Celtic Advent December 16th St. Beoc
St Beoc, who is also known at Dabheog, was a disciple of St. Patrick from the 5th century AD. He is the patron saint of Lough Derg in Donegal and purportedly the founder of a monastery there.
There are a few stories that one can find about saints named Beoc. Most were written down in the late 1800's or early 1900's so their veracity is suspect and I am uncertain if they relate to the Beoc from today. One talks about a St. Beoc of the 5th century from Wexford, who spent time in a cell in southeast Ireland. He would stare out at the sea longing to visit Brittany. His prayers were granted when the rock he was standing on broke off, floated into the sea and carried him to Brittany (scaring the local sailors in the process). Another book about the area describes Beoc as "spending his whole life, as the other saints in Ireland, in battle with his own soul." (St. Patrick's Purgatory, Shane Leslie, 1917)
This last quote ties in with one of the histories that I found most interesting. Beoc was entrusted by St. Patrick with guarding the nearby site known at "St. Patrick's Purgatory," on Station Island. There is a legend that St. Patrick was having troubles either converting people or keeping new converts on the straight and narrow. He prayed about this and was told that to help him out, God created a cave that gave a direct view of Hell, so that people staring into it would be scared and saved. It was a pilgrimage site in Ireland for many centuries and still has a monument on it today, although the entrance to the cave has been closed for some time.
This story and the preceding quote about "battling with his own soul," reminded me about my preconceptions about saints: that they are somehow beyond the battles with temptation that confront those of us mere non-saintly humans. But that is far from the case. In fact, as I think about it, a large number of the saints were examples that we often must struggle with temptation even more once we have made the decision to follow in Christ's foot steps. I think of St. Anthony struggling with "demons" in the desert for example.
If I have had a particularly "great" day spiritually, a deep period of contemplative prayer, or a day filled with peace and oneness with creation, then there seems to be a pattern where shortly after I am placed in a situation of "broken-ness". Maybe this is something minor like being tempted to overdose on chocolate (last night it was waffle fries covered with green chili), or maybe something more relational, like constantly feeling irritable towards my co-workers for a day or 2 for inexplicable reasons. The best I can do in these situations is just surrender my mood, my yearnings to Christ.
We are approaching the darkest time of the year. I, for one, need the knowledge and hope of the incarnation, to keep me on the path I have chose. Although I don't particularly want to descend into a cave for a vision of hell, I am hoping that reading about saints like Beoc will help me in my seasonal pilgrimage and beyond.
Lord, I really want, this Advent season, to keep focused on You. I want to embrace the Christmas spirit of Love and Peace. Help me to however avoid the stress of the soul that this season can also bring, with the tendency to become frustrated and irritable. Thank you for the examples of your saints and their struggles. They help a lot. Amen
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