Lorica (prayer)

Last updated

In the Irish (Hiberno-Scottish) monastic tradition, a lorica is a prayer recited for protection. It is essentially a 'protection prayer' in which the petitioner invokes all the power of God as a safeguard against evil in its many forms.

Contents

The Latin word lōrīca originally meant "armour" (body armor, in the sense of chainmail or cuirass). The idea underlying the name is probably derived from Ephesians 6:14, where Paul bids his readers stand, "having put on the breast-plate of righteousness,". [1] The Greek word here translated as "breast-plate" is θώραξ, in the Vulgata version rendered lorica.

Invocation

Similar to a litany, the lorica often listed whose protection was requested. "Gabriel be my breastplate, Michael be my belt, Raphael be my shield..." [2]

Notable loricas include Rob tu mo bhoile, a Comdi cride, which in its English translation provides the text for the hymn Be Thou My Vision , the Lorica of Laidcenn, and the Lorica of Gildas.

Lorica of St Patrick

The Lorica of Saint Patrick, begins:

I arise today
Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,
Through a belief in the Threeness,
Through confession of the Oneness
Of the Creator of creation.

Linguists cannot trace this lorica back further than the eighth century, which raises the question of whether it was based on an earlier poem dating back to the time of St. Patrick (fifth century), or whether it was actually completely unknown to the saint to whom it has been ascribed. [3]

Lorica of St Fursey (or Fursa)

The Lorica of St Fursa dates from the early seventh century and is still a popular prayer in Ireland. The original text of the Fursey Lorica is held in the British Library. The translation, from Old Irish and German, was made by Fr Francis Mullaghy CSSR and Fr Richard Tobin CSSR, for use in St Joseph's Monastery, Dundalk, County Louth. This Lorica translation is quoted by John Ó Ríordáin (3) and begins:

The arms of God be around my shoulders,
The touch of the Holy Spirit upon my head,
The sign of Christ’s cross upon my forehead,
The sound of the Holy Spirit in my ears,

Caim

A "caim" is similar to a lorica, being a type of protection prayer. The word "caim" possibly derives from Scottish Gaelic as listed in the Carmina Gadelica meaning "loop, curve, circle, or sanctuary". [4] English lexicographer Edward Dwelly's dictionary of Scottish Gaelic lists "sf Stain, blot, fault. 2(AC) Loop, curve, circle, sanctuary, guard, imaginary circle described with the hand round himself by a person in fear, danger or distress." [5]

The Carmina Gadelica does not contain liturgical rubrics, nor is there a ritual action described that accompanies the prayer. However, one usage of a caim prayer involves the creation of an invisible circle around the self with the index finger while the individual turns round. [6] [7]

One prayer that is used can be found in the Carmina Gadelic with additions, and by tradition is often attributed to St. Columba:

Be to me a bright flame before me
Be to me a guiding star above me,
Be to me a smooth path below me,
Be to me a kind shepherd behind me,
Today, tonight, and forever. [8] [9]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Imbolc</span> Gaelic festival marking the start of spring

Imbolc or Imbolg, also called Saint Brigid's Day, is a Gaelic traditional festival. It marks the beginning of spring, and for Christians, it is the feast day of Saint Brigid, Ireland's patroness saint. Its traditional date is 1 February, about halfway between the winter solstice and the spring equinox. Historically, its traditions were widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. Imbolc is one of the four Gaelic seasonal festivals, along with: Beltane, Lughnasadh and Samhain.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gildas</span> British monk, writer and saint (c. 500 – c. 570)

Gildas — also known as Gildas Badonicus, Gildas fab Caw and Gildas Sapiens — was a 6th-century British monk best known for his scathing religious polemic De Excidio et Conquestu Britanniae, which recounts the history of the Britons before and during the coming of the Saxons. He is one of the best-documented figures of the Christian church in the British Isles during the sub-Roman period, and was renowned for his Biblical knowledge and literary style. In his later life, he emigrated to Brittany where he founded a monastery known as Saint-Gildas-de-Rhuys.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brigid</span> Gaelic goddess

Brigid or Brigit, also Bríg, is a goddess of pre-Christian Ireland. She appears in Irish mythology as a member of the Tuatha Dé Danann, the daughter of the Dagda and wife of Bres, with whom she had a son named Ruadán.

The Culdees were members of ascetic Christian monastic and eremitical communities of Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England in the Middle Ages. Appearing first in Ireland and then in Scotland, subsequently attached to cathedral or collegiate churches; they lived in monastic fashion though not taking monastic vows.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Brigid of Kildare</span> Irish abbess and saint (c. 451 – 525)

Saint Brigid of Kildare or Saint Brigid of Ireland is the patroness saint of Ireland, and one of its three national saints along with Patrick and Columba. According to medieval Irish hagiographies, she was an abbess who founded the important abbey of Kildare, as well as several other convents of nuns. There are few historical facts about her, and her hagiographies are mainly anecdotes and miracle tales, some of which are rooted in pagan folklore. They say Brigid was the daughter of a chieftain and a slave woman, and was raised in a druid's household before becoming a consecrated virgin. She is patroness of many things, including poetry, learning, healing, protection, blacksmithing, livestock and dairy production. In her honour, a perpetual fire was kept burning at Kildare for centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Be Thou My Vision</span> Christian hymn

"Be Thou My Vision" is a traditional Christian hymn of Irish origin. The words are based on a Middle Irish poem that has traditionally been attributed to Dallán Forgaill.

