Tuesday, 19 January 2010
Cyprian TANSI Cistercian Monk
Cyprian Tansi had three names. Iwene was the name given by his father at his birth in 1903, Michael was his baptismal name, andCyprian his monastic name. Born into a pagan family, he was sent to a Catholic school where at the age of eight he was baptised.
On completing his education he became a teacher, and in 1925 entered the seminary. As a catechist, Michael saw to it that no child died without Baptism when he was there. Pagan and Christian alike came to him to settle their disputes. In 1937 he was ordained priest. He was an admirable pastor. There were no bounds to his zeal, his self-giving, his generosity and his good humour.
Sister Magdalen, an Irish Holy Rosary Sister, gave him a copy of Dom Marmion's Christ the Ideal of the Monk. This book sowed the seeds of a monastic vocation, which lead him to join Mount Saint Bernard Abbey in
He died unexpectedly 20 January 1964 aged 60, and was buried at
However, his old parishioners in his native Iboland pressed his cause. In September 1986 his remains were exhumed and brought back to Pope John Paul II travelled to
Cyprian was a man of tiny stature and so he appears in this Window, with his impish smile, dressed in his Cistercian cowl, with his beloved Iboland huts and hills in the background. A companion said of him that as a young teacher "he would talk with Our Lady as a child talks to his mother" As pastor he was deeply committed to promoting the Legion of Mary and the Children of Mary, and strongly recommended the Rosary At Mount Saint Bernard it was noted that: "his love of the Lady Chapel speaks for itself."
In the bottom panel there are symbols of the three basic elements of monastic life: Opus Dei (liturgical life), Opus Manuum (manual labour), and Lectio Divina (God-centred reading). The African drum and vessels symbolise the Liturgy; for work, Cyprian at the book-sewing press; and for Lectio, the book, Christ the Ideal of the Monk.
Fr. Laurence Walsh ocso Lumen Christi
The Stained Glass Windows Mount Roscrea 2009
(Online Shop at www.msjroscrea.ie)
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