‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!’ James B Janknegt, ‘Man of Sorrows’, 1990 (oil on canvas, 36 X 28)
I am presiding at the Community Eucharist in the chapel of the Church of Ireland Theological Institute later this afternoon [24 February 2016], when the preacher is my colleague, the Revd Dr Patrick McGlinchey.
The readings this evening are those for last Sunday, the Second Sunday in Lent: Genesis 15: 1-12, 17-18; Psalm 27; Philippians 3: 17 to 4: 1; Luke 13: 31-35.
These illustrations of paintings by James B Janknegt and Stanley Spencer are reproduced in the brochure for this evening’s Eucharist.
During this week in the chapel we have been exploring the theme of ‘Catholic Spirituality,’ and James B Janknegt is a Roman Catholic artist based in Texas who paints oil paintings portraying Christ or illustrating parables and Biblical stories.
Jim was born in Austin, Texas, and attended art school at the University of Texas in Austin and graduate school in Iowa City. In his teens, he was a part of The Well, a trans-denominational coffee house, where he painted murals on the walls and sang in the folk group. When he returned to Austin he became part of Saint David’s Episcopal Church, where he took part in the contemporary folk mass and illustrated several mass booklets. Jim and Melissa Janknegts moved from Austin to Elgin in 1998, and became Roman Catholics in 2005.
This introduction to the readings and hymns is also published in this evening’s brochure:
A note on this evening’s service and hymns:
This evening’s readings, collect, preface and post-Communion prayer are those for the Second Sunday in Lent. Two of our hymns are from the new supplemental hymnal, Thanks and Praise. This is Lent, so we are not singing Gloria this evening, but we are singing the Lenten Prose as our confession.
Processional Hymn: ‘Our Father, we have worshipped’ (Thanks and Praise, 116) by Monsignor Kevin Nichols (1926-2006), is a hymn of lament that is appropriate in Lent. Professor Nichols was a teacher for most of his working life and a member of the International Committee for English in the Liturgy (ICEL). His words are based on the story of the Prodigal Son (see Luke 15) and remind us of our unworthiness and the grace of God. The tune ‘Salley Gardens’ is an Irish folk melody originally known as ‘The Maids of Mourne Shore.’ The arrangement for Thanks and Praise is by the Revd Dr Peter Thompson, Succentor of Armagh Cathedral.
The Lenten Prose: (Church Hymnal, 208) dates back to the Brieviary of the Mozarabic rite in the Iberian Peninsula before the 11th century. This version was adapted by Dom Pothier, using additional material from the Paris Processional (1824) and was published by Solesmes Abbey in Variae Preces (1895). The plainsong tune was adapted by Martin White, former organist of Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh.
Gradual: ‘O the deep, deep love of Jesus’ (Church Hymnal, 105) is by the hymnwriter Samuel T Francis (1834-1925). The tune ‘Ebenezer’ by Thomas John Williams (1869-1944) is named after Ebenezer Chapel in Wales. It was harmonised by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958), who said it is ‘amongst the world’s one hundred finest tunes.’
Offertory: ‘We come as guests invited’ (Church Hymnal, 451) was written in 1975 by Bishop Timothy Dudley-Smith (b. 1926). The tune ‘King’s Lynn’ was collected by Vaughan Williams in the Norfolk town in 1905, although he had heard it earlier in East Hordon, Essex, and he first paired it with GK Chesterton’s ‘O God of earth and altar.’
Communion Hymn: As we receive Holy Communion, we sing ‘Jesus, remember me’ (Church Hymnal, 617), by Jacques Berthier (1923-1994) and the Taizé Community. Berthier, working with Father Robert Giscard and Father Joseph Gelineau, developed the ‘songs of Taizé’ genre. He composed 284 songs and accompaniments for Taizé, including Laudate omnes gentes and Ubi Caritas.
Post Communion Hymn: ‘We shall go out with hope of resurrection’ (Thanks and Praise, 158) is by the Revd June Boyce-Tilman, Professor Applied Music at the University of Winchester. It sends us out with ‘tales of a love that will not let us go … including all within the circles of our love.’ The tune Isle of Innisfree is by the Irish composer Dick Farrelly (1916-1990), and was the principal musical theme of the film The Quiet Man (1952). It was arranged for Thanks and Praise by Jacqueline Mullen.
