Archive for January, 2016

News-20/01/2016

Val, Ita, Ta and Donie Mullane celebrating 30 years in business at the Knockdown Arms on Saturday night last

Val, Ita, Ta and Donie Mullane celebrating 30 years in business at the Knockdown Arms on Saturday night last

Donie & Anne McGrath pictured at the Knockdown Arms birthday celebrations on Saturday night waiting for a bit of this fabulous made especially for the occasion by ‘Cakes by Lisa’

Donie & Anne McGrath pictured at the Knockdown Arms birthday celebrations on Saturday night waiting for a bit of this fabulous cake made especially for the occasion by ‘Cakes by Lisa’

Athea Ladies Church Gate Collection 

Athea Ladies Football Club would like to sincerely thank everyone who contributed so generously to our church collection at the weekend.  It was very much appreciated.

Car Boot Sale 

A Car boot sale and indoor market in aid of West Limerick Community Radio will be held in Newcastle West Community Centre on this Sunday 24th January. The gates will open at 7.30am and stalls are available. Contact the Station for all the details.

The Way We Were

Gay Byrne has a show on  RTE1 called “The Meaning of Life” where he chats to well known people about  their interpretation of life and their beliefs, especially their thoughts about God. Some of the episodes are fascinating ranging from the agnostic views of Stephen Fry to the total acceptance  of God in her life by Ann Marie McHugh, the MD of the Ploughing Championship. Both make very good cases for their particular beliefs, one based on reason, use of research and intellect and the other on the gift of faith, a total belief that, not only does God exist but that He is with us in everyday life.

This started me thinking about  my own upbringing and the way things used to be in times that are so different to what they are today. Religion was around us all the time, from getting up in the morning to the time we went to bed at night. The day usually started with our morning prayers which we knew off by heart. Then it was off to school where we started with more prayers. The classroom was full of holy pictures and statues and we were constantly reminded that God was watching us and would punish us if we did not behave. There were further prayers throughout the day including the Angelus at 12 noon. We had religious instruction (it really was just Catholicism) which included learning from the red and the green catechism. To those of you who haven’t been exposed to these books; you don’t know how lucky you are. They contained a series of questions and answers and woe betide you if you got one of them wrong. All I remember is being in constant fear; fear that I might not know the correct answer and get slapped, fear that I might be caught doing wrong  and incur the wrath of God and, the biggest one of all, fear that I might die in mortal sin and be burned in hell forever.

Odd that there was more emphasis put on punishment by God than his great love for us. School finished with another prayer and off home with us running like march hares. The Angelus bell rang out at 6pm and everyone stopped what they were doing, the men took off their caps and said the Angelus. This was also a signal, long ago, for the days work in the bog to end.  Sometime after the supper, which like all meals began and ended with a prayer thanking God for the food on the table, we were called to say the Rosary. I have to admit that we hated being called to the Rosary. Because my father didn’t come home at the same time every day there was no set time for the Rosary so  I might be just about to go playing football or going to the pictures when the call would come. We wanted to get it over with as fast as possible so when my mother, who always “gave out” the Rosary, started with ”Hail Mary, full of grace” we butted in with the Holy Mary and finished almost as soon as she did. This did not always work as she might stop completely and begin the whole thing all over again until we behaved ourselves.

We took up kneeling positions against the kitchen chairs with our eyes on the floor, or at least they were supposed to be. Sometimes, during the course of a decade, a “clog” (small black beetle) would emerge from the turf by the fire and make his way across the floor.  We used to have bets on how far he would go or in what direction and of course a fit of the giggles soon followed. A couple of whacks on the backside with a sally rod put manners on us and we paid attention to our prayers again. The Rosary was followed by the Hail Holy Queen but this was not the end. The trimmings came next. A long litany of saints were entreated to come to our aid. We thought it would never end. Night prayers were the last thing we did before going to bed.

Apart from school there was constant mention of God all day through. He was thanked for everything, good and bad. “Fine day, thank God” or “fine soft day (pouring rain)” are prime examples. Somebody entering a house would say “God bless all here” and on departure they were wished “God speed”.

