In Principio Faith of Our Fathers - District of Ireland
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olic Faith and the content of all
ons. The content - the Faith and
n saint - is more important than
rnal society. The logo becomes
ily readable due to the difference
nes.
k letters stand for the organization
gn seeks to express something
ganization’s core values, showing
s fully “in the light”.
In Principio
Faith of Our Fathers
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Summer No.15 Newsletter of the SSPX in Ireland
What tongue, human or angelic, may ever describe a power so immea- surable as that exercised by the simplest priest in Mass? Who could ever have imagined that the voice of man, which by nature hath not the power even to raise a straw from the ground, should obtain through grace a power so stupendous as to bring from Heaven to earth the Son of God?” St. Leonard of Port Maurice O.F.M. (b. 1676- d. 1751) Franciscan Friary, Friary Lane, Athlone, Co. Westmeath
In Principio
Bulletin of the
Priestly Society of Saint Pius X in Ireland
Letter from the Superior 6
The Mass Rock and the Faith of a Nation 9
Publisher The Hunted Priest 13
Fr Robert Brucciani
Saint Pius X House 12 Tivoli Terrace South Catholic Voices 18
Dún Laoghaire, Co. Dublin Youth Group Week in Kerry 23
Editor
Gina Connolly
Layout
Fr Patrick Kimball & Anthony Haughey
Frequency
Quarterly
Suggested Donation €3
to cover printing expenses
The SSPX relies solely on the donations of the faithful.
To donate to the SSPX in Ireland
Society of St Pius X
Permanent TSB
Account no: 26190763
Sort code: 99-06-04
BIC: IPBSIE2D
IBAN: IE66 IPBS990 604 2619 0763
Cheque donations may be made out to
‘The Society of Saint Pius X’
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In Principio
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The Society of Saint Pius X is a registered Charity: CHY 9694 Society of St. Pius X in Ireland
All donations made by individuals amounting to Year Planner 2021 31
€250 or over authorise the Charity to a tax rebate.
For more information contact Fr. Robert Brucciani.
Wills and Bequests
The Society gratefully appreciates the generosity
of benefactors who remember the Society in their wills.
Contact a solicitor for further advice.
Website
fsspx.ie
5
Editorial
virtues to be the governing princi-
Letter from the
ple of everything we do: in prayer,
in duties of state, in recreation and
in work, so that our religion ceases
Superior
to be an adjunct, a bolt-on or an ap-
pendage to our lives and, instead,
becomes its beating heart and our
defining characteristic.
Such was the example of our fore-
fathers in the faith, they gave up the
world and sin for a ‘crown of light’,
Rev. Fr Robert Brucciani, District Superior as the hymn of matins for the com-
mon of the martyr so beautifully
relates:
My dear brethren, apply politically motivated Covid O God, of those that fought thy fight,
rules, is really incomparable to the Portion, and prize, and crown of light,
Lest we be tempted to lament our gnawing fear and sense of injustice Break every bond of sin and shame
miserable lot in this godless world, that afflicted Irish Catholics on and From 'Lives of Irish Martyrs and As now we praise thy martyr’s name.
with its godless politicians, godless off for nearly 500 years. The sanc- Confessors', Myles O' Reilly (1880)
economy, godless schools and, dare tions we face today – financial and He recked not of the world’s allure,
I say it, increasingly godless Catho- administrative – are paltry com- rent era of general apostacy. It is a But sin and pomp of sin forswore:
lic hierarchy, we would do well to pared to those suffered at various rich irony: the Communists helped Knew all their gall, and passed them by,
turn around and look back to our times by our Catholic forefathers. preserve the faith! And reached the throne prepared
forefathers in the faith – particu- on high.
larly the martyrs. Their sufferings And even if we do suffer today, But we mustn’t just wait for hard-
have a much greater claim on our we must remember that hardship ship to be imposed upon us, we Bravely the course of pain he ran,
pity than our own, their virtues are endured for Christ is like a refining should go out and embrace hard- And bare his torments as a man:
our model to follow and their re- fire for the golden virtues of faith, ship in the form of self-sacrifice for For love of thee his blood outpoured,
ward is beyond our imagination. hope and charity. We see this clear- our faith: giving self in a priestly And thus obtained the great reward.
