of Dublin, Dr Byrne, Cardinal Lauri and the Bishop of Namur. Ireland played host to literally hundreds of the Catholic Church’s most distinguished figures, figures described by the press of the time as ‘princes of the Church.’ Bishops and Cardinals from as far a field as China, Australia, Serbia, Africa and the United States enjoyed the hospitality of the Irish State in the form of the state receptions organised by the Government at Dublin Castle or the massive garden party that took place in the grounds of Blackrock College early in the week. This last event took place on a warm day under a clear blue sky and boasted a guest list of not less than 20,000 people. Though the primary events in the course of the Congress week were undoubtedly the special masses devoted to the Exposition of the Most Blessed Eucharist in churches around the country, those that travelled by special train to Dublin enjoyed the undoubted social side of the festivities. Religious adoration and social intercourse of various types had historically gone hand in hand in Ireland since the 18th century. Devotional activities brought families and communities together in a way that other events singularly failed to do. The Bishops must surely have been relieved that the Congress did not degenerate into the drunkenness and faction fighting that often marked popular devotional activities particularly in the 19th century. Catholicism had always presented itself as a creed that took a great interest in the nature of society as a whole, and as a system of values that could appeal to the individual as a member of a community bigger than him/herself. As such, in Ireland in particular, important dates in the Catholic calendar had as much a social element as they did a doctrinal one. The mass exodus from rural Ireland to Dublin during the Congress week helped to powerfully reinforce a sense of national and of course religious fraternity, helping to confirm the Irish identity as a primarily Catholic and national phenomenon. Scholars have also pointed out the extent to which the massive participation by the ‘cosmhuintir’ [the common people] in the Congress helped close many of the wounds created by the Civil War of barely a decade previous to this event. Eamon de Valera’s government allowed all sections of the people attend the Congress events, including prominent members of the previous administration. The Garda Siochána and the Irish Army performed their duties without demur, duties determined by a government whose ministers had taken up arms against these very organisations within living memory. As was the case with Gaelic games in the countryside, so too
of Dublin, Dr Byrne, Cardinal Lauri and the Bishop of Namur. Ireland played host to literally hundreds of the Catholic Church’s most distinguished figures, figures described by the press of the time as ‘princes of the Church.’ Bishops and Cardinals from as far a field as China, Australia, Serbia, Africa and the United States enjoyed the hospitality of the Irish State in the form of the state receptions organised by the Government at Dublin Castle or the massive garden party that took place in the grounds of Blackrock College early in the week. This last event took place on a warm day under a clear blue sky and boasted a guest list of not less than 20,000 people. Though the primary events in the course of the Congress week were undoubtedly the special masses devoted to the Exposition of the Most Blessed Eucharist in churches around the country, those that travelled by special train to Dublin enjoyed the undoubted social side of the festivities. Religious adoration and social intercourse of various types had historically gone hand in hand in Ireland since the 18th century. Devotional activities brought families and communities together in a way that other events singularly failed to do. The Bishops must surely have been relieved that the Congress did not degenerate into the drunkenness and faction fighting that often marked popular devotional activities particularly in the 19th century. Catholicism had always presented itself as a creed that took a great interest in the nature of society as a whole, and as a system of values that could appeal to the individual as a member of a community bigger than him/herself. As such, in Ireland in particular, important dates in the Catholic calendar had as much a social element as they did a doctrinal one. The mass exodus from rural Ireland to Dublin during the Congress week helped to powerfully reinforce a sense of national and of course religious fraternity, helping to confirm the Irish identity as a primarily Catholic and national phenomenon. Scholars have also pointed out the extent to which the massive participation by the ‘cosmhuintir’ [the common people] in the Congress helped close many of the wounds created by the Civil War of barely a decade previous to this event. Eamon de Valera’s government allowed all sections of the people attend the Congress events, including prominent members of the previous administration. The Garda Siochána and the Irish Army performed their duties without demur, duties determined by a government whose ministers had taken up arms against these very organisations within living memory. As was the case with Gaelic games in the countryside, so too
eucharistic_congress_main_events_notes.docx