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Show ! brt$tttia$ in Ireland ?JyuAn It is to the country, not to the city, I that one turns always in Ireland when one wishes to seek for characteristic customs. The townspeople have, to a great extent, lost their native charac-, charac-, teiistics; perhaps it would be more ac- j curate to say that they were on the 1 j point of losing them and were becom- j ing Anglicized, when the Irish Revival I set in, for now, owing to the "sweet-! "sweet-! ncss and light" diffused by that thrice i blessed revival, ail sections of the community com-munity are becoming gradually de-Anglicized, de-Anglicized, and are regaining the olden old-en nature, "kindly Irish of the Irish." In the movement for an Irish Ireland the towns, led by the capital, are showing the way to the country, and in the days that are coming native ways and national thoughts shall make their existence felt in the streets of the city as well as on the rugged hillsides. "Ta an la ag teaqht." as the Gaelic Leaguers often confidently assure each other, but w'hile awaiting the dawn of the day we turn from the fitful life of the foreign-toned city to the still calm of the country, there to read in the heart of nature eternal truths concerning con-cerning her children. The exile's thoughts turning home to Ireland, with the longing yearning felt by Columcille when he cried "there is a grey eye which turns towards Erin," dwell on the changeless face of the country ever new, ever lovely, ever grand, rather than on the grey, sad life of the towns. At this festival time they love to picture Christmas on the 'hills and in the glens of Ireland, Christmas in the roadside church, Christmas by the Blessed Well, Christmas Christ-mas in farmstead and shieling, Christmas Christ-mas along the children of the soil, on the soil from which they sprung. In what way is Christmas in Ireland celebrated distinctively as compared with the manner in which it is celebrated cele-brated in other countries in Christendom? Christen-dom? It must first be stated that there are practically no social observances of a distinctively Irish nature held in Ireland at Christmastide. The social observances In vogue are almost all borrowed from the English. A slavish spirit of imitation has, unfortunately, flourished in our midst for long, and we are only now beginning to throw off this pernicious influence, to think for ourselves once more, and to originate orig-inate our own ideas and customs. Whatever may have been the case in days gone by before any attempt had been made to merge our individuality in "the English name and nation." and whatever may be the case in days to come, when we shall have succeeded once more in asserting our own individuality, indi-viduality, it must be acknowledged iiini iu leeeni. nines an social observances ob-servances at Christmastide in Ireland were but t'he-echo of similar observances observ-ances in England and other English-speaking English-speaking countries. We copied Christmas Christ-mas decorations from the British, and were content to eat plum pudding and mince pies and deck our houses with holly and ivy instead of evolving menus and decorative schemes of our own. We did not adopt all the Saxon celebrations cele-brations of the season. Neither the yule log nor the carol singer? ever became established institutions with us. Imitations are Seldom carried on in a whole-'hearted or thorough-going manner, and as the social side of Christmas was not celebrated on native lines, the result was that it was never celebrated in a very cordial and hearty manner, at least by the "grown ups." Of course children all the world over enjoy Christmas, and the children in Ireland explore the contents of their stockings, which they hung up the night before to be ' filled by Father-Christmas, Father-Christmas, as excitedly as the litthi ones among our French friends examine ex-amine their sabots for the same purpose. pur-pose. But while, among several continental con-tinental peoples, such customs as the Christmas tree are not regarded as the sole prerogative of the juveniles, but are kept up just as assiduously by the eiders, we in Ireland, who are, in reality, re-ality, of a serious temperament, though wp often prefer to show the lighter side of the world, give up these frolics anii frivolities when we leave the nursery. nurs-ery. It has often been remarked that Anglicization seems to bring in its train a wave of depression. When we have succeeded in thoroughly de-Anglicizing ourselves perhaps we may become be-come more light hearted, and while retaining a capacity to think seriously on serious subjects, we may be en-abiea en-abiea at the same time to enter keenly into any enjoyments which come in our way, Christmas festivities included. in-cluded. One of the first fruits of the Irish revival, one of those straws which show how the wind blows, has been the introduction of Christmas cards with greetings printed in the Irish language, into several Dublin shops. Last Christmas Christ-mas there was an enormous demand for these cards, so genuinely racy of the soil, and the supply was not equal to the demand. This season steps are being taken to cater better tc the taste evinced by the Irish public m this particular. Numerous designs, religious re-ligious and secular, serious and comic, J are in preparation, with suitable mot- I toes accompanying them. Nothing can be more beautiful than the Irish greeting, greet-ing, and the poetical manner in which good wishes are conveyed from friend to friend on all occasions in the Irish language, so it can be imagined that the Irish Christmas cards are more attractive at-tractive and appealing than those of other countries. I In one of the publications of the Catholic Truth society a unique custom cus-tom is described as having been in vogue in an Irish western district in days gone by, namely, the social celebration cele-bration of Christmas on the eve of the