I spent Monday and Tuesday in Dublin and it was a trip down memory lane.
Dublin makes me sad now because when I moved there in 1960 – 61 years ago at the age of 8, it was a big friendly town. Now its a big, concrete, unfriendly city 😪
Its summed up in this song:
DRAPIER GREEN
When we went to Dublin our house was worth £ 800. They now sell for € 450,000
The housing area we lived in was honoured by having its streets called after JONATHAN SWIFT and his works. He wrote the “Drapier Letters”.
After a very brief spell in a tiny local primary school locally I was sent to St. Canice’s run by the UNCHRISTIAN BROTHERS.
The brothers and teachers were fully signed up members of the National Union of Sadists.
I particularly remember Brother Coffey and the headmaster Brother Ahern for their sarcasm and beatings.
There was a Brother Jennings who was nice and kind.
SECONDARY EDUCATION
After an aborted attempt at RC secondary education, I ended up in the state run College of Commerce of Rathmined whete I did my Leaving Certificate.
I loved this school. No priests, brothers or nuns and, enlightened for the time, no corporal punishment.
If you worked they supported you.
If you didn’t they let you be.
I found the freedom and lack of fear very conducive to work. I did well there. It was also mixed religion, which was great.
MY LOCAL PARISH
My local parish was Mother of Divine Grace, Ballygal.
I was very impressed with our priests at the yime, Fr John Pierce PP and curates Fr Joe Collins and Fr Michael Lambe.
Good, kind priests and never a whiff of wrongdoing or scandal.
OUR FIRST PARISH CHURCH – A TIN CHURCH.
The tin church was important for me. Went to Mass there. Had my first Mass there. Had my Dad’s funeral there.
FAMILY GRAVE SUTTON
Visited the family grave on Tuesday – my mother Jo’s 15 th anniversary.
Also there my Dad Jim, my sisters Margaret and Sandra, my brother Seamus and my nephew Christopher.
My uncle, Peter Bracken, in adjoining grave.
THE DUBLIN GAY PRIEST COUPLES
I spotted two gay priest couples in Dublin – one couple in the restaurant we ate at and one at breakfast in Wynn’s Hotel.
Couples very interested in my presence.
I am told the Wynn’s couple were on Grindr half the night looking for a third man.
It seems that Ireland’s gay priest couples are, unashamedly out and about.
AND
BISHOP PAT BUCKLEY 