0:00:06 > 0:00:09We Europeans are three quarters of a billion people,
0:00:09 > 0:00:12spread across more than 50 states.
0:00:12 > 0:00:16Our shared continent has a dreadful recent history
0:00:16 > 0:00:19of hate-filled conflict, in which millions died,
0:00:19 > 0:00:22of political borders drawn and redrawn,
0:00:22 > 0:00:26of clashes between old and new ideologies.
0:00:27 > 0:00:31It's a continent in rapid transition, but to where?
0:00:32 > 0:00:35And while there are many signs of hope,
0:00:35 > 0:00:38there are also many worrying signs of division.
0:00:38 > 0:00:42This is the story of a man who, 1,400 years ago,
0:00:42 > 0:00:45brought fresh, radical thinking
0:00:45 > 0:00:48to a Europe that was in crisis.
0:00:48 > 0:00:51His ideas saved Europe, then.
0:00:51 > 0:00:54They are needed again, today.
0:00:57 > 0:01:01That man was an outsider, who came from what was seen as a primitive
0:01:01 > 0:01:03and backward land -
0:01:03 > 0:01:05his name was Columbanus.
0:01:07 > 0:01:09Columbanus arrived in a Europe
0:01:09 > 0:01:11that was bitterly divided by religious differences.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15It was also violently divided by tribal allegiances.
0:01:17 > 0:01:21People's lives were made considerably worse by very poor leadership
0:01:21 > 0:01:23in both Church and State.
0:01:27 > 0:01:29In the midst of this chaos,
0:01:29 > 0:01:32Columbanus offered hope.
0:01:32 > 0:01:35He and his disciples built monasteries that became beacons
0:01:35 > 0:01:39of Western learning and civilisation
0:01:39 > 0:01:41throughout the Dark Ages.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45Columbanus also risked his life,
0:01:45 > 0:01:49when he demanded much higher standards of leadership
0:01:49 > 0:01:52from very powerful kings, from bishops,
0:01:52 > 0:01:54and even from popes.
0:01:54 > 0:01:56And he brought a big idea of unity
0:01:56 > 0:01:59that offered a solution to division.
0:02:00 > 0:02:04It's an idea of pulling together in partnership,
0:02:04 > 0:02:07still capable of inspiring today's secular Continent,
0:02:07 > 0:02:11as it struggles to accommodate the diversity of its people.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16And so, I'm following in the footsteps of Columbanus,
0:02:16 > 0:02:19tracing a journey into a world in crisis
0:02:19 > 0:02:22nearly 1,400 years ago,
0:02:22 > 0:02:26seeking answers for the often-fractured Europe of today.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46The Roman Empire -
0:02:46 > 0:02:48from the first to the fifth century,
0:02:48 > 0:02:51that empire brought an advanced civilisation
0:02:51 > 0:02:56to a massive landmass that stretched from the sands of North Africa
0:02:56 > 0:02:58to the ramparts of Hadrian's Wall.
0:02:58 > 0:03:01The territories of this powerful empire
0:03:01 > 0:03:05benefited from its engineering, its law and order,
0:03:05 > 0:03:09and the sophisticated learning of Greek and Roman civilisation.
0:03:09 > 0:03:11Columbanus brought a lot to Europe,
0:03:11 > 0:03:15yet interestingly, he was a rank outsider.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18He came from the only country in Western Europe to stay outside
0:03:18 > 0:03:21of the Roman Empire.
0:03:22 > 0:03:24Yet his achievements took place
0:03:24 > 0:03:27against the backdrop of its rise and fall.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35Ireland lay on the edge of Europe, beyond the Roman Empire.
0:03:35 > 0:03:38An island without books, roads and towns.
0:03:40 > 0:03:43An island so remote and so apart
0:03:43 > 0:03:45that Columbanus and his fellow Irish
0:03:45 > 0:03:48were viewed as mere barbarians.
0:03:51 > 0:03:55But by the time Columbanus was born in the sixth century,
0:03:55 > 0:03:58Europe was in a state of flux.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04Columbanus' life played out in a Europe
0:04:04 > 0:04:08plunged into violent chaos by the collapse of the Roman Empire
0:04:08 > 0:04:11following attacks by barbarian tribes.
0:04:16 > 0:04:18In this Europe of the Dark Ages,
0:04:18 > 0:04:22his vision, talents and faith had a unique impact.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32While Roman civilisation collapsed,
0:04:32 > 0:04:35so-called uncivilised Ireland
0:04:35 > 0:04:39was undergoing a radical social and cultural revolution.
0:04:41 > 0:04:43It was the fruits of this Irish revolution
0:04:43 > 0:04:47that Columbanus would bring to Europe.
0:04:49 > 0:04:53We're told that Columbanus was a popular and attractive young man,
0:04:53 > 0:04:56born in the centre of Ireland, in Leinster,
0:04:56 > 0:05:01probably to a wealthy, land-owning family, around the year 550.
0:05:04 > 0:05:09Columbanus was the first Irishman to leave a body of written work.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12He was also the first to have a biography written about him
0:05:12 > 0:05:14shortly after his death.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18However, we should read that book with care,
0:05:18 > 0:05:21because it conveys Columbanus as a very saintly hero.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26You know, I really am tired
0:05:26 > 0:05:29of these old-fashioned, traditional lives of the saints -
0:05:29 > 0:05:34they're so syrupy and full of gross exaggerations.
0:05:34 > 0:05:37There was a real Columbanus,
0:05:37 > 0:05:40and we need to find the real Columbanus.
0:05:48 > 0:05:51He was born into an Iron Age world -
0:05:51 > 0:05:54ancient traditions, practised for centuries,
0:05:54 > 0:05:56were a part of daily life -
0:05:56 > 0:05:58some primitive and brutal.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01Recent archaeological evidence reveals that children
0:06:01 > 0:06:04were ritually sacrificed.
0:06:07 > 0:06:09But the old ways were changing -
0:06:09 > 0:06:14this ancient well in County Tyrone was once sacred to the Druids.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18They saw their religion in the landscape around them,
0:06:18 > 0:06:21their gods in the trees, fire and water.
0:06:24 > 0:06:28Around the time of Columbanus, such old pagan traditions
0:06:28 > 0:06:29were being adopted by Christians,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31and places like this well
0:06:31 > 0:06:34also became sacred to them.
0:06:38 > 0:06:40Archaeologist Edel Bhreathnach
0:06:40 > 0:06:42believes this adoption of Christianity,
0:06:42 > 0:06:45illustrates that the remote island of Hibernia
0:06:45 > 0:06:49wasn't nearly as isolated as some people might think.
0:06:52 > 0:06:57When we think of Columbanus and of his background in Ireland,
0:06:57 > 0:07:00it's a period of huge explosion, of change.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04We are in touch with the Roman Empire, we're trading,
0:07:04 > 0:07:06and, especially, I go back to Leinster,
0:07:06 > 0:07:08and where he's coming from,
0:07:08 > 0:07:10down the east coast of Ireland,
0:07:10 > 0:07:13more and more we, for example, are finding
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Mediterranean and Gaulish pottery.
