Finbarr of Cork

Saint Finbarr of Cork was born around 550 in Ireland and spent part of his early life at Templemartin near Bandon. He was the son of Amergin of Maigh Seóla, a skilled craftsman from the west. As a young man he studied in Ossory, and at his tonsure he received the name Fionnbharra, “Fairhead,” which became the name by which generations would know and love him. His zeal for the faith led him on pilgrimage to Rome, and on his return he visited Saint David in Wales. Back in Munster, Finbarr sought solitude on a small island in a lake now called Gougane Barra, and from that quiet place his missionary work spread as he founded churches and formed disciples. In the last years of his life he settled in the marshy place that became Cork, where he gathered monks and students and established a monastery and school that made the city a center of learning and prayer. He died on 25 September 623, and is venerated as patron of Cork and the Diocese of Cork and Ross. His feast day is September 25.