We are an International Movement within the Catholic Church, in the search for Justice and equality for women and men in inclusiveness according to the proposal of Jesus of Nazareth
Living Gospel Inclusivity and Empowerment Now- https://bridgetmarys.blogspot.com/2025/10/rev-dr-bridget-mary-meehan-arcwp-chat.html
Friday, April 12, 2019
Theologians concerned about newly engaged role of Benedict, pope emeritus Apr 12, 2019 by Joshua J. McElwee, National Catholic Reporter
https://www.worldtribune.com/former-pope-urges-new-beginning-1960s-fostered-pragmatic-morality-pedophilia/
web 20190411T0721-25799-CNS-BENEDICT-ABUSE-ARTICLE.jpg
Retired Pope Benedict XVI greets cardinals before a consistory for the creation of new cardinals in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican in this Feb. 22, 2014, file photo. (CNS/Paul Haring)
VATICAN CITY — When Pope Benedict XVI shocked a meeting of cardinals Feb. 10, 2013, with news he would be renouncing the papacy at the end of that month, he promised that as the ex-pontiff he would retreat from the public eye and serve the Catholic Church "through a life dedicated to prayer."
But by the third anniversary of his resignation, Benedict was taking on a more active role.
Support independent Catholic journalism. Subscribe to our print edition or become a member today.
First came a March 2016 interview with a Belgian theologian that focused on the question of God's mercy, just as Pope Francis was in the midst of celebrating an Extraordinary Jubilee Year, also focused on mercy.
In November 2016 came a book-length interview with German journalist Peter Seewald, where Benedict defended his 2005-13 papacy against criticism. "I do not see myself as a failure," he said in the book, titled Last Testament: In His Own Words. "For eight years I carried out my work."
Now comes a letter blaming the continuing clergy abuse crisis on the sexual revolution and theological developments after the Second Vatican Council, weeks after Francis hosted a first-of-its-kind bishops' summit on abuse that focused instead on the endemic structural issues that have abetted cover-up in the church for decades.
What to make of this development of a pope emeritus who emerges from the shadows unannounced from time to time to offer his comments on current affairs, or even on issues being handled by his reigning successor?
A number of noted theologians and church historians are expressing serious concern that Benedict's choice to engage in such public action undermines Francis and plays into narratives splitting Catholics between two popes, one officially in power, and the other wielding influence as he writes from a small monastery in the Vatican Gardens.
"Benedict told us he was going to live a life of quiet contemplation," said Christopher Bellitto, a historian who has written extensively on centuries of popes. "He has not. A former pope should not be publishing or giving interviews."
Richard Gaillardetz, a theologian who focuses on the church's structures of authority, called the precedent being set by Benedict's latest letter "troubling."
The former pontiff, said the theologian, is offering "a controversial analysis of a pressing pastoral and theological crisis, and a set of concrete pastoral remedies."
"These are actions only appropriate for one who actually holds a pastoral office," said Gaillardetz, a professor at Boston College.
"So now we have a situation in which a former pope is offering a parallel pastoral and theological assessment and a parallel pastoral and theological agenda that cannot help but be viewed as an alternative to the exercise pastoral leadership of the current and only bishop of Rome," he said.
Even the Vatican appears to be struggling to understand what to do with a former pope who wants to engage in public debate. As Benedict's latest letter appeared on several right-wing Catholic websites overnight April 10, the Holy See Press Office seemed unprepared, unable even to respond to questions about whether the text was authentic.
In fact it was Archbishop Georg Ganswein, Benedict's personal secretary, that confirmed for many journalists that the text was indeed from the former pontiff.
"The institution of the pope emeritus in the age of mass media and of social media must be regulated carefully," said Massimo Faggioli, an Italian church historian and theologian who teaches at Villanova University.
"This is something that must be done especially about the papal entourage," he said. "The Vatican is a Renaissance court and it is difficult enough to govern one court without having to deal with a 'shadow papal court' — which is what we have today."
Gaillardetz and Bellitto, a professor of history at Kean University in New Jersey, both said Benedict's decision to continue wearing white after his resignation and to call himself the "pope emeritus," instead of some other title such as the "emeritus bishop of Rome," have not helped make clear that there is only one pope at a time.
"These decisions have rather predictably fed deeply troubling 'two pope' theories," said Gaillardetz.
