Finan of Lindisfarne, St.
FINAN OF LINDISFARNE, ST.
Monk and bishop; d. Aug. 31, 661. He is called in Irish Fínán mac Rímedo and almost certainly was a native of Ireland. He was a monk at the Abbey of iona before he succeeded aidan as bishop of lindisfarne, probably in 651. He set about extending the faith outside Northumbria and baptized Kings Peada (d. 656) of the Middle Angles and Sigebert (fl. 616–658) of the East Saxons. Later, he appointed bishops for their kingdoms: Diuma (d. 658) to the Middle Angles and cedd, an Anglo-Saxon, to the East Saxons. At Lindisfarne he built a church, more Scottorum, a wooden structure with a thatched roof. He was an intransigent upholder of Celtic customs until his death. Pope leo xiii extended his feast to the Scottish Church in 1898.
Feast: Jan. 19 (formerly Feb. 17).
Bibliography: bede, Ecclesiatical History: The Annals of Ulster, ed. and tr. w. m. hennessy and b. maccarthy, 4 v. (Dublin 1887–1901) v.1, under year 659. The Martyrology of Tallaght, ed. r. i. best and h. j. lawlor (H. Bradshaw Soc. 68; London 1931) 6. A Dictionary of Christian Biography, ed. w. smith and h. wace, (London 1877–87) 2:516. l. gougaud, Christianity in Celtic Lands, tr. m. joynt (London 1932) 138. The Dictionary of National Biography From the Earliest Times to 1900 (London 1885–1900) 6:1305–06. g. bardy, Catholicisme 4:1313. j. o'hanlon, Lives of the Irish Saints, 8 v. (New York) 2:610.
[c. mcgrath]