Patrick Comerford,
24 February 2016
Collect:
Almighty God,
you show to those who are in error the light of your truth
that they may return to the way of righteousness:
Grant to all those who are admitted
into the fellowship of Christ’s religion,
that they may reject those things
that are contrary to their profession,
and follow all such things
as are agreeable to the same;
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Post Communion Prayer:
Creator of heaven and earth,
we thank you for these holy mysteries
given us by our Lord Jesus Christ,
by which we receive your grace
and are assured of your love,
which is through him now and for ever.
‘Christ in the Wilderness, The scorpion’ by Stanley Spencer (1891-1959)
24 February 2016
A journey through Lent 2016
with Samuel Johnson (15)
‘And all our yesterdays have lighted fools / The way to dusty death’ … The Johnson family memorial, with the inscription commissioned by Samuel Johnson commemorating his father, mother and brother (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2015)
Patrick Comerford
During Lent this year, I am taking time each morning to reflect on words from Samuel Johnson (1709-1784), the Lichfield lexicographer and writer who compiled the first authoritative English-language dictionary.
So often, in Lent as in every other time of the year, we live in our yesterdays, rather than living in today and hoping for tomorrow.
Yesterday was defined by Johnson defined in his Dictionary in these words:
Day last past; day next before to-day.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death.
Yesterday’s reflection.
Continued tomorrow.
Patrick Comerford
During Lent this year, I am taking time each morning to reflect on words from Samuel Johnson (1709-1784), the Lichfield lexicographer and writer who compiled the first authoritative English-language dictionary.
So often, in Lent as in every other time of the year, we live in our yesterdays, rather than living in today and hoping for tomorrow.
Yesterday was defined by Johnson defined in his Dictionary in these words:
Day last past; day next before to-day.
To-morrow, and to-morrow, and to-morrow,
Creeps in this petty pace from day to day,
To the last syllable of recorded time;
And all our yesterdays have lighted fools
The way to dusty death.
Yesterday’s reflection.
Continued tomorrow.
An afternoon exploring the history
of Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Limerick
Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick stands on the site of the O’Brien palace and the Viking meeting Thingmote (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Patrick Comerford
Last weekend’s visit to Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick for a lecture on the 1916 Rising and to take part in the installation of new canons, also offered the opportunity to soak in the history and heritage of the oldest building in Limerick that remains in continuous daily use.
Saint Mary’s Cathedral was founded almost 850 years ago in 1168, but the Diocese of Limerick predates the cathedral by more than half a century. Saint Mary’s Cathedral, which is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, is one of the three cathedrals in the United Dioceses of Limerick and Killaloe, alongside Saint Flannan’s Cathedral, Killaloe, Co Clare, and Saint Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co Galway.
The cathedral stands on a hill on an island that is the oldest part of Limerick. This is the much older site of the former palace of the O’Brien Kings of Thomond. The palace, in turn, had been built on the site of the Viking meeting place, or Thingmote – the Vikings’ most westerly stronghold in Europe. The Thingmote had been the centre of government in the early mediaeval Viking city when it was captured by Brian Boru. The O’Briens moved their centre of power from Killaloe to Limerick.
A century later, Bishop Gilbert of Limerick (1107-1140), as the Papal Legate, presided at the Synod of Ráth Breasail in 1111. The Diocese of Limerick was formally recognised at that synod, and it was agreed that Saint Mary’s Church would become the cathedral.
However, building work on a new cathedral did not begin until 1168, and Donal Mór O’Brien, who was fifth in descent from Brian Boru and the last King of Munster, founded the cathedral on the site of his palace on King’s Island. King Donal also built the cathedral on top of the Rock of Cashel in Co Tipperary, Saint Flannan’s Cathedral in Killaloe, and Holy Cross Abbey, Co Tipperary.