"The Vatican is a Renaissance court and it is difficult enough to govern one court without having to deal with a 'shadow papal court' — which is what we have today."
web 20190411T0721-25799-CNS-BENEDICT-ABUSE-ARTICLE.jpg
Retired Pope Benedict XVI greets cardinals before a consistory for the creation of new cardinals in St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican in this Feb. 22, 2014, file photo. (CNS/Paul Haring)
VATICAN CITY — When Pope Benedict XVI shocked a meeting of cardinals Feb. 10, 2013, with news he would be renouncing the papacy at the end of that month, he promised that as the ex-pontiff he would retreat from the public eye and serve the Catholic Church "through a life dedicated to prayer."
But by the third anniversary of his resignation, Benedict was taking on a more active role.
Support independent Catholic journalism. Subscribe to our print edition or become a member today.
First came a March 2016 interview with a Belgian theologian that focused on the question of God's mercy, just as Pope Francis was in the midst of celebrating an Extraordinary Jubilee Year, also focused on mercy.
In November 2016 came a book-length interview with German journalist Peter Seewald, where Benedict defended his 2005-13 papacy against criticism. "I do not see myself as a failure," he said in the book, titled Last Testament: In His Own Words. "For eight years I carried out my work."
Now comes a letter blaming the continuing clergy abuse crisis on the sexual revolution and theological developments after the Second Vatican Council, weeks after Francis hosted a first-of-its-kind bishops' summit on abuse that focused instead on the endemic structural issues that have abetted cover-up in the church for decades.
What to make of this development of a pope emeritus who emerges from the shadows unannounced from time to time to offer his comments on current affairs, or even on issues being handled by his reigning successor?
A number of noted theologians and church historians are expressing serious concern that Benedict's choice to engage in such public action undermines Francis and plays into narratives splitting Catholics between two popes, one officially in power, and the other wielding influence as he writes from a small monastery in the Vatican Gardens.
"Benedict told us he was going to live a life of quiet contemplation," said Christopher Bellitto, a historian who has written extensively on centuries of popes. "He has not. A former pope should not be publishing or giving interviews."
Richard Gaillardetz, a theologian who focuses on the church's structures of authority, called the precedent being set by Benedict's latest letter "troubling."
The former pontiff, said the theologian, is offering "a controversial analysis of a pressing pastoral and theological crisis, and a set of concrete pastoral remedies."
"These are actions only appropriate for one who actually holds a pastoral office," said Gaillardetz, a professor at Boston College.
"So now we have a situation in which a former pope is offering a parallel pastoral and theological assessment and a parallel pastoral and theological agenda that cannot help but be viewed as an alternative to the exercise pastoral leadership of the current and only bishop of Rome," he said.
Even the Vatican appears to be struggling to understand what to do with a former pope who wants to engage in public debate. As Benedict's latest letter appeared on several right-wing Catholic websites overnight April 10, the Holy See Press Office seemed unprepared, unable even to respond to questions about whether the text was authentic.
In fact it was Archbishop Georg Ganswein, Benedict's personal secretary, that confirmed for many journalists that the text was indeed from the former pontiff.
"The institution of the pope emeritus in the age of mass media and of social media must be regulated carefully," said Massimo Faggioli, an Italian church historian and theologian who teaches at Villanova University.
"This is something that must be done especially about the papal entourage," he said. "The Vatican is a Renaissance court and it is difficult enough to govern one court without having to deal with a 'shadow papal court' — which is what we have today."
Gaillardetz and Bellitto, a professor of history at Kean University in New Jersey, both said Benedict's decision to continue wearing white after his resignation and to call himself the "pope emeritus," instead of some other title such as the "emeritus bishop of Rome," have not helped make clear that there is only one pope at a time.
"These decisions have rather predictably fed deeply troubling 'two pope' theories," said Gaillardetz.
"The Vatican is a Renaissance court and it is difficult enough to govern one court without having to deal with a 'shadow papal court' — which is what we have today."
Christ Means Anointed, Mary of Magdala and the Ritual of Anointing , Dying and Rising, "Falling Through Fear Into Love"
And when the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought sweet spices, that they might come and anoint him. And very early in the morning the first day of the week, they came to the sepulcher at the rising of the sun. —Mark 16:1‑2
Continuing Cynthia Bourgeault’s reflections, drawn from her book The Meaning of Mary Magdalene:
[Mary Magdalene’s anointing of Jesus] provides a powerful ritual access point to Christianity’s own deepest transformative wisdom. To begin with, it makes it virtually impossible to experience the Paschal Mystery in any other way than as an act of redemptive love. When Mary Magdalene is returned to her traditional role as the anointer of Jesus, a very important symmetry is also restored. We see that Jesus’s passage through death is framed on either side by her parallel acts of anointing. At Bethany she sends him forth to the cross wearing the unction of her love. And on Easter morning he awakens to that same fragrance of love as she arrives at the tomb with her spices and perfumes, expecting to anoint his body for death. He has been held in love throughout his entire passage.
