I spent a pleasant couple of hours walking through the
ancient monastic city founded by St. Kevin in the 6th century. Glendalough is to Ireland what Iona is to
Scotland, a place of deep spiritual richness and pilgrimage.
This is the gateway
to the monastic enclosure. It is a
totally unique example of a double threshold.
It would have had a second story that probably housed the
gatekeeper. Just inside the second arch
is large cross incised in the stone wall.
Those seeking sanctuary would lay their hand on it and would be given
refuge.
This was an ancient law that, until fairly recently I believe, was inviolate.
No one, no matter how horrific their crime, could be touched by the authorities
if they claimed sanctuary in a church or holy place; at least for 40 days at
any rate.
This idea added a new twist to my thoughts on
thresholds. That one could seek and
secure sanctuary by simply crossing over and through a threshold. It gives one a feeling of security to imagine
such a state. Sanctuary is a very
powerful word.
This is the paved walk way leading from the gateway into the
inner enclave of the monastery. The
stones were nearly polished smooth from the thousands upon thousands of feet
that have walked over them these last 1,400 years.
But unlike our
modern notion of monastic life, this was a bustling community of families. The Roman rule had not been imposed and many
of the monks would have been married.
Secular and sacred lives were blended in this monastic city. One can’t help but wonder what the modern
church would look like today if it had followed a Celtic rather than a Roman path.
Tomorrow I will
give you some more images of this breathtaking landscape. I can see why St. Kevin chose it to establish
his monastery and why it continues to draw thousands of pilgrims each year.
This is an idea of what the medieval monastic city might have looked like. The gatehouse is on the right side linking the pilgrim's road with the inner enclosure.
