Romans spread the word of Christ being in Palestine and took the news with them to all the places they conquered.

Columba lived in Ireland and caused a battle in which lots of people died. He felt bad because of it so he went out to an island called Iona with some monks to teach people about Christ. They went in little boats called coracles, which look like big buckets.

They built little cells in which to live and a church. They also started to grow crops and fish so that they could eat. Iona was a quiet place to live, which was what Columba wanted so that he could study and think about holy things but then more and more monks came to hear about Christ so they had to build bigger cells, but Columba wanted more.

He thought that he should go and teach the wild people of the North. He was told that if he went he would be killed but he still went.

He travelled up the Great Glen and up the side of Loch Ness to speak to King Brude. On his way he met the Loch Ness Monster, which was frightening people. Columba was brave, he told it to behave, and it did.
He was not killed; in fact King Brude became a Christian. Now Columba could send his monks out to any part of the country, but it was a hard life for the monks, even Columba slept with a stone for a pillow.