ly in Catholic Ireland of old and and religious vocation, or in the
Our physical and mental sufferings we have contemporary examples sacrament of marriage to raise With humble voice and suppliant word
are nothing compared to those who in those Catholic countries which, souls for heaven, or giving oneself We pray thee therefore, holy Lord,
risked poverty, imprisonment, tor- until recently, laboured under Com- for the glory of the liturgy, or to While we thy martyr’s feast-day keep,
ture and death in the past. Anxiety munist dictatorships (for example, catechise the ignorant or for the Forgive thy loved and erring sheep
lest our chapel be visited by the Poland and Lithuania) and have upkeep of the house of God. Glory and praise for aye be done
gardai, who are clearly reluctant to best preserved the faith in this cur- We should make the theological
6 Summer 2021 7
Editorial Catholic History
To God the Father, and the Son,
And Holy Ghost, who reign on high,
One God, to all eternity.
novitiate of the Sisters of the Soci-
ety of St. Pius X. This young man
and young woman have made the
An raibh tú ag an
Amen.
Let us pray that this hymn might
gift of self and we rejoice. This is
the faith of our fathers living still. gCarraig?
be sung of us one day, if not as
martyrs by the shedding of blood,
then as martyrs by the total giving
Deo gratias.
In Jesu et Maria,
The Mass Rock and
of self.
Finally, let us offer prayers of
Rev. Robert Brucciani
the Faith of a Nation
thanks for the recent ordination of
Kelly Murphy Bannwart
Rev. Dominic O’Hart, and for Miss
Mairead Sherry’s entrance into the
The Mass Rock has long been a eradicate the Catholic faith from
place of refuge and spiritual nour- Ireland in the wake of the reforma-
ishment for Catholics suffering tion. While the full ramifications
persecution during penal times. of the Act of Supremacy were
These monuments continue to not immediately felt in Ireland,
serve as visual reminders of the this act immediately outlawed all
deep roots of our Catholic heritage other churches – apart from the
and devotion to the Mass in Ireland. manmade Church of Ireland – and
The celebration of the Holy Mass imposed a mandatory tax on all
at Mass Rocks grew as a practice Catholics to facilitate the growth of
throughout Ireland well before the new religion of Protestantism in
the infamous imposition of penal Ireland.
laws with the tide of toleration of
the Catholic Church taking an un- The defeat of the Catholic King
favourable turn in 1536. This was James II in 1690 by the Protestant
the year that the Irish parliament King William of Orange at the Battle
voted to pass the Act of Suprema- of the Boyne, coupled with the fall
cy, making the English monarch, of Limerick in 1691, left Catholic Ire-
Henry VIII, ‘the only supreme head land in an even more defenceless po-
on earth of the whole Church of sition against Protestant England’s
Ireland’. The spread of Anglicanism unrelenting political, economic and
Miss Mairead Sherry enters the novitiate of the sisters of the Society of St. Pius X under Henry VIII threatened to religious conquest of Ireland.
8 Summer 2021 9
Catholic History
stage for a long, trying season of ful Catholics and priests worked situated Mass Rock. It is sited in a
persecution for Catholics in Ireland together to secure remote places of cave only accessible by row boat
with the imposition of penal laws worship to avoid the detection of or on foot through the thick foliage
from 1695 to 1829. authorities. Lay Catholics were also on the East Ferry side of the catch-
instrumental in providing shelter ment. The cave itself is only acces-
While the 1697 Banishment Act spe- and material provisions for priests sible and visible at low tide. It was
cifically targeted certain Catholic and bishops on the run. at this Mass Rock that the faithful
priests and bishops in Ireland, the on the East Ferry side of the river
penal laws targeted all practising The greatest concentration of would kneel on stones separated by
Catholics. Under penal legislation, Mass Rocks can be found in Co. the strait of water to assist at Mass
Catholics were forbidden from as- Cork, but this is due in part to the offered on the Great Island side.
sisting at Catholic Mass and were detailed level of archaeological This cave is also notable because
legally compelled to attend worship survey undertaken in this county it is traditionally believed that it
at the Church of Ireland. Penal and not replicated on this scale is one of the few Mass Rock loca-
laws also prohibited Catholics from elsewhere in Ireland. It is possible tions that was never raided and the
providing a Catholic education for that other types of sites – such as priest never captured throughout
their children, owning land, engag- caves, private homes, penal period the years of persecution. This is
ing in free commerce, voting, hold- chapels or abandoned early me- remarkable considering that a well-
ing public office or retaining arms dieval ecclesiastical sites – were known priest hunter lived less than
for self-defence. more commonly used for saying a mile away.
