CARNAUN NATIONAL SCHOOL We extend a cead míle fáilte – to you, to all the people of our parish who are gathering with us this afternoon; to all who are home with families and friends at this time; and from all the people and priests of the parish we extend a very warm welcome to all who have recently come to live amongst us in the parish of Athenry. This evening we gather on the threshold. As the year 1999 yields to the year 2000 and the year of the Jubilee dawns, we come here together and we stand before our God. We come into God’s presence, gathered together in his house and ours. We pray, not as individuals, but as a community, formed by our shared history.
We look forward: For all that will be, in the days and years ahead, we say YES All time is God’s time: We let go of the past and we welcome what is to come. All the time, we pray in the name of our brother JESUS, who is the same yesterday, today and forever. This evening – in word and symbol and gift – we celebrate our “journey of faith”. We reflect on the foot-prints of our history and the major events which have influenced our lives in this parish of Athenry. 1. Millennium Candle: Symbol of the Light of our Faith is now carried to the altar by Paul Mitchell. The flames of a great fire on the Hill of Slane lit up the night sky. St Patrick set the sparks alight. He had come back in response to the “voice of the Irish” and brought the light of Christ. In the words of an Irish poet…
Young hearts have borne far In lands no human foot had trod Beneath the Western Star…” 2. Our Lady's Well: This marks another stage in our journey of faith. Water from Lady’s Well is carried to the Altar by Tommy Quinn Since the 13th Century, this special place in our parish dedicated to Mary, the Mother of God is marked by the prayers and pilgrim feet of generations who have walked here on pilgrimage in their journey of faith for 750 years. The Waters of Lady’s Well is a symbol of the new life of Baptism – bonding us together as God’s people. Special events in our history are marked in Lady’s Well. The Calvary records the Eucharistic Congress in 1932. The Marian Year in 1954 is remembered in the Grotto. The new Millennium Park and the Sculpture – embraces all this tradition of the centuries. This bench mark of our history by the people of our parish stands as a symbol to show their appreciation of past generations. Here in this beautiful setting it marks the new century and presents the challenge to live the faith and pass it on. 3.Medieval Parish: This reminds us that we are a people with deep roots in history. A Banner is now carried to the Altar by a member of the Athenry Festival Committee Stephanie O'Regan The history of our medieval town and parish can be seen through it’s monuments. Our own native poet, Padraic Fallon celebrated this heritage in his poetry. A town surrounded by “Those Norman Walls on the edge of nothing…” “Watch-Towers gone native into tree-tops and birds nests…” “A town with it’s ruined Abbey…” “Where the de Burgos lie under broken slabs With Wall and Moat and Narrow Gate…" The Dominican Abbey and University - a centre of learning, drawing thousands of students; St. Mary’s Church where people gathered to worship now houses the Heritage Centre ; a centre of commerce and a thriving market town is marked by the Market Cross. Great houses, like Castlelambert and Castle Ellen dominated the landscape. Some of the books and writings that tell the story of our parish - from The Carnaun & Tiaquin School histories, The Lambert’s of Athenry, St. Mary’s GAA Club, the Golf Club, writings of Professor Rynne, Aggie Qualter, Anne Healy to the Athenry Journal. 4. Penal Laws: The bitter winds of change challenged the spirit and the faith of our forefathers. A Stone from the Coldwood Mass Rock is now carried to the Altar by Donal Jennings The Treaty of Limerck in 1691 was broken. The Protestants feared another rebellion by the Irish with French support and the return of the Wild Geese. Harsh laws were passed by a Protestant Parliament.
