St Mary's, oldest Catholic Church in Belfast 1784
I'm down near CastleCourt on Chapel Lane to visit the oldest Roman Catholic church in Belfast city. It is St Mary's Roman Catholic Church chapel Lane and it opened in 1784.
Who Built St Mary’s Church?
The Census in 1782 showed that there were 365 Catholics living in Belfast. At that time, there was no Catholic Church in the City. Catholic parishioners had been gathering at the mass rock at Stranmillis now Friar's Bush cemetery.
The Presbyterian and Church of Ireland communnities took up a special collection at their services – the Handsome Collection – and made a gift of the monies donated to build the first Catholic Church in Belfast – St Mary’s Chapel Lane. The generosity of the Presbyterian and Church of Ireland people of Belfast demonstrates the unprecedented religious tolerance of that time. Our still cherished and beautiful pulpit was donated to St Mary’s by the Vicar of Belfast, Canon Turner, of the Anglican Church in High Street in 1813.
It was on Sunday, 30th May 1784 that Mass was celebrated for the first time in the new church of St. Mary’s for the first time by Father Hugh O’Donnell, first Parish Priest of Belfast.
A sister church was built – St Mary’s on the Hill in Whiteabbey. And Father O’Donnell would mount his horse after saying Mass in Belfast and ride on horseback to Whiteabbey to say Mass there.
Italian Paintings
The two beautiful paintings hanging on either side of the altar in St Mary’s Church. On the left the painting depicts the death of St Joseph, and on the right the painting depicts the Annunciation.
italian1360
In 19th century Ireland there were not many artists and craftsmen. Italian artists emigrated to Ireland, and one such artist came to live in Belfast. He was a talented painter and muralist and had a studio close to Chapel Lane. He was commissioned to paint the works of art for the opening of the new church.
About six years ago the paintings were restored in situe by experts in art restoration, one of them from the Tate Gallery. The paintings could not be removed from the walls so all work was carried out on scaffolding. The painting of the Sacred Heart was restored at the same time – and the beauty of the paintings was revealed for all to admire. Some time ago, we had the honour to welcome to the church the granddaughter of the Italian artist.
A Short History of St. Joseph's R C Church, Blantyre
A Short History of St. Joseph's R C Church, Blantyre - Including the Living Stones - Brought to you by Blantyre's Ain Website.
Days at Ballymartin Glen
Old cine film clips
POWER IN THANKSGIVING PART 2 ST. JOSEPH'S CHURCH CARDIFF 25 JULY 2018
Catholic family forced to flee south Belfast
St Joseph pipe band Belfast Easter 2016
Survivors of child abuse talk about their experiences at hands of Church and State
Patrick Walsh and John Kelly talk to Ruth Gledhill of The Times about their terrible sufferings as children in Catholic-run industrial schools after meeting with Irish church leader Cardinal Sean Brady and telling him he is a 'lame duck' cardinal.
See the news story at
See the video in context at
REDEMPTORIST MISSIONS PART3
A look at the work of the Redemptorist Order of the Catholic Church. The film emphasises both the negative and positive aspects of the Redemptorists on Irish life. It begins with the annual Clonard Novena in Belfast and traces the history and origins of the Redemptorism in Ireland both North and South. The order was founded by St. Alphonsus Ligouri in Italy in 1732 and only arrived in Ireland from Europe one hundred years later preaching the Four Great Truths of Death, Truth, Heaven and Hell, using powerfully frightening rhetoric to in its campaign against sin and transgression, The film asserts that the Redemptorist Order exerted a powerful hold on Irish people into the 20th Century - becoming a central aspect of Catholic life into the 1960s. The film shows how the order founded confraternities around the island the Limerick Confraternity being one of the largest in Europe. These were run with militaristic precision, and exerted a significant power and influence on church and state a power that the documentary suggests was used for both good and evil over the poor and abandoned of the country. The film goes on to explore the role of the Austrian priest Joseph Prost who wrote about class divisions between the clergy and the laity since the Great Famine and lead the