St. Malachy of Armagh, 1095-1148
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Malachy O'More was born in 1095 in Armagh, County Down. St.
Celsus ordained Malachy at age 25. In 1123, Malachy's uncle, the lay abbot of
Bangor, resigned in favor of Malachy. Bangor lay in ruins and Malachy set about
to restore it.
In 1125, he was chosen Bishop of Connor and Down. The diocese had
suffered greatly from the Danish invasions and many were Christian in name only.
Malachy set to work teaching and proclaiming the Gospel; he inspired the people
to a renewed faith and reception of the Sacraments. He established a seminary
and restored churches.
In 1129, on his deathbed, Celsus named Malachy to succeed
him as Archbishop of Armagh. However, Armagh had been hereditary for generations
and Celsus' family installed his cousin, Murtagh as Archbishop. To avoid
confrontation, Malachy refused to occupy the see.
In 1132, Malachy assumed
pastoral and spiritual care of the Armagh upon the direct command of the papal
legate, but left the revenues and temporal care to Murtagh. When Murtagh died in
1134 after naming Celsus' brother, Niall, to succeed him, armed conflict broke
out. Niall's allies invited Malachy to a conference planning to murder him.
Malachy so disarmed the group with his dignity and courage that peace was
restored and Malachy became undisputed Archbishop. He restored discipline and
peace, then as promised, resigned. He ordained a successor as Archbishop and
became bishop of Down. In
1137, Malachy set out for Rome. On the way, he stayed
at Clairvaux and became friends with St. Bernard. When he arrived in Rome,
Malachy tried to resign and become a monk at Clairvaux, but Pope Innocent II
refused and instead appointed him Papal Legate to Ireland.
In 1148, the Irish
Bishops sent Malachy to Rome to make a formal petition to the Pope. Malachy
stopped at Clairvaux. He was stricken with a fever and died in Bernard's arms on
November 2nd. Malachy was buried at Clairvaux and Bernard was later buried
beside him. Malachy was canonized by Pope Clement III in 1190, the first papal
canonization of an Irish saint.
The so-called "Prophecies of Malachy"
were supposedly revealed to Malachy during his visit to Rome and
presented by him to Pope Innocent II. They are not accepted as authentic
by scholars. |
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"Malachy performed many miracles, but the first and greatest was
himself."
St. Bernard of Clairvaux
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