"Glendalough
- The Pilgrim's Guide"
Glendalough was
once one of the four main places of pilgrimage in
Ireland. I myself have been going there as a
pilgrim for over thirty years. Not merely have I
visited it more often than I have visited all the
other pilgrimage destinations combined, but I
have visited it more often as a pilgrim than I
have visited any other place on the face of the
earth for any reason. I absolutely love it, and
going there has played an important role in my
own walk with Jesus.
It is a place
of immense natural beauty, and of infinite
variety. The very earth has been made sacred by
St. Kevin, St. Laurence O Toole, and a host of
other saints, male and female, who truly fell in
love with God and lived for Him in this
sanctified place.
This booklet,
in which I draw not just from the history books,
but also from my own many pilgrimages and hours
of prayer there, is designed to help you to be
touched by God's love in this special place. It
also contains stories about St. Kevin like the
two underneath.
One can order a
copy of "Glendalough - The Pilgrim's
Guide" by post for just 3.00 euro
including postage (Ireland), but anyone who
donates even 10 euro towards the purchase of
God's Cottage will get a signed copy. Click
at bottom of page for full pricelist.
How
St. Kevin Exorcised Glendalough
It is
generally believed that St. Kevin’s bed was
originally a Bronze Age tomb. Cutting that cave
would have taken ages and even getting to it
would have required a boat. Clearly some
important person was buried there for mystical or
religious reasons.
The original
name for the Lower Lake was Lough na Peestha, the
lake of the serpent. It was said to have had its
own monster serpent. Given that this monster
serpent was reputed to live in the Lower Lake,
could “The Green Road” have existed
prior to St. Kevin and been called after the
Green Serpent God, after which Baltinglass (The
Green Baal) at the other side of the Wicklow
Mountains is also named. Green was a colour
deeply associated with the Druidic worship.
Given
that Baltinglass was a major centre of Druidic
worship, it is quite likely that Glendalough had
connections also.
Folklore told
of a major struggle between St. Kevin and the
serpent in the Lower Lake, with the serpent being
a source of bad luck or of a curse (destroying
his work and buildings) until St. Kevin caught
and killed the serpent. This story is symbolic of
St. Kevin delivering the valley from its pagan
past and breaking whatever evil or curses that
arose from its past.
Other stories
have Kevin swimming in the lake and standing for
an hour praying in the lake daily while the
serpent was still in it. Doing so would have been
a powerful public witness by Kevin of his lack of
fear of the serpent - and of the serpent god.
It is
understandable that his swimming and praying in
the lake, while the natives believed the serpent
was still in it, would have caused them to have
all sorts of images, including erotic images, of
the serpent lapping itself around him. Hence the
many such stories.
Just as his
swimming and praying in the lake was a mighty
statement that he feared neither the serpent nor
the serpent god, so too St. Kevin’s sleeping
in the pagan burial chamber was a mighty
statement that he feared neither the ancient
pagan gods nor the spirits of the dead.
St.
Kevin And Celibacy
St.
Kevin was born of a royal line of the tribe of
Dal-Mesincorb. Even as a teenager he became a
holy man, and clearly was a charismatic figure.
Given all this, many ladies undoubtedly cast
romantic eyes in his direction.
Some, inspired
by his example, sought to dedicate their own
lives to God. But undoubtedly some desired only
to possess him for themselves.
A story is told
that when Kevin was either a student or a young
priest in Kilnamanagh, a beautiful young lady
called Kathleen wanted him for herself.
She
‘chased’ him for some time without
success, then growing more desperate, she sought
him out when he was alone, and asked him directly
to have sex with her.
It is one thing
for a young man to live the celibate lifestyle
when his celibacy is being respected. It is quite
another thing to live it when an attractive young
lady is asking one to have sex with her.
Kevin
became a great saint, but first he was an
ordinary full blooded young man with normal
sexual desires.
It is said
that, finding himself sexually aroused by her
advances, he jumped into a clump of nestles semi
naked - the 6th century equivalent of having a
“cold shower”. When Kathleen continued
to pursue him, he plucked a bunch of the said
nettles and began to beat her with them across
her exposed parts. Some commentators refer to
this as “violence”. But I say, good for
him!
In fairness to
her, instead of complaining, she got the message
and repented. That was the real miracle.
Some
commentators like to portray this incident as the
“pushing away of human love”.
It was not!! It
was the pushing away of lust, of sex being used
not as an expression of love but out of a desire
to possess.
By the time
storytellers were finished with the story, they
had St. Kevin throwing poor Kathleen to her death
in the Upper Lake - despite the fact that the
incident happened in Kilnamanagh and she lived to
convert!
Meanwhile, it
would be quite appropriate to ask the
intercession of St. Kevin when dealing with any
form of sexual difficulties.
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