Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2026: 109, Tuesday 25 August 2026

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence’ (Matthew 23: 25) … teacups in a painting in a restaurant in Listowel, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began with the Twelfth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XII).

I am singing with the choir at a funeral in Saint Mary and Saint Giles Church, Stony Stratford, later this afternoon. But before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘You … have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith’ (Matthew 23: 23) … the statue of Justice by John Van Nost (1721) in Dublin Castle (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 23: 23-26 (NRSVA):

[Jesus said:] 23 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practised without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

25 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.’

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law’ (Matthew 23: 23) … two Sabbath spice boxes, part of the ritual of welcoming the Sabbath, in the Jewish Museum, Venice (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflection:

In the Beatitudes at the beginning of Saint Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says eight groups of people are blessed: ‘the poor in spirit … those who mourn … the meek … those who hunger and thirst for righteousness … the merciful … the pure in heart … the peacemakers … those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness …’ (Matthew 5: 3-10).

Now, as we come close to the end of this Gospel, we have seven groups of people who are condemned as hypocrites and against whom Jesus pronounces seven woes.

In the Gospel reading normally read on the Monday of this week, we hear the first three of these seven woes: woe to you who ‘lock people out of the kingdom of heaven’ (verse 13) … who ‘make the new convert twice as much a child of hell’ (verse 15) … and ‘blind guides’ who swear by the ‘gold of the sanctuary’ (verses 16-22).

We hear two further woes today (Matthew 23: 23-26): for those who tithe mint, dill, and cummin but neglect the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith; and these who care about the details of domestic purity but neglect the cleanliness of their hearts and inner thoughts. Then, we hear the final of the seven woes tomorrow (Matthew 23: 27-32): a double woe on those who on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

A ‘woe’ is an exclamation of grief, similar to what is expressed by the word alas. In pronouncing woes, Jesus is prophesying judgment on the religious leaders of the day for their hypocrisy. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, snakes and a ‘brood of vipers’.

Before Jesus condemns the hypocrisy of religious leaders, they have been following him to test him and try to trick him with questions about divorce (Matthew 19: 3), his authority (Matthew 21: 23), paying taxes to Caesar (Matthew 22: 17), the resurrection (Matthew 22: 23), and the greatest commandment of the law (Matthew 22: 36).

Jesus prefaces his seven woes by explaining to the disciples that they should obey the teachings of the religious leaders – as they teach the law of God – but not to emulate their behaviour because they do not practice what they preach (Matthew 23: 3).

The second grouping of these woes, which we read today, condemns the scribes and Pharisees for tithing mint, dill, and cummin but neglecting the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith, for worrying about clean cups and plates outside, but neglecting the state of their inner thoughts (Matthew 23: 23-26).

The scribes and Pharisees are accused of making a big deal of small things like tithing spices, while they ignore more crucial matters. They diligently count their mint leaves to give every tenth one to the temple, but they neglect the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy and faith (verse 23).

Jesus is not saying tithing the mint, dill, and cumin is wrong. He says they should not neglected proper tithing, but it must be done with a good heart. Jewish law and tradition specifies tithes on some produce, generally food. But there was no tithe required for wild herbs, although this is debated in the Mishnah: ‘R. Eliezer says, “Dill is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to its] seeds, leaves and pods.” But Sages say, “Nothing is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to both its] seeds and leaves save cress and field rocket alone”.’ (m. Ma’as. 4: 5).

There is an issue of justice here. If a tithe that is not required in the law is demanded, then it not only deprives them of what is lawfully theirs, but in this case it may even deprive them of fully enjoying the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath, it is said, the ‘Sabbath Queen’ or the ‘Sabbath Bride’ descends from Heaven to heal the sufferings of the Jews. The arrival and departure of ‘Her Majesty’ is marked by ceremonies. When she enters, everybody is happy; when she leaves, there is a strange sadness. But people take comfort in a symbolic tradition that includes inhaling the aroma of spices contained in an ornamental box, often made of silver, the spice box.

Spice-boxes are an essential part of Havdalah (הַבְדָּלָה, ‘separation’), the ceremony marking the symbolic end of Shabbat and ushering in the new week. The spices are usually kept in decorative spice-boxes to beautify and honour the mitzvah and are handed around so that everyone can smell the fragrance. In many Sephardi and Mizrahi communities, branches of aromatic plants are used for this purpose, while Ashkenazim have traditionally used cloves.

A special braided Havdalah candle with more than one wick is lit, and a blessing is recited. If a special Havdalah candle is not available, two candles can be used, and the two flames joined when reciting the blessing. The traditional prayers include: ‘Praised are You, Adonai our God, who rules the universe, Creator of all kinds of spices.’

Turning to hyperbole, Jesus says the religious leaders can strain out a gnat when they are drinking but can swallow a camel (verse 24). In other words, they were careful to avoid offence in minor things of little importance, but ignore things that are much more difficult to swallow.

In the fifth woe, Jesus compares them to cups and plates that are scrupulously cleaned on the outside but left dirty inside. Their religious observances make them appear clean and virtuous, but inwardly, in their hearts, they are full of ‘greed and self-indulgence’ (verse 25).

It is not that washing my hands or cutlery and crockery before I eat is a bad idea, or that I am a hypocrite if I do so. If I habitually fail to wash my hands and the cups and plates before I eat, I am going to get sick, quickly and often.

But if I forget why I have to wash them, I am a hypocrite if I then expect others to do so. Indeed, sometimes we leave ourselves in danger of going hungry if we insist on everything being spotless before we eat: those facilities are not always to hand on a long train journey or a long flight, for flight, or while I’m at an all-day cricket match or at a rugby fixture.

The Pharisees had their own rituals, and I would be silly to think that only they had these problems. We all have our own rituals associated with eating and cleanliness.

It is said one of the principal causes of domestic arguments in the kitchen is about what way to stack the dishwasher, and how to empty it. Should the knives stand up or down? Which sides do you place the glasses and the cups on? Do you rinse the plates before they go in? To tell the truth, it probably does not matter. But it is still irritating to open the dishwasher and to find someone else has packed it.

The level of questioning of the Pharisees is about a ritual that is probably more important than how to stack the dishwasher. And the level of criticism from Jesus is not as rude as we might first think.

But when he says the Pharisees are hypocrites, Jesus is challenging them to drop the mask and to own the words they speak and to own the reasons for those rituals.

Can you imagine how much more positively people at large would view the churches if every parish and church put as much care into seeing that our children are not abused or infected with racism or discrimination or hatred as much as we put into seeing that the cups are clean for the tea and coffee after church, or as much as we attend to the cleanliness of the sacred vessels used for the Eucharist or Holy Communion?

If we are worried about how clean the patten and chalice are at Holy Communion, how clean the church is, how clean the coffee cup is when it comes out of the dishwasher, how much more should be worried about how clean the Church is as an institution, how worthy it is to be called – for us to be called – the Body of Christ.