* No Catholic Bishop or monk may remain in the country after May 1st 1698 * Catholics may not practise law, or hold a position as a judge, army officer, naval officer or Government official * No priest may be educated or ordained in Ireland * On the death of a Catholic, his land shall be divided equally among all his sons… The Dominican friars expelled from Athenry under penalty of death found refuge around Esker. The Rosary and the Stations, the gathering of people in the valleys around the Mass-Rock became the people’s vibrant expression of their faith. An old Irish poem “Anseo i Lár an Ghleanna” will now be dramatized by Fiona Rooney-Fitzpatrick and her friends. 5. The Great Famine: The challenge continues for our people with the Great Famine……A basket of Potatoes is carried to the Altar by Michael Donnellan. In the 1840’s the potato was the most extensively cultivated crop from two million acres or one-third of the tilled land of Ireland. Three million people consumed little else and together with buttermilk, the potato provided a rich diet which made the Irish one of the most healthy, robust and tallest races in Europe. Soon, they were to become its most wretched. "…The lush greening of the potato stalks promised a rich harvest, but unseen by human eye, the balmy south-east winds were bringing death from Europe. The dreaded blight spores alighted on the greening stalks and by Autumn the rotting vegetation was giving off a fearful stench… Frightened people rushed to open furrow after furrow and found only “jellied rot” … They saw the whole years supply of food destroyed before their eyes.2 The diary of Humphrey O Sullivan…July 26th 1830. “This month is now called Hungry July. Buimhis (‘yellow month’) is its proper name in Irish. It is a suitable name, for the fields are yellow, and also the faces of the paupers are greenish yellow from the black famine, as they live on green cabbage and poor scraps of that sort……” An extract from Seamus Heaney’s poem …"For the Commander of the Eliza” For a moment, imagine you are one of the people in the rowing boat…
We saw piled in the bottom of their craft Six grown men with gaping mouths and eyes Bursting the sockets like spring onions in drills. Six wrecks of bone and pallied, tautened skin. ‘Bia , Bia, Bia’. In whines and snarls their desperation Rose and fell like a flock of starving gulls". 6. Diaspora - The Irish Empire Abroad. Today throughout the world, 70 million people are proud of their Irish heritage. They live in lands as diverse as Australia, Argentina,America, Ghana and Germany, Bahrain and Britain, Zaire and New Zealand, and the Middle East. In politics and education, commerce and sport, religious life and christian faith, they continue to give inspiring leadership. Proud of their history and their heritage in passing on the faith, they have created one of the great spiritual empires in the history of the world. We celebrate all the people who have left our parish in the past two centuries and their generous support to families remaining at home. We pay tribute to the work, witness and the service of the Presentation Sisters who came to our parish on the 2nd January, 1908.. In a special way, we remember the sisters, brothers and priests from this parish – over 80 of them - who are spread across the world bringing the light of Christ to others. The Lantern, symbol of Nano Nagle &The Mission Banner is carried to the Altar by Sr. Mary. 7. Today - Where are we? The Meitheal Bulletin and the Athenry Flag are now carried to the altar. A small thatched barn chapel was built here in the setting of this church in 1760. Later a larger church was built around it in 1852. Our present church was built on the same site, 33years ago in 1967. Today, our parish is a vibrant community. Education has provided a wide range of opportunities for work and jobs are available now for young people as never before in our history. Clubs and organisations and groups– over 70 of them provide a wide range of leisure activities. The Staffs and Flags symbolise our local communities and parish organisations. There is greater affluence but also a widening gap between sections of our society. We are indebted to the generations before us for their industry, hard work, and dedication. They have built a the new confidence in the Ireland of today.
To care for the weak and the powerless. To promote a more inclusive society. To accommodate people with different cultures and creeds who are coming to live amongst us. We remember all who made this achievement possible. 8. We Have Promises to Keep:The Athenry Millennium Flag sponsored by Athenry Credit Union will now be carried to the Altar by the man who designed it – Frank Kennedy. On this evening on the threshold of a new Millennium, we gather in a place where generations before us came to pray and worship for nearly 250 years. Generations who have kept the light of faith alive despite all the challenges of our history As we move towards the dawn of a new century and walk together through the gateway of a new millennium, we are called to build a future of hope. Many thoughts and reflections go through our minds on this evening. Gratitude - is a dominant expression of our appreciation of the generations – our own people who have gone before us – for their strong spirits and stout hearts – for their goodness and generosity – the way they kept traditions alive and cherished and lived the faith. They present a challenge to us – we who live in such a different time. They leave us with a Question! They are asking us! In times that are past, where suffering, poverty and persecution failed to destroy a living faith – will apathy, indifference and affluence – succeed in today? Back to School Homepage!
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