order to operate upon principles of social equality. The Redemptorists encouraged the use of the Irish language in their rural work a factor that lead to disputes within the Catholic hierarchy. Opposing the practice of church collections, they set about on missions which attempted to identify the social needs of ordinary people, setting up credit unions, a factor that lead to the alleged pogroms of Jewish moneylenders in Limerick in 1904. The film explores the divisions between the Redemptorists whose work with the poor lead to their discreet support of Republican movements in the struggle for independence against Britain - and the larger Catholic Church, which believed that the conflict should be addressed through purely democratic means. In the first years of the Free State, the Redemptorists assumed a stance against the drinking and manufacture of alcohol. In 1931, a young Redemptorist from Árainn, Stiofan Ó Conghaile, attempted to end the manufacture of poteen in Connemara. The film goes on to describe the Redemptorists battle against immoral sexuality and the negative influence this on young men in rural communities. The last section of the programme deals with the influence of the Redemptorists on the Northern Irish conflict, and outlines how mainly through the Redemptorist Clonard Monastery in Belfast the order brought itself directly to the concerns of ordinary people once again, this time in ministering to the besieged Catholic Nationalist community who received little or no support from the Catholic Church. This lead to the prominent role of Redemptorist Fr. Alex Reid in bringing together both sides of the Northern Ireland communities for the Northern Ireland Peace Process. The documentary makes extensive use of archive footage. Contributors: An tAthair Breandan McConvery, historians Tim Pat Coogan and Gearóid Ó Tuathaigh, Dr. Muireann Ní Bhroichain, An tAthair Eamonn Ó Confhacla, Pádraig Ó Dálaigh, President Mary McAleese, Frank Prendergast, Tony Bromwell, Fr. John J. ORiordan, An tAthair Pádraig Ó Dónaill, Gearóid Robinson, Fr. Alex Reid, Fr. Clement McManus, Clara Dunne.
N Ireland Holywood Church Bell Ringers - Historic Musical Scenery
These are congregation members of The Church Of Ireland Parish in Holywood Town, N Down - St Philip & St James, along with regular bell ringers from bellringingireland.org. Check out their website to see when they play in your District. and thanks to their visiting Northern member from St Thomas Church in Belfast for details on more events. This is a very popular church in Holywood with a busy recreational and service diary, set in an idyllic seat on the forested edge of the Craigantlet Hills overlooking Belfast Lough. The town also features a Chapel and Norman Priory with an extensive graveyard.
This musical/town calling tradition of Bell Ringing migrated to Ireland from England via the Church Of Ireland, historically part of the English Royal/Parliamentary approved Anglican Church network - whose branches and Book Of Common Prayer covered the Three Kingdoms of Scotland, Ireland and England-Wales after 1650. There are Church Of Ireland diocese across Ireland and N Ireland, and it was long observed as the 'establishment' church of the whole Island until the early 1900's. The bells not only called people to church services and weddings, they also acted as warnings of war, crisis, or invasion, or they heralded a significant memorial event marked by a proceeding silence. As traditional musician Simon Chadwick says in this short film, bell ringing is now also a practice in other churches like the Catholic Church in N Ireland and Ireland. It's a great way for folk to get together and develop a traditional melodic skill which has social and historic value to their local community.
On Sunday 11th November 2018, across the Isles, churches of different denominations will unite to ring their bells at 19:05 hrs marking the 100th anniversary of the ending of World War One. Those who lost their lives will be remembered, so many thousands of their names engraved on church monuments and headstones across these lands.
Here is a video of Molly Ellis recounting an early memory of walking in woods with her recupterating Uncle Willy who had been shot in WW1 but survived and returned to his village in Ballysadare by the sea in County Sligo - it features a beautiful old rural Church Of Ireland their family attended in the early 1900's..
