IT will be hard to avoid St Columbanus for the rest of the month, as events to mark the 1,400th anniversary of his death reach their climax.
Columbanus - born in Meath in 543, tutored in a monastery on Cleenish Island on Lough Erne in Fermanagh and later a member of Bangor's monastic community - is regarded today as the patron saint of a united Europe, helping spread the gospel in France, Switzerland and Italy.
In Bangor, from where he departed for Europe in around 590, the Columbanus 1400 Festival starts tomorrow and continues until Sunday.
There is an extensive programme of talks, concerts and services - the full list can be found at www.friendsofcolumbanusbangor.co.uk - but the most intriguing involves Barry Sloan.
A Methodist minister originally from Carrickfergus, Mr Sloan is now director of evangelism for the United Methodist Church in Germany. During a sabbatical year in 2012, he decided to spend three weeks hitch-hiking the Columban Way, following Columbanus's footsteps across Europe.
He turned his story into a book, When the Saints Go Marching, which was published in German last year and which gets its English language launch in Bangor on Saturday.
Mr Sloan describes the book as "the story of a 6th century Irish saint, Columbanus, and a 21st century sinner, the book's author" and says his mission follows in the Columban tradition: "I believe in a God of love. A God who crossed every border in order to reach people with love. A God who has a plan for us and calls us on life's pilgrimage with Him, doing life together."
Another Columbanus devotee is Mary McAleese. She has made a television programme - both in Irish and English - telling the saint's story and offering her personal assessment of his life and achievements.
"Columbanus played an important role in the development of Christianity in Europe," said Mrs McAleese.
"He established monasteries and brought new religious ideas to the continent. His missionary career took him to locations across Europe and was full of incident. It involved tussles with authority and some remarkable successes. And his legacy is still apparent within church communities and beyond."
Mary McAleese & An Chéad Eorpach will be shown on BBC Two at 10pm on Sunday, with the English language version, Mary McAleese & the Man Who Saved Europe, shown on BBC One on Monday November 30 at 9pm.
Meanwhile, Springhill Community House and One Hour Theatre have created a presentation of the Columbanus story with their production Columbanus - Not Quite Forgotten.
It can be seen at St Mary's University College on Falls Road, Belfast at 7pm on Wednesday November 25.
