And they remained thus till morning; and then Brendan sought permission to depart; but the saint did not grant it him, but said: “Thou must remain with us till we celebrate the coming Christmas, that you may console us with the octave of Epiphany.” Brendan and his company remained for this period in the island of Ailbe (sic).
– The Life of Brendan of Clonfert
So continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved
– Acts 2.46, 47
It doesn’t take much
Brendan, not wanting to wear out his welcome, determined to take leave of the Procurator (as the abbot comes to be known hereafter) and his community shortly after their brief time of refreshment. But common courtesy required that he request permission of his host to leave. He did, but his request was denied. The Procurator insisted that they stay on the island with them until Christmas and Epiphany (eight days later).
Most of these 6th-century Irish monasteries had no wealth or prized possessions. The glorious art that would flourish from the period of the Celtic Revival would only come later. For now, it was meager fare, day by day, in nearly every monastic community. To host a company of fourteen visitors would have been a considerable challenge. Where to house them? How to find enough food for all? How to keep these adventuring sailors from becoming bored with the rhythms and routines of community life?
The monks rose to the challenge. Each monk lived in a small, private cell—usually a wattle hut, but sometimes, as at Skellig Michael, made of stone. The monks, without hesitation, opened their cells to their guests and deferred to their needs at every turn.
Like the people in the early church, these monks had learned the beauty of community and hospitality, and they must have known true joy at being able to serve Brendan and his crew.
It doesn’t take much to exercise hospitality to others. Just a willing heart and a ready sense of self-denial to serve others in Jesus’ Name.
The Island of Ailbe
The name “Ailbe” appears in two places in the literature from the period of the Celtic Revival. The first is the name of an abbot—Ailbe of Emly—whose presence and work in Ireland predated the ministry of Patrick. By the time Patrick arrived in Ireland, around 430 AD, Abbot Ailbe already had a flourishing ministry of evangelism and disciple-making, albeit limited in scope. Ailbe’s ministry created a kind of Kingdom beachhead from which Patrick would launch out to evangelize nearly all of Ireland.
It is perhaps possible that Ailbe sent out missionaries from his community to carry the Gospel to far parts. Tim Severin points out that archaeological digs have shown that the first people to inhabit the Faroe Islands and other nearby islands were Irish missionaries. I find it altogether possible that a team of such evangelists might have settled on a distant northern island and, remembering their debt to their abbot in Ireland, named the island after him: Ailbe. Because little in the way of evangelism was required on these remote islands, the monks took to prayer and manual labor, believing God had sent them for a reason and determined to stay and do the work of the Lord.
And it may have been for such a time as this—Brendan’s arrival —that this community was raised. Other voyagers like Brendan would follow after him, and there is evidence, though slight, that some may have preceded him as well. The men of Ailbe were a community committed to serving the Lord and doing whatever He appointed for them in serving His saints.
And among those appointments and callings was the exercise of hospitality, an important gift and ministry in any community of the followers of Jesus Christ.
For Reflection
1. How have you benefitted from the hospitality shown you by other believers?
2. How will you show hospitality to someone today, and pass along the abundant lovingkindness of the Lord?
Psalm 86.4-6
(Andrews: Praise, My Soul, the King of Heaven)
Lift up my soul, fill me with gladness;
LORD, You are good, You will soon forgive.
Show me abundant lovingkindness;
let all who call on You ever live.
LORD, be gracious to me, LORD, be gracious to me,
heed to my poor pleading give.
T. M. Moore
If you have found this meditation helpful, take a moment and give thanks to God. Then share what you learned with a friend. This is how the grace of God spreads (2 Cor. 4.15).
Other columns of interest this week: Our Read Moore podcast finishes the book Understanding the Times to help us in knowing how to live and proclaim the Kingdom. Our ReVision series, “The Kingdom Economy”, continues to unpack the secrets of the Kingdom. And new in our bookstore, our book, The Ongoing Work of Christ shows us how the book of Acts provides a template and footprint for all who take up the work of building Jesus’ Church.
And please prayerfully consider supporting The Fellowship of Ailbe with your prayers and gifts. You can contribute online, via PayPal or Anedot, or by sending a gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, P. O. Box 8213, Essex, VT 05451.
Except as indicated, all Scriptures are taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. For sources of all quotations, see the weekly PDF of this study. All psalms for singing are from The Ailbe Psalter.
