Hagiologist, born Ireland; died 1638. He was educated at the Irish College, Paris, of which he became a staff member. In 1620 he published offices of Sain Patrick, Saint Brigid, Saint Columba, and other Irish saints. The following year he was made rector of the Irish College. Appointed prothonotary Apostolic, he represented many Irish bishops. Messingham secured the affiliation of the college to the University of Paris, and in 1626 his rules for the Irish seminary were approved by the Archbishop of Paris. In 1624 he published at Paris his work on Irish saints, "Florilegium Insulae Sanctorum," containing a treatise on Saint Patrick's Purgatory. Between 1632,1638 he labored for the Irish Church in various capacities.
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