ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS January 26 St. Conan, St. Robert of Newmister, 1000-1159 A.D.

ENGLISH SPEAKING SAINTS January 26 St. Conan, 648 A.D. A bishop of Ireland, possibly from Scotland. It is believed that Conan taught St. Fiacre before going to the Isle of Man, where he served as a missionary and was consecrated bishop. St. Robert of Newmister, 1000-1159 A.D. Cistercian abbot. Born in Yorkshire, England, he entered the Benedictines at Whitby and soon joined the monks at Fountains Abbey who were adopting the harder rule which was gaining prominence at the time. This community embraced the Cistercian rule, and the monastery became one of the spearhead communities for the Cistercians in England. In 1137, Robert helped to found Newminster Abbey, in Northumberland, serving as its first abbot.