries' being attacked.
> this put Patrick's adoptive kin group at a disadvantage. So Moses
> was quite an inspired choice - if you already have twelve saints and their
> kin groups claiming Apostleship in Ireland, grabbing Moses for Patrick
> (and
> his adoptive kin group) is quite a good trump, don't you think?
>
It was one tactic used, but not the only one, and I don't think it
was the reason that groups like the monks of Iona wrote so many works
incorporating Mosaic customs and law. Iona had nothing to gain in the
seventh century from exalting a connection between Moses and Patrick.
Francine Nicholson
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