0:07:16 > 0:07:20We also are finding how Christianity may have trickled in -
0:07:20 > 0:07:22with things like the shrines
0:07:22 > 0:07:24or the relics of saints
0:07:24 > 0:07:26obviously being brought in
0:07:26 > 0:07:28by many people who are Christian.
0:07:28 > 0:07:32Ireland is getting all sorts of new ideas,
0:07:32 > 0:07:35and, of course, the great idea was Christianity.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42These finds show that Ireland was not isolated,
0:07:42 > 0:07:45but was trading with the rest of Europe
0:07:45 > 0:07:47and, with that contact, came ideas.
0:07:50 > 0:07:54Columbanus was born into an Ireland that was absorbing a variety
0:07:54 > 0:07:56of new outside influences.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02Tell me about Columbanus's people's faith.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04What was their faith?
0:08:04 > 0:08:07The likelihood is that his parents would have been Christian,
0:08:07 > 0:08:08his grandparents, perhaps not.
0:08:08 > 0:08:12They could have been far more attached
0:08:12 > 0:08:15to the earlier belief system.
0:08:15 > 0:08:21So, Columbanus is not awakening as a child into just, I suspect,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24one particular religion.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28He is in a society that is really in flux.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37I find it just intriguing to think
0:08:37 > 0:08:40that Columbanus's Ireland is such an exciting place -
0:08:40 > 0:08:44open to the world, trading goods, services, ideas...
0:08:44 > 0:08:47and the biggest idea is Christianity.
0:08:52 > 0:08:56New ideas did not only come from Rome.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02Fresh finds reveal that Ireland was also trading with,
0:09:02 > 0:09:06and, therefore, open to ideas from, Africa.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10Christians had gone off into the wilderness of the desert
0:09:10 > 0:09:12and forsaken all material comforts
0:09:12 > 0:09:16to get closer to their new Christian god.
0:09:18 > 0:09:23These African Desert Fathers lead lives of extreme self-sacrifice,
0:09:23 > 0:09:27aiming to purify not only themselves,
0:09:27 > 0:09:30but their religion and their society.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34And their example inspired young Irish men and women.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40Ireland did not have deserts,
0:09:40 > 0:09:42but it did have wilderness.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Early Irish Christians sought out remote islands, cliffs,
0:09:48 > 0:09:53and mountainsides, where they lived simple lives of personal sacrifice
0:09:53 > 0:09:54and prayer.
0:09:55 > 0:09:59These Christians came together in monastic communities.
0:10:01 > 0:10:05More and more of these communities were appearing throughout Ireland.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10One of the most famous was Bangor Abbey.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17And it was to here in Bangor that the young Columbanus
0:10:17 > 0:10:20decided to come to join this new life
0:10:20 > 0:10:23of sacrifice and faith, and become a monk.
0:10:25 > 0:10:29You know, I am wondering why a handsome, attractive young nobleman,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32who could have had an easy life,
0:10:32 > 0:10:34would turn his back on his family
0:10:34 > 0:10:37and make his future in a monastery.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47I've come to the church built on the site of Bangor Abbey,
0:10:47 > 0:10:49to discover what exactly Columbanus
0:10:49 > 0:10:52would have experienced when he first came here.
0:10:54 > 0:10:58The abbey was only a few years old when Columbanus arrived,
0:10:58 > 0:11:02but it had already gained a reputation for a tough daily regime.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07It's a harsh regime.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09They're coming from a military background,
0:11:09 > 0:11:12except instead of fighting other people, what they're doing is,
0:11:12 > 0:11:15they're fighting their own bodies and their own temptations.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18You live separately in individual huts,
0:11:18 > 0:11:21but you gather together in the church every three hours.
0:11:21 > 0:11:23You don't sleep at night -
0:11:23 > 0:11:26you are standing guard and your job is to pray.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34They would fast a lot.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37They pushed themselves,
0:11:37 > 0:11:39to offer themselves up for God.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42One of the ways in which they pushed themselves is they would
0:11:42 > 0:11:45go into the lake and they could be standing in the lake -
0:11:45 > 0:11:48maybe in cross vigil, with their arms up,
0:11:48 > 0:11:51and they could be reciting 100 Our Fathers like that.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06The rules are very strict about total obedience to the Abbot.
0:12:06 > 0:12:08You don't backchat, you don't gossip,
0:12:08 > 0:12:10you don't ever question what he says.
0:12:10 > 0:12:13He is the guy in charge.
0:12:13 > 0:12:16So, they created a tight-knit community,
0:12:16 > 0:12:20partly by the harshness and the rigour of the regime.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23That regime which he aspired to be part of,
0:12:23 > 0:12:27that seems to be very, very harsh and difficult...
0:12:27 > 0:12:31Why would anybody undertake such a life voluntarily?
0:12:31 > 0:12:34I mean, we say "harshness" in the negative sense,
0:12:34 > 0:12:36but people admired that.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39And there are people who want to be the very best
0:12:39 > 0:12:42and who'll push themselves to the ultimate extreme,
0:12:42 > 0:12:44in order to be the best.
0:12:54 > 0:12:59I really do have to admire the fact that Columbanus chose
0:12:59 > 0:13:00to come to Bangor, to this monastery,
0:13:00 > 0:13:04because it had the reputation of offering
0:13:04 > 0:13:08the harshest form of monastic life.
0:13:08 > 0:13:12That tells us a lot about the character of the man.
0:13:16 > 0:13:18Columbanus's Bangor Abbey
0:13:18 > 0:13:21was a place where young men sought to purify the world,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24through purifying themselves.
0:13:24 > 0:13:28But it also became one of the first urban centres in Ireland.
0:13:31 > 0:13:33The surviving ruins of Glendalough
0:13:33 > 0:13:35give us a better understanding
0:13:35 > 0:13:39of what foundations like Bangor Abbey must have been like.
0:13:42 > 0:13:44As well as the church,
0:13:44 > 0:13:46the monks had a refectory,
0:13:46 > 0:13:50where they gathered to eat food produced in the surrounding fields
0:13:50 > 0:13:52or fished in the lough.
0:13:58 > 0:14:00More importantly, perhaps, for Columbanus,
0:14:00 > 0:14:03there was also a scriptorium
0:14:03 > 0:14:06where books were made, as well as a library and a school.
0:14:07 > 0:14:10In these places, a depth of scholarship developed
0:14:10 > 0:14:14which, through Columbanus, would come to have a major impact
0:14:14 > 0:14:18on so-called Dark Age Europe.
0:14:21 > 0:14:23Before his time,
0:14:23 > 0:14:27we mustn't imagine that Irish culture was ignorant,
0:14:27 > 0:14:29but what arrived with Christianity
0:14:29 > 0:14:31wasn't just the knowledge
0:14:31 > 0:14:33of the three sacred languages -
0:14:33 > 0:14:35Latin, Greek and Hebrew -
0:14:35 > 0:14:39but the whole array of Mediterranean Christian culture
0:14:39 > 0:14:40that came with it.