Sunwise, sunward or deasil, are terms meaning to go clockwise or in the direction of the sun, as seen from the northern hemisphere. The opposite term is widdershins, or tuathal .. In Scottish culture, this turning direction is also considered auspicious, while the converse is true for counter-clockwise motion.

<i>Carmina Gadelica</i>

Carmina Gadelica is a compendium of prayers, hymns, charms, incantations, blessings, literary-folkloric poems and songs, proverbs, lexical items, historical anecdotes, natural history observations, and miscellaneous lore gathered in the Gaelic-speaking regions of Scotland between 1860 and 1909. The material was recorded, translated, and reworked by the exciseman and folklorist Alexander Carmichael (1832–1912).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Scottish mythology</span> Mythologies of Scotland

Scottish mythology is the collection of myths that have emerged throughout the history of Scotland, sometimes being elaborated upon by successive generations, and at other times being rejected and replaced by other explanatory narratives.

Brehon is a term for a historical arbitration, mediative and judicial role in Gaelic culture. Brehons were part of the system of Early Irish law, which was also simply called "Brehon law". Brehons were judges, close in importance to the chiefs.

The bean-nighe is a female spirit in Scottish folklore, regarded as an omen of death and a messenger from the Otherworld. She is a type of ban-sìth that haunts desolate streams and washes the clothing of those who are about to die. Les Lavandières is the French word under which these "night washerwomen" are perhaps best known. She is also called nigheag, 'the little washer', nigheag na h-ath, 'little washer of the ford', or nigheag bheag a bhroin, 'little washer of the sorrow'.

Laidcenn mac Buith Bannaig or Laidcend mac Baíth Bandaig was a monastic scholar at Cluain Ferta Mo-Lua in northern Osraige. The name is also sometimes spelled "Lathcen."

"Saint Patrick's Breastplate" is an Old Irish prayer of protection of the "lorica" type attributed to Saint Patrick.

Dr John Lorne Campbell FRSE LLD OBE was a Scottish historian, farmer, environmentalist and folklorist, and recognized scholar of both Celtic studies and Scottish Gaelic literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alexander Carmichael</span> Scottish exciseman, folklorist, antiquarian and author

Alexander Carmichael was a Scottish exciseman, folklorist, antiquarian, and author. Between 1860 and his death Carmichael collected a vast amount of folklore, local traditions, natural history observations, antiquarian data, and material objects from people throughout the Scottish Highlands, particularly in the southern Outer Hebrides where he lived, worked, and brought up his family between 1864 and 1882. Alexander Carmichael is best known today for Carmina Gadelica, an influential but controversial compendium of edited Highland lore and literature published in six volumes between 1900 and 1971.

The caoineag is a female spirit in Scottish folklore and a type of Highland banshee, her name meaning "weeper". She is normally invisible and foretells death in her clan by lamenting in the night at a waterfall, stream or Loch, or in a glen or on a mountainside. Unlike the related death portent known as the bean nighe, the caoineag cannot be approached, questioned, or made to grant wishes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Michael in the Catholic Church</span> Catholic saint

Saint Michael the Archangel is referenced in the Old Testament and has been part of Christian teachings since the earliest times. In Catholic writings and traditions he acts as the defender of the Church and chief opponent of Satan, and assists people at the hour of death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saining</span> Scots word for blessing, protecting or consecrating

Saining is a Scots word for blessing, protecting, or consecrating. Sain is cognate with the Irish and Scottish Gaelic seun and sian and the Old Irish sén - "a protective charm."

<i>The Deers Cry</i> (Pärt) Motet by Arvo Pärt

The Deer's Cry is a sacred motet by Arvo Pärt, set to text from a traditional Irish lorica for a four-part choir a cappella. He composed the piece on a commission from the Irish Louth Contemporary Music Society. It was published by Universal Edition in 2007 and first performed in Louth, Ireland, in February 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ella Carmichael</span> Scottish editor and scholar

Elizabeth Catherine "Ella" Carmichael, also known after 1906 as Mrs. W. J. Watson, was a Scottish editor and scholar, remembered as a supporter of the Scottish Gaelic language.

References

  1. Gildae Lorica (The Lorica of Gildas). 1899. p. 289-293.
  2. Jungmann, Joseph A.; Irvine, Christopher, eds. (2008). "Lorica". Christian Prayer through the Centuries. Translated by Coyne, John. United States: Paulist Press International. ISBN   978-0809144648.
  3. Davis, Courtney; Gill, Elaine; O'Neill, Dennis (1999). "St Patrick's Breastplate". Saint Patrick: A Visual Celebration. Blandford Press. p. 31. ISBN   978-0713726749.
  4. Carmichael, Alexander (1900). Carmina Gadelica | Hymns and Incantations | with illustrative notes on words, rites, and customs, dying and obsolete. Vol. 2. p. 236.
  5. Dwelly, Edward (1902). Carmina Gadelica [Gaelic Dictionary] (in Scottish Gaelic). Ardmore: MacDonald & Co. p. 149.
  6. Br. Jesse T. Alexander IV (31 January 2013). "Spiritual Formation Thursday: Celtic Circle/Caim Prayer". Learning From the Saints. Retrieved 11 February 2024.[ self-published source ]
  7. "A Practice from the Celtic Tradition". Solas Bhríde Centre and Hermitages. 31 March 2020. Retrieved 11 February 2024.
  8. Carmichael, Alexander (1900). Carmina Gadelica. Vol. 1. p. 48-49.
  9. Manser, Martin H., ed. (2001). The Westminster Collection of Christian Quotations. United States: Westminster/John Knox Press. ISBN   978-0664222581.

Further reading