13 - BROTHER LUCIUS

Focused on copying the Confessio of the venerated Bishop Patricius, Brother Lucius dipped once again his quill in the inkhorn, then he held his hand in mid air, thinking. How different from the Vivarium was this place. They used quills and parchment here, instead of the reed pens and papyrus that were used in Italia. It required a different technique in writing, since the quill was of course more flexible than the reed pen and the parchment had a different texture than the papyrus. But Brother Lucius was getting used to it.

Among these monks, even the writing style was very peculiar: sometimes they used to decorate the initial letter of a text in the shape of a drawing, in bigger size than the other letters. They employed edged quills rather than pointed ones, and they held them at a flat angle to produce thick downstrokes and thin horizontals. Brother Lucius was trying to practice that particular writing style, though he was still far from mastering it.

What an unexpected turn had life reserved for him. He, who used to love and be attached to his region of Bruttii, had come here to the end of the known world, on a cold and windy island. Nevertheless, he felt that he was gradually achieving his aspiration of being an experienced scribe. At his young age, Brother Lucius was already the personal scribe of an abbot whose wisdom and knowledge he had never seen before. Of course, Cassiodorus was a great erudite man too, but Lucius had never worked side by side with him, as he was doing now with Father Colmcille. He was also amazed by the fact that, even if this abbey had been founded only a few years earlier, its library was so well furnished.

These were the main reasons that had eventually led Brother Lucius to decide to spend one or two years there, instead than at the Monastery of Beannchor.

Brother Leo had decided to stay too, though for different reasons: he had ventured several times inland with other monks, with the aim of converting the pagan people who inhabited those regions. And the mission was bearing fruit, since more and more people from the mainland seemed to be attracted by the monks' missionary work. Some notables of that region were sending their children to Ioua, to be educated at the abbey. Brother Lucius had been nominated tutor to four of them. It was not easy task, since they lacked in any decent education and most of them didn't seem particularly clever. One exception was that Artúr son of Áedán: after only one year of tutoring, the little boy could understand and speak Latin, and had started learning how to read and write. He wouldn't become a monk, since he belonged to a prominent family of that region and therefore he was destined to become a leader or a warrior, but brother Lucius was pleased with his progress.

Someone at the entrance called his name, interrupting his thoughts. Brother Lucius answered, "Yes, who's there?", and immediately after that he exclaimed: "I'll be blowed!", when he saw Brother Leo crossing the threshold. His older travel companion was back! "I thought you were still on mission!" he greeted him, and the two of them shook each other's arms.

Brother Leo smiled: "I just came back, but I decided to visit you before going to my cell. May I seat for a moment?". His voice was tired and his face showed more wrinkles than what Brother Lucius remembered.

"Of course, take this seat!". It was the only stool in there, anyway. "How was the mission?".

"It was long, tiring, and especially very... instructive, I would say", answered Brother Leo when he was seated.

"Instructive? I've heard that those are harsh lands and the people are heathens whose language is unintelligible".

"Well, about the language I quite agree", said Brother Leo smiling, "but about the rest, you would be surprised. Those lands are a wilderness, but a beautiful wilderness. And those people, they are so different from us but they themselves have their own social organisation, they have chiefs and tribes and hillforts, and they have a division of labour among them. The other monks call them Picti, because they supposedly paint their bodies, though I didn't notice any of them painted. Anyways, in the end, they also share with us the same human instinct and emotions". His voice had a strange enthralled tone while saying that.

"But... They are heathens", replied Brother Lucius leaning against his desk, perplexed.

Brother Leo displayed one of his placid smiles and answered: "Brother Lucius, even though we have shared a long travel together, I realise we have never talked to each other about ourselves".

"About ourselves? What do you mean?".

Brother Leo grew serious now, it seemed like suddenly he didn't like the direction the talk was taking. Then, after a pause, he sighed: "Very well, then", he said with a tired voice, half closing his eyes. "During this past year and a half we got to know each other better and better, and I really esteem you. So I feel it's time I confess something to you. Where can I start from?... Well, let's start from the beginning. I was born in a poor, semi abandoned village, which had once been a prosperous town, but had then suffered the devastation caused by the barbarian incursions. My family wasn't Christian, same as the other families in that village. Our life was full of struggle, we were just poor farmers and artisans. If nothing particular had happened, I would have carried on living forever like that or died in some war, like the one I somewhat glimpsed when Baduila himself came with his army through our lands. But something happened. Abbot Benedictus of Nursia and his monks came to our village and founded an abbey on the top of the mountain, where until then the people still used to venerate the pagan gods".

