St. Samthann was born in the second half of the seventh century in the present-day province of Ulster in Ireland. The earliest life of the holy woman was written several decades after her repose. Trustworthy versions of her life have survived, including one in Latin. She is also mentioned in the Martyrology of Tallacht and the Monastery of Tallacht.
According to one tradition, St. Samthann was distantly related to St. Patrick who lived over 200 years before her. As a child she was given to the Irish king Cridan to be brought up. When Samthann grew up, the king found her a suitable, rich candidate as a husband. But the future ascetic did not wish to marry, but rather to live in chastity, prayer and service to God. However, the king did not take her refusal seriously and began to prepare for her marriage. The night before the wedding, Samthann’s bridegroom woke up because of a supernatural light that had broken through the roof of the fortress. He got up and decided to look at this mysterious glow. The bridegroom came to the young girl’s bedroom and saw how a beam of light touched her and lit up her face with an unearthly radiance. Having understood this vision as the will of God, both the bridegroom and the king decided to allow Samthann to devote her life to service to the true Bridegroom, Christ.
Thus, St. Samthann became a nun and for some time stayed at a convent in Tyrone or Donegal. Her spiritual mother in one of them was probably St. Cognat. Later the saint moved to the convent of Clonbroney to the south of the present-day town of Longford (the main town of the county with the same name in the Leinster province of the Republic of Ireland). Tradition says that the previous Abbess of Clonbroney had a vision just before St. Samthann came and was told that a future great and holy abbess was arriving. Thus, Samthann was already expected by the abbess when she came. Soon St. Samthann did indeed become Abbess of Clonbroney. According to another version, Samthann was not only abbess but also foundress of the convent. It is also possible that the convent had existed as early as the age of St. Patrick and St. Samthann only restored it.
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“The bridegroom came to the young girl’s bedroom and saw how a beam of light touched her and lit up her face with an unearthly radiance.”
Radiant beams from thy Holy Face.~
Thanks for this story.
I appreciate the artists of the day and wondered about the anchor.
“Hope” was my first thought.
How important that Hope.
Securing us to the Sacred Heart in all storms that threaten our hope, our peace.