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate’ (Matthew 23: 25) … a cup of coffee at Pavlos Beach in Platanias, near Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Tuesday 25 August 2026):

In Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), the theme this week, from 23 to 29 August 2026 (pp 32-33), is ‘Legacies of History’. This theme was introduced on Sunday with a reflection by the Revd Dr Rachele Evie Vernon O’Brien, a Jamaican-born theologian and advocate.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Tuesday 25 August 2026) invites us to pray:

Lord God, forgive us for where our words have not matched our actions. Renew us, your Church, to live out the love we proclaim.

The Collect of the Day:

Almighty and everlasting God,
you are always more ready to hear than we to pray
and to give more than either we desire or deserve:
pour down upon us the abundance of your mercy,
forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid
and giving us those good things
which we are not worthy to ask
but through the merits and mediation
of Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

God of all mercy,
in this eucharist you have set aside our sins
and given us your healing:
grant that we who are made whole in Christ
may bring that healing to this broken world,
in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

God of constant mercy,
who sent your Son to save us:
remind us of your goodness,
increase your grace within us,
that our thankfulness may grow,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin’ (Matthew 23: 23) … the former Tithe Barn in Thame, Oxfordshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2025: 108, Tuesday 26 August 2025

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence’ (Matthew 23: 25) … teacups in a painting in a restaurant in Listowel, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and the week began yesterday with the Tenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity X).

After the Summer Bank holiday in England yesterday, summer has probably truly come to an end for many people here. Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘You … have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith’ (Matthew 23: 23) … the statue of Justice by John Van Nost (1721) in Dublin Castle (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 23: 23-26 (NRSVA):

[Jesus said:] 23 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practised without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

25 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.’

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law’ (Matthew 23: 23) … two 18th century Sabbath spice boxes, part of the ritual of welcoming the Sabbath, in the Jewish Museum in Venice (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflection:

In the Beatitudes at the beginning of Saint Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says eight groups of people are blessed: ‘the poor in spirit … those who mourn … the meek … those who hunger and thirst for righteousness … the merciful … the pure in heart … the peacemakers … those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness …’ (Matthew 5: 3-10).

Now, as we come close to the end of this Gospel, we have seven groups of people who are condemned as hypocrites and against whom Jesus pronounces seven woes.

In the Gospel reading yesterday, we heard the first three of these seven woes: woe to you who ‘lock people out of the kingdom of heaven’ (verse 13) … who ‘make the new convert twice as much a child of hell’ (verse 15) … and ‘blind guides’ who swear by the ‘gold of the sanctuary’ (verses 16-22).

We hear two further woes today (Matthew 23: 23-26): for those who tithe mint, dill, and cummin but neglect the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith; and these who care about the details of domestic purity but neglect the cleanliness of their hearts and inner thoughts. Then, we hear the final of the seven woes tomorrow (Matthew 23: 27-32): a double woe on those who on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

A ‘woe’ is an exclamation of grief, similar to what is expressed by the word alas. In pronouncing woes, Jesus is prophesying judgment on the religious leaders of the day for their hypocrisy. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, snakes and a ‘brood of vipers’.

Before Jesus condemns the hypocrisy of religious leaders, they have been following him to test him and try to trick him with questions about divorce (Matthew 19: 3), his authority (Matthew 21: 23), paying taxes to Caesar (Matthew 22: 17), the resurrection (Matthew 22: 23), and the greatest commandment of the law (Matthew 22: 36).

Jesus prefaces his seven woes by explaining to the disciples that they should obey the teachings of the religious leaders – as they teach the law of God – but not to emulate their behaviour because they do not practice what they preach (Matthew 23: 3).

The second grouping of these woes, which we read today, condemns the scribes and Pharisees for tithing mint, dill, and cummin but neglecting the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith, for worrying about clean cups and plates outside, but neglecting the state of their inner thoughts (Matthew 23: 23-26).

The scribes and Pharisees are accused of making a big deal of small things like tithing spices, while they ignore more crucial matters. They diligently count their mint leaves to give every tenth one to the temple, but they neglect the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy and faith (verse 23).

Jesus is not saying tithing the mint, dill, and cumin is wrong. He says they should not neglected proper tithing, but it must be done with a good heart. Jewish law and tradition specifies tithes on some produce, generally food. But there was no tithe required for wild herbs, although this is debated in the Mishnah: ‘R. Eliezer says, “Dill is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to its] seeds, leaves and pods.” But Sages say, “Nothing is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to both its] seeds and leaves save cress and field rocket alone”.’ (m. Ma’as. 4: 5).

There is an issue of justice here. If a tithe that is not required in the law is demanded, then it not only deprives them of what is lawfully theirs, but in this case it may even deprive them of fully enjoying the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath, it is said, the ‘Sabbath Queen’ or the ‘Sabbath Bride’ descends from Heaven to heal the sufferings of the Jews. The arrival and departure of ‘Her Majesty’ is marked by ceremonies. When she enters, everybody is happy; when she leaves, there is a strange sadness. But people take comfort in a symbolic tradition that includes inhaling the aroma of spices contained in an ornamental box, often made of silver, the spice box.

Spice-boxes are an essential part of Havdalah (הַבְדָּלָה, ‘separation’), the ceremony marking the symbolic end of Shabbat and ushering in the new week. The spices are usually kept in decorative spice-boxes to beautify and honour the mitzvah and are handed around so that everyone can smell the fragrance. In many Sephardi and Mizrahi communities, branches of aromatic plants are used for this purpose, while Ashkenazim have traditionally used cloves.

A special braided Havdalah candle with more than one wick is lit, and a blessing is recited. If a special Havdalah candle is not available, two candles can be used, and the two flames joined when reciting the blessing. The traditional prayers include: ‘Praised are You, Adonai our God, who rules the universe, Creator of all kinds of spices.’

Turning to hyperbole, Jesus says the religious leaders can strain out a gnat when they are drinking but can swallow a camel (verse 24). In other words, they were careful to avoid offence in minor things of little importance, but ignore things that are much more difficult to swallow.

In the fifth woe, Jesus compares them to cups and plates that are scrupulously cleaned on the outside but left dirty inside. Their religious observances make them appear clean and virtuous, but inwardly, in their hearts, they are full of ‘greed and self-indulgence’ (verse 25).

It is not that washing my hands or cutlery and crockery before I eat is a bad idea, or that I am a hypocrite if I do so. If I habitually fail to wash my hands and the cups and plates before I eat, I am going to get sick, quickly and often.

But if I forget why I have to wash them, I am a hypocrite if I then expect others to do so. Indeed, sometimes we leave ourselves in danger of going hungry if we insist on everything being spotless before we eat: those facilities are not always to hand on a long train journey or a long flight, for flight, or while I’m at an all-day cricket match or at a rugby fixture.

The Pharisees had their own rituals, and I would be silly to think that only they had these problems. We all have our own rituals associated with eating and cleanliness.