As the noose of persecution con- Mass in other regions. Mass Rocks
tinued to tighten around the necks frequently occur in small clusters The Caherkeen Mass Rock, located
King James II of Irish Catholics, those who chose and, were often located on private- in West Cork, differs from the ter-
to hold fast to the faith accepted ly owned land and situated in very
In 1697 the Irish Parliament passed persecution as God’s Holy Will. The remote places not easily accessible.
the Banishment Act in Ireland, sixteenth-century attempt by Henry The remote and challenging acces-
which banished from Ireland all VIII to destroy all monasteries in sibility of many of the Mass Rocks
Catholic bishops, religious orders Ireland gave birth to the prevalent served as a natural means of escap-
and clergy charged with ‘exercis- use of Mass Rocks amidst the ing the notice of Crown forces.
ing ecclesiastical jurisdiction’ in destruction of a landscape once
Ireland. Wealthy Catholic families plentiful with Catholic monaster- The terrain of the various Mass
helped to hide Jesuits and Francis- ies. According to oral tradition, Rock locations throughout Ireland
cans to enable them to discreetly some Catholics risked imprison- is quite diverse and varied from
continue in their pastoral duties. ment or death in order to salvage location to location. The East Ferry
The 1536 Act of Supremacy, the altar stones or cornerstones from Mass Rock, also known as the Mar-
defeat of the Catholic King James the sites of destroyed monasteries logue Mass Rock, in the townland
II in the 1690s and the Banishment for use in the construction of the of Walterstown not far from Cobh,
Act of 1697 collectively set the altars of early Mass Rocks. Faith- is an example of one such uniquely Caherkeen Mas Rock
10 Summer 2021 11
Catholic History Catholic Lives
rain of the East Ferry Mass Rock ity of the Mass Rocks strewn about
and serves as an example of Mass the Irish countryside is a visual
Rock locations on higher ground. It representation of the beautiful sim-
The Hunted Priest
is located on a steeply sloping hill plicity of the Catholic faith. During
highly exposed to wind and rain. the penal times and other periods
While the mud and muck make of persecution, Catholics did not
for a difficult ingress, the Mass have access to elaborate catechesis
Rock offers a solid footing for the or faith formation as their priests
celebration of Holy Mass on high were constantly on the run. Yet
ground overlooking the Kenmare Catholics survived periods of
River. The natural rock outcrop spiritual starvation by cleaving to
acted as a backdrop for the altar the Holy Mass, the Rosary and the Fr Patrick Kimball
as well as doubling as a convenient priesthood. May God grant us the
hiding place within the landscape grace to cling ever more to Him as The popish clergy were formally na. Although the officials knew
for priests on the run. The words we consider the faith of our fathers expelled from Ireland under Eliz- of him and his illegal activities,
of the psalmist come to mind as in light of the challenges to the abeth I in 1584. But decades later, his faithful had been sufficiently
one considers the Caherkeen Mass faith that lie ahead. many still roamed the countryside discreet to protect him from any
Rock: ‘And he heard my prayers, and ministered to their flocks in encounters with the law. That is,
and brought me out of the pit of Bibliography secret. Cromwell, determined to until a few short hours before when
misery and the mire of dregs. And rid the country of popery once and one of them, eager for a reward, re-
he set my feet upon a rock, and di- Bishop, H. J. 2016. ‘Classifications of sacred for all, introduced a new phase of
rected my steps’ (Psalm 40:2). space: a new understanding of Mass Rock the penal laws, namely by placing
sites in Ireland’. International Journal of bounties on the heads of all Catho-
The remote nature and challenging Historical Archaeology 20, pp. 828-72. lic clergy: £50 for bishops and £20
accessibility of many of the Mass Fenning (OP), H. ‘A time of reform: from for priests – substantial sums at
Rocks in Ireland speaks to the re- the ‘penal laws’ to the birth of modern the time, today’s equivalent being
solve and devotion of the faithful nationalism, 1691-1800’. Christianity in approximately €6,200 and €2,500
throughout the penal times. A 1963 Ireland: Revisiting the Story. respectively. A few short years af-
reflection on the period published Madden, F. 2005. Teach Yourself the History ter the introduction of these laws,
in the Evening Echo reads, ‘During of Ireland. McGraw-Hill Companies. some faithful Catholics just south
all the dark years of persecution ‘Nun’s Suggestion’, Evening Echo, 26 Oct. of Monaghan town were gathered
the Irish people clung desperately 1963. together in a little hidden glen (Kil-
to the Mass, the Rosary and the O’Sullivan, M. and Downey, L. 2014. ‘Mass lyvane) to worship at their local
Priesthood. Armed with these Rocks and related sites’. Archaeology Ire- Mass Rock in the early hours of the
weapons they withstood the shock land 28(1), pp. 26-9 morning.
