Life of St. Columba (Penguin Classics) [Paperback]

Adomnan of Iona (Author), Richard Sharpe (Translator, Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1, 1995

Founding father of the famous monastery on the island of Iona, a site of pilgrimage ever since his death in 597, St Columba was born into one of the ruling families in Ireland at a time of immense expansion for the Irish Church. This account of his life, written by Adomnan - the ninth abbot of Iona, and a distant relative of St Columba - describes his travels from Ireland to Scotland and his mission in the cause of Celtic Christianity there. Written 100 years after St Columba's death, it draws on written and oral traditions to depict a wise abbot among his monks, who like Christ was capable of turning water into wine, controlling sea-storms and raising the dead. An engaging account of one of the central figures in the 'Age of Saints', this is a major work of early Irish and Scottish history.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Latin

About the Author

St Adomnan was born in Ireland c.628, a descendant of St Columba's grandfather. In 679 he became the ninth abbot of Iona. He played an important role in persuading the northern Irish churches to adopt the Catholic date for Easter, but his most famous work is his Life of St Columba. He died on Iona in 704. Dr Richard Sharp is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and since 1987 has served as a member of Oxford City Council. He is a Reader in Diplomatic in the Faculty of Modern History and a professorial fellow of Wadham College, Oxford.

Product Details

• Paperback: 406 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (November 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140444629
• ISBN-13: 978-0140444629
• Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #266,684 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Rediscovering Our Christian Roots, March 16, 2006

By 

Carlton B. Turner (San Luis Obispo, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Life of St. Columba (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

The Penguin Classic edition of Adomnan's Life of St. Columba must rate as the modern standard of the life of this early Celtic saint. A new translation by Richard Sharpe of Wadham College, Oxford has as its goal to make the work by Adomnan understood in English. A very readable historical introduction of about 100 pages sets the scene for Columba, for Adomnan and for the early monastery in Iona. Sharpe sifts through the many layers of stories that have grown up over the many centuries and notes what we have real evidence for and not. Adomnan's text itself is about 125 pages and then there is over 140 pages of detailed notes on the text, followed by an extensive bibliography and index. To take it all in one would have to be very familiar to early Irish history but of course this is the source for much of that history.

Whether one has been to Iona or followed the lives of the Northern Celtic saints in England & Scotland this work puts these stories in a living context. Adomnan was the 9th abbot of the monastery on Iona after Columba and wrote about 100 years after the saint's death. There is almost a sense of being present at the time of his stories about Columba and the monks and noted people of his times. With all the claims to veracity and eye-witness the hundreds of miracles that are related make one stop to think that perhaps these people experienced the interconnectedness of all life in ways beyond our experience today. This is an amazing story about a small out of the way place and a larger than life person. It is about real events that have had more effect on western history than we can probably imagine. It is almost forgotten to many and this new work (1994) may help bring it into our contemporary appreciation for the roots that made us who we are today.

37 of 43 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Scholarly, accessible, unromantic version of Columba's life, October 27, 1999

By 

Jon Haslam (TYNE & WEAR) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life of St. Columba (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

Richard Sharpe's version of Adomnan's Life of St Columba consists of three, roughly equal, parts - an introduction, the book itself, and a series of scholarly notes. My advice would be to read the book itself first, then delve back into the introduction, which gives a helpful background to the political, religious and social climate of the time. The appeal of Celtic Christianity, I suppose, is that it arrives with us largely unsullied by the development of modern, industrial civilisation. Where other denominations have grown up with us, maybe aged with us to become cynical and confused, Celtic Christianity remains untouched, almost child like. It appears to be a religion that is close to nature and simple, appealing to our concerns for the environment, peace and justice. And its art is cool. Perhaps, though, it makes more sense to see life on Iona in the sixth century as just simpler, but also tougher and harsher. Columba says goodbye to his horse when he's dying (ah, he loved animals) but he also provided a poor man with a magic pointed stick to provide him with regular food. He's also politically astute and vengeful (well, via the wrath of God). So no hippy then. Adomnan's book is essentially a case for St Columba the saint, with miracles, prophecies and angels, but precious little of what the man really thought. Richard Sharpe's book allows this to come through clearly, and reminds us of how little we know for certain about these times. Maybe that's why today we are tempted to inspire them with the beliefs we need to give us comfort.

28 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Quit looking for a "more unbiased" explanation of this Saint, May 29, 2005

By 

Columbina O'Niall "Columbina" (Somewhere out west) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Life of St. Columba (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

What truly amazes me, are the number of Christians who read this stuff, and come away saying, "Well, it wasn't really like this. He (the author) made some things up..." This is absurd. At least have the courage of your convictions. If you're looking for hard core, empirical research on the life of Columba, then you don't belong in the Hagiography section. However, if you are a devotee of Columba, whether as a monastic looking for guidance, or a spiritual seeker "in the world", then this Life of the Saint is a wonderful guide to the spiritual life. All conceivable things are covered: how to embrace one's spouse when they're just not lovable, how to raise children, how to do business, how to work, how to pray, and last but not least, how to get outside of your laughable self for a change. Those who are seeking a "factual" account of this Saint are in the wrong place entirely, since they can't seem to discern that the monster of Lochness might in fact, be a spiritual metaphor. They also can't seem to accept the fact that the hagiographer is telling the truth, as he knew it, is further a monk, and who, even further, knows full well that "tall tale telling" is a DEADLY SIN! Why people assume that hagiographers are waxing poetic is bad scholarship and bad logic. Instead, let's simply read his account and see what we discover: A truly good, compassionate and humble man who discovered the secret of Life: Jesus Christ. And why? Because life in Christ is just plain fun! It's fun to overcome evil Druids with prayer, and it's FUN to have the victory in Christ. It's FUN to go around feeding souls and touching hearts like only Columba can!

Eu'nan, the author, certainly isn't going to give you any "good reasons" or theories as to why his kinsman left the island. He says quite simply, "...he chose to be a pilgrim for Christ." How many Christians today can really make that simple and profound claim? He's giving you the soul of the Saint and you're wondering if he's telling the "truth"? The sooner we all understand this, the sooner we can all go have lunch. I like lunch. Columba liked lunch too and often relaxed the fast to accomodate guests. Let's read this book over lunch and you can have your people fax my people and we'll discuss it. Spiritual food always tastes better with real food.