I know, I know. I made this point
last year: St Columba is the only saint in the Anglican calendar to have earned also a place on In Search of.
Last year, I mused a little about the meaning of the tale of Columba and Nessie--asking
How do you not love a saint who encounters a Great Myth (apparently in an unusually ferocious mood; Nessie is usually described as shy), rescues its victim, and then doesn't feel the need to kill the dragon? I'm reminded of Robertson Davies' book World of Wonders, where it's suggested that the best saints do not kill the dragons they encounter, but rather domesticate them--meaning, of course, that they don't kill off their shadow sides, but confront them, master them, and come to terms with them, even accept them.
As, in a way, did St. Columba.
This year? Same moral, but with an extra helping of cheese:
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