0:14:43 > 0:14:47So, Ireland has absorbed, and is absorbing, this wave of ideas.
0:14:47 > 0:14:49What does it do with them?
0:14:49 > 0:14:51- Does it do much with them? - Oh, it does!
0:14:51 > 0:14:53It does everything with them.
0:14:53 > 0:14:57The first thing the Irish made themselves masters of
0:14:57 > 0:14:58was grammar.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02And they created a whole library of new Latin grammars.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05And the second thing they did was to make themselves
0:15:05 > 0:15:08the best mathematicians in Europe.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11And the Irish very quickly become
0:15:11 > 0:15:14the masters of this in the whole of Western Europe.
0:15:14 > 0:15:17You've described to us how Ireland absorbed
0:15:17 > 0:15:20so much that was rich from Europe. What did they do with that?
0:15:20 > 0:15:23Did they return the compliment? Did they do anything with it?
0:15:23 > 0:15:27They invented new forms of script.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30In ancient Hebrew and Greek and Latin
0:15:30 > 0:15:32the writing was continuous.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35Scriptura continua.
0:15:35 > 0:15:37But the Irish broke these up,
0:15:37 > 0:15:40by putting spaces between words.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46Most that you and I take for granted on a modern printed page
0:15:46 > 0:15:50is an invention of the Irish in the 6th and 7th centuries.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55Tell me, then, when Columbanus, in his forties
0:15:55 > 0:16:00decides to head to Europe on a missionary endeavour,
0:16:00 > 0:16:03what... What's in his thinking?
0:16:04 > 0:16:07Well, he knows things that they don't.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10He's got the zeal that the Irish have.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14The Western Empire is running down and has run down.
0:16:14 > 0:16:17There are no more Roman emperors in the West,
0:16:17 > 0:16:19it's only barbarian kings.
0:16:19 > 0:16:23At the Irish come with no army,
0:16:23 > 0:16:25with no economic power...
0:16:27 > 0:16:29only intellectual acumen.
0:16:29 > 0:16:33The only thing they have is persuasiveness.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36They are the masters of argument
0:16:36 > 0:16:38and they are the exhibitors
0:16:38 > 0:16:41of a peculiarly-rigorous religious life.
0:16:47 > 0:16:50The Ireland Columbanus was leaving behind had,
0:16:50 > 0:16:53through a mixture of trade, travel
0:16:53 > 0:16:55and the religious culture of the monasteries,
0:16:55 > 0:16:57been transformed.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00No longer a remote windswept backwater,
0:17:00 > 0:17:03it was, by the end of the 6th century,
0:17:03 > 0:17:06a rich culture buzzing with ideas -
0:17:06 > 0:17:08the biggest of which was Christianity.
0:17:12 > 0:17:16The image I have is of an Ireland alive with learning,
0:17:16 > 0:17:23and Columbanus, armed with great scholarship, intense spirituality -
0:17:23 > 0:17:25wanting to spread this big idea
0:17:25 > 0:17:27through the power of persuasion
0:17:27 > 0:17:30and his own personal holiness.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45Columbanus travelled to Europe with a spiritual and a political vision,
0:17:45 > 0:17:49that would challenge the most powerful leaders of the continent...
0:17:50 > 0:17:55A vision still relevant in today's pluralist and secular Europe.
0:17:56 > 0:18:00Columbanus, now in his 40s, set sail from Bangor
0:18:00 > 0:18:04leaving behind, once again, everything familiar.
0:18:04 > 0:18:06Everything he's ever known,
0:18:06 > 0:18:09and heads towards a chaotic Europe, to a life...
0:18:09 > 0:18:13Well, who knows what it's going to hold for him?
0:18:14 > 0:18:18Columbanus and the small group of disciples who travelled with him
0:18:18 > 0:18:22may have landed at Cornwall first, where a church dedicated to him
0:18:22 > 0:18:23still exists.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27They continued on to France
0:18:27 > 0:18:29and a Europe which he would enrich
0:18:29 > 0:18:33by bringing scholarship and spirituality from Ireland -
0:18:33 > 0:18:35and where he would risk his life
0:18:35 > 0:18:38challenging those in power.
0:18:44 > 0:18:49I've come to France to follow in the footsteps of Columbanus.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51When he arrived here in the 7th century,
0:18:51 > 0:18:56the continent was controlled by warring tribes.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00Columbanus is a complete stranger in a foreign land.
0:19:00 > 0:19:04No-one here has ever heard of Columbanus.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08But he has a mission and he has a vision
0:19:08 > 0:19:10and the big question is...
0:19:10 > 0:19:13Where is he going to start?
0:19:22 > 0:19:27From Brittany, Columbanus made his way to Annegray in eastern France,
0:19:27 > 0:19:29where he built his first monastery.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34Today, French and Irish archaeologists are undertaking
0:19:34 > 0:19:36a major survey of the site.
0:19:36 > 0:19:39As they dig, clues are emerging
0:19:39 > 0:19:42that answer questions about Columbanus.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45Why did he choose to build here?
0:19:45 > 0:19:47And how did a so-called barbarian
0:19:47 > 0:19:49manage to get the site in the first place?
0:19:51 > 0:19:53We know just that he met the king.
0:19:53 > 0:19:56The King of Burgundy - Sigebert.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00And Sigebert give him this area.
0:20:00 > 0:20:01This space.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06It was probably a holy area.
0:20:06 > 0:20:10- A holy place. A sacred place. - Absolutely.
0:20:10 > 0:20:12Because we found - you can see on this map -
0:20:12 > 0:20:16we found the plan of a temple, a Roman temple,
0:20:16 > 0:20:18just 20 metres from here.
0:20:19 > 0:20:26So, a king gives a complete stranger from Ireland called Columbanus,
0:20:26 > 0:20:30what you are telling me is, a very important Roman site?
0:20:30 > 0:20:32It was an important Roman site.
0:20:32 > 0:20:37But Columbanus was an important person.
0:20:37 > 0:20:40And Columbanus was like - how to say? - le representant?
0:20:40 > 0:20:44- The representative. - The representative of the king.
0:20:47 > 0:20:51Columbanus clearly impressed the King of Gaul.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55Evidence from the dig suggests
0:20:55 > 0:20:59that Columbanus shrewdly convinced the king to build a monastery
0:20:59 > 0:21:01as a way of defining its territory.
0:21:08 > 0:21:10This stranger from Ireland
0:21:10 > 0:21:14was obviously an astute reader of men.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17He negotiated fearlessly at the highest level,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20he navigated a complex political landscape
0:21:20 > 0:21:23and he took an ancient pagan site
0:21:23 > 0:21:27and made it a new, sacred Christian place.
0:21:30 > 0:21:33We know that Columbanus was a spiritual genius,
0:21:33 > 0:21:36but now we're finding out
0:21:36 > 0:21:39that he was also something of a political genius.
