Churches – Lorrha Dorrha

Churches in LorrHa – Dorrha

St Ruadhan’s Church Lorrha

St. Ruadhan’s church, built in 1813, is situated beside the old Dominican abbey and is constructed from stone taken from the ruin. The last Dominican friar, Fr. Alexander Fitzgerald who was also parish priest, supervised the building. In 1977 Canon Martin Ryan, then parish priest, organised the refurbishment of St. Ruadhan’s. He assembled a team of parishioners to fundraise, enlisted the services of architects Anthony & Barbara O’Neill and a number of leading artists of the time including sculptor, Imogen Stuart who designed a new altar, a new ambo and a new celebrant’s chair with seating in church to match. She also designed the sanctuary lamp from her impressions of Jewish craftmanship at the time of Christ. Another great artist, Niall O’Neill designed and crafted the beautiful Tabernacle.

The stained-glass windows come to us from 1920 and are of the Celtic revivalist style from a studio in Youghal. They portray St. Ruadhán, patron saint of the parish of Lorrha and St. Patrick, our national apostle. The seats were donated by local families.

Michael Killeen designed the especially beautiful hanging cross dominating the sanctuary showing a resurrected Christ, fashionable in post Vatican Council days and a revival of an early tradition in the high crosses, this one being influenced by the Dysert O’Dea cross in Co Clare c 1160.

Three carvings at the front of the church are from the adjacent 13th c Dominican Priory, left is a typical 13th century male figure. Top is a winged Dominican prior that was an arch support possibly set in the cloister area, the third is a figure which was set where two arches met, again possibly in the cloister area. For more information check Parish of Lorrha and Dorrha – Killaloe Diocese

St Ruadhan’s Church Of Ireland, Lorrha

St Ruadháns church is probably built on the site of the early monastery founded by Ruadhán in c.540 AD. The church was constructed from roughly coursed cyclopean masonry and has antae projecting from the east and west gables. This may be the church referred to in the Annals of Inishfallen. It records, under 1037 AD, that ‘Cu Chaille, son of Cennetaig, King of Musgraige, with his son was slain in front of the stone church at Lorrha after he had been taken from the altar’. An arched doorway, featuring a head, possibly representing Walter de Burgh, may have been taken from the Augustinian Abbey and inserted into the south wall in the 12th/13th century.

A pointed doorway with decoration was added below the arched one in the 15th century. The shafts of two 8th/9th century High crosses are located in the graveyard, to the west of the church.
The 15th century doorway with rose motifs, vine leaves and a pelican drawing blood from its breast. In medieval bestiary a pelican is a bird who revives its dead young with the blood from its breast. It represents Christ on the cross shedding his blood for humanity.
Source: Megalitic Ireland

The Church Of The Most Holy Redeemer in Redwood

The Church of the Holy Redeemer at Redwood was built between 1850 and 1852 during the lengthy pastorate of Fr. Con O’Brien. A plain, rectangular building with late-Georgian style windows and without side-aisles, it seems a little old-fashioned for its construction date. In 1970 it was re-roofed and in 1978-1979 it was renovated extensively, when a new front porch was added, after which it was re-dedicated by Bishop Michael Harty in February 1979. At the same time a mass rock from Moatfield was removed from its original site and placed in the sanctuary.
Preserved elsewhere in the diocese is a brass candlestick used in clandestine Penal era masses at Moatfield and found near the mass rock in 1919 by two local men. For more information check Parish of Lorrha and Dorrha – Killaloe Diocese

Church Of The Most Holy Redeemer Redwood(1) — Church Of The Most Holy Redeemer, Redwood

Church of Ireland, Pallas (also known as Dorrha Church)

Pallas church is located about 1.5kms east of Rathcabbin in the townland of Graigue, Dorrha Church is sited beside Dorrha’s medieval parish church ruin. It is at the end of a leafy lane off the small road to Rathcabbin (L5046) that branches off the Borrisokane – Cloghan Road (R438).
It was built in 1832. It is one of four churches in Birr Union of Parishes in the United Dioceses of Tuam, Limerick and Killaloe.

Our Lady Queen Of Ireland, Rathcabbin

Our Lady Queen of Ireland, Rathcabbin Church, opened in 1984, stands on the site of a former church built in 1797 under the guidance of Fr. Alexander Fitzgerald, the last Dominican priest to serve the Lorrha & Dorrha parish. Like the earlier churches at Bonham and Pallas, this previous church featured a T-shaped layout and a thatched roof. Today, several elements from that original church are preserved in this church, including a Holy Water font with an angel’s head, which was once a baptismal font two elegant statues, and some stained-glass windows. Additionally, an altar stone from a medieval church is retained. Canon Martin Ryan, the parish priest, oversaw the construction of this church and also managed the renovations of the churches in Lorrha and Redwood.

Architect Anthony M. O’Neill designed the church, with a vision inspired by the Second Vatican Council, to encourage “full, conscious, and active participation of the people” and emphasize the Eucharist as “the summit and source of Christian life.” The most prominent interior feature is a circular reinforced concrete beam, which symbolizes the mysteries of the rosary, connecting with the church’s dedication to Our Lady. This beam, along with the stations of the cross, is crafted in enamelled bronze.
Upon entering, visitors are met with a suspended sculpture of the Resurrected Christ by artist David King, who also created the stations and mysteries of the rosary. A carved statue of Our Lady with outstretched arms, sheltering a group of children within her cloak, is crafted by Brid Ni Rinn from local ash wood. Located in a separate Our Lady’s Chapel, this statue offers a quiet space for lighting candles and reflection.
The church’s design fosters a close and communal experience during the Eucharist. Its vibrant, modern colours, still striking after forty years, invite reflection, prayer, and quiet meditation. The altar, ambo and chair are harmoniously coordinated, and much of the original stained glass from the previous church has been preserved in the Reconciliation Room, as well as within the church itself, honouring the legacy of the site. For more information check Parish of Lorrha and Dorrha – Killaloe Diocese

The Lorrha-Dorrha website was developed with the support of North Tipperary Development Company’s Social Inclusion and Community Activation Programme (SICAP).