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  July Saints

Discover Scotland's Saints, some are well known, but most of the rest will not be. Piecing together the lives of these early Catholics in Scotland is not easy and is beset by legend, poor translations and often quite scant information. However, there is much to learn, not least it tells us something about the people who venerated these men and women. 

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St Serf | 5th or 6th Century?

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July 1st 

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Please click on the button below to take you to more information on St Serf of Culross.

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St Palladius, 430AD

 

July 6th

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At the restoration of the Scottish hierarchy in 1878, in his bull he noted: 'deacon of the Roman Church, is said to have preached the Faith of Christ there (in Scotland) in the fifth century." The history of this saint is difficult to pin down other than the certainty we have that he founded three Churches around Fordun and died in this north eastern district of Scotland. Some sources stated he was Egyptian and was sent by Pope Celestine to deal with Pelagianism in the British Churches, others that he was from Gaul and part of a Gallician mission. What does seem likely is that he was sent from Rome, first to Ireland where it was reported he had some difficulties and then either fleeing or giving up and made his way round the northern coast of Scotland landing near Fordun. He apparently ran into St Serf an ordained him the Roman way. He seems to have spent a lot of his time bringing the Christians already present amongst the Picts in line with Roman practices. Some sources say he was martyred in Scotland, others that he simply died. He is mentioned by Prosper of Aquitaine and St Patrick. 

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St Drostan, 6th Century

12th July

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St Thenew/Thenog

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18th July

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The information for our Saint comes from the life of St Kentigern by Jocelyn of Furness, a Cistercian monk of the 12th century who had been commissioned by Jocelyn of Glasgow, another Cistercian and Bishop of Glasgow who was very keen on Saints hagiographies. J. of Furness also wrote a life of St Patrick and St Waltheof (a previous Abbot of Melrose). 

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There is much legendary material surrounding her, but the key one is that she was the mother of St kentigern. Please read more on our page about St kentigern below.

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