by Giovanni Caselli

One of the earliest Celtic evangelists to land on the continent was Finnian Scotus, the future San Frediano of Lucca, to use his Italian name. The legend goes that Finnian of Cairbre was the son of the king of Ulster, he was born in 500, and was consecrated a bishop in 565.

Finnian, like many other pious men of the British Isles, wanted to go to Rome to procure a book, a copy of the Bible in St. Jerome’s translation. And so he walked the whole length of Britain, where it operated several miracles. Finnian crossed the Channel and took the Via Romea to reach Rome, where Pelagius I reigned on the throne of St Peter. The Scottish nobleman remained in St. John Lateran for three months where he was instructed in ecclesiastical disciplines. The book reached Ireland where Finnian was the Abbot of Moville in County Down, where he was also the tutor of St. Columbanus.    …   read more  St Frediano from Ireland to Lucca