Garden Of Celtic Saints

Welcome to the Garden of Celtic Saints. This is a place of prayer and reflection, a place of beauty and hope. It is filled with memories of the Saints of the Golden Age of the Irish Church. The names of Patrick, Brigid, Columcille, Columbanus, Gall, Kilian and Molaise will bring to mind the riches and glories that existed in the Irish Church from the time of Saint Patrick.

As you walk through the garden and reflect on the lives of the Saints represented in the sculptures, we hope you will be refreshed by :

Their reverence for the Holy Scriptures
Their deep sense of community in the Body of Christ at prayer
Their sense of tradition and continuity with past heroes of faith and their love of Creation

Please click here to download information booklet about the garden.

Sculpture 1 - Saint Patrick

St Patrick who came here first as a slave and worked on Slemish Mountain - Co Antrim looking after the flocks for his master. He then escaped back to his homeland but those six years changed him. His faith and love of God grew very strong but also providentially he learned the language and religious customs of the Irish people at that time. Because of this he was able to speak to them about Christian faith in a way they could understand.

In this sculpture he is holding in his hand his life story “The Confession of St Patrick”.

Sculpture 2 - Saint Brigid

Saint Brigid (452 – 524)

St Brigid was born at Faughort, Co Louth. She was a very beautiful young woman. Many suitors wishes to marry her but she wanted to serve God as a Nun. Her father was an angry man but her mind was made up. She established a convent in Kildare which became very famous. St Brigid was known for caring for the sick, providing hospitality and giving alms to the needy.
In this sculpture St Brigid is holding a basket of food and fruit for the poor people.

Sculpture 3 - Saint Columcille

Born in Gartan, Co Donegal of a noble family, he set up his first ministry at Derry. With 12 companions he landed on Iona in Scotland 563. On many occasions he visited Ireland often giving advice on great political events. Because of his aristocratic back ground, he was heard with attention. His powerful personality and shrewdness in judging character helped him to achieve great success.

This sculpture is St Columcille standing in a boat because traveling by boat was his chief means of travel.