It is said one of the principal causes of domestic arguments in the kitchen is about what way to stack the dishwasher, and how to empty it. Should the knives stand up or down? Which sides do you place the glasses and the cups on? Do you rinse the plates before they go in? To tell the truth, it probably does not matter. But it is still irritating to open the dishwasher and to find someone else has packed it.

The level of questioning of the Pharisees is about a ritual that is probably more important than how to stack the dishwasher. And the level of criticism from Jesus is not as rude as we might first think.

But when he says the Pharisees are hypocrites, Jesus is challenging them to drop the mask and to own the words they speak and to own the reasons for those rituals.

Can you imagine how much more positively people at large would view the churches if every parish and church put as much care into seeing that our children are not abused or infected with racism or discrimination or hatred as much as we put into seeing that the cups are clean for the tea and coffee after church, or as much as we attend to the cleanliness of the sacred vessels used for the Eucharist or Holy Communion?

If we are worried about how clean the patten and chalice are at Holy Communion, how clean the church is, how clean the coffee cup is when it comes out of the dishwasher, how much more should be worried about how clean the Church is as an institution, how worthy it is to be called – for us to be called – the Body of Christ.

How we stack the dishwasher can be a domestic ritual of cleanliness … and the cause of many domestic arguments (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Tuesday 26 August 2025):

The theme this week (24 to 30 August) in Pray with the World Church, the prayer diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is been ‘From Strangers to Neighbours’ (pp 32-33) This theme was introduced on Sunday with a programme update from the Right Revd Antonio Ablon, Chaplain of Saint Catherine’s Anglican Church, Stuttgart, Germany.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Tuesday 26 August 2025) invites us to pray:

God of compassion, comfort families divided by migration. Strengthen the bonds of love between parents and children, husbands and wives, and friends separated by distance. May they be reunited in joy or find peace in their sacrifices.

The Collect of the Day:

Let your merciful ears, O Lord,
be open to the prayers of your humble servants;
and that they may obtain their petitions
make them to ask such things as shall please you;
through Jesus Christ your Son our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post-Communion Prayer:

God of our pilgrimage,
you have willed that the gate of mercy
should stand open for those who trust in you:
look upon us with your favour
that we who follow the path of your will
may never wander from the way of life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Additional Collect:

Lord of heaven and earth,
as Jesus taught his disciples to be persistent in prayer,
give us patience and courage never to lose hope,
but always to bring our prayers before you;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin’ (Matthew 23: 23) … there are two large tithe barns at Passenham Manor, Northamptonshire (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Yesterday’s reflections

Continued tomorrow

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate’ (Matthew 23: 25) … a cup of coffee at Pavlos Beach in Platanias, near Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Daily prayer in Ordinary Time 2024: 109, Tuesday 27 August 2024

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence’ (Matthew 23: 25) … teacups in a painting in a restaurant in Listowel, Co Kerry (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

We are continuing in Ordinary Time in the Church Calendar and this week began on Sunday with the Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity XIII). The calendar of the Church of England in Common Worship today remembers Saint Monica (387), the mother of Saint Augustine of Hippo, who is commemorated tomorrow (28 August).

Before today begins, I am taking some quiet time this morning to give thanks, for reflection, prayer and reading in these ways:

1, today’s Gospel reading;

2, a reflection on the Gospel reading;

3, a prayer from the USPG prayer diary;

4, the Collects and Post-Communion prayer of the day.

‘You … have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith’ (Matthew 23: 23) … the statue of Justice by John Van Nost (1721) in Dublin Castle (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Matthew 23: 23-26 (NRSVA):

[Jesus said:] 23 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. It is these you ought to have practised without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel!

25 ‘Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. 26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup, so that the outside also may become clean.’

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law’ (Matthew 23: 23) … two 18th century Sabbath spice boxes, part of the ritual of welcoming the Sabbath, in the Jewish Museum in Venice (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Reflection:

In the Beatitudes at the beginning of Saint Matthew’s Gospel, Jesus says eight groups of people are blessed: ‘the poor in spirit … those who mourn … the meek … those who hunger and thirst for righteousness … the merciful … the pure in heart … the peacemakers … those who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness …’ (Matthew 5: 3-10).

Now, as we come close to the end of this Gospel, we have seven groups of people who are condemned as hypocrites and against whom Jesus pronounces seven woes.

In the Gospel reading yesterday, we heard the first three of these seven woes: woe to you who ‘lock people out of the kingdom of heaven’ (verse 13) … who ‘make the new convert twice as much a child of hell’ (verse 15) … and ‘blind guides’ who swear by the ‘gold of the sanctuary’ (verses 16-22).

We hear two further woes today (Matthew 23: 23-26): for those who tithe mint, dill, and cummin but neglect the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith; and these who care about the details of domestic purity but neglect the cleanliness of their hearts and inner thoughts. Then, we hear the final of the seven woes tomorrow (Matthew 23: 27-32): a double woe on those who on the outside look righteous to others, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.

A ‘woe’ is an exclamation of grief, similar to what is expressed by the word alas. In pronouncing woes, Jesus is prophesying judgment on the religious leaders of the day for their hypocrisy. He calls them hypocrites, blind guides, snakes and a ‘brood of vipers’.

Before Jesus condemns the hypocrisy of religious leaders, they have been following him to test him and try to trick him with questions about divorce (Matthew 19: 3), his authority (Matthew 21: 23), paying taxes to Caesar (Matthew 22: 17), the resurrection (Matthew 22: 23), and the greatest commandment of the law (Matthew 22: 36).

Jesus prefaces his seven woes by explaining to the disciples that they should obey the teachings of the religious leaders – as they teach the law of God – but not to emulate their behaviour because they do not practice what they preach (Matthew 23: 3).

The second grouping of these woes, which we read today, condemns the scribes and Pharisees for tithing mint, dill, and cummin but neglecting the weightier matters of justice, mercy and faith, for worrying about clean cups and plates outside, but neglecting the state of their inner thoughts (Matthew 23: 23-26).

The scribes and Pharisees are accused of making a big deal of small things like tithing spices, while they ignore more crucial matters. They diligently count their mint leaves to give every tenth one to the temple, but they neglect the more important matters of the law, such as justice, mercy and faith (verse 23).

Jesus is not saying tithing the mint, dill, and cumin is wrong. He says they should not neglected proper tithing, but it must be done with a good heart. Jewish law and tradition specifies tithes on some produce, generally food. But there was no tithe required for wild herbs, although this is debated in the Mishnah: ‘R. Eliezer says, “Dill is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to its] seeds, leaves and pods.” But Sages say, “Nothing is subject to the law of tithes [in regard to both its] seeds and leaves save cress and field rocket alone”.’ (m. Ma’as. 4: 5).

There is an issue of justice here. If a tithe that is not required in the law is demanded, then it not only deprives them of what is lawfully theirs, but in this case it may even deprive them of fully enjoying the Sabbath.