Why is he telling me all this?, Brother Lucius thought, but he continued to listen to him.

"Since we were ten siblings", Brother Leo was saying, "and our parents couldn't feed all of us, they sent two of my brothers and me, the youngest ones, to the abbey. We were accepted as pueri oblati, we had to respect and obey the abbot and the monks, to learn how to pray to God and to behave as Christians. It was good for us because we were regularly fed, since the monks had their own vegetable garden and their chickens and goats, and there was food for everyone. But unlike my brothers, I couldn't bring myself to like that place, that life. Father Benedictus had written a Rule for all the monks living there. Even we, the pueri oblati, were expected to abide by the Rule, or at least by part of it. I was still a young boy and I didn't want to spend my days only praying and helping in the works of the monks. So I started complaining and eventually Father Benedictus told me that I was free to go, if I really wanted to".

"Did you really leave?", asked Brother Lucius, who was now getting intrigued.

"Yes. I was persuaded that my family would have never accepted me back, and at that time I thought that after the experience at the abbey I was ready to live on my own. So I left and I wandered around at the woods' edge, living on berries and root vegetables alone. I think I got close to starving to death. Then I started working in some villages in exchange for shelter and food. Soon I liked my independence, moving to live from a place to another. Year by year, I visited many regions in Italia and in each place I learnt new things and new tasks. The more I learnt, the more I wanted to learn. When I arrived at the Vivarium, I was already a grown man. In that place I found something that I had never seen anywhere else: infinite knowledge, contained in all the scrolls the monks were copying. I decided to stay there and learn to read and to write. I didn't take vows, and Cassiodorus didn't required that from me. After all, Cassiodorus isn't a monk either, even though everyone calls him 'Abbot' at the Vivarium. After a while, they started calling me Brother Leo, even if I have never been a monk or a priest".

Brother Lucius couldn't believe his ears: "I know about Cassiodorus but... Have you never been either? Do you mean... that you still aren't?!".

"That's right", simply answered Brother Leo, or just Leo at this point. "When I arrived at the Vivarium, others were not monks and at that time no one really cared about that. The Vivarium was recently founded and Cassiodorus' aim was to copy old scrolls in order to preserve their content, whether they were Christian texts or not".

"I know all of that", replied Brother Lucius, who was getting heated, "but the others at the Vivarium eventually took vows... Why didn't you? During this long trip together I have seen that you behave like a true Christian".

Leo smiled and answered, looking a bit ill at ease: "I thank you, dear Brother Lucius, for your kind words. You see... I decided to stay at the Vivarium because I got enthralled by the pleasure of knowledge. Cassiodorus allowed me to stay even after I told him that... Well, the same thing I concerned myself with telling Abbot Colmcille once I arrived here. That I don't really believe in God. Which didn't prevented me from behaving, as you just told me, in a Christian way, if you will".

Brother Lucius didn't grasp immediately the meaning, but when he did, he couldn't listen to any other word. Leo was carrying on speaking, while Brother Lucius started shivering. Then he abruptly interrupted his interlocutor: "Are you speaking seriously? Are your words for real? You... Don't you really believe in Our Lord?!".

"I know how much what I just said disturbs you, Brother Lucius, but...".

"Don't call me 'brother'! If what you say it's true, we are not brothers!".

In that same moment he heard a voice coming from the entrance and, startled, he span around.

"Brother Lukius". It was just Brother Camgann peeking out from the threshold, short-winded and with a worried expression on his face: "Brother Lukius, the abbot summons you quickly", he said in his uncertain Latin, all in one breath. Then he looked at Leo and he added: "Brother Leo... I think better you come too... The more we are, the better".

"What's going on, Brother Camgann?", Leo asked him.

Brother Lucius wanted to punch him on the face just there and then, but he came to his senses when he heard Brother Camgall answering: "There's an armed irruption in the Abbey. Father Colmcille needs us immediately".