festival instead -of on the day itself. The writer of the publication referred to says: "The first great characteristic character-istic of Christmas in the Barony was that the chief festivity took place on Christmas eve, and not on the 'day itself. it-self. Fifty years ago the people, if happy enough, were still very poor. Their food was mainly the potato, with varying accompaniments, according to the means of the individual. Tea, now so common all over the country, wa9 then a rare and highly-prized commodity, com-modity, and in the consumption of it the festivity of the Barony found its fullest expression. Hence it came to pass that it was the Christmas cheer, and the equivalent of roast beef and plum pudding over the water. "But it was late on Christmas eve that the feast was spread. When night fell every member or the family gathered around the board. It was a time of reunion that admitted nobody's no-body's absence and the genial spirit of the time flowed over upon those poor waifs and strays of humanity the last sad survivals of families that had once spread feasts for themselves, and now had to look for the charity of others' for their Christmas fare. The poor had always a seat and a hearty welcome at the festive table, the sincerity sin-cerity of which was beautifully symbolized sym-bolized by the open door. "It was then that the 'piece de resistance' re-sistance' the capacious teapot was lifted from the hearth and placed upon the kitchen table, already strewn with the home-made bread, for the making of which the housewives of the Barony. were justly famed. A blessing begged upon the go6d cheer with that piety which so permeated the people's life, caused a momentary hush, followed by the full bursting forth of the festive torrent. The lighthearted Bafony folk, young and old, abandoned themselves unreservedly to the influence of the hour, and under the blackened rafters, and by the imperfect light of the little candle, a scene of simple enjoyment and content was often enacted which it would not be easy to parallel." i The spiritual side of Christmas has j always applied more to the Irish I imagination than the social side. If there is any half-heartedness in the ! nature or the latter celebrations there j is not in the former. The intensely religious re-ligious bent of the Irish character Is at no time more strikingly in evidence than at Christmas. In the cities the churches are thronged with crowds of devout worshippers from 6 o'clock in the morning, when first mass is celebrated, cele-brated, and numbers make a point of attending three masses and taking part in other devotional exercises. Of late years midnight mass has not been celebrated often in the public churclit s. but only in convent chapels: however, whenever permission is accorded to the public to attend niiiln'iit. mass in any of the city churches the permission permis-sion is availed of by as many as the sacred edifices can hold. When tno lord mayor of Dublin is a Catholic, which is usually the case, h? and the other Catholic members of i1it corporation corpora-tion attend, in their robes of state, the. celebration of high mass in the pro- cathedral. Marlborough street: the archbishop of Dublin is likewise present pres-ent during these ceremonies. j Dublin has deservedly acquired the name of being the most charitable city in the world, and its claim to this title is never better exemplified than on Christmas day; when in ever institution insti-tution founded for the relief of the poor and suffering, especial efforts arj made to alleviate the hard lot of the inmates. Hospitals and poorhouse wards are made gay, for the time being, be-ing, with decorations, and tempting fare is provided for the patients. The staffs, aided by kindly visi;or.-. Provide entertainments in the form of ton-certs, ton-certs, dramatic: perform mccs, etc., lor the amusement of fhose who have been obliged by poverty or illness to throw themselves on the charity of the pub-lie. pub-lie. Everything is done which kindly thought and Christian charity can devise de-vise to make the most afflicted realise that the season is ind.-ed one when "peace on earth" and "good will to men" prevail. Yet the staffs of these charitable institutions declare that ev ery inmate who possesses the pcoiest of the poor homes and who has the strength to go there, makes an effort to leave the hospital ward if possible before Christmas, in order to go home, for after all, "there is na-placo l:ke home." In remote country parts th. same facilities for holding religiojs ceremonies cere-monies are not. of course, available. I but the faith of the people is none the less intense, though the incentives to devotion are scantier. For many a weary mile over rocky mountains and wet bogland, old and young will tramp to Mass and wait patiently often in damp and scanty clothes, the coming of the priest. Many of these country churches raised by the j pence of the poor after the long night of the penal times are wretched buildings, build-ings, a woeful contrast to the beautiful ruins of our old-time churches, now crumbling fast. Unpicturesque, bare, draughty and comfortless, as too many of our modern Irish churches are, they hold unquestionably the most reverent and deeply devout congregations in the world, as foreign visitors, both clerical and lay, often remark. The Holy Child in the Crib is never left alone, for many Irish mother brings her child there pray, and still through the ages, ascend to heaven from Ireland, Ire-land, the voices of little children, those same voices which Patrick heard crying cry-ing to him in the long ages, calling him to return to Ireland to preach the coming of Christ. The traditional white Christmas is not often with us in Ireland. We usually usu-ally have mild weather, but sometimes storm and rain take the place of the frost and snow experienced in most northern European countries. Last Christmas there were severe gales on the west coast of Ireland and