As Bruce Chilton succinctly summarizes: “She connects his death and Resurrection.” [1] And she accomplishes this precisely by bracketing the entire experience in the parallel rituals of anointing. In so doing, Chilton adds, “Mary Magdalene established the place of anointing as the central ritual in Christianity, recollecting Jesus’s death and pointing forward to his resurrection.”
But what is it that she is actually pointing forward to? What is this Paschal journey from a wisdom standpoint? In the common understanding, Christianity has tended to view the resurrection as Jesus’s triumph over physical death. But for Christians in the wisdom tradition (who include among their ranks the very earliest witnesses to the resurrection) its meaning lies in something far deeper than merely the resuscitation of a corpse. Jesus’s real purpose in this sacrifice was to wager his own life against his core conviction that love is stronger than death, and that the laying down of self which is the essence of this love leads not to death, but to life. . . . Thus, the real domain of the Paschal Mystery is not dying but dying-to-self. It serves as the archetype for all of our personal experiences of dying and rising to new life along the pathway of kenotic transformation, reminding us that it is not only possible but imperative to fall through fear into love because that is the only way we will ever truly know what it means to be alive.
Within the context of the resurrection, then, anointing becomes the ritual most closely associated with the passage from death of self to fullness of life, from egoic alienation to “union on a higher plane.” As such, it conveys the very essence of Christianity’s transformative wisdom.
And its gatekeeper is Mary Magdalene.
Gateway to Presence:
If you want to go deeper with today’s meditation, take note of what word or phrase stands out to you. Come back to that word or phrase throughout the day, being present to its impact and invitation.
[1] Bruce Chilton, Mary Magdalene: A Biography (Doubleday/Image: 2005), 52.
Cynthia Bourgeault, The Meaning of Mary Magdalene: Discovering the Woman at the Heart of Christianity (Shambhala: 2010), 185-186.
Image credit: Mary Magdalene’s Box of Very Precious Ointment (detail), James Tissot, 1886-1994, Brooklyn Museum, New York City, New York.
Mary Theresa Streck ARCWP: My Faith Story
(Mary Theresa shared this story in a group gathering in Albany, New York)
Thank you for coming tonight to listen to one of my faith stories.
I brought with me a few props: dragonflies, a symbol of transformation and resurrection and the song Holy Angels by Sara Thomsen.
My story begins with the song Holy Angels.
I believe there is life after this life.
I believe there are holy angels or spirit guides that walk with us but we are not always awake or aware of their presence or hear their messages.
Over time I have become more and more aware of them and now, I call on them to guide me.
And when an inspiring thought arrives or a message comes to me from someone else, I recognize it as a gift from my angels, my guides.
In 2004, Jay Murnane, the love of my life transitioned from life as we know it to the spirit world. I was profoundly affected by his grace-filled acceptance of declining health and his unwavering belief that life continues.
One evening while we were sitting together on the couch and his earthly journey was ending, he turned to me and asked if we could plan his funeral liturgy.
We did - and I wept through most of it. And Jay, with his amazing sense of humor talked about communicating with me from the spirit world. We laughed. And I responded with, “Oh, God, Please do not appear at the foot of my bed and scare me.”
The moment when Jay’s beautiful spirit left his body, I had an overwhelming feeling that his life continued. I sensed his resurrection and it made me less fearful of my own transitioning. It also connected me with those first followers of Jesus and the experience they might have had of his resurrection.
And Jay did communicate with me. He came to me through others. In the beginning it was through their dreams.
Within the month after he crossed over, my friend Kay called me and said that she had a very vivid dream of Jay. It was the first and last dream Kay ever delivered to me. And I have never heard her talk about her dreams before or after. So, this was a surprise.
In her dream she met Jay under the Congress Street bridge that separates the Taylor Apartment buildings in Troy. Jay and I lived in building 4.
She said that Jay’s face was radiant, healthy – no sign of the cancer that wasted his body. And Kay, said to him, “Jay, what are you doing here, you are supposed to be dead?” Kay is always frank and to the point!
And he responded, “Kay, you know life continues. Tell Mary I love her.” And Kay said to me laughing, “He was wearing an olive-green trench coat - with the collar up.” I told her it was the only piece of his clothing that was still in the hall closet - and he used to love to put the collar up. She did not know this.
Kay’s dream was the first of a number of dream messages I received from Jay through friends.
