Freethought & Rationalism Archive

Toto · 09-06-2010, 10:11 AM

Quote:

The Faddan More Psalter, a remarkable 1,200-year-old manuscript found in a north Tipperary bog four years ago, has provided astonishing evidence of links between the early Christian Church in Ireland and the Middle Eastern Coptic Church.

As a painstaking conservation process came to its conclusion, tiny fragments of papyrus were discovered in the lining of the Egyptian-style leather binding of the manuscript, which was unearthed by Eddie Fogarty in a mechanical digger in the townland of Faddan More, not far from Birr, in July 2006.

The discovery of Egyptian papyrus represents the first tangible connection between early Irish Christianity and the Middle-Eastern Coptic Church and has confounded some of the accepted theories about the history of early Christianity in Ireland.

...

The fragmented illuminated vellum manuscript encased in an unusual leather binding is a book of psalms dating back to the late Eighth Century but its origins remain a mystery.

stephan huller · 09-06-2010, 10:30 AM

Didn't know this. Very interesting! Thanks for sharing this.

Toto · 09-06-2010, 11:41 AM

I'm not sure what it means. Jim Davila wonders if it would help explain the Old Irish Pseudepigrapha

Quote:

Christianity came to Ireland early in the fifth century, at a time when the cultural influence of Rome had diminished in Britain. A distinctive culture had come into existence in the lands around the Irish Sea - which historian Peter Brown referred to as the Celtic Mediterranean (in The Rise of Western Christendom, 2nd ed., Oxford: Blackwell, 2003, page 16) - and, after its birth, the Irish church became the hub of a Christian 'communion' that existed throughout these lands. Thus, when we speak of the Irish Church and its texts, we must be aware that we are not simply speaking of a distinctive group that lived in Ireland, but rather of a distinctive kind of Christianity centred in Ireland but found also in other Celtic territories such as the Isle of Man, Scotland, Wales and Gaul. Indeed, there was a famous Irish monastery in Bobbio in Northern Italy (actually the name Bobbio is derived from one of the names of the Irish monk Columbanus, who established the monastery), at which many manuscripts were copied.

The Irish Church absorbed and reflected the distinctive Celtic culture that existed around the Irish Sea. Rather like modern Britain, it was only partially European: the Irish Church was in limited continuity with the rest of Latin Christianity as it existed in Western Europe. Certainly, it maintained the primacy of the Bishop of Rome and upheld the notion of the Catholic Church. It also had a distinctive theological culture of its own, however, one that reflected the central importance of monasticism to the Church. The monks of the Irish church were pre-occupied with certain issues, all of which were reflected by their apocryphal and pseudepigraphical texts. Notable among these were Sabbath observance (the risen Jesus helpfully wrote a letter to the Church on this subject), calendrical issues (especially concerning the liturgical year and the date of Easter) and distinctive attitudes to penance. It is the latter two issues that will be of most relevance in what follows. It is worth mentioning that one of the effects of the substantial isolation of the Celtic Churches from the rest of the Western Church was that they were less concerned to outlaw the apocryphal texts . . . .

andrewcriddle · 09-06-2010, 12:16 PM

Despite the interesting links to Egypt the language of the Psalter appears IIUC to be Latin. wiki/Faddan_More_Psalter

Andrew Criddle

Roger Pearse · 09-06-2010, 12:29 PM

I believe an Irish manuscript exists describing the monasteries of the desert of Scete.

We must remember that there were Irish monasteries in North Italy, and I think we may believe that a pilgrimage to Egypt, to the desert, was not impossible in the 6-7th century.

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09-06-2010, 10:30 AM	#2
stephan huller Veteran Member Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: seattle, wa Posts: 9,337	Didn't know this. Very interesting! Thanks for sharing this.

09-06-2010, 12:16 PM	#4
andrewcriddle Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Birmingham UK Posts: 4,876	Despite the interesting links to Egypt the language of the Psalter appears IIUC to be Latin. wiki/Faddan_More_Psalter Andrew Criddle

09-06-2010, 12:29 PM	#5
Roger Pearse Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: N/A Posts: 4,370	I believe an Irish manuscript exists describing the monasteries of the desert of Scete. We must remember that there were Irish monasteries in North Italy, and I think we may believe that a pilgrimage to Egypt, to the desert, was not impossible in the 6-7th century.

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