On Tuesday 14th April we brought the 6th class pupils on a day trip to St. Mel’s Cathedral in Longford as part of their preparation for the Sacrament of Confirmation.
Please take a moment to read Emma’s thoughts of the trip and t to enjoy the photos of this beautiful church.
St. Mel’s Cathedral
I loved the Cathedral. It is the high church of the diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnois. It was built between 1840 and 1856. There are 41 parishes in the diocese. St. Mel was the nephew of St. Patrick. In 2009, at Christmas, the Cathedral was burnt down due to an electrical fault. It cost £30 million to rebuild it, adding in more modern features. Unfortunately, many priceless artefacts were burnt, but, miraculously, a picture of the Holy Family and a statue of St. Theresa of Liexu survived the fire. The old altar also survived the fire. It was taken to the crypt after the fire. There is now a new altar made of 7 tonnes of Italian marble. The new altar is so heavy it needs a support beam to hold it up in the crypt. There is one Harry Clarke window and several modern art done by a Korean priest. The new baptismal font is at the back of the Cathedral symbolizing baptism as the beginning of our faith. On the morning of Christmas 2009, the people of Longford celebrated mass in St. Mel’s Collage gym. St. Mel’s Cathedral was reopened just before the Christmas of 2014.
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