Parts of the O’Brien palace may have been incorporated into the new cathedral in Limerick, and tradition says the Romanesque great west door was the original main entrance to the O’Brien royal palace.
Most of the building work was carried out between 1180 and 1195. The cathedral was enlarged by Donat O’Brien about 1200, was completed about 1207, and was further adorned by Bishop Eustace de l’Eau (1312-1336) in the early 14th century.
Saint Mary’s Cathedral is 51.8 metres long from east to west and 27.4 metres wide from north to south (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Saint Mary’s is 51.8 metres long from east to west, and 27.4 metres wide from north to south, measuring through the transepts. The original plan of the church was in the form of a Latin cross. Additions were made two centuries later when Stephen Wall was Bishop of Limerick (1360-1369).
The tower and stepped battlements give the cathedral a castellated appearance (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
The tower, which was added in the 14th century, rises to 36.58 meters. The tower and stepped battlements give the cathedral the appearance of a castle from some angles. The design has strong indications of both Romanesque and Gothic styles of architecture with Romanesque arches and doorways and Gothic windows. But the cathedral is not pure in any one style, and the plan and elevation give the impression that the design was altered during the course of building.
The interior of the cathedral, with its thick walls and piers supporting the wooden roof, retains many mediaeval features. The walls are relatively plain, with a rubble stone surface. Yet, despite the thickness of the walls, the cathedral is remarkably bright inside, mainly because of the larger windows inserted during various Victorian restorations.
The carved misericords are a unique feature in the cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Perhaps the most famous features in Saint Mary’s are the carved misericords that were once in the choir. These misericords are unique in Ireland and are the only surviving pre-Elizabethan carvings. They probably date from 1480-1500, perhaps from the restoration work carried out by the last pre-Reformation Bishop of Limerick, John Folan (1489-1522).
In the early church, priests stood for most service, and sitting was prohibited. The lip on the edge of each of these seats allowed the clergy to rest while the seats were tipped up, so that they appeared to be standing but were allowed to sit in act of mercy – hence misericords.
Of the 21 carvings, 16 are different, with mediaeval emblems such as a two-legged one-horned goat, a griffin, a sphinx, a wild boar, an angel, a head resembling Henry IV, a dragon biting its tail, antelopes with inter-twined necks, a swan, an eagle, the Lion of Judah with a dragon, as well as a human head wearing a ‘chaperon’ under the stall reserved for the Dean, a cockatrice or two-headed lizard holding its tail the Archdeacon of Limerick, a wyvern or two-legged dragon biting its tail for the Canon-Precentor, another wyvern for the Canon-Chancellor – the seat for the Canon-Treasurer is broken.
The chapter once consisted of the Dean, Precentor, Chancellor, Treasurer, Archdeacon, and the 11 prebendaries of Sain Munchin, Donoghmore, Ballycahane, Kilpeacon, Tullabracky, Killeedy, Dysert, Ardcanny, Croagh, Athnett or Anhid, and Effin.
The Pery arms on the stall once reserved for the Earl of Limerick as Prior of Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
At the west end of the cathedral, beside the West Door, is another unusual stall, once reserved for the Earls of Limerick who also hold the anomalous and unusual title of Prior of Limerick.
The first member of the Pery family to settle in Ireland was William Pery, who died ca 1635. His descendants intermarried with the family of Edmond Sexten, Mayor of Limerick in 1535, one of the principal figures in the dissolution of the monasteries at the Reformation.
In 1543, Edmund Sexten secured a royal grant of Saint Mary’s Abbey or Priory in the Englishtown of Limerick. His grandson, also Edmund Sexten (died 1637), also a Mayor of Limerick, spent much of his life fighting battles with the city corporation. He claimed immunity from the lands of two dissolved abbeys from the jurisdiction of the mayor and corporation and claimed to two votes in elections for the mayor and councillors because he was the successor to the priors of Saint Mary’s. These grants were confirmed in a royal patent in 1609.
His only daughter, Susannah Sexten (died 1671), married Edmond Pery of Croom, Co Limerick (d.1655). Their son, Colonel Edmond Pery, successfully claimed the right as Prior of Saint Mary’s to have two votes in the common council of Limerick City.
