She Wolf with St. Ailbe
St. Ailbe heralds from Munster. He is a patron saint of the diocese of Cashel and Emily and is the also patron of wolves. Ailbe is called Albeus in Latin and Elvis in English.
Ailbe’s story somewhat parallels a Disney film called Jungle book, with it’s two main opposing characters of 1) Mowgli, the good ”man cub” reared by a wolf; 2) Shere Khan, a fearsome bad tiger who went on the hunt for Mowgli.
Now Ailbe was born to a maidservant in the house of Cronan, Lord of Eliach, in County Tipperary. Cronan, disapproved of Ailbe’s birth and directed that the new born be abandoned and exposed to ‘dogs and wild beasts, that the child might be devoured’. But, instead, the baby was found hidden under a rock (Ail) and alive (beo), by a she-wolf who then took him and reared him among her own cubs. Ailbe (which means live rock) would later repay the kindness toward the end of his life when a she-wolf chased by hunters took refuge with him.
Now Ailbe as a young man, met and befriended St. Declan, and the two would become disciples of Palladius, who came to try to evangelise Ireland, before St. Patrick succeeded. “The Life of Declan” says that himself and Ailbe were great friends. They later went to Rome for priestly formation. While returning to Ireland from Rome, Declan met Patrick in the north of the eternal city, in a providential encounter, which would have a later bearing on Ailbe. “The Acts of St. Ailbe” represent Ailbe as preaching in Ireland before St. Patrick. Ailbe was a missionary in Ireland under King Aengus of Cashel. Ailbe was noted for his charity and kindness, as well as his eloquent sermons. He was Abbot and preacher and became a disciple of St. Patrick, according to St. Patrick‘s biographer, Tirechan. He became the first bishop of Emily in Munster and is considered the St. Patrick of Munster.
St. Ailbe’s monastery of Emily, known as Imleach Iubhair (the lakeside at a yew tree) went on to become one of the most important ecclesiastical sites in Munster and in later centuries Emily was re-established a Diocesan centre, after the synods of Rath Breasail and the Synod of Kells.
The ecclesiastical monastic site was located at the modern Catholic church and graveyard at Emily. The repose of Ailbe of Imlech Ibuir is recorded as 528 by the Annals of Ulster (within the old monastic grounds). St Ailbe’s holy well can be found in the north-eastern corner of the graveyard. In 1898 the well supplied the surrounding village. Local memory and historical sources say that in the past the pilgrimage rituals were focused on the holy well and an early medieval cross, known as St Ailbe’s Cross. The cross is located a short distance from the well. The cross was also said to cure back pain. When a person has a pain in his back he would get it cured by putting his back against the stone while praying to St Ailbe.
St. Ailbe feast day is celebrated in the Irish liturgical calendar on September 12th.
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