Died c. 680. Saint Adamnan was an Irish pilgrim priest who became a monk
at the double monastery of Coldingham near Berwick, Scotland, which was
ruled by the abbess-founder,
Saint Ebba (f.d. August 25).
He should not be confused with the
Adamnan (f.d. September 23)
who wrote the biography of
Saint Columba of Iona (f.d. June 9).
Today's Adamnan established a reputation for his extreme austerity and
the rigor with which he kept the Rule, which went beyond even that of
traditional Irish monasticism. He was a very serious man, who criticized
those whose actions he saw as frivolous. In a vision he learned that the
monastery would be destroyed by fire because of "senseless gossip and
frivolities." For this reason he insisted that monastic discipline be
maintained more stringently. This omen unsettled the abbess, who was
reassured by Adamnan that the event would not occur in her lifetime.
Unfortunately, despite her personal holiness and renewed efforts to
enforce the rule, Saint Ebba was not a gifted administrator. After her
death the fervour of the community
declined again and was destroyed in 683, shortly after Adamnan's death
(
Attwater2,
Benedictines,
Coulson,
D'Arcy,
Montague,
Montalembert).