REDEMPTORIST MISSIONS PART4
A look at the work of the Redemptorist Order of the Catholic Church. The film emphasises both the negative and positive aspects of the Redemptorists on Irish life. It begins with the annual Clonard Novena in Belfast and traces the history and origins of the Redemptorism in Ireland both North and South. The order was founded by St. Alphonsus Ligouri in Italy in 1732 and only arrived in Ireland from Europe one hundred years later preaching the Four Great Truths of Death, Truth, Heaven and Hell, using powerfully frightening rhetoric to in its campaign against sin and transgression, The film asserts that the Redemptorist Order exerted a powerful hold on Irish people into the 20th Century - becoming a central aspect of Catholic life into the 1960s. The film shows how the order founded confraternities around the island the Limerick Confraternity being one of the largest in Europe. These were run with militaristic precision, and exerted a significant power and influence on church and state a power that the documentary suggests was used for both good and evil over the poor and abandoned of the country. The film goes on to explore the role of the Austrian priest Joseph Prost who wrote about class divisions between the clergy and the laity since the Great Famine and lead the order to operate upon principles of social equality. The Redemptorists encouraged the use of the Irish language in their rural work a factor that lead to disputes within the Catholic hierarchy. Opposing the practice of church collections, they set about on missions which attempted to identify the social needs of ordinary people, setting up credit unions, a factor that lead to the alleged pogroms of Jewish moneylenders in Limerick in 1904. The film explores the divisions between the Redemptorists whose work with the poor lead to their discreet support of Republican movements in the struggle for independence against Britain - and the larger Catholic Church, which believed that the conflict should be addressed through purely democratic means. In the first years of the Free State, the Redemptorists assumed a stance against the drinking and manufacture of alcohol. In 1931, a young Redemptorist from Árainn, Stiofan Ó Conghaile, attempted to end the manufacture of poteen in Connemara. The film goes on to describe the Redemptorists battle against immoral sexuality and the negative influence this on young men in rural communities. The last section of the programme deals with the influence of the Redemptorists on the Northern Irish conflict, and outlines how mainly through the Redemptorist Clonard Monastery in Belfast the order brought itself directly to the concerns of ordinary people once again, this time in ministering to the besieged Catholic Nationalist community who received little or no support from the Catholic Church. This lead to the prominent role of Redemptorist Fr. Alex Reid in bringing together both sides of the Northern Ireland communities for the Northern Ireland Peace Process. The documentary makes extensive use of archive footage. Contributors: An tAthair Breandan McConvery, historians Tim Pat Coogan and Gearóid Ó Tuathaigh, Dr. Muireann Ní Bhroichain, An tAthair Eamonn Ó Confhacla, Pádraig Ó Dálaigh, President Mary McAleese, Frank Prendergast, Tony Bromwell, Fr. John J. ORiordan, An tAthair Pádraig Ó Dónaill, Gearóid Robinson, Fr. Alex Reid, Fr. Clement McManus, Clara Dunne.
A Level Results 2016 - St Malachy's, Belfast
CCEA visits St Malachy's, Belfast on A Level Results Day to speak with staff and students.
The statue of St. Joseph sleeping that Pope Francis keeps in his room
Click here to receive the latest news:
Visit or website to learn more:
March 19 marks two years since the Inaugural Mass of the Pontificate.
---------------------
ROME REPORTS, romereports.com, is an independent international TV News Agency based in Rome covering the activity of the Pope, the life of the Vatican and current social, cultural and religious debates. Reporting on the Catholic Church requires proximity to the source, in-depth knowledge of the Institution, and a high standard of creativity and technical excellence.
As few broadcasters have a permanent correspondent in Rome, ROME REPORTS is geared to inform the public and meet the needs of television broadcasting companies around the world through daily news packages, weekly newsprograms and documentaries.
---------------------
Follow us...
Our WEB
FACEBOOK
TWITTER
PINTEREST
INSTAGRAM
St Alphonsa Syro Malabar Mission Family Night 2017
St Alphonsa Syro Malabar Mission Family Night 2017
Carol song at St pauls parish Belfast NI
Love shone down
Orange Bands Play 'The Sash' passing St Patrick's Church in Belfast
Orange Bands Play 'The Sash' while passing St. Patrick's Church in Belfast at the start of their 2013 annual twelfth of July parade.
St. Francis de Sales Clock Strikes 5:00
St. Francis de Sales Church in Cincinnati has, in my opinion, a definitive example of the Westminster Quarters, better even than the Palace of Westminster in London, which to me sounds a bit sloppy and off-beat. The church, located in Cincinnati's East Walnut Hills neighborhood, was designed by architect Francis G. Himpler and dedicated on December 20, 1879. It is a monumental edifice on a prominent corner in one of Cincinnati's many historic districts.
