Religion

HOLY CROSS AVENUE NO LONGER PROVIDES ACCESS TO HOLY CROSS COLLEGE

September 22, 2023 by infomatique

FRIDAY 22 SEPTEMBER 2023

The last time I visited the area I was able to access Holy Cross College site and parklands but today all entrances [except those to the Crosscare Hub and the Teen Counselling Service) were locked.

The college closed on 30 November 2016 when it was fully incorporated into the DCU Institute of Education, within which is The Mater Dei Centre for Catholic Education (MDCCE) continuing its mission.

SAINT KILIAN AND ST KILIAN’S GERMAN SCHOOL

July 15, 2023 by infomatique

ACCORDING TO GOOGLE’S BARD AI

This modern statue is located at St Kilian’s German School on Roebuck Road in Clonskeagh.

I am still experimenting with Google Bard and used it to research St Killian but some of the information was somewhat doubtful. For example I could not confirm that the Town Of Killarney [referred to as a city by Bard] is named after St Killian. The Irish for Killarney is Cill Airne meaning the “Church Of Sloes”.

Saint Killian [also spelled Cillian or Killian] was a seventh-century Irish missionary who is credited with bringing Christianity to Franconia, a region in what is now Germany. He is also the patron saint of Würzburg, the capital of Bavaria.

Killian was born in Ireland in the early seventh century. He was educated at the monastery of Clonmacnoise, one of the most important centres of learning in Ireland at the time. After his education, Killian traveled to Gaul (modern-day France) to preach the Gospel.

In Gaul, Killian met with some success in converting pagans to Christianity. However, he also made some enemies, including Duke Gosbert of Franconia. Gosbert’s wife, Geilana, was a pagan, and she was opposed to Killian’s mission.

In 689, Killian and his companions were murdered by Geilana’s followers. They were killed in Würzburg, and their bodies were buried in the city.

Killian’s death did not end his influence. He was soon venerated as a martyr, and his cult spread throughout Germany. In 742, his relics were exhumed and placed in a new church in Würzburg. The church was dedicated to Killian, and it became a major pilgrimage site.

Killian is remembered as a courageous and dedicated missionary who helped to spread Christianity in Germany. He is also celebrated as a martyr who died for his faith.

In addition to his missionary work, Killian is also known for his contributions to the development of the Church in Germany. He was instrumental in establishing the diocese of Würzburg, and he is credited with introducing the Gregorian chant to the region.

Killian’s feast day is celebrated on July 8. He is the patron saint of Würzburg, the diocese of Würzburg, and the city of Killarney in Ireland.

Killian is a significant figure in both Irish and German history. He is remembered as a courageous missionary who helped to spread Christianity in both countries. He is also celebrated as a martyr who died for his faith. Killian’s legacy continues to inspire people today.

Here are some additional facts about Saint Killian:

His name means “little champion”.
He is often depicted in art with a sword, a symbol of his martyrdom.
He was born in Ireland around the year 640.
He studied under Saint Columban at the monastery of Luxeuil in Gaul.
In 686, he set out for Franconia to preach the Gospel.
He was killed by Geilana, the wife of Duke Gozbert of Thuringia, in 689.
He was canonized in the 9th century.
His feast day is celebrated on July 8.
He is the patron saint of Würzburg, Germany, and missionaries.

St. Kilian’s German School in Dublin was founded in the early 1950s, developing from the work of a Dublin charity, the Save the German Children Society, founded in 1945. The school was originally a Sunday school, offering German classes to children who came to Ireland as part of the programme run by the Save the German Children Society.

In 1954, the school was named St. Kilian’s and three years later relocated to a site on the Stillorgan Road in Dublin, which could also accommodate a Kindergarten. The school expanded and grew in the following years, and in 1961-2011, it had a delegated Headmaster from Germany and a Deputy Principal supported by the Department of Education in Ireland.

In 1974, the school moved to its current campus in Clonskeagh. In 1976, the school was recognised by the Irish Department of Education and given a roll number. Two years later, the first group of St. Kilian’s students sat the Leaving Certificate.

In 1989, the school introduced the Sprachdiplom Exams, a significant step in establishing the higher pedagogical benchmark for the teaching and learning of German in the school. In 1992, St. Kilian’s became a member of the European Schools’ Association.

Today, St. Kilian’s German School is a thriving institution with a student body of over 500 pupils from over 30 different countries. The school offers a wide range of academic and extracurricular activities, and its graduates go on to study at leading universities around the world.

Here are some of the key milestones in the history of St. Kilian’s German School:

1952: The school is founded as a Sunday school.
1954: The school is named St. Kilian’s.
1957: The school relocates to Stillorgan Road.
1961-2011: The school has a delegated Headmaster from Germany and a Deputy Principal supported by the Department of Education in Ireland.
1974: The school moves to Clonskeagh.
1976: The school is recognised by the Irish Department of Education.
1989: The school introduces the Sprachdiplom Exams.
1992: St. Kilian’s becomes a member of the European Schools’ Association.

I WAS WALKING ALONG BERKELEY STREET AND BERKELEY ROAD

June 25, 2023 by infomatique

AND WAS CAUGHT OUT IN AN AMAZINGLY SUDDEN THUNDER STORM

The change in the weather caught me totally by surprise but the rain storm lasted less than five minutes.

