This helped in its acceptance and also meant that for the first time, the history of the Celts was written down. This was because the monks of the time became the people who now wrote down in a richly ornate fashion the previously oral history of the Celts. The acceptance of Christianity was also helped by the fact that it developed in Ireland solely along monastic lines. Originally, Patrick had envisaged establishing the system of Bishops and Archbishops like in other countries but the lack of roads and towns, and the absence of political unity meant that monastic religion remained more suitable. The monasteries became centres from which the monks could convert. Their isolation though also meant that as well as preaching Christianity they could also themselves be more easily subsumed into the existing Gaelic culture. This goes a long way to explaining their willingness to write down the pagan histories of the Celts when it so obviously contrasted sharply with the general view of Christianity. Ireland then, became a peculiarly Gaelic Christian country, more pagan than Rome would have liked, but at the same time more culturally diverse and expressionist.
Gaelic society also offered Christianity what it wanted in abundance. That is, people who venerated learning. The Gaels already had a complex society which included Brehons (judges), poets and druids who appreciated the art of study and scholarship. These assimilated very naturally into Christianity and encouraged consolidation and expansion. In fact, Irish missionary zeal was to re-establish Christianity throughout Europe during the Dark Ages when the Roman Empire had collapsed and had been invaded by other tribes during the 5th Century. By the 9th Century Irish monasteries were so widespread throughout Europe that Heiric of Auxerre complained in 870 "Almost all Ireland, disregarding the sea, is migrating to our shores with a flock of Philosophers.
