Thursday 2 July 2015

Saint Canice, July 2

Canon O'Hanlon notices that Saint Canice (Kenneth, Latinised Canicus) of Kilkenny, whose feast day in Ireland is celebrated on October 11, seems to have a local celebration in Scotland on July 2:
Reputed Festival of St. Canicus, among the Hebrideans, Scotland. [Sixth Century] 
Among the Scottish Entries in the Kalendar of David Camerarius, as found in Bishop Forbes' work,  there is a festival set down for St. Cahinnicus, Abbot, at the 2nd of June. The Bollandists copy this notice, likewise, but they remark, that his Acts more properly refer to the 11th of October, at which date they were destined for further illustration.
I note that the entry actually alludes to the 2nd of June but this is obviously a misprint. Just to be sure I double-checked the text of Bishop Forbes, where it can be found on page 238 of his Kalendars of Scottish Saints. The entry is in Latin but is easily read:
JULIUS.

2 Die. Sanctus Cahinnicus Abbas miraculis & vitae puritate apud Hebridianos & Orcadenses Scotos Celebris.
 Saint Canice enjoyed a widespread cult in Scotland, where he is more commonly known as Saint Kenneth. Pádraig Ó Riain has suggested that he may actually be Saint Colum Cille in a different guise.

Content Copyright © Omnium Sanctorum Hiberniae 2012-2015. All rights reserved.

No comments: