The Trip That Keeps Growing: 27 June 2024 Explore St. Patrick’s Cathedral

27 June 2024 Explore St. Patrick’s Cathedral

This morning we decided not to go with the rest of the group to Christ Church as we had already been there. Instead we walked across the street from the hotel to St. Patrick’s Cathedral, named for the saint that drove the snakes out of Ireland and who was the reason we now celebrate St. Patrick’s Day – although I like to think that it is because you are celebrating my birthday. St. Patrick is also the patron saint of Ireland. As an aside, the reason the shamrock is associated with St. Patrick’s Day is that St. Patrick used this three-leaf clover to explain the Trinity to his converts.

An interesting fact about St Patrick’s Day. While this day has long been celebrated in the United States as a reason to crowd bars and pubs and seriously over drink and wear orange wigs and green items of clothing, it wasn’t until the 1970s that this day was celebrated in Ireland. Before this, pubs were closed on St Patrick’s Day as it was a solemn day of prayer in honor of the day their beloved patron saint died in 461 AD. Then in the 1970’s, officials in the Irish government realized that celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in the land where Saint Patrick lived would be a prime factor in increasing tourism to Ireland. Since then, Dublin sponsors a multi-day St. Patrick’s Festival, complete with a parade and other performances and activities. Similar events are also planned throughout the country on 17 March. And the shamrock became a symbol of St. Patrick’s Day.

But I digress from the historical facts about the Cathedral. While a small wooden chapel once sat on the site of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, the Cathedral itself was founded in 1192. According to legend, the original 5^th century wooden chapel was built beside a sacred well that Saint Patrick used to baptize newly converted Christians around 450 AD. St. Patrick had originally been brought to Ireland from his home in Roman Britain at the age of 16 as a slave. While a slave, he found religion and when he escaped back to Britain he studied to become a priest. He then returned back to Ireland to spread Christianity among the pagan Irish. Early in the 20^th century, a stone slab with an etched Celtic Cross that covered the well was found and has now been display in the west end of the cathedral’s nave.

St. Patrick's Cathedral

Stone Slab with Celtic Cross

Much of the church that you see today was built between 1254-1270. Today it is Ireland’s largest church and one of its oldest. While St. Patrick’s Cathedral started out as a catholic church, today it is a protestant church in the Anglican traditions. It is not, however, the seat of the Archbishop, as that honor belongs to Christ Church Cathedral, built in 1870. However, St. Patrick’s is the national cathedral for the whole of Ireland.

Once inside the church we had an audio guide that we could follow at our own pace. It was full of facts and stories about the church.

Door of Reconciliation

One item of interest in the church is the “Door of Reconciliation.” According to legend, in 1492, Thomas Butler, the 7^th Earl of Osmond, and Gerald Fitzgerald, the 8^th Earl of Kildare, were involved in an unfriendly war. Thomas Butler was hiding in the cathedral’s Chapter House, when Gerald Fitzgerald offered a proposal of truce. Fearing a trap, Butler refused. Fitzgerald then had his men cut a hole in the door so he could put his hand through as a gesture of peace. He gave Thomas 2 options – cut off my arm or shake my hand as a gesture of peace. Thomas Butler accepted the hand shake and peace between the two families was restored.

Today the church contains heraldic banners, busts, monuments, and memorial plaques from the time (1783-1871) when the church was used by the Knights of Saint Patrick. The North Transit of the Cathedral is dedicated to those Irishmen who served with the British Army as Irish Regiments. The area has military flags from those battles and they are being allowed to slowly decay in memory of the soldiers who fought in those battles. This echos the expression “old soldiers never die, they just fade away.”

With the outbreak of WWI in 1914, a barren tree sculpture was added to this area and visitors are encouraged to write notes to remember those who have been affected was wars and to place them on the branches as leaves.

North Transit with Flags and Tree of Remembrance

The present organ dates back to 1902 and has over 4,000 pipes. There is a keyboard from an earlier organ on display near the steps leading up to the organ loft.

Steps Leading to Organ Loft

Keyboard of Older Organ

Toward the back of the church is the Lady Chapel. It is also known as the French Chapel as this is where the Huguenots (French Protestant refugees who fled to Dublin to avoid persecution) gathered in the church to worship.

Lady Chapel

Bell Dedicated to the Huguenots

Located in front of the high altar is the choir loft. Everyday during the school year (November -May) boys and girls from the Cathedral’s Choir School (founded in 1432) across the street, walk slowly up the main aisle of the church in their blue robs to the choir loft. There they sing songs and responses in a 20 minute service held daily at 9 AM and 5:30 PM.

Choir Loft

High Altar

The church is filled with beautiful stained glass windows. In the North Transit is the Iveagh Window (or Charity Window), dedicated to Edwin Guinness, who was noted for his works of charity and also who founded the last major renovation of Cathedral (to the tune of about $22 million in today’s US dollars). The window shows a woman holding a child and surrounded by people of all ethnics groups being provided fruit from the tree in the background. In the South Transit are 3 windows that tell the stories of the Bible. You read the windows from the bottom left to the top left, then the top right down to the bottom right, and finally from the middle bottom to the middle top. As an example, the bottom left pane is Adam in the Garden of Eden.

Window with Bible Verses

Iveagh (Charity) Window

If you cannot see the pane with Adam in the Garden of Eden, see the picture below:

Adam in the Garden of Eden

One interesting fact (or story) centers around Jonathan Swift who wrote, among others, Gulliver’s Travels. He was also an Anglican priest and served as Dean of St. Patrick’s Cathedral from 1713 until his death in 1745. He preached every 5^th Sunday and his sermons usually ran about 4 hours. When he saw a member of the congregation sleeping, he would have an aid slide is pulpit over to the offending congregate to wake him up. It is said he had wheels on his pulpit to make it easier to push. A quote from him reads “A preacher cannot look around from the pulpit without observing, that …. Of all misbehavior, none is comparable to that of those who come here to sleep; opium is not so stultifying to many people as an afternoon sermon.”

Swift is buried next to his closest fried Esther Johnson, also known as Stella. No one knows whaat their relationship was – some say they were secretly married while others think they were blood relatives. Whatever their relationship, they were very close and he was so overcome with grief when she died, that he would not attend her funeral and he also moved his bedroom so he would not see the lights from her funeral.

Jonathan Swift's Death Mask

Jonathan Swift's Grave

Jonathan Swift and Stella

This is a beautiful cathedral, although not as opulent as many we have seen in Europe. Some might even say it is dull and nondescript. There is no gold gilding or beautiful mosaics, but the architecture with its arched ceiling pointing the way to God is stunning. And the banners, flags, memorabilia and artifacts were very interesting. The audio guide was well done and very informative.