This biography of Saint Columba, the man responsible for bringing Christianity to Scotland in the 6th century AD, is filled with detail and insight.
Columba was considered a man of great spiritual strength who braved the wild, untrammeled lands of rural Scotland at a time when it was ruled by tribes. Many legends are told of his miraculous abilities in fending off wild beasts, and in providing the remote peoples with compelling testimony in the one true God, and the divinity of Jesus Christ. Not only did Columba spread the word, he also established a series of monasteries which endured for centuries. Serving as the first abbot in ancient Ireland, his political influence and legacy was significant.
The author, Saint Adamnan, was the ninth abbot of Ireland who assumed office late in the 7th century. Working from surviving accounts and sources of his era, he was able to recount his predecessor's deeds, prophecies and personality. This English translation of Adamnan was produced at Oxford University near the end of the 19th century; being among the few surviving texts of the era, this book is valuable for shedding light upon life and worship in Celtic cultures of long ago.