Irish America
Irish America
Nora Barnacle was 20 when she arrived in Dublin and met James Joyce in 1904. She had run away from Galway, her absentee mother, her strict uncles, and her friends, without goodbyes. She began work as a chambermaid in Finn‘s Hotel. Nora and Jim spotted each other on Dublin’s Nassau Street. Noting his nautical cap, canvas shoes and long frame, she thought he must have been a … [Read more...] about Nora Joyce: The Girl from Galway
He was a descendant of the Uí Néill dynasty and often served as a peacemaker for that contentious tribe, who even accused St. Patrick of putting a curse on them. Before he rose to prominence, Àedh was an illiterate farmer, a bumpkin of sorts who was bilked of his inheritance by his brothers. Seeking revenge, the future Saint abducted their maid and headed south. A local bishop, … [Read more...] about Áedh Mac Breic: Patron of Headache Sufferers
Tuatha Dé DannanThey came in the mist... Ireland is a land of sacred spaces but none as mystical as Newgrange in County Meath. Newgrange is a prehistoric monument, a collection of Stone Age burial mounds and kerbstones, enormous rocks carved with art. It is a place older than the pyramids, a place of spiritual, archaeological and historic importance, and a place that brings … [Read more...] about Miotas | The Ancients
Patron of Wolves | Feast Day September 12thSt. Ailbe, sometimes known by his anglicized name, St. Elvis, was a 6th-century saint born in County Tipperary. The name Ailbe is derived from the old Irish words Ail (rock) and beo (alive) since as a newborn, the saint was discovered alive under a rock where he had been hidden… by a wolf. Ailbe was the illegitimate offspring of a … [Read more...] about St. Ailbe of Emly
Patron of Ireland | 498-618 | Feast Day June 3rd Since no biography of this holy hermit was written until 600 years after his death, the facts of his long life (120 years!) are scarce. Kevin, his name anglicized from Coemgen or ‘of blessed birth’ was born of the royal line of the kingdom of Leinster. Educated by monks, Kevin, while still a boy, vowed to spend his life in … [Read more...] about St. Kevin of Glendalough
