Columcille (521 - 597AD)

Church remains in Donegal

Columcille (otherwise known as Columba) was born in Donegal Ireland in 521 AD, he was the great-grandson of a 5th century Irish King.  Columcille was baptized in his local parish during a period of time where Christianity was sweeping across the country.

Columcille moved to Clonard Abbey to become a monk, where he studied with many others and he became known as one of the Twelve Apostles of Ireland.  He was ordained as a priest and he went on to set up monasteries at Kells, Derry and Swords.

Later in his life, an argument over the rights to a copy of the Book of Psalms resulted in a battle in 561, confronted at a gathering of clerics he exiled himself from Ireland.  From there he went with twelve companions to Scotland, eventually settling on the island of Iona off the west coast.  From this base he attempted to convert pagans and Kings.  He founded churches in Scotland and transcribed over 300 hundred books, he also wrote hymns and letters.  Towards the end of his life, he decided to return to Ireland and founded a monastery at Durrow, where he later died at the age of 75.

The main source of information about Columcille is in books by Adomnan(d.704), the ninth abbot of Iona.  These books contain details of his prophecies, his miracles that he performed and the apparitions that he saw during his life.

Some of his prophecies are quite distinct, foretelling the outcome of conflicts and so on, but others are short parables.  The miracles include healing people, subduing wild beasts, control over weather and storms, fighting evil spirits, and even raising the dead.  His actions to save a man from a river monster earned him fame, yet this is considered to be the source of the Loch Ness monster story, as he performed this miracle at the River Ness.

Joseph (est.1886-1806 B.C.)

Joseph was born in Syria and had eleven brothers Rueben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Issachar, Zebulun, Gad, Asher, Benjamin, Dan and Naphtali.  Joseph was son of Jacob, son of Isaac, son of Abraham.

By 17 he was his father's favourite and they were living in Canaan, he would have many dreams foretelling the future, yet his brother scorned him so they faked his death and sold him to slavery to a caravan coming from Gilead, where he ended up being sold in Egypt

He rose from slave to house assistant but his owner's wife tried to seduce him and then told lies and Joseph ended up in prison, where he interprets dreams for people, two years later he is called to interpret the king of Egypts dream; He say that a seven year famine is on the way, and Joseph is put in charge of all the officials.  His brothers come to buy food, and they do not recognize Joseph as speaks in Egyptian and he tricks them all to come to Egypt so that he can reveal his identity.

Gen44:5 states that he uses a silver cup to "learn about the future"

So his father and brothers and their families come to live in Egypt to avoid death during the famine, stopping at Beersheba to offer sacrifices.  Joseph went on to trade food for all things and by the end of the famine he owned all of the land and animals and most people were his slaves.  He went on to have two sons Ephraim and Manasseh.  Joseph died at the age of 110 and he was embalmed, later his bones were taken by Moses when the exile occurred so that he could be buried in the land of Canaan.