0:21:44 > 0:21:46So great was the demand to join the way of life
0:21:46 > 0:21:49that Columbanus had brought from Ireland,
0:21:49 > 0:21:53that, within a few years, he returned to the king
0:21:53 > 0:21:56and negotiated a second monastery site, in nearby Luxeuil.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01Today it's a thriving town,
0:22:01 > 0:22:04built on a remarkable history.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08CHURCH BELL RINGS
0:22:12 > 0:22:13Sebastien and his team
0:22:13 > 0:22:18are slowly uncovering that history, digging deep into the past,
0:22:18 > 0:22:21at the site of Columbanus's second monastery.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24They believe there was already a small, though weakened,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27community of Christians here
0:22:27 > 0:22:30who had survived the Barbarian invasions.
0:22:31 > 0:22:35The city of Luxeuil was an antique...city
0:22:35 > 0:22:38and in the middle of the 4th century,
0:22:38 > 0:22:41there was some Barbarian invasion,
0:22:41 > 0:22:46and, we imagine until now, the city was totally destroyed.
0:22:46 > 0:22:48But in fact, it wasn't.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51And when Columbanus arrived in this city,
0:22:51 > 0:22:54he discovered a Christian community.
0:22:54 > 0:22:56Because, in this place,
0:22:56 > 0:23:01we are in a Christian church of the 5th century.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04- Before Columbanus?- Before Columbanus.
0:23:04 > 0:23:06There was a Christian people
0:23:06 > 0:23:09one century and an half before Columbanus. Yes.
0:23:09 > 0:23:14When Columbanus arrived, Luxeuil was a city in decline.
0:23:14 > 0:23:17And Christianity in the region
0:23:17 > 0:23:19was also in decline.
0:23:19 > 0:23:20So, what did he bring?
0:23:20 > 0:23:23What did Columbanus bring to that situation?
0:23:23 > 0:23:27Columbanus imposed a new spiritual energy.
0:23:27 > 0:23:32He invented a new form of monastic way of life.
0:23:32 > 0:23:37A monastic way of life that came from Ireland.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44It was a way of life that quickly captured hearts and minds.
0:23:46 > 0:23:50Soon Columbanus opened a third monastery at Fontaine.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56This place is such an impressive site.
0:23:56 > 0:24:01It's a very special place where you feel very deeply in the presence
0:24:01 > 0:24:06of Columbanus and, in his world, as it was, at that time.
0:24:07 > 0:24:09Here, among these ruins,
0:24:09 > 0:24:14I really am getting a sense of the sheer scale of the challenge
0:24:14 > 0:24:19facing Columbanus, to revitalise this people,
0:24:19 > 0:24:21this church, in decline.
0:24:30 > 0:24:34The monastery that Columbanus founded at Luxeuil would grow into
0:24:34 > 0:24:36one of the most important monastic centres
0:24:36 > 0:24:38of the early Middle Ages.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45Over time, Luxeuil became the hub of a network
0:24:45 > 0:24:49of over 50 monasteries throughout the Continent.
0:24:50 > 0:24:54So, here we are now at the Abbey St Colomban.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56HE SPEAKS FRENCH
0:24:56 > 0:24:59Sebastien has brought me to the monastic buildings.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04The popularity and success of Columbanus's way of life
0:25:04 > 0:25:10was due to more than his enthusiastic spirituality of sacrifice.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15That was something else which he also brought from Ireland.
0:25:15 > 0:25:19Luxeuil became a very famous abbey,
0:25:19 > 0:25:22because when Columbanus and the first monks came,
0:25:22 > 0:25:25- they bring with them... - The scholarship?
0:25:25 > 0:25:27..scholarship from Ireland.
0:25:27 > 0:25:33So, in Luxeuil, it was like in the monastery in Ireland,
0:25:33 > 0:25:38with a very important artistic and intellectual life.
0:25:38 > 0:25:41As soon as they founded the monastery
0:25:41 > 0:25:46the elite was sent in this monastery for their education.
0:25:46 > 0:25:47And why was that?
0:25:47 > 0:25:49What attracted wealthy parents
0:25:49 > 0:25:51to send their children here?
0:25:51 > 0:25:54Because the monks were very...
0:25:54 > 0:25:57Had a very good education.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07The sons of the European elite
0:26:07 > 0:26:09became the monks' students,
0:26:09 > 0:26:13and these students became the abbots, bishops and kings of Europe.
0:26:16 > 0:26:18In an age before the printing press,
0:26:18 > 0:26:21when the only way to preserve books was to copy them,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24the monastery's scriptorium created
0:26:24 > 0:26:26lavishly illuminated manuscripts
0:26:26 > 0:26:29that became celebrated far beyond Gaul.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36I can see why Columbanus stood out.
0:26:36 > 0:26:38A wild-haired Irish scholar,
0:26:38 > 0:26:42passionate about faith, learning and a new spiritual life.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48But, crucially, he also offered sinners new hope.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56One tradition that Columbanus brought from Ireland
0:26:56 > 0:26:59had a revolutionary impact.
0:26:59 > 0:27:03He taught that people could receive forgiveness from sin
0:27:03 > 0:27:05time and time again -
0:27:05 > 0:27:10they need only confess to a spiritual advisor -
0:27:10 > 0:27:12their anam cara.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16This was radically different from the Roman tradition of public penance
0:27:16 > 0:27:18- the sinner clad in sackcloth and ashes -
0:27:18 > 0:27:22and the belief that sins could only be washed away once.
0:27:29 > 0:27:31For ordinary sinners like me,
0:27:31 > 0:27:33it was a doctrine of hope.
0:27:35 > 0:27:40Before Columbanus in the first centuries of Christianity,
0:27:40 > 0:27:48the forgiveness of God was given only once in his life.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51So, generally speaking, people were waiting
0:27:51 > 0:27:55for the end of life to ask for forgiveness of God.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59And sometimes, they were waiting too long
0:27:59 > 0:28:02and it was not possible!
0:28:02 > 0:28:04But for the Irish monks
0:28:04 > 0:28:06and for Columbanus,
0:28:06 > 0:28:13the idea was, every day we have to ask forgiveness to God,
0:28:13 > 0:28:17and this is a new idea that the Irish monks
0:28:17 > 0:28:20introduce into the Catholic Church.
0:28:20 > 0:28:25So, he's saying you don't have to wait until the end of your life,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27you can have forgiveness every day?
0:28:27 > 0:28:29Exactly. Yes.
0:28:29 > 0:28:34It's a new idea, that forgiveness of God is possible,
0:28:34 > 0:28:36if you are sincere.
0:28:36 > 0:28:40This sounds to me like a very different idea of God -
0:28:40 > 0:28:43from the harsh, judgmental God,
0:28:43 > 0:28:47to the gentle, loving, forgiving father.
0:28:47 > 0:28:48Yes.
0:28:48 > 0:28:51This is the idea of God of love.
0:28:58 > 0:29:00This new idea of God's forgiveness
0:29:00 > 0:29:02became so popular in France,
0:29:02 > 0:29:06the Columbanus wrote a guide book called A Penitential.