The church is home to Joseph, aka Big Joe, the largest swinging bell ever cast in the United States. It measures 9 by 7 feet and it weighs 37,000 pounds, making it just a couple inches smaller than London's Big Ben, but more than 40% heavier. Named for the parishioner whose donation to the bell fund was the largest, it reputedly could be heard 15 miles away when first rung, rattling nearby buildings and loosening stone & mortar. It was decided to immobilize the bell, and ever since it has relied on a foot hammer striking its rim.
Open Arms Church | Resurrecting The Church In Ireland Today | Sean Booth
Easter Sunday 2019: The resurrection power of Jesus means that the church can be alive & full of passion! It's a new day for the church in Ireland today - revival is in the air!
Stay Connected. Follow us on social media:
~ Facebook:
~ Instagram:
~ Twitter:
IOCNI, Belfast - OVBS-2011 (Part - 2)
St. Gregorios Indian Orthodox Church, Belfast - OVBS-2011 (Part - 2)
Belfast's Old Half Bap District, A Hidden History
Many of our older residents of inner Belfast do not know the new Belfast Cathedral Quarter area by any other name but the 'Half Bap'.
The Half Bap was generally the area that lay behind St Anne’s Cathedral. It had been nicknamed and known as the Half Bap for well over 100 years. Few people know how the name came about. Here is one possible explanation. Bad planning by the City Fathers back in the 1890’s when the area was being re-developed led to streets being demolished/built with little thought of how they might emerge to meet other streets. In the chaos of demolition and rebuilding many streets came to an abrupt end, leaving a large piece of waste ground at the end of three or four of the streets. By accident or design a mound of earth was allowed to take shape on this vacant ground. This fascilitated city traffic that quickly adapted and used it like an early roundabout.
It just so happened that the famous baker Barney Hughes, had just invented his famous bread “bap” at his nearby Donegall Street bakery. Quick witted locals immediately recognised the shape of the new roundabout looked like the top half of a “Barney’s Bap”(dome shaped) and so the roundabout and the district became known as “The Half Bap”. Over time the old mound shaped 'roundabout' was replaced with a rather flat and paved replacement but the name 'Half Bap' name stuck and remained a place name in local people's minds for generations to come.
Little Italy- In the 1880s due to rapid industrial growth many people from all over the world were drawn into Belfast. Many Italians settled in the cheap run down area of Little Patrick Street and the surrounding streets between the two ornate Catholic Churches, St Joseph’s and St, Patrick’s. This area was close to the Belfast docks which was the immigrants’ port of entry into Belfast. This area became known as 'Little Italy'. Italian family names like Scappaticci, Notarantonio , Morelli, Fusco, Forte, would eventually become well known right across Northern Ireland.
The Cardinal Ireland Loved (1924)
Dublin, Southern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, Eire.
Title: The CARDINAL IRELAND LOVED. Last PATHE GAZETTE portrait of Late Cardinal Logue, aged 84 - the revered Primate of all Ireland.
M/S of the elderly Cardinal standing in a garden, looking suspiciously into the camera. C/U of the Cardinal.
Various high angled shots a village street and church, crowds of mourners shelter under umbrellas watching the funeral procession of Cardinal Logue pass. M/S of a priest holding a crucifix leading a procession of altar boys and choristers through a church doorway, the arch above the door is draped in black curtains.
Various shots of priests leaving the church. M/S of the coffin being carried out of the church, the coffin bearers seem to be experiencing some difficulty - a crowd of priests gather around to stop the coffin toppling.
High angled shot of a crowd of gentlemen in top hats walking through a grand looking gateway.
FILM ID:364.02
A VIDEO FROM BRITISH PATHÉ. EXPLORE OUR ONLINE CHANNEL, BRITISH PATHÉ TV. IT'S FULL OF GREAT DOCUMENTARIES, FASCINATING INTERVIEWS, AND CLASSIC MOVIES.
FOR LICENSING ENQUIRIES VISIT
British Pathé also represents the Reuters historical collection, which includes more than 136,000 items from the news agencies Gaumont Graphic (1910-1932), Empire News Bulletin (1926-1930), British Paramount (1931-1957), and Gaumont British (1934-1959), as well as Visnews content from 1957 to the end of 1984. All footage can be viewed on the British Pathé website.