of assault and emerged from the
trial with their faith purified and The priest ministering to these
strengthened’. The natural simplic- faithful was a certain Fr McKen- Oliver Cromwell
12 Summer 2021 13
Catholic Lives
vealed the locals’ secret to the To worship in secret. Bishops, because of the higher calibre of his fiddle playing, but his
officials. This morning redcoats too There are the memories of hunted price on their heads, had an espe- faithful affectionately dubbed him
were present at that Mass; but for priests. cially difficult time. They had to the ‘Bard of Stradone’. And when he
fear that the sentry would discover Offering Mass in this hollowed place cover vast territories, and hiding, died in 1716, they carried his coffin
them and alert his fellow worship- At the risk of their lives guide their homeless priests. Bish- under the cover of darkness back
pers, the soldiers watched the They have handed us a torch op Hugh MacMahon, appointed to his native Tyrone.
scene unfold from afar. Only at the Let us keep that torch alight. to the see of Clogher in 1707, was
very end, as McKenna was reading Will their sufferings and sacrifices known to appear in various disguis- But many priests were not as for-
the Last Gospel, a seasoned marks- Be in vain? es to escape detection. One particu- tunate as these bishops. Fr Tadgh
man aimed his rifle, and in the next lar journey he ‘became’ a Dublin Moriarty, a native of Kerry, also
moment the country was rid of one The principal hero throughout merchant and en route was hosted took the disguise of a merchant
more popish priest. these times was the one who was by a Protestant minister, oblivious (seemingly a useful disguise for
primarily targeted: the Catholic of his true identity! Thus cleverly an outlaw always on the move)
During the penal times this was not priest. Although there were the disguised, he was able to visit many and would travel around the area
a rare occurrence. Faithful Catholics odd casualties, the persecutions of his priests, whom he found were administering to his faithful. On
were retreating en masse to various generally strengthened rather than often poorly dressed and malnour- the feast of the Assumption 1653,
locations to worship there clandes- weakened the resolve of these ished. He also discovered that dur- while celebrating Mass at a Mass
tinely. And because the persecution good pastors. For many, we have ing Mass, his priests would often Rock in Killaclohane Wood, he was
dragged on for so long, Irish Ca- very few details of the sufferings veil their faces and discourage the imprisoned and ill-treated for some
tholicism will always be especially they underwent. Others simply faithful from looking into their months before being sentenced to
associated with the Mass Rock of have their names etched in history, faces ‘… as they were liable to be death by hanging. His death was,
penal days. This is easily forgotten such as Fr Molloy from Co. Offaly. summoned at any moment to be in-
in times when the sacraments are His gravestone inscription simply terrogated regarding the priest who
readily available. But when the Mass states that he was ‘hanged and celebrated, and those who were
is outlawed, for whatever rationale beheaded because he was a priest’. present’.
the godless era might propose, our But the stories of some of these
thoughts are turned back to these tes- brave men have been passed on to A contemporary of MacMahon,
taments of faith. As the inscription at us and ought to be remembered. Bishop Donnelly of the see of Dro-
the Mass Rock in Tobernalt, Co. Sligo, The common thread amongst each more, would also use disguises to
so well states, the brave people who of their stories is their uncompro- travel around. During his travels he
worshipped behind these rocks must mising determination to nourish once chanced upon a famous bard
especially be remembered: their flock in spite of the dangers, from Cavan, giving him a marvel-
even the loss of their own lives. lous idea. He would become a bard
Here are the memories of a poor This often meant that these clergy himself. ‘Dressed in rags and carry-
persecuted people. had to resort to rather innovative ing an old fiddle, he visited the local
They braved death to come. methods to escape detection, which fairs and markets, playing folk-
They walked barefoot through the at times even appear comical. tunes and quietly ministering to his
woods. flock’. We have no indication of the Killacohane, Co. Kerry
14 Summer 2021 15
Catholic Lives
however, a further occasion to had once hidden under his bed to more than ever does this country
evangelise. For before the noose protect him from the rebels. With- need priests who understand what
was around his neck, he had the op- out any sign of bitterness, he brave- priests in penal times grasped so
portunity to encourage the witness- ly told the crowd that he would well – that the priestly life is a life
es to obey God’s law rather than prefer death to giving up his faith. of total consecration to God. And
the law of man. Bravely welcoming The last words he muttered while even if totalitarian decrees are
death, he made such an impact on hanging from his halter were ‘Deo made against the practice of the
his Protestant executioners that gratias’. Faith, the priest must continue to
one of them remarked: ‘if ever a fulfil his vocation, even at the cost
papist were a martyr he certainly Gradually, the British ruling class of his own life. Oh Lord grant us
should be accounted one’. came to realise how ineffective many such priests!
