Agas is mor an doile agas an dorchadas peacaidh, agas aineolais agas indtleachda do lucht deachtaìdh agas scriobhtha agas chumdaigh na gaoidheilge, gurab mó is mian leo agas gurab mó ghnathuidheas siad eachdradha dimhaoineacha buaidheartha bregacha saoghalta do cumadh ar thuathaibh dédhanond agas air mhacaibh mileadh agas arna curadhaibh agas hind mhac cumhaill gona fhianaibh agas ar mhoran eile noch airbhim.
Translation:
And great is the blindness and sinful darkness, and ignorance, and evil design, of such as teach and write, and cultivate the Gaelic language, that, with the view of obtaining for themselves the vain rewards of this world, they are more desirous, and more accustomed, to compose vain, tempting, lying, worldly histories, concerning the Tuath de dannan, and concerning warriors and champions, and Fingal the son of Cumhal, with his heroes, and concerning many others which I will not at present enumerate.
The Highland love of Paganism was destined to flourish down to our own time, a Stornoway woman having been seen worshipping the moon as recently as the beginning of the present century, the parish minister of Uig at the time being the witness.
In his Hibbert Lectures (1888) Professor Rhys says—“It is worthy of note that this kind of Paganism died hard in the islands on the Armoric coast; in fact it lasted, in spite of Church and State, down to the time of the Norsemen’s ravages.” Fifteen centuries of vigorous Christianity have not yet extirpated the serpent of superstition in the British Islands.
After the publication of Carsuel’s Book of Prayers, which led the way, the only species of literature that the press helped to diffuse for more than a century was of an ecclesiastical or religious character. In the seventeenth century appeared a translation of Calvin’s Catechism, “Faoseid Eoin Stiubhairt,” the Synod of Argyll’s translation of the Psalter, the Confession of Faith in the eighteenth century, followed by catechisms and summaries of Christian doctrine. Endeavours were made to awaken the people out of the spiritual lethargy induced by the age of inaction which preceded the Reformation era. The only successful way to reach the heart of the people was felt to be through the medium of their native tongue. Towards the close of the last century, for this end, translations of all sorts of religious works became numerous, even Roman Catholic Highlanders having a bulky volume of a summary of Christian doctrine translated for their use.
During this time the Highlanders had no version of the Scriptures in [their own tongue], Welshmen and Irishmen being favoured earlier than they in this respect. The first portion translated was the Psalter by the Synod of Argyll in 1659. The Bible was not much known in the north-west at this period. A few individuals possessed the Irish version, but this was never much in practical use. Preachers used the English Bible, of which they gave their own extemporaneous translation as they went along. A good specimen of written Gaelic towards the end of the seventeenth century will be found in the Rev. Robert Kirk’s preface to his metrical version of the Book of Psalms. To the ordinary reader it is hardly distinguishable from the Irish of the same period. The Highlander will be glad to have an opportunity of reading in his own language such an eloquent encomium on the Psalms which he prizes so so dearly.
Gaelic Prose, 1684.
Ataid na Psalma taitneamhach, tarbhach: beag nach mion-fhlaitheas làn dainglibh, Cill fhonn-mhar, le ceol naomhtha. Mur abholghort Eden, lionta do chrannaibh brioghmhoire-na beatha, agus do luibhennibh iocshlainteamhail, amhluidh an leabhar Psalmso Dhaibhioth, a ta na liaghais air uile anshocair na nanma. Ata an saoghail agus gach beò chreatair da bfuil an, na chlarsigh; an duine se is Chlairseoir agus duanaire, chum moladh an mor-Dhia mirbhuileach do chein; agus ata Daibhidh do gná mar fhear don chuideachd bhias marso ag caoin-chaint gu ceolmhar ma nard-Rí.
English: