Saint Serf: Difference between revisions

Saint Serf
Saint Serf
Born	c. 500
Died	c. 583
Venerated in	Eastern Orthodox Church; Roman Catholic Church; Scottish Episcopal Church
Feast	1 July

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Saint Serf or Serbán (Servanus) (c. 500 – c. 583) is a saint of Scotland. Serf was venerated in western Fife. He is called the apostle of Orkney, with less historical plausibility. Saint Serf is connected with Saint Mungo's Church near Simonburn, Northumberland (off the Bellingham Road, north of Chollerford). His feast day is 1 July.

Legends

David Hugh Farmer wrote that the legend of Serf is "a farrago of wild impossibilities"^[1] stating that Serf was the son of Eliud, King of Canaan, and his wife Alphia, daughter of a King of Arabia. Childless for a long time, they at last had two sons: the second was Serf. Serf came to Rome, carrying with him such a reputation for sanctity that he was elected and served as Pope for seven years.

He travelled to Gaul and Britain after vacating the Holy See, returning to Scotland. There, he met Adomnán, Abbot of Iona, who showed him an island in Loch Leven (later called St Serf's Inch).^[2] At the time, this island was part of the Pictish kingdom of Fib (Fife). Serf founded the eponymous St Serf's Inch Priory on the island, where he remained seven years. The priory was a community of Augustinian canons. It was founded from St. Andrews Cathedral Priory at the initiation of King David I of Scotland in 1150. From the 15th century onwards the priory began to be referred to as "Portmoak". After more than four centuries of Augustinian monastic life, the first Protestant king of Scots, James VI of Scotland, granted the priory to St Leonard's College, St Andrews. Today, there are only a small amount of remains left of the priory.

The centre of his ministry (and possibly of his activity) was Culross, which according to tradition, was founded by the saint. At Dunning, in Strathearn, he is said to have slain a dragon with his pastoral staff.

"Finally, after many miracles, after divine virtues, after founding many churches, [Saint Serf], having given his peace to the brethren, yielded up his spirit in his cell at Dunning, on the first day of the Kalends of July; and his disciples and the people of the province take his body to Cuilenross [Culross], and there, with psalms and hymns and canticles, he was honourably buried."^[3]

Serf and Mungo

Saint Serf is said to have been a contemporary of Saint Mungo, also known as Saint Kentigern, though he could not have lived at the same time as both Adomnán and Mungo.

A legend states that when the British princess (and future saint) Theneva (Thenaw) became pregnant before marriage, her family threw her from a cliff. She survived the fall unharmed, and was soon met by an unmanned boat. She knew she had no home to go to, so she boarded the boat; it sailed her across the Firth of Forth to land at Culross where she was cared for by Saint Serf; he became foster-father of her son, Saint Kentigern (Saint Mungo).^[4]

Another legend states that Mungo restored a pet robin of Serf's to life. The bird had been killed by some of his classmates who had planned to blame him for its death.

Churches

Saint Serf is a relatively common dedication for churches in Fife, Edinburgh and Central Scotland.

The name also attaches to schools in the area.

Notes

^ Farmer, David Hugh (1978). The Oxford dictionary of saints. Clarendon Press. p. 354.
^ Simon Taylor, "Seventh-century Iona Abbots in Scottish Places", in Dauvit Broun and Thomas Owen Clancy (eds) Spes Scotorum: Hope of Scots. Saint Columba, Iona and Scotland (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1999), p. 66. This tradition would place Serf's floruit in the late 7th century.
^ History of the Scottish Nation, volume 3,chapter 17 by J.D. Wylie.
^ Hunter-Blair, Oswald. "St. Kentigern." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 6 May 2014

External links

[Farmer1978-1] Farmer, David Hugh (1978). The Oxford dictionary of saints. Clarendon Press. p. 354.

[2] Simon Taylor, "Seventh-century Iona Abbots in Scottish Places", in Dauvit Broun and Thomas Owen Clancy (eds) Spes Scotorum: Hope of Scots. Saint Columba, Iona and Scotland (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1999), p. 66. This tradition would place Serf's floruit in the late 7th century.

[3] History of the Scottish Nation, volume 3,chapter 17 by J.D. Wylie.