were their methods of penalising
But Catholics were not the only the priests and faithful of Ireland; Bibliography
ones who were unjustly treated. whenever one was disposed of,
Following the Rebellion of 1641, another always came to replace Rushe, D. 1895. History of Monaghan. Dub-
the Catholic rebels too would per- him. Whatever Faith this country lin, p. 21.
secute their Puritan adversaries. still clings to today, it is due largely Nugent, T. 2013. Were You at the Rock?
On one such occasion in Naas, Co. to the merits of the penal period Pope Pius XI
Dublin, p. 210.
Kildare, a Protestant clergyman priests and the sufferings and Ibid., p. 202.
was led to the gallows and forced to deaths they endured at the hands of others. As Pius XI acknowledged in Concannon, T. 1932. The Blessed Eucha-
preach a mock sermon. Just before the Eucharistic Congress of 1932, rist in Irish History. Dublin, p. 395.
the execution the local Dominican these priests continued to celebrate Nugent, Were You at the Rock?, p. 75.
prior hurried forward to plead for the Mass ‘… secretly and furtively Ibid., p. 158.
the life of the man. At his request, in dark caverns in the mountains, Forristal, D. 1990. Seventeen Martyrs.
the rebels capitulated and released in forests, in marshes, in hidden Dublin, pp. 69-72.
their prisoner. Nor was this an iso- places of every kind … [they] Murphy, D. 2019. Our Martyrs. Dublin, p.
lated event in the life of the prior, preferred to endure every kind of 190.
Fr Peter Higgins. Many Protestants suffering rather than to abandon Boylan, P. 1934. The Book of the Congress.
later admitted that they owed their the religion of their fathers…’. Now Dublin, p. 60.
lives either to his intercession or
hospitality. When the town was re-
taken by the Protestant army, Hig-
gins was one of the first to be cap-
tured. After spending a few weeks
in prison, he was condemned to be
hanged in the marketplace. Among
the crowd who witnessed his death Fr Patrick Kimball celebrates Mass at a
was a Protestant whom Higgins Mass Rock in Co Cork
16 Summer 2021 17
Irish Catholics
were forced to live. Despite all this, and an ideal in these more prosper-
Catholic Voices:
crime – aside from the theft of food ous times.
to stay alive – was almost unknown.
Protestant-controlled schools were Carlow
Alexis de Tocqueville
already actively engaged in trying to Tocqueville provides us with a de-
convert Catholic children and in re- tailed account of his interactions
sponse Catholics were lobbying for in Carlow. There, he noted, that
in Ireland
their own schools. although the Catholic people’s living
conditions were very poor, their
Whilst in Ireland, Tocqueville churches were ‘very beautiful’. While
sought out clergy, who had been walking the streets of Carlow with
educated in France to provide ac- local clergy, Tocqueville noted how
curate accounts of the state of the well the people treated the clergy,
Liam Foley Irish Church in a manner to which always respectfully saluting when
he could relate. The following they passed. He also had an opportu-
This people has all the virtues snapshots of such interactions are nity to dine with the local bishop and
dear to God; it has faith; there is informative, providing often moving several clergy. He wrote very highly
no better Christian than the Irish- accounts of a dedicated clergy, a of them and their love for their pa-
man. (Bishop Kinsella of Ossory, pious and God-fearing faithful, and rishioners, as well as the oppression
1829–45) an awe-inspiring affection and trust they suffered because of their faith
between priest and people. The fol- and the unjust burden of the tithes.