I visited Berkeley Road today, Sunday, as I had hoped to photograph the interior of the Carmelite Church but it was closed as was the park beside the church.

St. Joseph’s Carmelite Church on Berkeley Road is the Roman Catholic church of the Berkeley Road Parish. The church is dedicated to Saint Joseph and is in full use today in the care of the Discalced Carmelite. [Note] Discalced is derived from Latin, meaning “without shoes”.

Originally a wooden chapel of ease was built here in 1870 until its replacement with the building of the current granite church.

The granite building was designed by the architects O’Neill and Byrne with construction beginning in 1875 and was completed and consecrated in 1880.

The Berkeley Road Parish was established in 1890 from St. Michan’s. The parish is called Berkeley Road even though the church is located on Berkeley Street.

To celebrate the establishment of the parish, the North-Western bell tower was constructed between 1892–3 to the designs of John L. Robinson.

The church was put into the care of the Discalced Carmelites in July 1983.

ST JAMES’ CHURCH

June 11, 2023 by infomatique

NOW THE PEARSE LYONS DISTILLERY AND VISITOR CENTRE

I attended an event, relating to AI, which was organised by Virgin Media and as a result I had an opportunity to photograph some of the old graveyard at St. James’ Church but I only had a very small camera [Sony RX0]. Note: The date and time settings were out by a year so be aware that I visited in 2023 not in 2022.

St. James’ Church is a former Church of Ireland church in James’s Street, Dublin, Ireland. Established in 1707, the corresponding parish, which was separated from that of nearby St. Catherine’s, was established in 1710. There had been a shrine dedicated to St. James at nearby St. James’s Gate, a stopping-off point for pilgrims, since medieval times. It has been proposed that the current church is near to the site of a church to St. James of Compostella which is first referred to in the mid-13th century.

The existing church building dates from 1859 and was designed by Joseph Welland (1798–1860). It is the burial place of the Rev. John Ellis, for 34 years vicar of this parish, and of William Ellis, governor of Patna, India, who was killed during a war there in 1763.

In 2014, the church was bought by Pearse Lyons and converted into a distillery and visitor centre.

Thomas Pearse Lyons (3 August 1944 – 8 March 2018) was an Irish businessman and the founder and President of Kentucky-based Alltech Inc., an American animal health and nutrition company that is centred on innovation, research and development. Lyons was considered an “entrepreneur, salesman, marketer and scientist all rolled into one”, and was widely regarded in the agribusiness sector as an innovator and industry leader.

Although the present church only dates to the 18th century, there are records of burials as early as 1495 and it is believed that the cemetery may have been in use as early as the 13th century. Back in 2019 I was unable to explore the cemetery as it was overgrown and not accessible to the public. It is owned by the Dublin city council, and community efforts are underway to revive the tradition of annual cleaning and decoration.

In the centre of the cemetery is the monument of Sir Theobald Butler (1650-1720), of the Butlers of Ballyline, a prominent barrister who served as Solicitor General for Ireland and assisted in framing the articles of the Treaty of Limerick in 1691, and who advocated the Roman Catholic cause before Parliament. His monument has a Latin epitaph stating that it was erected by his eldest son “to the best of fathers.” Since Butler was a Catholic, it is noteworthy that the Church of Ireland made no objection to his being buried in St. James’. The monument was restored by Colonel Augustus Butler D.L. of County Clare, his descendant in the fourth generation, in 1876.

Sir Mark Rainsford, Mayor of Dublin and owner of the brewery which was sold to Arthur Guinness, was buried in St James in 1709. Also buried here is Sergeant-Major John Lucas, VC, who died 4 March 1892 and Sir William Haldane-Porter founder of the UK Immigration Service, who died in 1944.

Across the road from the church, in the middle of the road, is the Fountain, an obelisk with 4 sundials with a drinking fountain at its base, built in 1790 by the Duke of Rutland, the Lord Lieutenant

CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL 7 JUNE 2023

June 8, 2023 by infomatique

WINETAVERN STREET – ST MICHAELS HILL

My Grandmother always referred to this as St. Michaels Hill but my father referred to it as Winetavern Street and until recently I also referred to it as Winetavern street because that was what on any map that I had seen.

However, about three years ago, I noticed a street sign under the arch at Christ Church Cathedral indicating that it is St. Michael’s Hill.

After some research I discovered that the left hand side [East] of the street heading towards the river is St. Michael’s Hill while the other side of the street is Winetavern Street. To make things even more complicated St. Michael’s Lane was originally Christchurch Lane.

In the 17th century, taverns on Winetavern Street included the Whitehorse the Golden Lion and the King’s Head and all are long gone.

Christ Church Cathedral, more formally The Cathedral of the Holy Trinity, is the cathedral of the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough and the cathedral of the ecclesiastical province of the United Provinces of Dublin and Cashel in the (Anglican) Church of Ireland. It is situated in Dublin, Ireland, and is the elder of the capital city’s two medieval cathedrals, the other being St Patrick’s Cathedral.

The cathedral was founded in the early 11th century under the Viking king Sitric Silkenbeard. It was rebuilt in stone in the late 12th century under the Norman potentate Strongbow, and considerably enlarged in the early 13th century, using Somerset stones and craftsmen. A partial collapse in the 16th century left it in poor shape and the building was extensively renovated and rebuilt in the late 19th century, giving it the form it has today, including the tower, flying buttresses, and distinctive covered footbridge.