Ecce Homo at the old Ennis Friary

The old Franciscan Friary, Ennis, Ireland

During my last trip home to Ireland I visited the old Franciscan friary in my hometown of Ennis with my mother. The friary was established in the 13th century by the poweful O'Brien clan. It was a center for ecclesiastical study in its day with several hundred students studying theology in its schools. The town of Ennis later grew up around it. The old friary is mentioned in a 14th century Irish history - the Caithréim Thoirdhealbhaigh - which describes it as,

A new roof over the nave

"...diversely beautiful, delectable: washed by a fish-giving stream; having lofty arches, walls limewhited; with its order of chastity and their golden books, its sweet religious bells; its well-kept graves, homes of the noble dead; with furniture of both crucifix and illuminated tomes, both friar's cowl and broidered vestment; with windows glazed, with chalice of rare workmanship; a blessed and enduring monument which for all time shall stand a legacy and memorial of the prince that raised it." 

The old friary was disestablished by Henry VIII during the English Reformation and later passed into Church of Ireland ownership. It fell into much disrepair in the following centuries, though it was still in use as a Protestant church as late as the 19th century. It is undergoing repair and preservation at the moment.

In the nave there is an interesting sculpted panel depicting Christ being presented by Pilate to the crowds. The famous Ecce Homo (behold the man!) scene of John 19:5. The panel depicts Christ stripped and bound. Around him the panel is filled with the instruments of His passion. Most of the symbols are obvious (the nails, the pillar, the dice, the seamless garment etc.). Some are less obvious. The top right panel depicts a hand holding a clump of hair (cf. Isaiah 50.6). 

The Ecce Homo panel at the old Ennis friary was intended to help the faithful reflect on the passion of Christ. It's an emotive scene replicated countless times in Christian art. D. A. Carson, in his commentary on John's Gospel gave the following reflection on Christ standing before his accusers,

The Ecce Homo panel at Ennis Friary

"Once more Pilate steps out of the praetorium to address the Jews. He delivers his verdict, and then dramatically presents Jesus—a sorry sight, swollen, bruised, bleeding from those cruel and ridiculous thorns. Aware as he is that it is the people who must choose the man who will receive the governor’s amnesty, he presents Jesus as a beaten, harmless and rather pathetic figure to make their choice of him as easy as possible. In his dramatic utterance Here is the man! (in Latin, Ecce homo!), Pilate is speaking with dripping irony: here is the man you find so dangerous and threatening: can you not see he is harmless and somewhat ridiculous? If the governor is thereby mocking Jesus, he is ridiculing the Jewish authorities with no less venom. But the Evangelist records the event with still deeper irony: here indeed is the Man, the Word made flesh. All the witnesses were too blind to see it at the time, but this Man was displaying his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, in the very disgrace, pain, weakness and brutalization that Pilate advanced as suitable evidence that he was a judicial irrelevance."

Per Fidem Solam: Romans 3:24 in the Würzburg Glosses

Romans 3 in the Würzburg Codex (f2r)

I have already written on the Irish Würzburg glosses here. I'm working through Romans 3 for school at the moment and so I thought I would examine the Würzburg glosses to see how an early Irish theologian interpreted the same text in the 8th century.

I've reproduced both the biblical text and the glosses here together. The glosses are italicized and were originally written in Gaelic and Latin.

"(23) For all have sinned and do need the glory of God. (24) Being justified freely by his grace [that is, by faith alone, i.e. the faith of belief in Jesus Christ], through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, [that is, it is He that has redeemed and it is He also that is the ransom, i.e. by the blood] (25) Whom God had proposed to be a propitiation [that is, it has been set forth in the mysteries of the Godhead, to make atonement for those who believe his liberation would be in the blood], through faith in his blood, [that is, through the faith of every one who believes in his salvation through His blood] to the showing of his justice, for the remission of former sins."

The gloss 'Per Fidem Solam' 
added in tiny a tiny hand over 'per gratiam ipsius'

What is interesting is the phrase 'by faith alone'. Our Irish scribe added this gloss in Latin (per fidem solam) over verse 24 'justified freely by his grace' (Iustificati gratis per gratiam ipsius) and then expanded it with a Gaelic gloss relating this justification by faith alone to faith in Christ.