[4] Hunter-Blair, Oswald. "St. Kentigern." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 6 May 2014

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[2]

[3]

[4]

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+{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
 {{Infobox saint
 |name= Saint Serf
-|birth_date=~500
+|birth_date={{circa|500}}
-|death_date=~583 AD
+|death_date={{circa|583}}
-|feast_day= July 1
+|feast_day= [[1 July]]
-|venerated_in= [[Scottish Episcopal Church]]
+|venerated_in= [[Eastern Orthodox Church]]<br />
-[[Roman Catholic Church]]
+[[Roman Catholic Church]]<br />
+[[Scottish Episcopal Church]]
 |image=
 |imagesize=
@@ Line 24: / Line 26: @@
 |issues=
 }}
-'''Saint Serf''' or '''Serbán''' (''Servanus'') (ca. 500—d. 583 AD) is a saint of [[Scotland]]. Serf was venerated in western Fife. He is also called the apostle of [[Orkney]], with less historical plausibility.  Saint Serf is also somehow connected with ''Saint Mungo's Church'' near Simonburn, [[Northumberland]] (off the Bellingham Road, north of Chollerford).  His feast day is July 1.
+'''Saint Serf''' or '''Serbán''' (''Servanus'') ({{circa|500|583}}) is a saint of [[Scotland]]. Serf was venerated in western Fife. He is called the apostle of [[Orkney]], with less historical plausibility.  Saint Serf is connected with Saint Mungo's Church near Simonburn, [[Northumberland]] (off the Bellingham Road, north of Chollerford). His feast day is 1 July.
 ==Legends==
 [[Image:Culross, Town House.jpg|thumb|250px|Saint Serf is said to have founded the Scottish town of Culross.]]
-David Hugh Farmer has written that his "Legend is a farrago of wild impossibilities."<ref>David Hugh Farmer, ''The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'' (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1978), 354.</ref> The legend states that Serf was the son of Eliud, King of [[Canaan]], and his wife Alphia, daughter of a King of [[Arabia]]. Childless for a long time, they at last had two sons, the second being Serf.  Serf came to [[Rome]], carrying with him such a reputation for sanctity that he was elected [[pope]], and reigned seven years.
+David Hugh Farmer wrote that the legend of Serf is "a farrago of wild impossibilities"<ref name="Farmer1978">{{cite book|first=David Hugh |last=Farmer|title=The Oxford dictionary of saints|url={{google books |plainurl=y |id=Yy_ZAAAAMAAJ|page=354}}|page=354|year=1978|publisher=Clarendon Press}}</ref> stating that Serf was the son of Eliud, King of [[Canaan]], and his wife Alphia, daughter of a King of [[Arabia]]. Childless for a long time, they at last had two sons: the second was Serf. Serf came to [[Rome]], carrying with him such a reputation for sanctity that he was elected and served as [[Pope]] for seven years.
-He traveled to [[Gaul]] and [[United Kingdom|Britain]] after vacating the holy see, arriving in Scotland.  There he met [[Adomnán of Iona|Adomnán]], [[Abbot of Iona]], who showed him an island in [[Loch Leven]] (later called [[St Serf's Inch]]).<ref>Simon Taylor, "Seventh-century Iona Abbots in Scottish Places", in [[Dauvit Broun]] and [[Thomas Owen Clancy]] (eds) ''Spes Scotorum: Hope of Scots. Saint Columba, Iona and Scotland'' (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1999), p. 66. This tradition would place Serf's [[floruit]] in the late 7th century.</ref> At the time, this island would have been part of the [[Pictish]] kingdom of ''Fib'' ([[Fife]]).  Serf founded the eponymous [[St Serf's Inch Priory]] on the island, where he remained seven years.
+He travelled to [[Gaul]] and [[United Kingdom|Britain]] after vacating the [[Holy See]], returning to Scotland. There, he met [[Adomnán of Iona|Adomnán]], [[Abbot of Iona]], who showed him an island in [[Loch Leven (Kinross)|Loch Leven]] (later called [[St Serf's Inch]]).<ref>Simon Taylor, "Seventh-century Iona Abbots in Scottish Places", in [[Dauvit Broun]] and [[Thomas Owen Clancy]] (eds) ''Spes Scotorum: Hope of Scots. Saint Columba, Iona and Scotland'' (Edinburgh: T & T Clark, 1999), p. 66. This tradition would place Serf's [[floruit]] in the late 7th century.</ref> At the time, this island was part of the [[Pictish]] kingdom of ''Fib'' ([[Fife]]). Serf founded the eponymous [[St Serf's Inch Priory]] on the island, where he remained seven years. The priory was a community of Augustinian canons. It was founded from St. Andrews Cathedral Priory at the initiation of King David I of Scotland in 1150. From the 15th century onwards the priory began to be referred to as "Portmoak". After more than four centuries of Augustinian monastic life, the first Protestant king of Scots, [[James VI of Scotland]], granted the priory to St Leonard's College, [[St Andrews]]. Today, there are only a small amount of remains left of the priory.