In the weeks after he transitioned, I started to talk to him out loud when I was cleaning my apartment. I’m talking away to him and then I stop and say, “I sure hope you are listening!” Jay was always a sweet listener!!
The next day, my friend Stacey called me about her dream of Jay and her message from him was,
“He wants you to know that he is listening to everything you have to say.”
Over the years, I regularly call on Jay and my spirit guides to walk with me. And I am not surprised by the messages I receive.
Last Sunday, I returned to the Upper Room liturgy after being away for three months. As I was getting dressed and putting on my jewelry, I decided to put on Jay’s ring with these words, “Come with me today.”
The ring was a visible reminder of his presence.
After liturgy, a woman from our community who knew Jay from years ago began talking to me about him and then said, “I felt his presence with us today.”
Another sweet affirmation that says, “I am with you.”
On Tuesday morning of this week, I thought of a woman who I have never meet, but someone my hairdresser wants me to meet. She has mentioned it a few times. I have no idea why I was thinking of her, but because she came to my mind, I decided it was time to contact her. I put it on my To Do list!
That evening I go to my Spiritual Direction training class at the Pastoral Center and during a conversation with my spiritual director, she mentions this woman and really wants me to meet her.
So, the next day, I send the woman an instant message and tell her I think my spirit guides want us to meet. And her response is so welcoming and affirming and she, too, has had the same message.
We have set a date.
So, my wish for you is that you become aware of the guides or angels who walk with you. Call on them, know that they are holding you, and then listen for their messages.
Dragonfly photo by Julie Marsh
Thursday, April 11, 2019
ARCWP: Deconstructing and Reconstructing a Renewed Priestly Ministry that Welcomes Everyone to Celebrate Sacraments by Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP
In his new book The Universal Christ, Richard Rohr writes
“you can only reform things long term by unlocking them from inside – by their own chosen authoritative sources. Outsiders have little authority or ability to reform anything. . . . We need to reconstruct and not just continue to deconstruct.”
He cites Jesus and Paul as examples of prophetic reformers who trusted their own experience of God versus the status quo of Judaism. They reframed the tradition for inclusion of more people.
Our international Roman Catholic Women Priests Movement has been deconstructing a patriarchal male model of priestly ministry excluding those who don’t follow the man-made rules of the Church. Instead, the Movement reconstructs a new model of inclusive ministry in which all are one in Christ, spiritual equals invited to celebrate sacraments.
In our inclusive communities, for example, the entire assembly is invited to pray the words of institution/consecration, in contrast to the institutional Roman Catholic Church where this is the role of the priest alone. Likewise, at our ARCWP ordinations, the people, not just the bishop and clergy, are invited to lay hands on the ordinands.
We are leading the Church out of a medieval clerical understanding of a male priest as persona Christi possessing exclusive power to “confect” sacraments because of his ordination. We affirm the Christ Presence in the entire people of God and in all creation.
According to contemporary theologians such as Bernard Cook in The
Future of Eucharist,
“a fresh understanding of the resurrection has led people to accept
Christ's constant and active presence in the believing community, changing their view of "real presence" and opening them to accept the whole body of Christ as co-celebrant with the priest. These new understandings - already evident in some Catholic congregations - will change the way all Catholics think and worship in future years.”
The priest alone does not have magic powers to make Christ present in the Eucharist. Rather, it is the entire Body of Christ, priest and people, who manifest the Christ Presence in the Eucharist. As members of a community of equals, women priests are modeling a new relational, inclusive, welcoming model of priestly ministry. They are spiritual friends, contemplative activists, prophetic voices, facilitators of inclusive sacramental celebrations. They are reframing the tradition to include everyone especially our sisters and brothers who have been excluded and marginalized in our sacramental rites and celebrations.
Wednesday, April 10, 2019
U.S. Reps. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and Donna Shalala vowed to take legal action against the Trump adminstration after they were denied entry Monday to a detention facility housing migrant children in Homestead, Florida. NBC News, All of us Bear Responsibility for Protection of Migrant Children
My Response: What would Jesus say and do in response to the cruel policy of separating migrant children from their families? Jesus said "whatsoever you do to the least of my brothers and sisters that you do unto me." Every child is an image of God and deserves to be treated with the utmost love and care. We are called as people of faith and no faith to oversight of all facilities where children of migrants are detained and to do everything in our power as citizens to protect children from harm to their bodies, minds and spirits. Bridget Mary Meehan ARCWP, https://arcwp.org, sofiabmm@aol.com
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services told the Democratic lawmakers last week they would not be allowed access to the federal detention center. Despite the rejection, the congresswomen from South Florida on Monday attempted to gain entry – citing the refusal is a violation of a law signed by Trump himself.