Luther was famously criticized for adding 'alone' (allein) to his German translation of Romans 3.28, 'man is justified by faith [alone]', although it doesn't appear in the Greek (or Latin text). Of course Luther's 1522 translation wasn't the first vernacular translation to add 'alone' to Romans 3.28. Several earlier Roman Catholic editions did the same thing (e.g. the Nuremberg Bible of 1488, the Geneva Italian version of 1476). In a similar fashion our 8th century Irish theologian interpreted Romans 3.24 as teaching justification per fidem solam. Luther, it seems, wasn't alone.

... id est per fidem solam ...
... per gratiam ...

To view the codex see here.

For further study see:

Ó Néill, Pádraig P., “The Old-Irish glosses of the prima manus in Würzburg, m.p.th.f.12: text and context reconsidered”, in: Richter, Michael, and Jean-Michel Picard (eds.), Ogma: essays in Celtic studies in honour of Próinséas Ní Chatháin, Dublin: Four Courts, 2002. 230–242.

Breen, Aidan, “The Biblical text and sources of the Würzburg Pauline glosses (Romans 1–6)”, in: Ní Chatháin, Próinséas, and Michael Richter (eds.), Irland und Europa im früheren Mittelalter: Bildung und Literatur / Ireland and Europe in the early Middle Ages: learning and literature, Stuttgart: Klett-Cotta, 1996. 9–16.

Ní Chatháin, Próinséas, “Notes on the Würzburg glosses”, in: Ní Chatháin, Próinséas, and Michael Richter (eds.), Irland und die Christenheit: Bibelstudien und Mission. Ireland and Christendom: the Bible and the missions, Veröffentlichungen des Europa Zentrums Tübingen. Kulturwissenschaftliche Reihe, Stuttgart: Klett-Cotta, 1987. 190–199.

Judas the Trógán

Book of Armagh f. 38a.
Trógán is added to the second column half way
down the page in the center margin.

In the Book of Armagh at Matthew 10:4, next to Judas Iscariot's name the Irish scribe wrote trógán in the margin (i.e. miserable wretch). Irish commentators like Cummian regarded Judas as one the chief heretics of the world, along with Simon Magus and Arius, "whose memory is deadly." 

A far more elaborate scribal attack on the enemies of Christ can be seen in a 14th century Greek-Latin diglot manuscript of the Gospels (Greg. & Aland no. 54). In that particular manuscript, possibly written by an Armenian scribe, four different ink colours are used for the gospel content.

For the general narrative he used vermillion, for the words of Jesus he used red, (some bible's still employ this tradition today), for OT quotes of the followers of Jesus (e.g. Mary, John the Baptist, the disciples) he used blue. But for Judas, the Pharisees, the devil and (strangely) for the shepherds in the nativity account, he used black ink.

The Symbols of the Evangelists in the Irish Tradition

Book of Kells, f. 27v

A seventh century Irish commentary on the four Gospels (Expositio quattuor evangeliorum) explains the four symbols of the Evangelists; “There are four symbols which designate the four Evangelists: a man’s face for Matthew; a calf’s face for Luke; a lion’s face for Mark; and an Eagle’s face for John. All these our Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled in Himself. He was a man in his birth, a calf in his sacrifice, a lion in his resurrection, and an eagle in his ascension.”

Another Irish writer applies the symbols to the Christian's life. The Lion represents the strong in faith; the Calf, the merciful; the Man, humility; and the Eagle stands for the mystic.

The ultimate source for these widespread symbols of the four evangelists is in Ezekiel 1.10 and Revelation 4.7. Next time you're in an old church keep your eye out for these four symbols, you're bound to see them somewhere.

(To my Corkonians, have you noticed them above the west front facade of St. Finbarr's Cathedral?)