0:29:08 > 0:29:13It advised what penances an anam cara should assign for specific sins.
0:29:15 > 0:29:18This innovation became so successful
0:29:18 > 0:29:22that it eventually was adopted by the wider Christian Church
0:29:22 > 0:29:24as the sacrament of confession.
0:29:28 > 0:29:31Columbanus brought other Irish practices and customs
0:29:31 > 0:29:34that would have been strange to the French,
0:29:34 > 0:29:37including a different date for celebrating
0:29:37 > 0:29:39the major Christian festival of Easter.
0:29:39 > 0:29:42THEY EXCHANGE GREETINGS
0:29:44 > 0:29:45Merci beaucoup.
0:29:48 > 0:29:50When Columbanus and his monks arrived
0:29:50 > 0:29:53here in France to make their lives,
0:29:53 > 0:29:55they looked strange.
0:29:55 > 0:29:59They had very strange ideas and strange customs,
0:29:59 > 0:30:03and yet, remarkably, the local people, the ordinary people,
0:30:03 > 0:30:06really welcomed them and were open to them.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09And because they were open, they benefited hugely.
0:30:14 > 0:30:16Columbanus's monastic way of life
0:30:16 > 0:30:18reinvigorated Christianity.
0:30:20 > 0:30:24His learning underpinned the sophisticated scholarship
0:30:24 > 0:30:26that informed generations
0:30:26 > 0:30:28of European leaders.
0:30:30 > 0:30:34The practice of the anam cara introduced a revolutionary concept
0:30:34 > 0:30:37of forgiveness that transformed people's lives.
0:30:41 > 0:30:47Little wonder, then, that Columbanus is still honoured in this area.
0:30:47 > 0:30:49Particularly here in these woods,
0:30:49 > 0:30:53where he spent time alone in the wilderness,
0:30:53 > 0:30:56maintaining another Irish custom, that of making a retreat,
0:30:56 > 0:31:00of finding God in the natural world around him.
0:31:05 > 0:31:10Columbanus came to this very beautiful spot twice a year,
0:31:10 > 0:31:14to prepare for Easter, to prepare for Christmas,
0:31:14 > 0:31:19to take himself away from the monastery and just to be on retreat.
0:31:19 > 0:31:24It is interesting that, so many people, 1,400 years later,
0:31:24 > 0:31:26are still coming here to this spot,
0:31:26 > 0:31:31writing in these books as if they could almost encounter him here,
0:31:31 > 0:31:34physically, as well as spiritually.
0:31:38 > 0:31:43There is no doubt that Columbanus made a big impact in Gaul,
0:31:43 > 0:31:47but he also made enemies, by going against the grain
0:31:47 > 0:31:53of the established church hierarchy. Columbanus seems to have been
0:31:53 > 0:31:55very well received, generally,
0:31:55 > 0:31:58but then he had problems with the bishops. What was it
0:31:58 > 0:32:00about Columbanus that these bishops did not like?
0:32:00 > 0:32:04Columbanus founded three ministries in this area
0:32:04 > 0:32:10without any permission from bishops. He asked nothing from the bishop
0:32:10 > 0:32:11of this area, only from the king.
0:32:13 > 0:32:15Columbanus annoyed the bishops,
0:32:15 > 0:32:18not only with his practice of foreign customs.
0:32:18 > 0:32:22On the Continent, bishops expected abbots, like Columbanus,
0:32:22 > 0:32:23to obey them.
0:32:25 > 0:32:29But in Irish custom, an abbot was of equal rank to a bishop.
0:32:29 > 0:32:33Not only did Columbanus see himself as equal,
0:32:33 > 0:32:38his faith and life were built on a rejection of worldly values.
0:32:39 > 0:32:43So, when he saw how well some princes of the church where living,
0:32:43 > 0:32:45he was not impressed.
0:32:46 > 0:32:49Some bishops were very honest.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55But there were really bishops who, some of their wealth,
0:32:55 > 0:32:59they were people from the high society, coming from families
0:32:59 > 0:33:04who were very wealthy, and they chose the way of the Church
0:33:04 > 0:33:06for political reasons.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09So, they were living in towns,
0:33:09 > 0:33:12sometimes with mistresses...
0:33:13 > 0:33:18..and they had nothing to do with the Gospel.
0:33:18 > 0:33:23Columbanus could not admit such a way of life for a Christian.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34The bishops summoned Columbanus to account for his foreign customs.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36He wrote to them,
0:33:36 > 0:33:39criticising their comfortable lifestyles
0:33:39 > 0:33:43and asking them to tolerate his different Irish ways.
0:33:43 > 0:33:46He advocated unity, writing...
0:33:55 > 0:34:01In Columbanus' world, people squabble incessantly over differences.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05But in these letters, Columbanus sets out a radical new vision,
0:34:05 > 0:34:10in which he challenges people to focus on what unites them,
0:34:10 > 0:34:13what they share, rather than what divides them.
0:34:19 > 0:34:22The letter is fascinating.
0:34:22 > 0:34:26It may be one of the first written expressions of an international
0:34:26 > 0:34:31shared sense of identity, which crosses boundaries of nationality
0:34:31 > 0:34:32and race.
0:34:38 > 0:34:4013 centuries later,
0:34:40 > 0:34:42in the aftermath of World War II,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46Columbanus' call for unity between peoples was heard again.
0:34:51 > 0:34:54With the devastation, hatred and division of war still lingering
0:34:54 > 0:34:58in the air, European leaders gathered in Luxeuil
0:34:58 > 0:35:02in July, 1950, to mark the 1,400th anniversary of the birth
0:35:02 > 0:35:06of Columbanus - and a new idea was born.
0:35:09 > 0:35:11On the fringes of that gathering,
0:35:11 > 0:35:15it is said a secret meeting at this house in Luxeuil
0:35:15 > 0:35:18was attended by politicians across Europe,
0:35:18 > 0:35:20including members of the then Irish government,
0:35:20 > 0:35:25Sean MacBride and Taoiseach, John A Costello.
0:35:30 > 0:35:32The idea of a Europe
0:35:32 > 0:35:38united in diversity may very well have started here in this house,
0:35:38 > 0:35:40in the name of Columbanus...
0:35:42 > 0:35:46..because at that secret meeting, it is said that the seeds were sown
0:35:46 > 0:35:49for what became the European Union.
0:35:51 > 0:35:55During the anniversary celebrations, Robert Schuman, one of the founders
0:35:55 > 0:35:58of the European Union, said...
0:36:06 > 0:36:09And he referred to Columbanus as...
0:36:24 > 0:36:29Back in 7thCentury Luxeuil, things started to go badly wrong
0:36:29 > 0:36:30for Columbanus.
0:36:32 > 0:36:36Although he worked with powerful leaders to achieve his aims,
0:36:36 > 0:36:40Columbanus was not willing to compromise his principles for them.