The French-born Alexis de Toc- lowing serves as both an example Bishop Nolan noted that while the
queville (1805–59) is best known for population was increasing, the
his work Democracy in America, means of making a living were di-
first published in 1835. His works minishing – and the authorities, who
analysed living standards, social should have been implementing a
conditions and relations between Poor Law, were dithering.
civil society, the market and the
state. He had a distinguished career Portrait of Alexis de Tocqueville by
Théodore Chassériau, at the Palace
One proposal put forward in an at-
in French public life, eventually be- tempt to end the Tithe War involved
of Versailles (1850).
coming Minister of Foreign Affairs the continuation of the collection of
in 1849. Although he had a very high produced a fascinating account of this tax but instead of it being given
regard for the Church, he remained conditions in Ireland in the period solely to the Church of Ireland, it
a liberal believing in the separation between Catholic Emancipation and would be shared with the Catholic
of Church and State. the Great Famine. His visit coincid- Church. This in turn had the added
ed with the high point of the Tithe bonus that the more radical priests
In 1835 Tocqueville travelled ex- War and he was appalled at the state could be somewhat controlled by
tensively throughout Ireland and of poverty in which Irish Catholics
18 Summer 2021 19Irish Catholics
the government because they would less, the bishop praised the chastity by external details. We avoid con-
essentially become civil servants. of the Catholic women in his diocese, tact with the State. We behave as
Bishops and priests were wiser than explained that hardly anyone failed missionaries in a non-Christian
this and almost universally preferred to make their Easter duty and noted country.
voluntary contributions and the abo- that suicides were extremely rare
lition of the hated tithe payments. occurrences. However, he spoke of Tuam
the worrying shift in farming from Near Tuam, Co. Galway, Tocqueville
Tocqueville asked the bishop how arable to grassland, and anticipated visited a parish priest and saw the
he felt about these proposals. He great trouble if the Poor Laws were people’s devotion in practice. He
replied that if this happened in Ire- not reformed; this was only ten years noted the priest’s living conditions
land, the faithful would lose all trust before the Great Famine. were simple, only slightly better
in the clergy. Given the incredible Bishop Kinsella also let it be known than his parishioners. After a simple
closeness between the people and that although he was one of the most meal, Tocqueville accompanied the
their priests, the faith itself would poorly paid bishops in the country, priest on his rounds and observed
suffer if this proposal came to pass. he still resisted the idea of being paid the respect paid to him, as well as
The rector of St Patrick’s, Carlow Tithe War cartoon: A pig is unwilling to by the state; in fact, he had been to the care and compassion of the
College, reiterated the words of the give one of its ten banbhs to a Protestant London the previous year precisely priest in return, while carrying the
bishop: the poverty of the people to resist such a proposal. Kinsella burdens of his flock. The priest told
was a consequence of the policies of thing for the people, should enrich also functioned as a parish priest, him that in Ireland it was the poor
Protestant landowners. He also op- itself at their expense, and employ which took up a lot of his time. He who cared for each other and the
posed state funding of clergy, even for its own ends the tithe which underlined the vital importance of chief ill was the idle wealthy. The
though he pointed out that priests was established not only to provide good priests, stating that, ‘It would priest also showed him the ruins of
and bishops in that part of the coun- for the needs of the priest, but also be a hundred times better to leave a a church destroyed during the Ref-
try were amongst the poorest. He for those of the poor and for public parish without a priest than to give it ormation, adding:
was aghast at the increasing pov- education? a bad one’. Kinsella, like the rector of … it is easier to knock down stones
erty of his faithful and the way the For example, in one parish in Car- Carlow seminary, was critical of the than to drive out a religion from
landowning class did little for them. low there were 6,000 Catholics and external trappings that he observed the hearts of men. The heretics
Even though the people were poor, forty Protestants, but the two Prot- in France, and remarked that French have devastated the sanctuary;
they had managed to build a fine estant clergy lived off the tithes pro- clergy called him a revolutionary. He they let their flocks graze over the
cathedral and pay for the seminary. vided by the many Catholics. explained to Tocqueville that when ruins of the altar; but they could
He also spoke of the great sacrific- French priests said this to him, he not stop the veneration of the
es made by locals to ensure their Kilkenny would respond: people being attached to these in-
children received their education in In Kilkenny Tocqueville dined with Far from trying to offend the peo- sensible stones. We could not come
Catholic schools. Speaking of the the Bishop of Ossory, Dr Kinsella, ple, we identify ourselves as much to pray where our fathers had
tithes he said, who outlined how poor and op- as possible with their interests and prayed, but we have continued to
Is it not revolting that the Protes- pressed the Catholics of Ireland had views. We try and show our adver- bury our dead in the place which
tant clergy, who do hardly any- been under the penal laws. Nonethe- saries the substance of our religion had been blessed long ago and
without rasping their prejudices which holds their ashes.
