Ireland's
mystic Catholic history is steeped in the tradition of holy wells
dotted throughout the island.
It
is said that rather than negatively pointing out to the pagan Druid
Celts what they were doing wrong by declaring certain spots sacred in their nature-worship, the early missionaries like St. Patrick realised encouragement is the key and told
the people that yes, they were correct about the idea of holy wells and
thereby dedicated them to the service of Christ, converting them into
Christan baptismal fonts.
Outside
Clonmel Co. Tipperary on the Cahir road near Marlfield you will find
such a holy well. It possibly one of the largest holy wells in Ireland, and it is said that it
once was a Druid site turned into a baptismal font by St.
Patrick.
However I've also heard of one story St. Patrick met St. Declan of Ardmore here, the Apostle of the Deise people, ie. the Ardmore / Waterford region. Those who are not familiar with all of the ancient Catholic history of Ireland often presume St. Patrick was the first missionary, but there were others who came before him or just around the same time, St. Declan was one of those bishops.
Apparently, the church at St. Patrick's Well at Clonmel was granted the grace of becoming a Plenary Indulgenced site by Pope John V in 1619. (Source: Pilgrimage in Medieval Ireland). The Pope declared all pilgrims visiting the church there on the feast of Pentecost or on the feast day of St Patrick, provided they went to confession and communion, would receive a plenary indulgence. (If you want to know what a plenary indulgence is, read my blog post, Remember Remember the Dead in November).
However I've also heard of one story St. Patrick met St. Declan of Ardmore here, the Apostle of the Deise people, ie. the Ardmore / Waterford region. Those who are not familiar with all of the ancient Catholic history of Ireland often presume St. Patrick was the first missionary, but there were others who came before him or just around the same time, St. Declan was one of those bishops.
As he was travelling from Rome to Ireland, St. Declan met St. Patrick in Italy who was not yet made a bishop. Then it appears when St. Patrick was travelling through the south of Ireland preaching and winning many converts to the faith, St. Declan met him again at St. Patrick's well, perhaps to converse on the matter of apostolic jurisdiction since Ardmore / Waterford was in St. Declan's area. Apparently,
there are little to no records or traditions passed down regarding St.
Patrick evangelising in Waterford, so it appears he respected St.
Declan's authority there as agreed, and it seems St. Declan granted to St. Patrick he could
have this one well where he preached to and baptised the people.
It's quite possible it was also here at St. Patrick's Well where the two saints agreed to later meet at the Rock of Cashel, the seat of King Aengus of Munster, to formally finalise the matter. St. Ailbe was also there at Cashel, another missionary bishop who had also arrived before St. Patrick to spread the Gospel. Tradition states the three saints came to an agreement of archdiocese boundaries at Cashel with the King as witness. St. Declan remained in the Waterford / Admore region, while St. Patrick was granted a few church in the Munster area, he agreed to return to the northern Kingdom of Ulster, his archdiocesean seat becoming Armagh where is buried. (For St. Patrick's dramatic encounter with King Aengus of Cashel, click here.)
Apparently, the church at St. Patrick's Well at Clonmel was granted the grace of becoming a Plenary Indulgenced site by Pope John V in 1619. (Source: Pilgrimage in Medieval Ireland). The Pope declared all pilgrims visiting the church there on the feast of Pentecost or on the feast day of St Patrick, provided they went to confession and communion, would receive a plenary indulgence. (If you want to know what a plenary indulgence is, read my blog post, Remember Remember the Dead in November).
The well is reached by descending a small limestone cliff into a dell via some
wide but steep steps, and it is a lovely, peaceful spot to visit.
Some
of the early photos I have discovered thanks to 'Medieval Pilgrimage in Ireland' are truly stunning in a time-capsule sort of way, showing what
it looked like in the last turn of the century c. the 1900s.
It still looked kind of 'druidy' didn't it! Sadly, that old tree with its roots wrapped around the well is no longer there.
(Above: photo: Robert French (1841-1917) in The Lawrence Photograph Collection National Library of Ireland http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000333667
Below: the original landscape of St Patrick’s well. Taken by Robert French
(1841-1917) in The Lawrence Photograph Collection National Library of
Ireland http://catalogue.nli.ie/Record/vtls000339062)
The
old Celtic cross in the left foreground dates from circa the 6th century. It is still there.
Also,
it is amazing the amount of water that still bubbles with some
considerable force out of the spring straight from the ground. I
remember the good old days when they used to play the Irish national
anthem on the TV station RTE1 before it signed off for the night, the gushing stream from the well was one of the patriotic images
shown.
The
site was modernised in the late 50s early 60s I believe, the water now collects into a nearby pool which surrounds the cross.
The Cistercians came to the area in
1147 AD and moved on to Inishlounaght at Marlfield where they
prospered for 400 years. The abbey there was founded by Donal
O’Brien the King of Munster and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin.
St. Patrick's Well was apparently also under their care, that is
until Cromwell's arrival when their monastery in Inishlounaght was
dissolved in the 16th century. Cromwell divided the monestary lands
up between his friends. The abbey no longer exists but its site is
located at the First Fruits Church of Ireland on the banks of the
River Suir in Marlfield.
The
present remains of the church you see dates from circa the 15th
century and is from the period before when the Cistercians were
custodians. Inside you can see the "White Altar" tomb and
fragments of an earlier Cistercian Romanesque Church. To the right
of the East window the large carved coat of arms of the White family
can be viewed. Nicholas White died in August 1622. Today St.
Patrick's Well is part of the present day parish of St. Mary's of the
Assumption, Irishtown, Clonmel.
Cures continued to happen out there for quite some time. My
Irish mother from Clonmel remembers the days when there used to be crutches, wheelchairs and other similar things left hanging on the church as votive offerings of thanksgiving. They're gone now, and one wonders what has happened to the the faith in Ireland, we don't hear of cures happening at the site any more.
Also, she remembers the days when there were truly
holy processions to the well on St. Patrick's Day after High Mass and the whole town got involved, everyone marching out with bands playing and banners flying to pay respect to the national saint.
Alas, I didn't get to see that either when we moved there: processions are gone in this modern Vatican II age, at least there were Masses in the churches, but no procession, only a secular booze up parade in town with a few reflective souls venturing out
to see the well.
A sad state of affairs, however, we can be comforted with the prophecy that just when the flame of the Faith appears to be snuffed out in Ireland, it will one day flare up from the north and blaze throughout the land in a miraculous age of renewal.
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If you liked this St. Patrick's Day post, you may like my past St. Patrick's Day / Irish posts:
(*) The Shamrock Purist - (How to spot the real one from the sham Shams!)
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