0:36:42 > 0:36:45When asked to condone the King's keeping of mistresses, he refused.
0:36:45 > 0:36:48It was a dangerous and brave act by Columbanus.
0:36:48 > 0:36:53The King had already killed a bishop who had criticised his private life.
0:36:59 > 0:37:01In response, the King seizes Columbanus
0:37:01 > 0:37:04and the other Irish monks from their monastery
0:37:04 > 0:37:08and marches them 800 miles, to the port of Nantes,
0:37:08 > 0:37:11to be shipped back to Ireland.
0:37:11 > 0:37:16From his cell in Nantes, Columbanus writes a moving farewell letter
0:37:16 > 0:37:18to his monks back in Luxeuil.
0:37:19 > 0:37:25Columbanus is at his lowest ebb. He feels a complete and abject failure
0:37:25 > 0:37:28and, yet, he is able to write to his fellow monks and tell them
0:37:28 > 0:37:30to love and to forgive.
0:37:33 > 0:37:37His community of monks is now made up of many different nationalities
0:37:37 > 0:37:42and in his letter to them, Columbanus again stresses the power of unity
0:37:42 > 0:37:44and also forgiveness.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47He urges them to forgive the king who seized him.
0:37:48 > 0:37:50That is a message which, it seems to me,
0:37:50 > 0:37:54is as relevant in today's angry 21st century
0:37:54 > 0:37:56as it was in the time of Columbanus.
0:38:00 > 0:38:02Then, Columbanus' luck improves.
0:38:02 > 0:38:06There is a storm in Nantes and the boat transporting and the other monks
0:38:06 > 0:38:10back to Ireland is unable to leave port.
0:38:12 > 0:38:16The captain, believing this is a sign from God,
0:38:16 > 0:38:20releases the monks and, so, they are free men again.
0:38:27 > 0:38:30Free, but not free to return to Gaul.
0:38:30 > 0:38:35So, Columbanus and his Irish monks set out on yet another journey -
0:38:35 > 0:38:38an epic trek across Europe and along the banks of the Rhine,
0:38:38 > 0:38:40to Brigantium.
0:38:47 > 0:38:51Now called Bregenz, it was here, on the shores of the Lake Constance,
0:38:51 > 0:38:54that Columbanus founded his fourth monastery,
0:38:54 > 0:38:58once again, after negotiations with the local king.
0:39:01 > 0:39:05Statues mark his legacy today, but in the 7th century,
0:39:05 > 0:39:10Columbanus, his disciples and their Christianity
0:39:10 > 0:39:12were rejected by the people of Brigantium -
0:39:12 > 0:39:15a rejection that would end in violence.
0:39:19 > 0:39:23When two of his monks were brutally murdered,
0:39:23 > 0:39:26Columbanus felt he had no choice but to leave.
0:39:30 > 0:39:34Expelled from Gaul, rejected by Brigantium,
0:39:34 > 0:39:37cast adrift from the monasteries he had trekked
0:39:37 > 0:39:42far across Europe to build, at this point, Columbanus must have wondered
0:39:42 > 0:39:45if his life's mission had come to nothing.
0:39:45 > 0:39:50And yet, he did not give up. He was a man of great inner strength -
0:39:50 > 0:39:53strength that is revealed in his writing.
0:39:55 > 0:39:59You spent a lot of your career studying and translating Columbanus.
0:39:59 > 0:40:04How does he, the person, come across to you, in terms of character?
0:40:04 > 0:40:09I think, extremely driven and what impresses me about Columbanus
0:40:09 > 0:40:13is really his energy and the energy comes across very strongly
0:40:13 > 0:40:15in his writings.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17By this stage, Columbanus is a good age?
0:40:17 > 0:40:20Yeah, he is probably in his early 60s.
0:40:22 > 0:40:26Yeah. And he has trudged across most of Western Europe, by this stage.
0:40:26 > 0:40:31- Tell me about his spirituality. - There is something mystical about
0:40:31 > 0:40:37some of his writings, the sense that reason alone cannot comprehend God,
0:40:37 > 0:40:40but also the idea that we are pilgrims on the Earth,
0:40:40 > 0:40:43that we do not really have a home anywhere on Earth and so, our life
0:40:43 > 0:40:45is a journey.
0:40:45 > 0:40:49And we see this right throughout his religious odyssey on the Continent,
0:40:49 > 0:40:53where he is continually being compelled forward.
0:40:53 > 0:40:57And Rome and Italy had a very big attraction.
0:40:57 > 0:41:02And so, he talks a lot about Rome in his letters,
0:41:02 > 0:41:07not as the seat of empire, but as the Church of St Peter
0:41:07 > 0:41:11and Paul and, so, he is attracted to Italy.
0:41:17 > 0:41:21Behind me are the Alps and, beyond them, Italy.
0:41:21 > 0:41:26And this wall of mountains, Columbanus has to climb
0:41:26 > 0:41:29to get to Italy, if he is to start all over again.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37While Columbanus headed for Italy,
0:41:37 > 0:41:40one of his disciples, who had followed him all the way
0:41:40 > 0:41:43from Ireland, chose to stay on the shores of Lake Constance
0:41:43 > 0:41:46and build a hermitage in the wilderness.
0:41:49 > 0:41:52That disciple's name was Gall
0:41:52 > 0:41:55and his hermitage became the monastic town of St Gallen
0:41:55 > 0:41:59in Switzerland, which grew into another major centre of spirituality
0:41:59 > 0:42:01and scholarship in Europe.
0:42:08 > 0:42:12In this modern Swiss town, you get a real sense of the impact
0:42:12 > 0:42:17of those monastic foundations laid down by Columbanus
0:42:17 > 0:42:20and his disciples, perhaps better than anywhere else in Europe.
0:42:25 > 0:42:30St Gallen is a special place, because not only are the abbey buildings
0:42:30 > 0:42:33still standing, but the library also survives.
0:42:53 > 0:42:58I think the only way to greet this place, for the first time -
0:42:58 > 0:43:03any time, perhaps - it is just with complete awe.
0:43:03 > 0:43:07We have moved, literally, through centuries here.
0:43:07 > 0:43:10Centuries of thinking, centuries of writing
0:43:10 > 0:43:15that have influenced our world in Europe and right around the world.
0:43:28 > 0:43:32It is quite a wonderful feeling to be in the place where a small group
0:43:32 > 0:43:39of Irish monks, with great intellects and a great scholarly discipline,
0:43:39 > 0:43:44who leave their country, who come here with very little
0:43:44 > 0:43:49except what brainpower they have and, out of that, they create
0:43:49 > 0:43:55a tradition of learning, of scholarship, of questioning -
0:43:55 > 0:44:01a tradition of a real formidable intellectual endeavour
0:44:01 > 0:44:05that continues in this library, to this day...
0:44:06 > 0:44:10..and is part of Europe's patrimony, is part of the world's
0:44:10 > 0:44:12intellectual patrimony.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21This library remains a majestic monument to how the treasures
0:44:21 > 0:44:25of European civilisation were preserved by Columbanus
0:44:25 > 0:44:26and other Irish monks.