The old Irish salutations were religious. “Dia dhuit (God be with you)” was answered by “Dia is Muire dhuit (God and Mary be with you)”. There was always a holy water font inside the front door and we blessed ourselves every time we came in or went out. Mass was never missed on Sunday.  We went to Confession and Holy Communion once a month without fail. Until I discovered girls in my early teens I had the same list of sins which I repeated every time I went to confession. I had no idea of the significance of it all and did it out of a sense of duty and habit.  In reality we had no great sins to tell anyway but that did not stop us feeling guilty and fearing retribution. Our fathers and mothers had strong faith and lived their lives accordingly. It sustained them throughout the hard times they endured and the thought of a better life to come after this world made life bearable for them. I envy them their faith, a gift I don’t have and am all the poorer for.

Life back then was certainly different and dominated by religious beliefs that are not as strong today as they were. Are we better off? In some ways we are but we have also lost a lot. I don’t have any answers, just my own story and how my life was formed in the old days. It might as well have been on another planet as far as today’s children are concerned.

Domhnall de Barra

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Kathleen’s Corner-20/01/2016

By Kathleen Mullane

Birthday Celebrations 

Sincere congrats and good wishes are extended to two parishioners this week who celebrated important birthdays! Firstly Nora O’Mahony of Markievicz Park who, along with her family, had a lovely 70th birthday at The Devon Inn Hotel on Saturday last. Here’s to continued health and happiness to Nora.

Also on Saturday night last Norma Collins-Zgagga, Templeathea had her 50th birthday celebrations at the Top of the Town along with family, relatives and friends. Everyone had a great night.

“Birthday celebrations” were in abundance at The Knockdown Arms on Saturday night last when Ta, Ita and Val celebrated its 30th birthday. Champagne was the order of the night for everyone, the ‘Wild Rovers’ belted out the music and finger food was enjoyed by all. Best of luck to them for many more years to come.

Congratulations to Ned Mahony of Templeathea who was the very lucky winner recently of over €22,000 in the Golf Club Draw in Newcastlewest. He has been an avid supporter of the club for many years and well done to him.

Sincere congratulations and good wishes go to Tommy and Sophie O’Mahony who are based in England at present and who were blessed with their first baby, a little boy, they are naming Cian, recently. Best wishes are also sent to Tommy’s mother Mary in Coole West who has become a grandmother again.

Great to see Athea Drama Group getting ready for their latest production “The Hen Night Epiphany” – it sounds good anyway and with 5 smiling bubbly ladies pictured in last week’s Athea parish news, no doubt it should be a great laugh!

Sincere sympathy is extended to the relatives of Seán O’Halloran of Gortnagross who passed away last week. Many came to pay their last respects at Seán’s home, many of whom were fellow County Council workers who had worked with Seán over the years. Seán was a man who loved walking and chatting to those he met on his walks. He was laid to rest in Holy Cross cemetery following requiem Mass. ‘May the light of heaven be his’. 

Well done to the Athea Vixen’s Basketball teams who, on Sunday last, played extremely well against rival Killarney teams. The boys U-12’s and U-14’s won their games and the girls teams also did themselves proud. It was also great to see a lot of support for all the players and players from the surrounding parishes being part of the Athea teams.

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Knockdown News-20/01/2016

By Peg Prendeville

It was like Christmas all over again last Saturday night in Knockdown. The bar and lounge was full to capacity as people gathered to celebrate 30 successful years in Ta’s pub. Ta and Ita greeted everybody at the door with a glass of champagne and a free drink. Hot and cold food was served and stories were shared. Many of the people there were not even born when the bar opened in 1985 and sadly many of those who were there have passed on to eternal life. Ta called to mind all of these and asked for a minute’s silence in their memory. It seemed an impossible task, such was the crowd, but silence he got. He thanked everybody for their support over the years especially Killeaney Soccer and Knockdown Vintage committees. He had a special thank you for his wife Ita for her support and understanding through the years. The banter continued through the night with some songs thrown in at the end for good measure. A cake in the shape of a pint of Guinness, 18 inches high, was admired by many before it was cut and dished out in the shop the following day. Long may the business continue to thrive.

Some neighbours are recuperating from various health problems at the moment but thankfully all are doing well and we are keeping Mary, Maureen, Kitty and Liam in our prayers for a full recovery for each of them.

The Diocesan Synod delegates are back in action again after the Christmas holidays. Much work goes on behind the scenes but it is hoped to involve all parishioners again very soon. That way nobody can say they were not asked for an opinion or that it was not welcome. So be on the alert!

Peg O’Grady’s month’s mind Mass was celebrated in her house last weekend with family and friends. 

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