On the Sabbath, it is said, the ‘Sabbath Queen’ or the ‘Sabbath Bride’ descends from Heaven to heal the sufferings of the Jews. The arrival and departure of ‘Her Majesty’ is marked by ceremonies. When she enters, everybody is happy; when she leaves, there is a strange sadness. But people take comfort in a symbolic tradition that includes inhaling the aroma of spices contained in an ornamental box, often made of silver, the spice box.

Spice-boxes are an essential part of Havdalah (הַבְדָּלָה, ‘separation’), the ceremony marking the symbolic end of Shabbat and ushering in the new week. The spices are usually kept in decorative spice-boxes to beautify and honour the mitzvah and are handed around so that everyone can smell the fragrance. In many Sephardi and Mizrahi communities, branches of aromatic plants are used for this purpose, while Ashkenazim have traditionally used cloves.

A special braided Havdalah candle with more than one wick is lit, and a blessing is recited. If a special Havdalah candle is not available, two candles can be used, and the two flames joined when reciting the blessing. The traditional prayers include: ‘Praised are You, Adonai our God, who rules the universe, Creator of all kinds of spices.’

Turning to hyperbole, Jesus says the religious leaders can strain out a gnat when they are drinking but can swallow a camel (verse 24). In other words, they were careful to avoid offence in minor things of little importance, but ignore things that are much more difficult to swallow.

In the fifth woe, Jesus compares them to cups and plates that are scrupulously cleaned on the outside but left dirty inside. Their religious observances make them appear clean and virtuous, but inwardly, in their hearts, they are full of ‘greed and self-indulgence’ (verse 25).

It is not that washing my hands or cutlery and crockery before I eat is a bad idea, or that I am a hypocrite if I do so. If I habitually fail to wash my hands and the cups and plates before I eat, I am going to get sick, quickly and often.

But if I forget why I have to wash them, I am a hypocrite if I then expect others to do so. Indeed, sometimes we leave ourselves in danger of going hungry if we insist on everything being spotless before we eat: those facilities are not always to hand on a long train journey or a long flight.

The Pharisees had their own rituals, and I would be silly to think that only they had these problems. We all have our own rituals associated with eating and cleanliness.

It is said one of the principal causes of domestic arguments in the kitchen is about what way to stack the dishwasher, and how to empty it. Should the knives stand up or down? Which sides do you place the glasses and the cups on? Do you rinse the plates before they go in? To tell the truth, it probably does not matter. But it is still irritating to open the dishwasher and to find someone else has packed it.

The level of questioning of the Pharisees is about a ritual that is probably more important than how to stack the dishwasher. And the level of criticism from Jesus is not as rude as we might first think.

But when he says the Pharisees are hypocrites, Jesus is challenging them to drop the mask and to own the words they speak and to own the reasons for those rituals.

Can you imagine how much more positively people at large would view the churches if every parish and church put as much care into seeing that our children are not abused or infected with racism or discrimination or hatred as much as we put into seeing that the cups are clean for the tea and coffee after church, or as much as we attend to the cleanliness of the sacred vessels used for the Eucharist or Holy Communion?

If we are worried about how clean the patten and chalice are at Holy Communion, how clean the church is, how clean the coffee cup is when it comes out of the dishwasher, how much more should be worried about how clean the Church is as an institution, how worthy it is to be called – for us to be called – the Body of Christ.

How we stack the dishwasher can be a domestic ritual of cleanliness … and the cause of many domestic arguments (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Today’s Prayers (Tuesday 27 August 2024):

The theme this week in ‘Pray With the World Church,’ the Prayer Diary of the Anglican mission agency USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), is the ‘Theological Education Executive Leadership Programme in Africa.’ The course is expected to start in August 2024 and run until December 2025, and this theme was introduced on Sunday with a programme update from Fran Mate, Regional Manager Africa, USPG.

The USPG Prayer Diary today (Tuesday 27 August 2024) invites us to pray:

Let us pray for all the principals, leaders, teachers and staff of TEIs. May God bless them in their important work.

The Collect:

Faithful God,
who strengthened Monica, the mother of Augustine, with wisdom,
and through her patient endurance encouraged him
to seek after you:
give us the will to persist in prayer
that those who stray from you may be brought to faith
in your Son Jesus Christ our Lord,
who is alive and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever.

The Post Communion Prayer:

Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name,
your servant Monica revealed your goodness
in a life of tranquillity and service:
grant that we who have gathered in faith around this table
may like her know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge
and be filled with all your fullness;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.

‘For you tithe mint, dill, and cummin’ (Matthew 23: 23) … there are two large tithe barns at Passenham Manor (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Yesterday’s reflection

Continued tomorrow

Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Edition copyright © 1989, 1995, National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide. http://nrsvbibles.org

‘For you clean the outside of the cup and of the plate’ (Matthew 23: 25) … a cup of coffee at Pavlos Beach in Platanias, near Rethymnon in Crete (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Wendy Taylor’s ‘Equatorial Sundial’ was almost lost to time and to Bletchley

‘Equatorial Sundial’ by Wendy Taylor on Chandos Square in Bletchley (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2023)

Patrick Comerford

‘Equatorial Sundial’ is a striking and eye-catching sculpture by Wendy Taylor on Chandos Square in Bletchley. Today, it is a familiar sight to commuters and visitors as they walk from the railway station into the centre of Bletchley. But this is not its original location, and there was a time when it was lost to Milton Keynes. It took tough negotiations to bring this work of art back to Bletchley.

Wendy Taylor was commissioned by Telephone Rentals PLC to create ‘Equatorial Sundial’ for the Cable & Wireless Offices in Water Eaton Road, Bletchley, in 1982. This a large stainless steel equatorial dial, 3650 mm high. There are no numerals, but half and quarter hour marks for 6 am, noon and 6 pm.

The distinguishing characteristic of an equatorial dial (also called the equinoctial dial) is the planar surface that receives the shadow, which is exactly perpendicular to the gnomon’s style. This plane is called equatorial, because it is parallel to the equator of the Earth and of the celestial sphere.

If the gnomon is fixed and aligned with the Earth's rotational axis, the sun’s apparent rotation about the Earth casts a uniformly rotating sheet of shadow from the gnomon; this produces a uniformly rotating line of shadow on the equatorial plane. As the Earth rotates 360 degrees in 24 hours, the hour-lines on an equatorial dial are all spaced 15 degrees apart (360/24).

Wendy Taylor designed the ‘Equatorial Sundial’ for the Cable & Wireless Offices in Water Eaton Road, Bletchley (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2023)

The sculptor and artist Wendy Taylor designed the ‘Equatorial Sundial’ in Bletchley and a second, better-known sundial in London, the ‘Timepiece’. Similar ideas inspired her ‘Compass Bowl’ in Basildon and her ‘Opus’ in Milton Keynes.

Wendy Taylor specialises in permanent, site-specific commissions. She is known for her sculptures in the public realm, especially in London, and she says she is one of the first artists of her generation to take art out of the galleries and onto the streets.