0:44:28 > 0:44:30They played a crucial role
0:44:30 > 0:44:34throughout Europe, you could say, because before Columbanus arrived
0:44:34 > 0:44:38on the Continent, barbarian tribes like the Vandals
0:44:38 > 0:44:41had gone through Europe and they had pretty much destroyed
0:44:41 > 0:44:44all the civilisation of the Roman Empire.
0:44:49 > 0:44:54But when the Irish monks arrived, they brought classical learning
0:44:54 > 0:44:58with them and they valued classical scholarship very highly.
0:44:58 > 0:45:01Their standard of Latin was very high, as well, so you could say
0:45:01 > 0:45:05that the Irish helped save the Roman culture for us
0:45:05 > 0:45:08and they brought back Christianity to the Continent.
0:45:11 > 0:45:15And in this library, over 1,000 years later, you can still find
0:45:15 > 0:45:18evidence of the monks who came from Ireland,
0:45:18 > 0:45:23with the artistry and literacy skills to make books
0:45:23 > 0:45:26in a time before printing presses,
0:45:26 > 0:45:28when, without the copying of books by hand,
0:45:28 > 0:45:30no knowledge would be passed on.
0:45:32 > 0:45:35I think St Gallen has still got the largest collection
0:45:35 > 0:45:38of Irish manuscripts on the Continent and, sometimes,
0:45:38 > 0:45:42in these manuscripts, you find notes in the margins,
0:45:42 > 0:45:46written by the scribes themselves. They are complaining about
0:45:46 > 0:45:50the arduous task of writing or composing little poems,
0:45:50 > 0:45:55- as well as commenting on the text. - Is that not just typically Irish -
0:45:55 > 0:45:57complaining and composing poetry?!
0:46:05 > 0:46:09The exquisite artistry and delicate craft of the Irish scribes
0:46:09 > 0:46:12is alive in the pages of the St Gallen manuscripts.
0:46:14 > 0:46:18Each one painstakingly constructed from animal skin,
0:46:18 > 0:46:22the inks skilfully extracted from minerals and plants.
0:46:27 > 0:46:33This beautiful, old, 9th-Century Latin grammar is written in Irish.
0:46:33 > 0:46:37It was probably written in Ireland and it was brought then here,
0:46:37 > 0:46:41to St Gallen and, of course, is a jewel in the crown
0:46:41 > 0:46:42of the collection here.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44But it is very interesting -
0:46:44 > 0:46:50besides the meticulously-written Latin grammar text,
0:46:50 > 0:46:54those who were writing the text took the opportunity to
0:46:54 > 0:46:57add their own comments from time to time. On this page,
0:46:57 > 0:47:03at the top, someone has written, in Ogham script,
0:47:03 > 0:47:06"I had too much beer last night. Now, I have a headache."
0:47:06 > 0:47:10And at the bottom, someone has written, in Irish,
0:47:10 > 0:47:14a very beautiful poem about his love of nature and how he would love
0:47:14 > 0:47:15to be outdoors.
0:47:21 > 0:47:24In the majesty of the buildings here in St Gallen,
0:47:24 > 0:47:29we can see how people on the European mainland benefited by being
0:47:29 > 0:47:32open to people they had previously seen as barbarian -
0:47:32 > 0:47:34as less than human.
0:47:37 > 0:47:42Columbanus and his disciples left a legacy of monastic foundations
0:47:42 > 0:47:46that saved and transmitted the knowledge, not only of Christianity,
0:47:46 > 0:47:48but of Greek and Roman classics,
0:47:48 > 0:47:51which these monks copied and preserved.
0:47:56 > 0:48:00Before Columbanus, the Irish were seen as uncivilised -
0:48:00 > 0:48:04from the edge of the world. It is with him that the legend of Ireland
0:48:04 > 0:48:08as a holy island, as the land of saints and scholars, begins.
0:48:23 > 0:48:25While Gall was left behind in St Gallen,
0:48:25 > 0:48:29Columbanus, by then in his 60s, set off on an arduous journey
0:48:29 > 0:48:33over the Alps, into what is now northern Italy.
0:48:35 > 0:48:37It was the kingdom of another barbarian tribe,
0:48:37 > 0:48:38the Lombards.
0:48:41 > 0:48:45He went to the King of Milan and negotiated land on the site
0:48:45 > 0:48:47of an abandoned church in Bobbio.
0:48:49 > 0:48:52It would be his fifth, and final, foundation.
0:48:55 > 0:48:58When Columbanus arrived here, he began labouring
0:48:58 > 0:49:00and chopping down trees
0:49:00 > 0:49:05to build a monastery. That monastery, like Luxeuil and Gallen,
0:49:05 > 0:49:09would become a major centre not only of spirituality,
0:49:09 > 0:49:11but of culture.
0:49:14 > 0:49:16As with his other foundations,
0:49:16 > 0:49:19contacts between Bobbio and Ireland continued
0:49:19 > 0:49:23for centuries after Columbanus, with Irish monks following
0:49:23 > 0:49:28in his footsteps, bringing books and working in the scriptorium.
0:49:34 > 0:49:37But Columbanus it was not content to build just a new monastery.
0:49:37 > 0:49:42He also wanted to build a more united Europe.
0:49:42 > 0:49:45That required good leadership, and he was not afraid to take on
0:49:45 > 0:49:48the most powerful leader of all - the Pope.
0:49:54 > 0:49:59Columbanus had noticed that the European continent was split,
0:49:59 > 0:50:01not only by tribal and regional divisions,
0:50:01 > 0:50:02but also by religion.
0:50:05 > 0:50:08He felt that the situation was made worse
0:50:08 > 0:50:10by poor leadership of various popes.
0:50:12 > 0:50:15Columbanus wrote a blistering letter to the Pope,
0:50:15 > 0:50:18in which he told him to wake up, do his job properly
0:50:18 > 0:50:22and heal the divisions in Europe caused by his predecessors.
0:50:25 > 0:50:30Columbanus made clear how he felt the Pope could become a better,
0:50:30 > 0:50:32and purer, leader.
0:50:34 > 0:50:38Tell me about this letter that Columbanus wrote from here
0:50:38 > 0:50:41to the Pope. What makes Columbanus thinks he has the right to speak
0:50:41 > 0:50:43- like this to the Pope? - Columbanus believes that,
0:50:43 > 0:50:48if you have a leader who is more concerned about material things,
0:50:48 > 0:50:51about wealth, about status,
0:50:51 > 0:50:55about prestige - either personal prestige or institutional wealth,
0:50:55 > 0:51:00status and prestige - that leader is courting disaster,
0:51:00 > 0:51:04because that leader will take his eye off the ball.
0:51:04 > 0:51:09He won't need his people, he will be more interested in wealth and power
0:51:09 > 0:51:13and prestige. What Columbanus calls on the Bishop of Rome to do
0:51:13 > 0:51:15is to keep his eye on what really matters, which is about unity,
0:51:15 > 0:51:17about spiritual leadership,
0:51:17 > 0:51:22to turn away from Earthly concerns. Then, and only then, can he give
0:51:22 > 0:51:23heroic, true leadership.