-The centre of his cult (and possibly of his activity) was [[Culross]], which according to tradition, was founded by the saint himself.  At [[Dunning]], in [[Strathearn]], he is said to have slain a [[dragon]] with his pastoral staff.
+The centre of his ministry (and possibly of his activity) was [[Culross]], which according to tradition, was founded by the saint.  At [[Dunning, Perth and Kinross|Dunning]], in [[Strathearn]], he is said to have slain a [[dragon]] with his [[Crosier|pastoral staff]].
 "Finally, after many miracles, after divine virtues, after founding many churches, [Saint Serf], having given his peace to the brethren, yielded up his spirit in his cell at Dunning, on the first day of the [[Kalends]] of July; and his disciples and the people of the province take his body to Cuilenross [Culross], and there, with psalms and hymns and canticles, he was honourably buried."<ref>[http://www.reformation.org/vol3ch17.html History of the Scottish Nation, volume 3,chapter 17] by J.D. Wylie.</ref>
-==Saints Serf and Mungo==
+===Serf and Mungo===
+[[File:St Mungo's Chapel in Culross in March 2024.jpg|thumb|"St Mungo's Chapel" in [[Culross]], also known as "St Serf's Chapel"]]
-Saint Serf is said to have been a contemporary of [[St. Mungo]], also known as Saint Kentigern, though if he in fact lived at the same time as [[Adomnán]], this is chronologically impossible.
+Saint Serf is said to have been a contemporary of [[Saint Mungo]], also known as Saint Kentigern, though he could not have lived at the same time as both [[Adomnán]] and Mungo.
-A legend states that when the British princess (and future saint) [[Theneva]] (Thenaw) became [[pregnant]] before marriage, her family threw her from a [[cliff]]. She survived the fall unharmed, and was soon met by an unmanned [[boat]]. She knew she had no home to go to, so she got into the boat; it sailed her across the [[Firth of Forth]] to land at Culross where she was cared for by Saint Serf; he became foster-father of her son, [[Saint Kentigern]] (Saint Mungo).
+A legend states that when the British princess (and future saint) [[Theneva]] (Thenaw) became [[pregnant]] before marriage, her family threw her from a [[cliff]]. She survived the fall unharmed, and was soon met by an unmanned [[boat]]. She knew she had no home to go to, so she boarded the boat; it sailed her across the [[Firth of Forth]] to land at Culross where she was cared for by Saint Serf; he became foster-father of her son, [[Saint Kentigern]] (Saint Mungo).<ref>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08620a.htm Hunter-Blair, Oswald. "St. Kentigern." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 6 May 2014]</ref>
-Another legend states that Saint Mungo restored a pet [[European Robin|robin]] of St. Serf's to life.  The bird had been killed by some of his fellow classmates, hoping to blame him for its death.
+Another legend states that Mungo restored a pet [[European robin|robin]] of Serf's to life. The bird had been killed by some of his classmates who had planned to blame him for its death.
+==Churches==
+Saint Serf is a relatively common dedication for churches in [[Fife]], [[Edinburgh]] and Central Scotland.
+The name also attaches to schools in the area.
 ==Notes==
+{{reflist|30em}}
-<references/>
 ==External links==
 {{Portal|Saints}}
 *[http://www.standrews.co.uk/history1.htm Kingdom of Fife Tourist Board]
+*[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bYIKo_BvLs Video footage of St Serf's at Dunning]
+{{authority control}}
-{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
-| NAME              = Serf
-| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
-| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
-| DATE OF BIRTH     =
-| PLACE OF BIRTH    =
-| DATE OF DEATH     = 583
-| PLACE OF DEATH    =
-}}
 {{DEFAULTSORT:Serf}}
 [[Category:6th-century Christian saints]]
-[[Category:People of medieval Scotland]]
+[[Category:6th-century Scottish people]]
 [[Category:Northern Brythonic saints]]
 [[Category:Medieval Scottish saints]]
 [[Category:Year of birth uncertain]]
 [[Category:583 deaths]]
-[[br:Serf]]
-[[no:Serf av Culross]]
-[[ru:Сёрф из Калросса]]

Authority control databases
International	VIAF 2
National	Germany United States