Her work typically consists of large sculptures that appear the be carefully balanced. Her abstract sculptures explore themes of equilibrium, materiality and fabrication. She views her artworks as communicative devices.

Wendy Taylor was born in Stamford, Lincolnshire, in 1945, and was an award winning student at Saint Martin’s School of Art (1961-1966). Her first solo show was in 1966 at Axiom Gallery, and she later exhibited in many group shows and solo at Angela Flowers Gallery, the Oliver Dowling Gallery, Dublin, and the Hayward Annual at Hayward Gallery. She won a gold medal in the Listowel Graphics Exhibition in Co Kerry 1977.

She has taught at Ealing School of Art (1967-1975) and the Royal College of Art (1972-1973), and she was a design consultant for the Commission for New Towns (1986-1988).

Three of her works are Grade II listed structures: her ‘Virginia Quay Settlers Monument’, her ‘Timepiece’ in Saint Katharine Docks, by Tower Bridge in London, and her ‘Octo’ sculpture and reflecting pool in Milton Keynes.

The chair of the Milton Keynes Public Arts Trust, lan Michie, was involved in long and intense negotiations in 2016 to secure the return of Wendy Taylor’s ‘Equatorial Sundial’ to Milton Keynes.

Vodafone executives had uprooted the sculpture and moved it from Bletchley to the Telegraph Museum in Porthcurno, Cornwall. The negotiations involved executives from many organisations and the MP for South Milton Keynes, lan Stewart.

Finally, the sculpture was returned to Milton Keynes, and after refurbishment it was installed in its present prominent position in Chandos Square in Bletchley. There commuters see it every day as they walk between the town centre and the railway station.

Wendy Taylor has two other public sculptures in Milton Keynes. ‘Octo’ (1979-1980) on Silbury Boulevard is a stainless steel sculpture mounted on a reflecting pool. ‘Octo’ is an early example of the Milton Keynes Development Corporation’s public art programme. It is a ‘continuous strip of stainless steel, 12 ft high, forms a sinuous foil to the Miesian purism of Stuart Mosscrop’s town office buildings.’

‘Essence’ (1982) is on Avebury Boulevard. The artist describes this work in bronze as being ‘surrounded by a wide selection of shrubs which give a secret air to the area, providing a complete contrast to the bold outlines of Milton Keynes’ avenues. The soft enfolding lines of the sculpture are a response to the intimacy of the enclosed environment.’

Long and intense negotiations secured the return of Wendy Taylor’s ‘Equatorial Sundial’ to Bletchley (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2023)

A Precentor of Limerick who moved to Listowel and was one of the last Deans of Ardfert

Saint John’s Church, Listowel … Robert Adderley, former Precentor of Limerick (1908-1918), was the Rector of Listowel in 1918-1946 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Patrick Comerford

When a project looking at my predecessors as Precentors of Limerick was postponed some months ago due to the pandemic limits on public events, I thought it might still be interesting to continue looking at past precentors in a number of blog postings.

In earlier postings, I recalled some previous precentors who had been accused of ‘dissolute living’ or being a ‘notorious fornicator’ (Awly O Lonysigh), or who were killed in battle (Thomas Purcell). There were those who became bishops or archbishops: Denis O’Dea (Ossory), Richard Purcell (Ferns) and John Long (Armagh).

There was the tragic story too of Robert Grave, who became Bishop of Ferns while remaining Precentor of Limerick, but – only weeks after his consecration – drowned with all his family in Dublin Bay as they made their way by sea to their new home in Wexford (read more HERE).

In the 17th century, two members of the Gough family were also appointed Precentors of Limerick. In all, three brothers in this family were priests in the Church of Ireland and two were priests in the Church of England, and the Rathkeale branch of the family was the ancestral line of one of Ireland’s most famous generals (read more HERE).

In the mid to late 18th century, two members of the Maunsell family were Precentors of Limerick: Richard Maunsell (1745-1747) and William Thomas Maunsell (1786-1781) (read more HERE).

They were related to Canon John Warburton who was, perhaps, the longest-ever holder of the office, being Precentor of Limerick for 60 years from 1818 until he died to 1878 (red more HERE).

Earlier this week, I looked at Warburton’ successor, Canon Frederic Charles Hamilton, who provides an interesting links with both this group of parishes, with the Mariner’s Church in Dún Laoghaire and the Anglican mission agency SPG, now USPG (United Society Partners in the Gospel), of which I am a trustee. (see HERE).

As I move to the end of the 19th and the early 20th century, Hamilton’s successor as Precentor, Francis Meredyth, was a published poet and dramatist, and some of the Precentors of Limerick were also among the last Deans of Ardfert, including Robert Archibald Adderley and Charles Gray-Stack.

Robert Archibald Adderley was descended from a branch of the Adderley family who moved to Ireland in the 17th century.

In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries there were a number of branches of the Adderley family in the English Midlands, all tracing their descent from Thomas Adderley, who was living at Blake Hall in Moreland, Staffordshire, from the early 16th century and died in 1538.

Various branches of this family lived at Blake Hall; Coton Hall at Coton-under-Needwood, Staffordshire, north of Lichfield and east of Uttoxeter; Tunstall Hall in Shropshire; Alrewas, near Lichfield; and Hams Hall, Fillongley Hall and Weddington Hall, all in Warwickshire.

Ralph Adderley, of Coton-under-Needwood, was High Sheriff of Staffordshire (1574-1575), Custos Rotulorum for Staffordshire. He married Margaret, daughter of Thomas Bagot of Blithfield, in 1554, and died in 1598.

Their second son, Thomas Adderley, moved to Ireland at the end of the 16th or beginning of the 17th century.

Edward Adderley and his wife Mary Hale were ancestors of the Adderley family of Innishannon, Co Cork. Francis Adderley of Innishannon, Co Cork, and his wife Elizabeth (Fowkes) were the parents of Thomas Adderley (1713-1791), a politician, landowner, amateur architect, developer of the linen industry and MP.

Thomas Adderley was still a child when he inherited his father’s estate, and was educated at Trinity College Dublin. He built the town of Innishannon, Co Cork, brought 60 Huguenot families to Innishannon in 1747 to establish a linen manufactory, and built a charter school there in 1752.

His first wife, the former Elizabeth Bernard, from Castle Mahon, Co Cork, was the widow of James Caulfeild (1682-1734), 3rd Viscount Charlemont, and MP for Charlemont, Co Armagh. Elizabeth and James had at least six children before he died in 1734. Their eldest surviving son, James Caulfeild (1728-1799, became 4th Viscount Charlemont, and in 1740 the widowed Elizabeth married Thomas Adderley (1713-1791) from Innishannon. They lived in Dublin, and had one more child, Elizabeth Adderley.

Thomas Adderley was an active and involved stepfather to James Caulfeild, providing advice and help to him throughout his transition to adulthood and after. Thomas, who became MP for Charlemont, built Marino House in 1753 on property he had acquired, and presented it to his stepson, Lord Charlemont. While Charlemont was away – in London or travelling through Europe – Thomas Adderley developed and managed the Marino estate on his behalf.

