Year of Mercy Pilgrimages, South Central Province the Prayer of The

Year of Mercy Pilgrimages, South Central Province The prayer of the feet, the pilgrimage, is one of the most ancient and universal forms of prayer. Is it any wonder that Pope Francis, in introducing the Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy, suggested that going on pilgrimage was one of way of deepening and strengthening our faith? The CLT latched on to this idea and thus was born the theme of pilgrimage to mark the Jubilee Year in a special way. Two members from each province were invited to plan pilgrim events in their respective provinces. RS Thomas attempts to capture the essence of Pilgrimage in the following lines: The point of travelling is not To arrive but to return home Laden with pollen you shall work up Into honey the mind feeds on. Being mindful of the geographical spread of the Province, we decided that it was impractical to have just one pilgrimage at a single location. We set about planning a variety of pilgrim experiences that would be accessible to many people in the province – not quite one for each county. Obviously it would have been impossible for us to organise every single pilgrimage and we are indebted to the all those who organised pilgrimages in April, May, August and September. Pilgrim Places April: Glendalough – Margaret Prendergast May: Solas Bhríde, Kildare and McAuley Tea Rooms, Naas – Anne Donnelly May: Coolock House, Callaghan’s Grave and Baggot Street, Dublin – Anne Reid and Kathleen Somers June: Holy Island, Lough Derg and Aistear Inis Cealtra, Mountshannon, Co Clare – Noirin Long and Mary Lillis July: Labyrinth at Querrin and Little Ark, Kilbaha, Co Clare – Mary Lillis August: Cabragh Wetlands, and Holy Cross Abbey, Thurles, Co Tipperary – Catherine Ryan September: An Gairdín Beo, Carlow- Bernie O’Rourke and Mary Carmody September: Burren Outdoor Retreat – Nóirín Long and Mary Lillis Choice of Locations Three factors influenced the choice of pilgrim places Long established as a pilgrim site Link with Mercy Places with a focus on caring for the environment Long Established Pilgrim Sites Glendalough During the 17th and 18th Centuries, pilgrimage became one of the main expressions of Irish people’s spirituality. Pilgrimages to Glendalough, however, date back to St Kevin in the 6th Century and flourished from then until the 11th Century. St Kevin and the blackbird – Imogen Stuart Holy Island, Co Clare Holy Island (Inis Cealtra) is associated with a number of saints but the saint who dominates the story of Holy Island is St. Caimin and he is revered to this day in East Clare. It is said that his mother had 77 children, a number of whom were adopted! Under him, the island was a centre of learning and attracted many pilgrims. However, it did not formally feature as a pilgrimage site until the 17th century and continued to be an important place of pilgrimage throughout later centuries. We were privileged to walk on one of the original pilgrim paths. St Brigid’s Church with Round Tower in the distance Holy Cross Abbey, Co Tipperary Holy Cross Abbey Holy Cross Abbey, a former Cistercian Abbey, takes its name from a relic of the True Cross. It was a place of great medieval pilgrimage. Following the Cromwellian war, it fell in to disrepair. In 1968, a move was initiated locally to restore the Abbey Church and bring it back into use for the local community. The work began in 1971 and a celebration of the restoration was held in 1975. Pilgrims at Holy Cross Abbey The Little Ark, Kilbaha, Co Clare In 1839, the parish priest had no church in the parish and the landlord would not give land. He decided to build a wooden box with wheels and place it on the foreshore at Kilbaha on Sundays. (He got the idea when he saw a bathing box on the beach in Kilkee – not a nuns’ bathing box)! The Church in Kilbaha which now contains the Little Ark is the most visited church in West Clare. The Little Ark Pilgrim places linked to Mercy Baggot Street, Callaghan’s Grave and Coolock House Mercy International Centre has been a pilgrim place for Sisters of Mercy over the years. In more recent years, hundreds of Sisters, their families, friends and associates have visited Mercy International Centre and have walked in the footsteps of Catherine. It was in Coolock House that Catherine became familiar with the poor of the area and began to respond to their needs. This was largely due to the generosity, kindness and spirituality of the Callaghan’s who owned the house and with whom she lived. Since 2012 those who visit Coolock House can enjoy a video and audio presentation giving the history of Catherine’s Dublin and of the house itself. Callaghan’s Grave The Callaghan’s are buried in St John the Evangelist Church of Ireland Graveyard. Focus on caring for the environment Solas Bhríde, Kildare St. Brigid is a great inspiration to us for taking care of the environment. For many years the Brigidine’s in Kildare have been promoting her legacy and heritage. They have established an ecologically built Centre for Celtic Spirituality in the spirit of Brigid. The core ministry work there is to welcome pilgrims to Kildare. A group of Mercy Sisters were among the pilgrims in May. Labyrinths Aistear, Inis Cealtra, Mount Shannon We visited two Labyrinths – one in Mountshannon in East Clare and the other in Querrin in West Clare. The labyrinth in Mountshannon also known as Aistear Inis Cealtra is part of a 4.5 acre community park in the middle of the village. There are over 3,500 trees, plants and shrubs planted throughout the park. “The Aistear project is an effort to bring the human and the universe into an immediacy with each other…” (Thomas Berry) We were delighted to visit the Labyrinth in the Eco Camping site in Querrin which was proposed and funded by one of our Spanish Point past pupils, Maura Egan. Querrin Cabragh Wetlands Cabragh Wetlands Project is an attempt to save a vast area of wetland habitats from destruction. They offer a wide variety of activities with the aim of creating a greater awareness of the conservation and appreciation of our natural environment. Volunteer led walk of the wetlands An Gairdín Beo This is a living community garden in the middle of Carlow town. It’s an ecological project which values diversity, sustainability, organic methods and protects indigenous species. It enables a diverse mix of people to connect with each other, through nature, art and creativity; and the growing and making of food. This year it offered a 1916 commemorative event since the ideals of An Gairdín Beo are close to those expressed in the 1916 Proclamation, “cherishing all the children of the nation equally”. An Gairdín Beo Burren Outdoor Retreat The Burren Outdoor Retreat offers an opportunity to walk mindfully on a very unique landscape, visit sacred sites and ponder the wisdom of the ancient monks and take time to admire the beauty of the rare flora for which the Burren is famous. This year we celebrated Mercy Day while on the Retreat and we were delighted to have the presence of Lily from the Northern Province and Maeve from the Western Province and Helen from South Central Province. In conclusion, we are grateful to the CLT for suggesting pilgrimages for the Year of Mercy. A special thank you to Mary Margaret from SCP who gave us lots of support and a big thank you to Anne Donnelly from the Provincial Office. Of course, there wouldn’t have been any pilgrimage if people hadn’t chosen to be there so many thanks to all who were able to attend. We are aware that many would have liked to attend and were unable for a variety of reasons. So for those who were unable to attend we remind you of the words of Banani Ray: “Life is a pilgrimage, each moment is to be lived in depth, because each moment contains God, hidden within it”. Nóirín Long and Mary Lillis rsm .

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