The Deserted Village
“And, as a hare, whom hounds and horns pursue, Pants to the place from whence at first she flew…”
Oliver Goldsmith (1728–1774).
Pictured Above: Fr. Joseph Ryan (Larry Ryan), as he prepares to return to Norway with cheese donated by the Hayes family, Liathmore, Two-Mile-Borris, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, pictured with local priest Rev. Fr. George Bourke, latter donating a copy of the History of Pouldine School, outside the Ryan family home, Thurles Rd., Littleton, Thurles, Co. Tipperary.
Local correspondent Mr Gerry Bowe reports:-
On holiday this month with his family, who reside at Thurles Rd., Littleton, Thurles, Co. Tipperary, is Fr. Joseph Ryan (Larry Ryan) who has spent the last 25 years at the Cistercian Monastery in Mellifont Co. Louth. Fr. Joseph has been recently moved, on a permanent basis, to a new Monastery, which is at an early construction stage, in Norway. Currently the community is small with two priests and two brothers and a fifth member due to join them shortly.
The sale of home-made Monastery cheese currently helps pay the communities bills and on a recent visit to the sixth century Monastic site at Liathmore, Two-Mile-Borris, Thurles; associated with Saint Mocheomog(1); Fr. Joseph is reminded that today cheese making, on these same ancient monastic lands, continues to be carried on by the Hayes family. Mr Donal Hayes, on behalf of the Tipperary Cheese Company, gladly donated tubs of their soft cheese, which Fr. Joseph will now share with his brothers back in Norway.
(1) St. Mocheomog or Pulcherius, who studied under St. Comgall at Bangor and afterwards founded monasteries in Leinster and Munster; is said to have been born circa 550 A.D. and to have died at Leigh (Liath, Liathmore) in Co. Tipperary, on March 13th, (Year Unknown) at a great age.
Rev. Fr. George Bourke, in one of his final gestures as Parish Priest (PP) of Moycarkey-Borris-Littleton parish, presented Fr. Joseph with a copy of the Pouldine School History (Pouldine School – Inné agus Inniu) which has an excellent article by former Principal Mr Liam O’Donoghue, on the history of Liathmore.
Fr. Joseph met with members of the local ‘Legion of Mary’, and indeed attributes his calling to the times spent helping at the ‘Morning Star Men’s Hostel’, in Dublin city.
Fr. Joseph takes with him the best wishes of Moycarkey-Borris-Littleton parish community and for those wishing to contact him or spend some time on retreat, his address is Fr. Joseph Ryan, Munkeby (meaning ‘Place of the Monks’) Mariakloster, Munkeby Veger 310, Levanger, 7608, Norway.
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