Thomas was appointed one of the Dublin Wide Streets Commissioners in 1757, while his stepson James later became known as the ‘Volunteer’ Earl of Charlemont.

Back in Innishannon, Thomas Adderley’s interests included the silk industry, the linen industry, salt works, a flour mill managed mainly by the Orrs, Courderoy Mill managed by the Baker family, a carpet factory and a cotton factory.

When he died on 28 May 1791, he was buried at Saint Mary’s Church, Mary Street, Dublin. His gravestone is among those leaning against the back wall of what is now Wolfe Tone Park.

The Adderley estate in Innishannon became heavily encumbered with a mortgage of £40,000 during the life of Edward Hale Adderley (1770-1870). It is said locally that Adderley was unable to go outside his private grounds for 12 years, except on Sundays, for fear of being arrested for debt. He built an underground tunnel to Saint Mary’s Church, through his garden, and used this tunnel to move between his house and the church without being arrested.

Finally, under cover of darkness, he left Ireland at night for London, where he died about 40 years later, and the Adderley estate was acquired by Thomas Frewen and his family.

Another member of the Innishannon family, Richard Boyle Adderley, was a friend of the poet Robert Southey (1774-1843) during their time at Westminster School. He later became a barrister and civil servant and died in 1857.

Thomas Adderley of Ballyclough, near Mallow, was the father of Richard Boyle Adderley (1820-1874), a ‘schoolmaster,’ who married Ellen Meade (1831-1905) in Castlemagner,near Kanturk, Co Cork, in 1852, and he died in Douglas, Cork, in 1874.

Their second son, Robert Archibald Adderley (1870-1946), born in Cork on 16 May 1870. He was educated at TCD (BA, MA), and was ordained deacon in 1901 and priest in 1903. He was a curate at Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Tuam (1901-1905), when he married Eva Mary Charlotte Jones from Co Sligo in 1902.

Robert and Eva Adderley were the parents of a daughter Eva Mary (born in 1903) and two sons: Harry Robert Adderley (1906), who died in infancy, and Richard Raymond Folliat Adderley (1909-1975).

Robert moved to Limerick in 1905 and was Curate of Saint Mary’s Cathedral (1905-1908) and Vicar Choral (1905-1918). During that time, he was the Precentor of Limerick for ten years (1908-1918). During World War I, he was also a chaplain to the forces in 1915-1919.

After the war, Canon Adderley spent almost 30 years as Rector of Listowel (1918-1946), which was amalgamated with Ballbunion in 1922, and Brosna and Abbeyfeale in 1928, all now part of the Rathkeale and Kilnaughtin Group of Parishes.

In the cathedral chapter, he was Prebendary of Croagh (1918-1924), Prebendary of Kilpeacon (1924-1940), Treasurer of Limerick (1940-1941), and then Dean of Ardfert (1941-1946). But the position of Dean of Ardfert was a sinecure or nominal appointment: the parish of Ardfert was amalgamated with Tralee in 1921, and the Church of Ireland parish church closed in 1945.

Dean Adderley was still the Rector of Listowel and Dean of Ardfert when he died in hospital in Tralee, Co Kerry, on 12 October 1946.

Saint Brendan’s Cathedral, Ardfert, Co Kerry … Robert Archibald Adderley was the Dean of Ardfert in 1941-1946 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford)

Castle Hewson in Askeaton was home to generations of the Hewson family

Castle Hewson in Ballyengland, Askeaton … home to generations of the Hewson family (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

Patrick Comerford

Castle Hewson, east of Askeaton, Co Limerick, stands in the townland of Ballyengland. The 18th century house is on a low crag is undergoing restoration, and I visited the house earlier this week for the first time since moving to Askeaton four years ago.

Castle Hewson stands beside an earlier tower house or castle that gives the house its name. It was also known as Ballyengland House, and the England family were originally tenants of the Earls of Desmond. After the Desmond rebellion at the end of the 16th century, Thomas England was pardoned in 1581 and 1590, when his son attainted and hanged.

George Isham received a grant of Englandstown or Ballyengland in 1597, but Thomas and Oliver England were living at Ballyengland in 1601.

The Hewson family was living at Castle Hewson from the end of the 17th century. They continued to live there into the late 20th century, with other branches of the family living at Enniscouch and Hollywood.

By the mid-19th century, the main part of the Hewson family estate was in the parish of Askeaton, but the family also owned other houses and lands in the area: in the 1870s, John Brownrigg Hewson owned Castle Hewson and 1,435 acres; George James Hewson of Hollywood owned 666 acres; and Robert Hewson of Ennishcoush owned 398 acres near Rathkeale, Co Limerick. Other family members owned lands at Castleisland, and Ennismore, near Listowel, Co Kerry.

The East Window in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, was donated by the Hewson family of Castle Hewson (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

Castle Hewson is an imposing, detached, five-bay, two-storey country house, built ca 1760, with a central, two-storey canted projecting bay at the front or east elevation, extensions at the rear or west elevation, and an adjoining six-bay, two-storey block at the rear. The three-stage tower house adjoins the house at the north side.

Castle Hewson retains much of its original form and fabric, including a variety of tripartite and timber sliding sash windows. A number of decorative features – including the red brick voussoirs, cast-iron ridge crestings, and limestone finials – add an interesting contrast to the rubble stone and rendered walls. The adjoining tower house adds archaeological significance to the site and is preserved in a relatively good condition. The outbuildings and walled garden behind the house add context to the site.

The architectural features of the main house include a hipped slate roof with terracotta ridge crestings and ridge tiles, rendered chimneystacks, a cut limestone eaves course, a limestone finial on the south gable, square-headed window openings with cut limestone sills, red brick voussoirs, and six-over-six pane timber sliding sash windows.

The first-floor windows have double-leaf timber louvered shutters. The square-headed opening at the front of the house has a carved limestone doorcase with a limestone pediment supported by pilasters, and a flanking double-leaf timber panelled door. It is approached by cut limestone steps.

The walled garden behind the house has a square-profile, three-stage tower at the north-east corner. There is an eight-bay, two-storey outbuilding beside the north elevation of the tower house, and a four-bay, split-level outbuilding at the north side of this outbuilding. There is also a three-bay, double-height outbuilding to the east of house.

The definitive history of the Hewson family is Memoirs of the House of Hewetson or Hewson in Ireland by John Hewetson (London: Mitchell & Hughes, 1901). He traces the family back to John Hewson or Hewetson (1498-1567), a glover, who was born in Settrington, Yorkshire, and became a Freeman of York and a member of the Merchant Adventurers’ Company.

His eldest son, Thomas Hewson, was also a Freeman of York. He moved to Ireland in the 1570s with his family, including his younger brother, Canon Christopher Hewetson, who became Prebendary of Howth, Vicar of Swords, and Treasurer of both Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, and Ardfert. Since the move to Ireland, the names Hewetson and Hewson seem to have been interchangeable. Other variants of the family name include Hughson, Huetson and Huson.