0:51:32 > 0:51:38Columbanus had very clear views about what made for good leadership.
0:51:38 > 0:51:44A good leader was principled, prepared to sacrifice,
0:51:44 > 0:51:48a person who gave service, was not interested in self-service.
0:51:48 > 0:51:51With that kind of leadership, you could build trust,
0:51:51 > 0:51:56you could build hope, you could lead people to a better place.
0:52:01 > 0:52:02According to tradition,
0:52:02 > 0:52:07Columbanus' own journey through life ended at the cave he used
0:52:07 > 0:52:12as a retreat here in Bobbio 1,400 years ago,
0:52:12 > 0:52:14on the 23rd of November, 615.
0:52:21 > 0:52:26This beautiful tomb is the final resting place of Columbanus.
0:52:26 > 0:52:32It's a very respectful and lovely memorial to a remarkable man,
0:52:32 > 0:52:36but it's not the legacy or the memorial that Columbanus
0:52:36 > 0:52:40would have wished. What he wished for is that the seeds
0:52:40 > 0:52:45of his thinking would gather momentum through the generations,
0:52:45 > 0:52:48transforming how we relate to each other.
0:52:54 > 0:52:59Columbanus was buried here in the crypt of the monastery he founded,
0:52:59 > 0:53:01now the Basilica in Bobbio.
0:53:03 > 0:53:071,400 years later, these buildings are no longer part of the monastery.
0:53:07 > 0:53:12They are, however, used as a school for the young people of Bobbio.
0:53:13 > 0:53:16Do you think Columbanus' ideas...
0:53:16 > 0:53:20SHE SPEAKS ITALIAN
0:53:22 > 0:53:24ALL: Yes.
0:53:24 > 0:53:28You are all young Europeans. When you become a mother
0:53:28 > 0:53:33or a father, will you teach your children about Columbanus?
0:53:33 > 0:53:36Will you tell them about Columbanus?
0:53:36 > 0:53:37ALL: Yes.
0:53:37 > 0:53:43Let us take five words that are about Columbanus.
0:53:45 > 0:53:47- Respecto.- Respecto. Respect.
0:53:47 > 0:53:49- Honesty.- Honesty.
0:53:49 > 0:53:52- Amour.- Love.- Peace.- Peace.
0:53:52 > 0:53:54Faith.
0:53:54 > 0:53:55Faith.
0:53:55 > 0:53:56- ALL:- Courage.
0:53:56 > 0:53:58- Courage. ALL:- Courage.
0:54:01 > 0:54:04'I suppose it is no surprise that the children here'
0:54:04 > 0:54:09are fascinated by the history of Columbanus,
0:54:09 > 0:54:13but what I find striking is how important he is to them,
0:54:13 > 0:54:17what an inspiration he is to them today.
0:54:19 > 0:54:23I can't imagine that Irish schoolchildren would be able to talk
0:54:23 > 0:54:26about this remarkable Irish saint with the same level of knowledge
0:54:26 > 0:54:31and passion. That is a great pity and a sign that there is important work
0:54:31 > 0:54:34to be done to re-establish Columbanus' legacy
0:54:34 > 0:54:36in his native land.
0:54:45 > 0:54:501,400 years after his death, the wild-haired Irish monk,
0:54:50 > 0:54:56with his radical ideas, spirituality, scholarship and fearlessness,
0:54:56 > 0:54:57continues to inspire.
0:54:59 > 0:55:02But where did his inspiration come from?
0:55:04 > 0:55:07I think I am still searching for the key to Columbanus.
0:55:07 > 0:55:10- What would you say that key is? - It is actually pretty simple.
0:55:10 > 0:55:16His principles are about harmony and diversity and his ideas go back
0:55:16 > 0:55:17way beyond Christianity.
0:55:17 > 0:55:21People in the ancient world saw tremendous variety and tremendous
0:55:21 > 0:55:25diversity in the world about them and Columbanus takes over
0:55:25 > 0:55:28these ideas and talks about the diversity among human communities,
0:55:28 > 0:55:29among peoples, among nations.
0:55:29 > 0:55:33If they work together in peace and in harmony,
0:55:33 > 0:55:35it makes life possible for everybody.
0:55:35 > 0:55:37He uses the image of a choir, doesn't he?
0:55:37 > 0:55:40The image of the choir was popular in political rhetoric
0:55:40 > 0:55:43of the ancient world - different people singing different notes
0:55:43 > 0:55:45in polyphony - people of different registers,
0:55:45 > 0:55:49people with different abilities. But the result is a harmonious sound.
0:55:51 > 0:55:55CHOIR SINGS HARMONY
0:56:02 > 0:56:07A choir is a very powerful image for conveying Columbanus' philosophy
0:56:07 > 0:56:09of harmony in diversity.
0:56:09 > 0:56:13CHOIR CONTINUES TO SING
0:56:13 > 0:56:19In Columbanus' view, sameness and monotony were boring and banal...
0:56:20 > 0:56:23..and diversity was to be celebrated.
0:56:23 > 0:56:26CHOIR CONTINUES TO SING
0:56:26 > 0:56:30The variety of different voices makes the whole stronger.
0:56:30 > 0:56:33CHOIR CONTINUES TO SING
0:56:46 > 0:56:49Columbanus never made it to Rome,
0:56:49 > 0:56:54but his ideas certainly did and they still offer solutions
0:56:54 > 0:56:56in today's fragile Europe.
0:56:56 > 0:56:59Although modern technology and globalisation
0:56:59 > 0:57:05are bringing us closer together, we remain fearful of difference -
0:57:05 > 0:57:09of religion, nationality, culture, even of sexuality.
0:57:11 > 0:57:16Columbanus' story suggests that we should embrace and learn from
0:57:16 > 0:57:21these differences and recognise the common humanity which unites us.
0:57:21 > 0:57:25Being open to the other benefits us as individuals
0:57:25 > 0:57:27and as a society.
0:57:33 > 0:57:37What Columbanus is telling us is that the peoples of this very,
0:57:37 > 0:57:43very diverse Europe have nothing to lose and everything to gain
0:57:43 > 0:57:46by working well together.
0:57:48 > 0:57:52By learning from Columbanus, our first European,
0:57:52 > 0:57:56through harnessing our national and European identities
0:57:56 > 0:57:58and pulling together,
0:57:58 > 0:58:02it seems to me, the problems of Europe can be solved.
0:58:04 > 0:58:10There is a line in the poem Wound, which speaks of a fabric
0:58:10 > 0:58:13stitched and toughened in its down.
0:58:13 > 0:58:15That is Columbanus' Europe -
0:58:15 > 0:58:20a patchwork quilt of different peoples and histories,
0:58:20 > 0:58:23painstakingly stitched together -
0:58:23 > 0:58:25and all the stronger for the stitching.