The Magi Tradition in the Early Irish Church

Gentile da Fabriano's Adoration of the Magi (1423)

The Three Wise Men or Magi are an integral part to our conception of the traditional Christmas Nativity scene. The Magi’s cameo appearance in Scripture is confined to Matthew’s Gospel, where they are simply referred to as Magi (μάγοι), not kings and not three. Not surprisingly much of the traditional Christian nativity scene is taken from Patristic exegesis and apocryphal writings. For example, how many Christmas cards have we seen with Mary on a donkey en route to Bethlehem? This story of the donkey is not found in the Bible but is drawn from the apocryphal work known as the Protoevangelium of James (17.2). Also, why do we always see nativity scenes with an ox and a donkey peering into the crib? They are not mentioned in the Gospel accounts; rather this is the direct influence of Patristic exegesis, which applied the ox and donkey of Isaiah 1.3 to the birth of Jesus and the acceptance of Christ by the Gentiles (Greg. of Nazianzus, On the Birth of Christ: Oration 38.17). A reminder that Israel had rejected her Messiah but the Gentiles had believed.

The brief account of the Magi in Matthew’s Gospel was soon supplemented with plenty of legend and lore. The early Irish church was among the earliest parts of the western church to develop the Magi stories. The names of the Magi are given in two eighth century works associated with the Irish tradition (Collectanea et Flores, and Excerptions partum). The Magi are named as; Balthasar, Melchoir and Gaspar. These names were not invented by the Irish but were taken from earlier Greek Magi traditions.

The tradition of the Magi being three in number was derived from the three different gifts listed in Matthew’s Gospel (gold, frankincense and myrrh). The idea that they were kings was derived from Psalm 72.11, "And all kings of the earth shall adore him: all nations shall serve him." (Tertullian, Adversus Marcionem 3.13). In the east, however, there is an ancient tradition that the Magi were 12 in number. Several lists of the 12 Magi survive in Syriac and Armenian manuscripts.

Early Irish works (e.g. Expositio IV Evangeliorum, and In Matthaei Evangelium Expositio) interpreted the three Magi as representing descendants of the three sons of Noah, which encompassed all of humanity. Furthermore, since the three Magi had come to see the Word incarnate, they also represented the means of interpreting the written Word of God, namely the historical, theological and eschatological aspects!

The seventh century Irish writer, Augustinus Hibernicus, suggested various interpretations on the nature of the star that guided the Magi. He rejected the idea that it was a natural star on the basis that God had already fixed the stars in the firmament (Gen 1.7). He argued that the guiding star might have been an angel (cf. Rev 1.20 where stars are symbolically referred to as angels), or more likely the Holy Spirit.

The Story of the Arrival of the Magi in
an Leabhar Breac
fol. 137a.

Perhaps the most interesting development of the Magi tradition in Ireland is an extended account of their arrival in Bethlehem. The manuscript an Leabhar Breac preserves the story in Gaelic. The story begins with St. Joseph standing outside a house in Bethlehem chatting to Simeon. He sees the colorful Magi approach and wonders if they might be Druids because they seem to be arguing over astrology. Joseph is not impressed with the strange visitors and pointedly asks them, “Tell me, for God’s sake, who you are, and from where have you come to my house without my permission?” Unperturbed the Magi inform Joseph that they have come from India and Arabia and “various lands in the eastern world.” They even inform Joseph on the names of their horses; Dromann-Darii, Madian, and Effan (this is borrowed from Isaiah 60.6 dromedarii Madian et Epha (i.e. “camels of Madian and Epha”). They tell Joseph that they have come to worship the king of the world. Reluctantly Joseph lets them enter the house, but sends Simeon after them to keep an eye on things.

Simeon reports back to Joseph that these Druids are fine fellows for they all kissed the child’s feet in reverence and presented him with beautiful gifts, moreover, “they are not like the shepherds who gave him no gifts!”

The Magi bless Joseph informing him that he is truly blessed to be the foster father of the Son of God.

“O righteous and holy man, you have great good fortune, if you but know it, for the son of the King of heaven and earth is under your fosterage. For we, indeed, have more knowledge of the one who is in your care than you have. The boy who is with you is the God of gods, and Lord of lords, the creator of the elements, the angels and the archangels.”

Joseph’s initial suspicion of these strange men gives way to joy and he invites them to a meal. The Magi decline the invitation, “For we have already been satisfied with the heavenly banquet!” The whole visit is interpreted by the narrator as marking “the beginning of the Gentiles’ belief in Christ, and the gifts they offered were the first offerings of the Gentiles to God, their first-fruits.”