Dominick Hewetson died in 1640, but, almost two years later, his body was dug up from the nave of Saint Brigid’s Cathedral, Kildare, by rebels and placed in a ‘garden’ outside the cathedral churchyard.

His son, Captain George Hewetson or Hewson, was one of the 49 Irish officers who remained loyal to King Charles I during the Civil War in the 1640s. He was supposedly related to the regicide and hard-line radical preacher, Colonel John Hewson of London, a self-proclaimed ‘Child of Wrath’ and the Cromwellian butcher of Drogheda.

George Hewson’s grandson, George Hewson (1662-1735), acquired land near Askeaton, Co Limerick, including Castle Hewson in Ballyengland, which he held under a lease from Brooke Brydges of High Holborn, Limerick.

Members of the family included the Ven Francis Hewson, Archdeacon of Aghadoe, Rector of Listowel and Sovereign (Mayor) of Dingle; Margaret Anne Hewson, who married the Revd George Maxwell, Rector of Askeaton; Admiral George Francis Hewson, who fought at the Battle of Trafalgar; and Thomas Hewson, President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

The memorial in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, to Maurice Hewson, who died at 14 at school in Repton in 1892 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

Castle Hewson passed through generations of the Hewson family down to John Brownrigg Hewson (1826-1909), who was the father of three sons: William Everard Gardiner Hewson (1874-1957), John Gilbert Brownrigg Hewson (1875-1951), and Maurice Francis Hewson (1887-1892).

The youngest son, Maurice, caught pneumonia while he was at school in Repton and died when he was only 14. He is remembered in a plaque in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton.

The eldest son, William Everard Gardiner Hewson, became a Justice of the Peace or magistrate for Co Limerick in 1909. He was a keen campanologist and rang the changes in many Irish and English cathedrals. Everard Hewson murdered a woman for no apparent reason in 1914. Elizabeth Costello (née Lynch) was a widow working as a maid in Castle Hewson.

A year later, William Everard Gardiner Hewson was found ‘Insane and Incapable of Pleading.’ He was detained at Dundrum Lunatic Asylum for the Clinically Insane, at ‘his majesty’s pleasure.’ He was released five years later, and was sent to a dower house near Rathkeale. He died in Barrington’s Hospital in 1957 and is buried in the grounds of Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Limerick.

The memorial in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, to Maurice and Pamela Hewson (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

Meanwhile, Castle Hewson was inherited by John Hewson’s second son, John Gilbert Brownrigg Hewson, known as Gilbert Hewson. Gilbert Hewson married his distant cousin, Kathleen Violet Hewson, daughter of George Hewson of Ennismore, Co Kerry. He was elected to Dáil Éireann as an independent TD for Limerick in June 1927, but lost his seat at the September 1927 election and was an unsuccessful candidate in the 1932 election. A barrister, he was a member of Limerick County Council for many years. When he died in hospital in 1951, he was living at Lough House, Ballyengland.

His son, Maurice Hewson (1913-1998), was educated at Repton and Trinity College Dublin, where he was an outstanding cross-country runner, tennis player and boxer. He was a district commissioner and member of the British colonial administration of the Gold Coast (Ghana).

He became one of the District Commissioners charged with planning the Gold Coast Volta River Dam project. But the project collapsed when the Gold Coast gained independence as Ghana. Maurice Hewson returned to Ireland in 1957 and moved back to Castle Hewson and Lough House. He was a leading parishioner in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton.

Maurice Hewson and his wife Pamela died in a tragic fire at Lough House on 23 February 1998. Their detached, two-storey home, fronting a lake, was destroyed in the blaze. When fire brigade units from Rathkeale, Foynes and Newcastle West arrived at Lough House, they found the doors of the house and the gate to the driveway were locked, and the fire rapidly engulfed the house.

At the time, friends described them as a ‘wonderful and endearing’ couple who were very popular. Many media outlets reported the tragedy with headlines such as ‘relative of U2’s Bono killed in house fire.’

The memorials to the Hewson family in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, include the East Window depicting the Good Shepherd.

Castle Hewson is an imposing, detached, five-bay, two-storey country house, built ca 1760 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2021)

How the Lartigue monorail was brought back to life in Listowel

The Lartigue Monorail ran for 15 km between Listowel and Ballybunion from 1888 to 1924 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

Patrick Comerford

For a long time, I thought Lartigue was an Irish place name. I had seen signs for Lartigue, and thought it was a townland or a village on the road between Listowel and Ballybunion, with an old railway station on a long-closed train line.

I had seen the signs … and I was wrong.

Last weekend, I visited the Lartigue Monorail and Museum in Listowel, Co Kerry, and heard the story of a steam-powered monorail that ran for 15 km between Listowel and Ballybunion on the coast from 1888 to 1924. And it was designed by Charles Lartigue, an inventive French engineer.

This unique railway has a special place in Irish railway history as the only monorail of its type to operate successfully on a commercial basis. It carried passengers, livestock and freight along a rail supported on A-shaped trestles. But the original Lartigue Monorail also created interest, curiosity and amusement.

The weekend visit included a short demonstration journey on a full-scale diesel-powered replica of the original monorail. On the journey, volunteers showed the unique features of the monorail and its ingenious switching system.

The Listowel-Ballybunion line opened in 1888 at a cost of £30,000 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

The Listowel-Ballybunion Railway opened on 1 March 1888. It ran 15 km between Ballbunion and Listowel and was the only railway of its type in the world.

The monorail was invented and developed by Charles Lartigue, who had built a prototype monorail in Algeria that was 90 km long and was used to carry esparto grass across the Sahara. The cargo was carried in pannier-like wagons slung on either side of a single rail, mounted on A-shaped trestles. The wagons were connected to bogies whose wheels ran along the rail.

Lartigue’s design is said to have been inspired by watching camels carrying large loads in panniers balanced on either side of their backs. The single raised rail was a distinct advantage in the desert where shifting sands made a conventional rail line virtually unusable.

Lartigue brought a length of his line to an exhibition in London in 1886, in the hope of selling his idea as a viable railway option. At the same time, people in North Kerry were lobbying for the railway to be extended to include a link from Listowel to Ballybunion.

The decision was taken to try out Lartigue’s idea on a Listowel-Ballybunion line. The new railway opened in 1888 at a cost of £30,000. The train carried passengers, freight, cattle and sand from the Ballybunion sandhills. The passengers included Ballybunion children on the way to school in Listowel, people from Kerry and Limerick making their way to the beach resort of Ballybunion and golfers going to the new golf course at Ballybunion.

But the line was barely financially viable and never made a real profit. Its closure was hastened by severe damage during the civil war in 1921-1923, and after 36 years it closed in 1924.

The restored railway line has about 1,000 metres of monorail track, (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

To mark the centenary of the line in 1988, local historians Michael Guerin and Michael Foster published histories of the line, and Michael Barry of Lisselton assembled 50 metres of salvaged track and an original carriage.

