Finding Fr. Mike’s Roots… in Ireland!

78 Parishioners Of St. Alphonsus Traveled to Eire To Find Roots of Central’s Priest

by Olivia Thomas, St. Alphonsus Catholic School

CENTRAL — On July 13, a group of 78 left St. Alphonsus for a 12-day visit to Ireland.  Upon our arrival in Dublin, we were met by St. Alphonsus’ pastor, Fr. Mike Moroney, and our tour guides.  Throughout the trip, the tour guides presented the history of Ireland and information about Irish literature.

Not only did we see Fr. Mike’s beautiful homeland, but we also gained an education on the country.

We took a bus tour of Dublin, and our guides pointed out many historical places, such as Trinity College, which houses the Book of Kells written by monks around 800, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Papal Cross where Pope John Paul II said Mass for 1.4 million people, the Ha’ Penny Bridge, and the Garden of Remembrance.  Many members of the group took a walking tour the next day, and we all toured the Guinness Factory that night.

The next day, we left Dublin to travel to Sligo.  In route, we stopped for a tour of the Irish National Stud Farm and the Japanese Gardens.  We also toured the Strokestown House and Famine Museum.  More than two million Irish either died of starvation or left Ireland as a result of the Potato Famine of the 1840’s.  In Boyle, we stopped to see the Cistercian Abbey ruins.

On Sunday, we left Sligo to travel to Galway.  In Knock, Fr. Mike said Mass at the Church of the Apparition on the site where 15 people saw apparitions of Mary.  Our next stop was Kylemore Abbey, a massive castle owned by the Benedictine Nuns who preserved it as a national heirloom.  We visited the marble workshop in Moycullen.  Many of the group went to Dunguaire Castle for a medieval banquet with a literary theme.

While in Galway, we rode a ferry to Kilroan on Inish More, the largest of the Aran Islands.  A historian gave us the history of the islands while we ate lunch.  Then we rode mini-buses to Dun Aengus, a spectacular prehistoric stone fort.

On Tuesday, we went to the Rathbaun Farm where we made scones, saw a sheep being sheared, and a sheep dog being trained.  From there, we crossed the desolate limestone plateau known as The Burren and saw the prehistoric Poulnabrone Dolmen.  At an ancient cathedral in Kilfenora, we saw the greatest concentration of high crosses in Ireland.  Then we went to the spectacular Cliffs of Moher, 668 feet above the ocean, where we savored the beauty of the Clare Coast.

We stayed in Limerick and most of the group joined the tour guides for a night of fun in the corn barn at the Bunratty Castle.

In Limerick, we toured St. John’s Castle, saw the Treaty Stone, and St. Mary’s Cathedral.  Along the way to Killarney, we went through the village of Adare and saw many thatched cottages.  Some of us went to Tralee for dinner and to see a performance at the Siamsa Tire National Folk Theatre.

Thursday we joined the Ring of Kerry tour where we enjoyed sparkling seascapes, mountains dotted with farmhouses, winding lanes with subtropical vegetation, and a breathtaking panoramic view of the Lakes of Killarney.  In Killarney, we took a horse-drawn ride through the Irish National Forest where we saw the ancient Ross Castle and the Lakes of Killarney.

On our way to Waterford, we drove into County Cork where we visited the Blarney Castle.  Some of the group kissed the Blarney Stone, which is supposed to be magical and give you the gift of gab.  In Waterford, we toured the Waterford Factory and were amazed at the intricate work that is all done by hand.

About half of the group took a side excursion to Dunmore East, which is a working fishing village.  Our guide gave us a history of the village and pointed out a colony of Katywaits.  It is the only known colony to live on an inhabited island.  We ended our tour with some fun at a pub that was in a 200-year-old thatched house.  Here our guide entertained us with Irish songs.

On our way back to Dublin, we toured Glendalough, the early Christian monastic site founded by St. Kevin in the 6th Century.  On the site was a church with a stone roof and a bell tower that was used to call the monks to prayer five times daily.  The tower served as a beacon to pilgrims.

On our last night in Dublin, a large portion of the group went to Taylor’s Pub to attend an Irish Cabaret.  We were entertained by a comedian, typical Irish dancers, and song.

Ireland is a truly beautiful country with more shades of green than one can imagine.  We saw mountains, brilliant blue lakes, and fields separated by dry stone walls.  We even stood on a field of peat!

As one traveler said, “Those who say there is no God have never been to Ireland.”