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BALLYMEEHAN |
SAINT AIDAN'S CHURCH
From about 600 AD until 1690, the Meehan Clan was headquartered in Ballymeehan (than called Ballaghameighan). The pre-eminent Irish churchman of the century after St. Padraig (Ireland's patron saint) was St. Molaise, who was a Meehan and who founded monasteries at both Inishmurray and Devenish. (Molaise is the patron saint of the Meehans.) The original church of St. Aidan's dates back to Molaise, and was named for his friend St. Aidan. There is a well near the church which is called the Shrine of St. Molaise. The story is that Molaise was preaching there one day, and his flock expressed their discomfort due to thirst. Molaise reportedly hit his staff against a rock, and water began to pour out in a spring. (As an aside, Molaise carried his gospel "soisgeal" in a beautifully worked metal case called the cumdach. That book shrine remained under the care of the Meehans - herenachs and conharbs of Molaise - until it was donated to the National Museum in 1846 by one Charles Meehan.)
In 1650, when the Cromwellian confiscations were taking place, the church of St. Aidan's was demolished by the Protestants. The individual stones from Molaise's church were used to build a wall around the newly constructed Protestant church. Currently, that church has fallen into ruin and disrepair from abandonment, since it has not been in use for over a hundred years. The wall still stands around it. Recently, the local government decided to repair and restore the ancient building and use it as a social hall.
St. Aidan's was rebuilt about 150 years ago near the site where it had originally been standing for 1000 years - prior to Cromwell. In 1987, a member of the Meehan clan was canonized by Pope John Paul II. He would be Father Charles Meehan, a Franciscan who was martyred in 1677 in Wales. A side chapel has been dedicated to this heroic martyr.
A local man named Frank Meehan, of Manorhamilton, takes it upon himself to maintain and look after the Shrine of Molaise - cutting the grass around it and keeping it nice. He is the "de facto" spiritual conharb of Molaise.
This article was composed by Ted Meehan
