Whoops. Meant to say "right up to the imposition of English Common Law in 1608," not 1603. Best, Jerry Cló an Druaidh / The Druid Presswww.druidpress.com ________________________________ From: "jerrykelly@att.net" <jerrykelly@att.net> To: dna-r1b1c7@rootsweb.com Sent: Tue, May 17, 2011 1:06:18 PM Subject: [R-M222] abbots, abbesses, and heirs A chairde / Friends, As you know, celibacy was not a requirement of the early Church in Ireland and Scotland. Instead, it was a special mark of sanctity chosen by few. I can't find the exact reference at the moment, wish I could, but many monks had as many as 3 wives in honor of the Patriarchs. Around the 8-9th Centuries, the Irish church tried to convince the monks to keep it down to 1 wife, and got a lot of flak from the rank and file for defying Biblical tradition. Here is a related comment from the law text known as Bretha Crólige: There is dispute in Irish law as to which is more proper, whether many sexual unions or a single one: for the chosen people of God lived in plurality of unions. (Kelly, Fergus. A Guide to Early Irish Law. Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1998. p. 71) This non-celibate tradition is reflected by some of our surnames, including: MacTaggart - Mac an tSagairt - Son of the Priest MacAnerny - Mac an Airchinnigh - Son of the Airchinneach ('Erenagh' in English) MacNabb - Mac an Abbadh - Son of the Abbot Monasteries were handed down within the hereditary 'erenagh' families, some of whom were royal. These families were expected to staff these institutions with their descendants. Choice of leadership and ownership was by Féineachas ('Brehon Law'), within the electable derbh-fhine ('true family' sharing common descent from a common great-grandfather). Ecclesiastics were called by both God and blood, so the Church was strong and constantly expanding, in contrast to what we see today. Examples of royal abbesses and abbots include St. Brighid, Abbess and Bishop of Cill Dara ('Kildare'). And, of course, Colm Cille. As you know, Colm Cille was of the righ-damhna or 'stuff of kings' of the Cinéal Chonaill, electable as their King at a time when the Uí Néill In Tuaiscirt (Uí Néill of the North, especially the Cinéal Chonaill and Cinéal nEoghain) were busy creating the High-Kingship of Ireland. Colm Cille remained celebate so his successors like Adamnán were close relatives of his, also royal, rather than direct descendants. Right up until the point that they were extinguished, the Columban daughter houses were typically staffed at the top with close relatives of Colm Cille. Many of these successors married and had children. Some of these in turn became comh-arba ('heirs' or 'successors') of Colm Cille. I don't know about Scotland, but in Ireland, marriage by priests, monks, and nuns was common right up until the imposition of English Common Law in 1603. At that point, the territories owned by the erenagh families and all properties owned by right of descent from married ecclesiastics were escheated to the English crown on the basis of 'bastardry' - no legitimate heir. Go raibh sé sin cabhrach. / Hope that's helpful. Best, Jerry R1b1c7 Research and Links: http://clanmaclochlainn.com/R1b1c7/ ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to DNA-R1B1C7-request@rootsweb.com with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message