Brigid the Bishop, Refuge of Women: Authority, Sex, and Gender in the Lives of an Irish Saint

To some the account of Brigid’s episcopal ordination is merely an “absurd story”; to others, proof that the status of Irish holy women “is gained at the expense of other women,” that the holiest of women were in fact not women “but ersatz men.” Rather, the account illustrates medieval Ireland’s complex gender dynamics, which often reveal conflicting textual perspectives, repeatedly challenge common assumptions, and continue to have contemporary relevance. This paper explores Brigid’s exercise of authority in her Lives, including in her contests with Patrick, Ireland’s premier patron saint, and the implications her authority had for her successors at Kildare. It discusses her wide-ranging roles meeting the reproductive and romantic needs of her faithful, such as the miraculous abortion she performed for a pregnant nun, her support for her spiritual sister Darlugdach as she wrestled with intense sexual desire for a man, and her transformation of a wife’s hatred for her husband into passionate love. And it examines Brigid’s penchant for protecting the poor and powerless, especially females fighting patriarchal control, like a woman being framed for theft by a nobleman who wanted to make her his sex slave and a daughter desperate to dedicate herself to God despite her father’s determination that she marry. The complexity found in Brigid’s Lives defies dominant narratives about medieval misogyny and simplistic assessments of Catholic sexual morality, attesting to a diverse tradition that holds considerable and often underappreciated relevance for the challenges of today.