His descendant, Edmund Sexten Pery, was Speaker in the Irish House of Commons (1771-1785) began to lay out Newtown Pery, which forms the nucleus of the modern city of Limerick. His brother, William Cecil Pery (1721-1794) was Dean of Killaloe (1772-1780), Dean of Derry (1780-1781), Bishop of Killala (1781-1784), and Bishop of Limerick (1784-1794), as well as receiving the title of Baron Glentworth (1790). His son, Edmund Pery (1758-1844), was given the additional titles of Viscount Limerick (1800), Earl of Limerick (1803), and Baron Foxford (1815).
The striking, large statue of Bishop John Jebb in the Jebb Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
The cathedral is entered through the south porch, with the Pery or Glentworth Chapel belonging to the family of the Earls of Limerick on the left side and on the right the Consistory Court, which was once laid out as a mediaeval hall.
In the nave and aisles are several recesses, formerly endowed as chapels by powerful local families. These include the O’Brien Chapel, the Jebb Chapel, the Holy Spirit Chapel, the Saint James and Saint Mary Magdalene Chapel, and the former Baptistery.
The Jebb Chapel has a striking, large statue of Bishop John Jebb (1823-1833), who is regarded as a forerunner of the Oxford Movement. The Chapel of the Holy Spirit in the North Transept, has a ‘Leper’s Squint’ in the north wall.
The reredos and original high altar in the Lady Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
At the East End of the Cathedral, beyond the Glentworth Choir Screen, the Lady Chapel has a redredos carved in 1907 by James Pearse, father of the 1916 rebel Patrick Pearse.
The altar in Lady Chapel is 4 metres long (13 ft), weighs three tons and is the cathedral’s original, pre-Reformation High Altar from the cathedral. In 1651, after Oliver Cromwell captured Limerick, his parliamentary army used the cathedral as a stable – a fate suffered by other cathedrals during the Cromwellian campaign in Ireland. His troops also removed the altar and dumped it in the River Shannon. But it was recovered from the riverbed in the 1960s and was reinstated.
The altar is carved from a single block of limestone and is said to be the largest such altar in Ireland and Britain. The beautiful pale blue frontal was woven by Anglican nuns in Dublin who were inspired by motifs in the Book of Kells.
I was seated on Saturday afternoon on the south side of the Lady Chapel. Facing me, on the north side of the Lady Chapel, is a large monument with effigies of Donough O’Brien, 4th Earl of Thomond, and his wife, Elizabeth FitzGerald. This monument was also badly vandalised by Cromwell’s troops.
This splendid tomb is composed of three compartments, of marble of different colours, and is surrounded and supported by pillars of the Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite orders, and decorated with his arms and various trophies. Below it is the coffin lid of the founder of Saint Mary’s, Donal Mór O’Brien, who died in 1194.
The Glentworth Screen invites the visitor into the Lady Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Like many mediaeval cathedrals and churches in Ireland, Saint Mary’s benefitted or suffered – depending on your point of view – from heavy restoration work in the Victorian era. In 1856-1863, the English architect William Slater restored the east end, adding a new east window as a memorial to Augustus O’Brien Stafford. One of the many subscribers to the window was Florence Nightingale.
The Romanesque doorway at the west side is an impressive carving of chevrons and patterns, but it was severely damaged in restoration work carried out in 1895, so that only the hood and the innermost of the four orders are original.
Local tradition says that during the many sieges of Limerick soldiers used the stones around the west door to sharpen their swords and arrows, and that they left the marks that can be seen in the stonework to this day. But looking down on the river from the West Door, I could understand the strategic position of this ancient building above the banks of the River Shannon.
The Romaneque doorway at the west end of the cathedral
Patrick Comerford
Last weekend’s visit to Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick for a lecture on the 1916 Rising and to take part in the installation of new canons, also offered the opportunity to soak in the history and heritage of the oldest building in Limerick that remains in continuous daily use.