A Lartigue Restoration Committee set up in 1990s was chaired by Jimmy Deenihan TD, with Jack McKenna, who had travelled on the footplate of the original Lartigue, as President.

Work on building a new Lartigue began in 2000. The building work was carried out by the Restoration Committee and a team of FAS workers, and the train went into operation in June 2003.

The railway has about 1,000 metres of monorail track, three switches, two turntables and three platforms representing Listowel, Lisselton and Ballybunion. There is one engine, which is an exact reproduction of the original engines, although this is diesel driven, and two third-class carriages, modelled on the originals. The replica engine, carriages, switches, turntables and the track were built by Alan Keef Ltd of Ross-on-Wye, Monmouth, builders of many theme railways in Britain.

The present journey on the Lartigue starts less than 100 metres from the point where the original Lartigue began its journey to Ballybunion. The site of the original Lartigue Listowel Terminal is preserved in a park beside the new Lartigue, along with the bases of two switches and the foundations of the Engine House.

The original goods shed for the main Limerick-Tralee line has been converted into a museum (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

Before the journey, I visited the museum to see a video presentation of the original monorail and models, displays and memorabilia of the Lartigue and mainline railways.

The original GW&SR (later CIE) goods shed for the main Limerick-Tralee Line has been restored and converted into a museum and interpretative centre. This also acts as the entrance hall and ticket office.

The museum exhibits include memorabilia, photographs, posters, tickets, signs, lamps and newspaper cuttings. An audio-visual room has film footage of the original steam-powered Lartigue. There are scale models of the original Lartigue train, a model of the Lartigue station and the mainline station, and interactive models of some of the unique features of the Lartigue line. A touch-screen PC has original photographs, documents, and video clips illustrating the history of the Lartigue railway.

The Lartigue Railway and Museum in Listowel, Co Kerry, are open this summer (1 May to 7 September and 15 to 30 September 2019) daily from 1 pm to 4.30 pm.

The Lartigue Railway and Museum in Listowel are open throughout summer (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

Should the Maid of Erin in Tipperary look like Hibernia or look like Lady Lavery?

The sign above ‘The Maid of Erin’ … more like Lady Lavery on a £1 note than Hibernia (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

Patrick Comerford

Tipperary Town wears its strong nationalist past on every sleeve. Street names commemorate Thomas Davis and Charles Kickham, plaques recall John O’Leary and his sister Ellen, and a seated Charles Kickham seems to preside in bronze over the town from his throne on a plinth at the top of Kickham Street, facing onto Main Street.

But the most unusual reminder of nationalist sentiment in Tipperary is the ‘Maid of Erin,’ on the corner of Church Street and Main Street.

The monument once stood proudly on a pedestal at the end of Main Street, but was moved to its present place in a railed, pebble-dashed alcove on the corner of Main Street and Church Street in 2003 after it had been struck once too often by a passing truck.

The Maid of Erin was unveiled in 1907 to commemorate the so-called ‘Manchester Martyrs,’ three Fenians who were executed in Manchester 40 years earlier.

The ‘Manchester Martyrs’ were William Philip Allen (18), who was born near Tipperary but grew up in Bandon, Co Cork, Michael Larkin (32), from Banagher, Co Offaly, and Michael (Gould) O’Brien (31), from Ballymacoda, Co Cork. The three were executed for the murder of a police officer in Manchester on 18 September 1867.

They were among a group of 30 to 40 Fenians who attacked a police van taking two arrested leaders of the Irish Republican Brotherhood, Thomas J Kelly and Timothy Deasy, to prison. Sergeant Charles Brett was shot dead in the attack, Kelly and Deasy were released and were never recaptured.

Allen, Larkin and O’Brien were hanged in front of about 10,000 people at the New Bailey in Salford on 23 November 1867. Monuments to their memory were commissioned in Manchester and Tralee, Co Kerry, Limerick, Kilrush and Ennis Co Clare, Birr, Co Offaly, Milltown Cemetery, Belfast, Ladysbridge, Co Cork, near O’Brien’s birthplace, Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin, and in Clonmel and Tipperary Town, Co Tipperary.

‘The Maid of Erin’ … she likes like a fusion of ‘Hibernia’ and statues of the Virgin Mary (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

The monument in Tipperary Town on a prominent corner site is a landmark sculpture. It shows a carved limestone female figure standing on a base with portraits of the three executed men, and a pedestal with a stepped plinth, and with dressed limestone bollards at corners. The portraits have the names of each man in Irish.

It is a naturalistic and evocative piece of work, made all the more striking by the life-like portraits of the executed men.

The female figure, the ‘Maid of Erin,’ was seen at the time as the personification of Hibernia or Mother Ireland. But in popular culture, at a time when Irish identity was inter-twined with Catholicism, her image was fused with the Virgin Mary.

The statue was commissioned by the Tipperary branch of the Irish National Foresters. The monument was designed by PR Cleary of Tipperary and was completed by Joseph O’Reilly in Dublin. It was unveiled on 10 March 1907 by Charles Doran of Cobh, a long-standing Fenian activist.

It stood on its original site until July 1992. It was moved to its present location in February 2002 and was officially unveiled for a second time on 22 June 2003 by the Mayor of Tipperary, Anna Tuohy-Halligan.

The monument now stands a stone flagged pavement behind wrought-iron railings, with an information board and rubble stone planters beside it. Behind the monument, the walls of the neighbouring buildings provide painted roughcast rendered screens.

This site had been vacant since the night of 13 November 1920, when two houses, including the home of the Sinn Fein TD for Tipperary South, Patrick James Moloney (1869-1947), a pharmacist from Limerick, were burned down in an unofficial reprisal after several soldiers were killed in an ambush in the Glen of Aherlow. The site was donated to the people of Tipperary by Thomas Moloney of Ballinahow, Tipperary.

The Maid of Erin at No 9 and No 10 Church Street was built around 1880 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2019)

The Maid of Erin is also the name of a traditional pub around the corner at No 9 and No 10 Church Street. Although this public house takes it name from the memorial, it predates the statue and was built ca 1880.

The pub is notable for its highly ornate shopfront, displaying fine craftsmanship in render and carved timber. The scalloped timber frames on the ground floor windows and in the mouldings of the consoles and strongly presented pilasters are excellent examples of high-quality work.

This is a terraced, three-bay, three-storey house, with an elaborate timber-and-render shopfront on the ground floor with a moulded bracketed cornice, dentils, egg-and-dart course, elaborate consoles, channelled quoin pilasters, some quoins vermiculated and a painted rendered plinth. There are scalloped frames on the over-lights above the shop door and one side of the other door is flanked by decorative panelled pilasters with decorative capitals.

Here too there is another image of the ‘Maid of Erin.’ But this time she looks less like Hibernia, or even the Virgin Mary, and more like the portrait of Lady Lavery that decorated pre-Euro Irish banknotes.

For the ‘Maid of Erin’ in Listowel, Co Kerry, visit HERE.