20 Summer 2021 21Irish Catholics Report
They also went on a sick call to be tempted to believe that I did not
bring the Sacraments to a dying old depend on them, and one day per-
man. ‘As he spoke physical pain and
hope alike were written on the face
of the old man, care and anxiety on
haps we would regard each other as
enemies. Then, Sir, I would become
useless even to the government that
A Youth Group Week
the face of the priest.’ When done,
the priest arranged some food and
wine from his own table to comfort
paid me. If today I preach peace and
patience, I am believed because I am
not suspected of gaining anything
in Kerry
the dying man. by speaking thus, but if they could
see in me an agent of the govern-
Again, the subject of clergy being ment, of what moment would my
Kevin Quain
paid by the state or having churches opinion be?'
built by the state came up:
It is only the enemies of our holy After listening to the priest speak
religion, replied the priest, who can for some time of the injustices felt On Sunday, 20 June 2021, members an exciting week’s holiday.
speak thus; only they who wish to by the Catholic Irish at the hands of Comhaltas Chríost Rí, the Irish
break the bonds which unite priest of the Protestant aristocracy, Toc- Youth Group, travelled from all On Monday morning we set off,
and people. You have seen, Sir, how queville told the priest that if he parts of Ireland and rendezvoused twenty-six strong, for Mass at
the village looks on me. Sir, the peo- spoke like that in France he would at the Black Valley Hostel near the foot of Mount Brandon on the
ple love me, and they have reason be taken for a revolutionary. the Gap of Dunloe. Surrounded by Dingle peninsula. Due to a mix-up
to love me, for I love them too. They First-hand accounts of the state of moss-encrusted mountains, nu- about location, there was a late
have confidence in me and I in them. Irish Catholicism in this period from merous sheep and with no internet start which fortunately did not
Every man in a way regards me as such a renowned observer as Toc- signal for several kilometres, it impact our plans for the day. After
one of his brothers, as the eldest queville are uncommon. His inter- promised to be an ideal location for Mass, and a hearty meal of break-
of the family. How does this arise, views with the clergy reveal a poor
Sir? Because the people and I have Church but one whose clergy made
need of each other all the time. The great sacrifices for the people and
people gives the fruit of its labours for whom the people were willing to
liberally to me, and I give them my make great sacrifices in return.
time, my care and my entire soul. I
can do nothing without them, and Further Reading
without me they would succumb
under the weight of their sorrows. Larkin, E. (trans. and ed.) 1990. Alexis de
Between us there is a ceaseless ex- Tocqueville’s Journey in Ireland, July–August
change of feelings of affection. The 1835. Catholic University of America Press.
day I received government money,
the people would no longer regard
me as their own. I for my part might A Youth Group Week in Kerry
22 Summer 2021 23Report
back to the hostel that night was bouncing into the sea. Back at the
uneventful save for a ram in the hostel, the evening’s entertainment
middle of the road who was not at consisted of a strange American
all bothered by six vehicles that game where the players toss bags
swerved around him in the pitch- filled with corn kernels into a hole
black night. to gain points. Despite the apparent
simplicity of the game, it proved
The following day, despite the late- difficult and exciting for the teams
night kayaking, saw us up bright of players. Some players were so
and early for Mass, breakfast and skilled that it seemed strange that
a presentation about the relation- they were born in the Midlands as
ship between the Church and the opposed to the Midwest.
State. Then we all bustled into the
cars and raced off to Derrynane To celebrate the Feast of St John
Ladies' View, Killarney National Park beach. In the sand, the sun and the the Baptist we had a sung Mass on
wind we played several matches Thursday morning. Then followed
fast baps, we began the climb Tuesday’s activities saw the group of volleyball with everyone getting a presentation on the four temper-
up the mountain following the travel to Gleninchaquin Park for involved eager to dive headfirst aments and a trip to Ladies’ View
footsteps of St Brendan, for whom a much shorter hike than the pre- if it meant saving the ball from just outside Killarney. After some
the mountain is named. Apart from vious day, followed by lunch and
the wind trying to sweep us off the a short but intense soccer match.
mountain, the weather was warm Then came the journey back to the
and sunny. Three hours of intense hostel for dinner and a conference
walking and clambering later, the on friendship given by Fr Kimball,
rearguard of the group arrived at before we returned to Kenmare for
the summit and was welcomed an exciting night-time kayaking
to lovely and rugged views of the trip down Kenmare Bay. The group
coast and the mountains. We then members then donned the several
all went to Dingle for a well-de- layers of wet gear that would prove
served and much-needed ice cream very useful during the kayaking.