the islands isl-ands off the coast felt the full force of their fury. This reminds me of a graphic description de-scription which was written to me in Irish last Christmas, by a friend who was stopping in Aran, of the manner in which he had spent Christmas there. My friend began his letter by saying: "This is a . strange Christmas. I think that this poor island is the only place in the Catholic world where there is not Mass today. The priest has been unable to land here on account of the storm, and as we are without Mass or priest we assembled our family and lriends here in our hcuse and we have just stood up from our knees, having recited the Rosary. I hope God will hear our prayers since it was not His will to send us today the priest to celebrate cel-ebrate Mass." My friend then proceeded pro-ceeded to give a graphic description of the storm raging on the cliffs of Aran, and told how the vessel by which he had arrived the previous week from Galway had nearly suffered shipwreck, and how several islanders on board had gathered together to prepare, as they thought, for death, and to pour forth prayers in Irish, the best language in the world for prayer. The description would be spoiled in the translation, so I will quote it, but I can assure the reader that it was a very powerful and poetic piece of Irish writing, and the description of that strange, wild, desolate deso-late Christmas always stands out in my mind whenever I think of Christmas Christ-mas in Ireland. It should be explained for the benefit of American readers unacquainted un-acquainted with the geography of our western coast that there are three islands isl-ands of Aran Airanmore, Inismead-hon Inismead-hon and Inisiar and that both the parish par-ish priest and curate reside in Aran- more. There is no priest resident on Inlsmeadhon or on Inisiar, and the curate cu-rate comes across, weather permitting, on Saturday night in a "curach" (canoe) (ca-noe) to Inisiar where he celebrates first Mass on Sunday morning, and then crosses over to Inismeadhon where he celebrates second Mass. During the winter, storms are frequent and weeks sometimes pass by without the priest being able to land either on south or middle island (Inismeadhon or Inisiar). Unfortunately, it so happened, as above described, last Christmas, with regard to Inismeadhon, the priest having been able to effect a landing only at Inisiar. "Aran of the Saints" is so famous as having been the home of many Irish saints in days gone by, whose dust has mingled with the soil there, and of whose existence we are still reminded by the ruined remains of the churches which they built, that it is necessary to dwell on the claims which it has on the interests of all Irish people. The Araners of today retain many of the characteristics of those who once gave their home the name of "Ara na j Naomh." They are deeply religious i and in every way, physically, mental- j ly and morally a very fine people. No more characteristic Irish people could 1 be found than the Araners, and as in the course of several visits which I have paid to .these islands I never heard the people describe any customs practiced at Christmas peculiar to the place, one may conclude that there are no distinctively Irish social customs associated with Christmas in Ireland at the present day. As before stated the spiritual side of the festival is the one chiefly observed and this is certainly cer-tainly most earnestly entered into. I think no better impression could be given of the . idealistic way in which I Irish people regard the great festival of the Christian year than by bringing bring-ing under the notice of readers of thi3 paper, an exquisite poem by one of our Catholic and national poets, Lionel Johnson. The poem is entitled "Christmas "Christ-mas and Ireland." The golden stars give warmthless fire, As weary Mary goes through nipht; Her feet are torn by stone and brier; She hath no rest, no strength, no light; ) Mary, weary in the snow Remember Ireland's woe! O Joseph sad for Mary's sake. Look on our earthly mother too; Let not the heart of Ireland break Willi agony the asres through: For Mary's love love also tho i Ireland, and save her now! Harsh were the folk, and bitter, stern, I At Bet hleliem. that night of nights. For you no cheering hearth shnll burn: "We have nn room here, you no richts." o Mary :m.i Joseph: hath not she, Ireland, i eon even as ye? The ancient David's royal hn;i-.o Was thine, jjaiut Joseph, wherefore she. Mary, thine ever Virgin Spouse. To thine own city went with thee. t'.ehoUl! thy citizens disown The heir oi David's throne: Nay. more; The very King of Kings Was with you, coming to lus own: They thrust him forth to lowliest things; The poor meek beasts of toil, alone Stood bv. when came the piteous birth The God of ail thy earth. And she. our mother Ireland, knows Insult, and ini'amic-; of wroni;; Her innocent children clad with woes. Her weakness trampiei! hy the strong; And still upon her holy land Her pitiless foemen stand. From manger unto cross and crown 1 Went Christ: and Mother Mary passed Through seven sorrows, and sat down Upon thr angel throne at last. Thence Mary: to thine own child pray For Ireland's hope this day! She wanders amid winter still. The dew of tears is on her face: Her wounded heart yet takes Its fill Of desolation and disgrace. God still is God: .Vnd through God she Foreknows her joy to be. The snows shall perish at the spring. The flowers pour fragrance round her feet. Ah Jesus! Mary! Joseph! bring This mercy from the nierev seat! Send it. sweet King of Glory, born Humbly on Christmas morn. I feel that I cannot do better than take leave of the readers of The Rosary Ro-sary Magazine with these beautiful words of an Irish poet, echoing in their ears. Our kinsfolk at home and abroad must not cease to pray that a Christmas Christ-mas may yet dawn on an Ireland happy hap-py and free. "God still is God! Anil through God she Foreknows her joy to be." |