Saint Mary’s Cathedral was founded almost 850 years ago in 1168, but the Diocese of Limerick predates the cathedral by more than half a century. Saint Mary’s Cathedral, which is dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, is one of the three cathedrals in the United Dioceses of Limerick and Killaloe, alongside Saint Flannan’s Cathedral, Killaloe, Co Clare, and Saint Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co Galway.
The cathedral stands on a hill on an island that is the oldest part of Limerick. This is the much older site of the former palace of the O’Brien Kings of Thomond. The palace, in turn, had been built on the site of the Viking meeting place, or Thingmote – the Vikings’ most westerly stronghold in Europe. The Thingmote had been the centre of government in the early mediaeval Viking city when it was captured by Brian Boru. The O’Briens moved their centre of power from Killaloe to Limerick.
A century later, Bishop Gilbert of Limerick (1107-1140), as the Papal Legate, presided at the Synod of Ráth Breasail in 1111. The Diocese of Limerick was formally recognised at that synod, and it was agreed that Saint Mary’s Church would become the cathedral.
However, building work on a new cathedral did not begin until 1168, and Donal Mór O’Brien, who was fifth in descent from Brian Boru and the last King of Munster, founded the cathedral on the site of his palace on King’s Island. King Donal also built the cathedral on top of the Rock of Cashel in Co Tipperary, Saint Flannan’s Cathedral in Killaloe, and Holy Cross Abbey, Co Tipperary.
Parts of the O’Brien palace may have been incorporated into the new cathedral in Limerick, and tradition says the Romanesque great west door was the original main entrance to the O’Brien royal palace.
Most of the building work was carried out between 1180 and 1195. The cathedral was enlarged by Donat O’Brien about 1200, was completed about 1207, and was further adorned by Bishop Eustace de l’Eau (1312-1336) in the early 14th century.
Saint Mary’s Cathedral is 51.8 metres long from east to west and 27.4 metres wide from north to south (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Saint Mary’s is 51.8 metres long from east to west, and 27.4 metres wide from north to south, measuring through the transepts. The original plan of the church was in the form of a Latin cross. Additions were made two centuries later when Stephen Wall was Bishop of Limerick (1360-1369).
The tower and stepped battlements give the cathedral a castellated appearance (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
The tower, which was added in the 14th century, rises to 36.58 meters. The tower and stepped battlements give the cathedral the appearance of a castle from some angles. The design has strong indications of both Romanesque and Gothic styles of architecture with Romanesque arches and doorways and Gothic windows. But the cathedral is not pure in any one style, and the plan and elevation give the impression that the design was altered during the course of building.
The interior of the cathedral, with its thick walls and piers supporting the wooden roof, retains many mediaeval features. The walls are relatively plain, with a rubble stone surface. Yet, despite the thickness of the walls, the cathedral is remarkably bright inside, mainly because of the larger windows inserted during various Victorian restorations.
The carved misericords are a unique feature in the cathedral (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Perhaps the most famous features in Saint Mary’s are the carved misericords that were once in the choir. These misericords are unique in Ireland and are the only surviving pre-Elizabethan carvings. They probably date from 1480-1500, perhaps from the restoration work carried out by the last pre-Reformation Bishop of Limerick, John Folan (1489-1522).
In the early church, priests stood for most service, and sitting was prohibited. The lip on the edge of each of these seats allowed the clergy to rest while the seats were tipped up, so that they appeared to be standing but were allowed to sit in act of mercy – hence misericords.
Of the 21 carvings, 16 are different, with mediaeval emblems such as a two-legged one-horned goat, a griffin, a sphinx, a wild boar, an angel, a head resembling Henry IV, a dragon biting its tail, antelopes with inter-twined necks, a swan, an eagle, the Lion of Judah with a dragon, as well as a human head wearing a ‘chaperon’ under the stall reserved for the Dean, a cockatrice or two-headed lizard holding its tail the Archdeacon of Limerick, a wyvern or two-legged dragon biting its tail for the Canon-Precentor, another wyvern for the Canon-Chancellor – the seat for the Canon-Treasurer is broken.