followed by a talk on St Brendan The group split into teams of
and his voyage to America from two and joined forces to pilot the
Ireland. The day’s activities culmi- kayaks along the bay. The guides
nated in a talk by a curragh maker who came along to keep us out
who showed us his workshop and a of trouble seemed befuddled and
small curragh he was making. amused at the level of camaraderie
amongst the group and the positive Mass Rock at the foot of Mount Brandon
interaction all around. The journey
24 Summer 2021 25Report Comhaltas Chríost Rí
free time in the town itself, we had trad music session where the songs
lunch at Muckross House followed were played and sung with an exu-
by more games of volleyball. The berance that has surely rarely been
climax of the evening, however, matched.
was a wonderful barbecue with
meat galore. Ironically, the only Saturday morning came and the
rain that fell all week coincided sun shone down as we hustled and
with the meat fest. bustled to clean up and depart
again, this time for home. It had
On Friday morning Fr Kimball indeed been an exciting week filled
gave another conference, this time with many graces from daily Mass
on the spirit of CCR and states in and compline, as well as from the
life. We then drove to the Geokaun talks and presentations. We had all
Cliffs and from there to Valentia been rejuvenated by each other’s
Island for lunch. After a stop in company. There had been newcom-
Cahersiveen to say the Rosary at ers who added to the enjoyment
the Daniel O’Connell church, we of the week and the spirit of the
headed back north for what proved group. The trip left us all looking
to be the highlight of the trip. Jamie forward to many more outings and
Nagle and co. treated us to a lively events to come.
26 Summer 2021 27Collage Collage
Fr Dominic O'Hart – Ordained 11 June 2021 Mr Joseph Budds of Co. Cork receives the Minor Orders
of Exorcist and Acolyte
28 Summer 2021 29Priestly Society of Saint Pius X in Ireland
Summer 2021 Events DUBLIN St. John the Evangelist Church
1 Upper Mounttown Road Dún Laoghaire, Mass Times
Co. Dublin A96 P793 - Sunday 9am & 11am
T: (01) 284 2206 - Monday - Friday 11am & 6:30pm most days
July 18-24 Girls' Camp
- Saturday 11am
25-30 Boys' Camp Saint Pius X House
12 Tivoli Terrace S, Dún Laoghaire
Aug 15 Newry Mass Rock Pilgrimage Co. Dublin A96 KV65
T: (01) 284 2206
20-24 St Declan's way
Resident:
Sept 3 Feast of St Pius X Rev. Fr Patrick Abbet (Prior)
Rev. Fr Leo Boyle
3-5 Youth Outing in Cork Rev. Fr Patrick Kimball
25 Youth Study Session (Dun Laoghaire) Rev. Fr Jules Doutrebente
ATHLONE Corpus Christi Church
Connaught Gardens, Athlone Mass Times
Oct 16-17 Youth Outing (tentative) - Sunday 10am (check website, can be 4pm)
Co. Westmeath N37 E671
T: 090 643 3703 - Monday - Saturday 11am
- First Friday 6:30pm
Saint Joseph’s House
Court Devenish House, Athlone,
Co. Westmeath N37 NF77
T: 090 643 3703
Resident:
Rev. Fr Patrick Kimball
BELFAST Saint Pius V Chapel
78 Andersonstown Road Mass Times
Belfast, Co. Antrim - Sunday 12noon
BT11 9AN
T: (028) 9445 3654
FSSPX Northern Ireland FSSPX Republic of Ireland
CORK Our Lady of the Rosary Church
Shanakiel Road Sunday’s Well, Mass Times
Co. Cork T23 T389 - Sunday 11am (check website, can be 4pm)
T: (090) 643 3703 - Saturday 11am
NEWRY Our Lady of Knock Chapel
Unit 5 Richbrook Business Park, Mass Times
Mill Road, Bessbrook, - Sunday 8:30am
Newry, Co. Down BT35 7DT
T: (048) 30 825730
30 Summer 2021 31n
The Society of St. Pius X is an international priestly society of common life
without vows, whose purpose is the priesthood and that which pertains
to it.
Since its foundation by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1970, the Society
has formed priests according to the immemorial teachings of the Catholic
Church. By offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the traditional Latin
rite and administering the sacraments according to the traditional rites in
vigour in 1962 (before the Second Vatican Council 1962-5), the Society’s
priests perpetuate what the Church has taught and done throughout its
history. By the exercise of the teaching office of its priests, the Society
fights against the errors that presently afflict the Church.You can also read