The chapter once consisted of the Dean, Precentor, Chancellor, Treasurer, Archdeacon, and the 11 prebendaries of Sain Munchin, Donoghmore, Ballycahane, Kilpeacon, Tullabracky, Killeedy, Dysert, Ardcanny, Croagh, Athnett or Anhid, and Effin.
The Pery arms on the stall once reserved for the Earl of Limerick as Prior of Limerick (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
At the west end of the cathedral, beside the West Door, is another unusual stall, once reserved for the Earls of Limerick who also hold the anomalous and unusual title of Prior of Limerick.
The first member of the Pery family to settle in Ireland was William Pery, who died ca 1635. His descendants intermarried with the family of Edmond Sexten, Mayor of Limerick in 1535, one of the principal figures in the dissolution of the monasteries at the Reformation.
In 1543, Edmund Sexten secured a royal grant of Saint Mary’s Abbey or Priory in the Englishtown of Limerick. His grandson, also Edmund Sexten (died 1637), also a Mayor of Limerick, spent much of his life fighting battles with the city corporation. He claimed immunity from the lands of two dissolved abbeys from the jurisdiction of the mayor and corporation and claimed to two votes in elections for the mayor and councillors because he was the successor to the priors of Saint Mary’s. These grants were confirmed in a royal patent in 1609.
His only daughter, Susannah Sexten (died 1671), married Edmond Pery of Croom, Co Limerick (d.1655). Their son, Colonel Edmond Pery, successfully claimed the right as Prior of Saint Mary’s to have two votes in the common council of Limerick City.
His descendant, Edmund Sexten Pery, was Speaker in the Irish House of Commons (1771-1785) began to lay out Newtown Pery, which forms the nucleus of the modern city of Limerick. His brother, William Cecil Pery (1721-1794) was Dean of Killaloe (1772-1780), Dean of Derry (1780-1781), Bishop of Killala (1781-1784), and Bishop of Limerick (1784-1794), as well as receiving the title of Baron Glentworth (1790). His son, Edmund Pery (1758-1844), was given the additional titles of Viscount Limerick (1800), Earl of Limerick (1803), and Baron Foxford (1815).
The striking, large statue of Bishop John Jebb in the Jebb Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
The cathedral is entered through the south porch, with the Pery or Glentworth Chapel belonging to the family of the Earls of Limerick on the left side and on the right the Consistory Court, which was once laid out as a mediaeval hall.
In the nave and aisles are several recesses, formerly endowed as chapels by powerful local families. These include the O’Brien Chapel, the Jebb Chapel, the Holy Spirit Chapel, the Saint James and Saint Mary Magdalene Chapel, and the former Baptistery.
The Jebb Chapel has a striking, large statue of Bishop John Jebb (1823-1833), who is regarded as a forerunner of the Oxford Movement. The Chapel of the Holy Spirit in the North Transept, has a ‘Leper’s Squint’ in the north wall.
The reredos and original high altar in the Lady Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
At the East End of the Cathedral, beyond the Glentworth Choir Screen, the Lady Chapel has a redredos carved in 1907 by James Pearse, father of the 1916 rebel Patrick Pearse.
The altar in Lady Chapel is 4 metres long (13 ft), weighs three tons and is the cathedral’s original, pre-Reformation High Altar from the cathedral. In 1651, after Oliver Cromwell captured Limerick, his parliamentary army used the cathedral as a stable – a fate suffered by other cathedrals during the Cromwellian campaign in Ireland. His troops also removed the altar and dumped it in the River Shannon. But it was recovered from the riverbed in the 1960s and was reinstated.
The altar is carved from a single block of limestone and is said to be the largest such altar in Ireland and Britain. The beautiful pale blue frontal was woven by Anglican nuns in Dublin who were inspired by motifs in the Book of Kells.
I was seated on Saturday afternoon on the south side of the Lady Chapel. Facing me, on the north side of the Lady Chapel, is a large monument with effigies of Donough O’Brien, 4th Earl of Thomond, and his wife, Elizabeth FitzGerald. This monument was also badly vandalised by Cromwell’s troops.
This splendid tomb is composed of three compartments, of marble of different colours, and is surrounded and supported by pillars of the Ionic, Corinthian, and Composite orders, and decorated with his arms and various trophies. Below it is the coffin lid of the founder of Saint Mary’s, Donal Mór O’Brien, who died in 1194.
The Glentworth Screen invites the visitor into the Lady Chapel (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2016)
Like many mediaeval cathedrals and churches in Ireland, Saint Mary’s benefitted or suffered – depending on your point of view – from heavy restoration work in the Victorian era. In 1856-1863, the English architect William Slater restored the east end, adding a new east window as a memorial to Augustus O’Brien Stafford. One of the many subscribers to the window was Florence Nightingale.
The Romanesque doorway at the west side is an impressive carving of chevrons and patterns, but it was severely damaged in restoration work carried out in 1895, so that only the hood and the innermost of the four orders are original.
Local tradition says that during the many sieges of Limerick soldiers used the stones around the west door to sharpen their swords and arrows, and that they left the marks that can be seen in the stonework to this day. But looking down on the river from the West Door, I could understand the strategic position of this ancient building above the banks of the River Shannon.
The Romaneque doorway at the west end of the cathedral
Criticism over impact of 1916
events on Christ Church service
The following two-column news report is published on page 7 of ‘The Irish Times’ today [23 February 2016]:
Centenary
Criticism over impact of 1916
events on Christ Church service
For the first time in almost 1,000 years it seems likely Easter will not be celebrated at Dublin’s Christ Church Cathedral this year due to the 1916 centenary commemorations, a prominent Church of Ireland figure has said.
“If this were to happen in Mecca or Moscow, under Saudi laws or Soviet diktats, you could imagine the righteous anger throughout the Christian world,” Revd Prof Patrick Comerford said.
A lecturer in history at the Church of Ireland Theological Institute in Dublin and a canon of Christ Church Cathedral, he said for the first time since the cathedral was built in 1030 it looked like the central act of worship in the church calendar would not take place there.
Speaking at St Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick, he said “the Easter Rising began on Monday, April 24th, 1916, which was neither Easter Day nor in March. But this year’s main centenary events are taking place on Easter Day, Mach 29th, 2016.”
Despite representations from the churches “a lock-down in Dublin is going to keep people away from Christ Church Cathedral and many other churches,” Rev Comerford said.
It was “not the first time that the Christmas message of Easter has been hijacked for political purposes”, he added.
Meanwhile, Archbishop of Dublin Michael Jackson said in a statement he and the authorities in the archdiocese were “appreciative of the Government’s willingness to consult” on access to city centre churches on Easter Sunday morning.
Senior clergy are to meet the Government and gardaí about access, he said.
PATSY McGARRY
Centenary
Criticism over impact of 1916
events on Christ Church service
For the first time in almost 1,000 years it seems likely Easter will not be celebrated at Dublin’s Christ Church Cathedral this year due to the 1916 centenary commemorations, a prominent Church of Ireland figure has said.
“If this were to happen in Mecca or Moscow, under Saudi laws or Soviet diktats, you could imagine the righteous anger throughout the Christian world,” Revd Prof Patrick Comerford said.
A lecturer in history at the Church of Ireland Theological Institute in Dublin and a canon of Christ Church Cathedral, he said for the first time since the cathedral was built in 1030 it looked like the central act of worship in the church calendar would not take place there.
Speaking at St Mary’s Cathedral in Limerick, he said “the Easter Rising began on Monday, April 24th, 1916, which was neither Easter Day nor in March. But this year’s main centenary events are taking place on Easter Day, Mach 29th, 2016.”
Despite representations from the churches “a lock-down in Dublin is going to keep people away from Christ Church Cathedral and many other churches,” Rev Comerford said.
It was “not the first time that the Christmas message of Easter has been hijacked for political purposes”, he added.
Meanwhile, Archbishop of Dublin Michael Jackson said in a statement he and the authorities in the archdiocese were “appreciative of the Government’s willingness to consult” on access to city centre churches on Easter Sunday morning.
Senior clergy are to meet the Government and gardaí about access, he said.
PATSY McGARRY
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