“We are going to get access to this facility, upon our terms, not ORR’s [Office of Refugee Resettlement] terms,” Wasserman Schultz said.
Joined by Shalala and Mucarsel-Powell, Wasserman Schultz told reporters outside the facility that the new law affirms members of Congress “must be given access to conduct oversight” and rejected the ORR's claim that facilities require a two-week notice.
Florida Congresswomen Will Attempt to Visit Homestead Facility for Migrant Minors
![[MI] Florida Congresswomen Will Attempt to Visit Homestead Facility for Migrant Minors](https://media.nbcmiami.com/images/620*349/Florida_Congresswomen_Will_Attempt_to_Visit_Homestead_F.jpg)
“There is no time limit, there is no limitation at all,” she added. “And if they don’t let us in, they are violating the law.”
Mucarsel-Powell said she finds the resignation of Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen "extremely troubling" as the Trump administration felt Nielsen, "the woman that was overseeing the cruel policy of family separation," was "too friendly to the immigrant population."
Homestead is now one of the facilities with the largest number of migrant children in the U.S. The children in custody are teenagers, ages 13 to 17, who arrived on their own, hoping to join relatives.
The attempt to take the tour comes after HHS announced that they will significantly expand the bed capacity at the shelter despite lingering concerns over inadequate staffing, space and other services, according to the congresswomen.
“Denying entry to oversee the conditions and care provided to the unaccompanied children in the Homestead facility would not only be a breach of transparency and confidence in the care provided there, it would violate the law,” said Wasserman Schultz, Shalala, and Mucarsel-Powell in a joint statement.
This is the second time the facility expands its bed count. The government had announced in December that the facility in Homestead was increasing the number of beds from 1,200 to 2,350. The expansion will now take the bed count to 3,200.
The expansion is set to take place later in April.
In June 2018, Wasserman Schultz was initially denied entry to the facility along with former U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and others. They were eventually allowed to tour the facility days later.
“During our last visit to Homestead, we witnessed children living in cramped, prison-like conditions,” the joint statement said. “The idea to force even more children into an already full detention facility is not only unsafe but is cruel and violates basic tenets of human decency.”
An e-mail from a DHS adviser said the expansion was due to a surge of migrants crossing the U.S.-Mexico border. Children who arrive without parents or legal guardians are placed in the custody of the agency.
New federal requirements mandating more stringent background checks on their families since last summer have slowed the children's release to family members. The average length of stay at Homestead has gone up from 25 days last June to 67 days as of December.
A legal team visited the shelter in February to verify whether it complies with a 1997 agreement known as the Flores settlement, governing how migrant children are housed in custody. J.J Mulligan Sepulveda, an attorney at the Immigration Law Clinic at University of California, Davis, said they interviewed children and described a few instances in which they broke into tears describing the "military-style" conditions at the facility where they can't hug one another.
Play and Pray in Mystical Ireland with Bridget Mary Meehan and Mary Theresa Streck in September 16-25, 2019
Come join us for our exciting pilgrimage, “Pray and Play in Mystical Ireland.” We are incorporating prayers, music and reflections from the Celtic tradition each day to celebrate Celtic spirituality.
Details are below. A group of us will leave from Newark, NJ. You can save money on the airfare by using frequent flyer miles. Schedule your flight on September 15 from a nearby airport and meet us on the morning of September 16 in Dublin Airport. If you need help scheduling a flight, please contact Jeanne Orenstein from Celtic Tours at jeanneo@celtictours.com or PH: (518) 862-0042 or 800-833-4373 Ext. 310.
Celtic Tours Presents: Pray and Play in Mystical Ireland
Click Here for Flyer: https://www.celtictours.com/static/pdf/Play%20&%20Pray%20in%20Mystical%20Ireland%20Sept%2016-25,%202019.pdf
You will meet your Irish Driver/Guide in the arrival’s hall of the Dublin airport and he will escort you to the waiting motor coach for your tour. Depart the airport and travel into the capital city for a panoramic city tour. You will then visit St. Patrick’s Cathedral, before moving on to Trinity College to see the Book of Kells. Then some free time in Dublin to take in one of the museums or wander the streets. You will meet back up with your driver and he will take you into the Dublin suburbs to Fitzpatrick’s Castle Hotel for the first of a 3-night stay. Dinner at your hotel this evening.
Day 3: Wednesday, Sept 18, 2019 North of Dublin
After a full Irish breakfast, you will depart for the Hill of Tara. Then on toMonasterboice for some photos. And continuing on to
Newgrange/Knowth to view the passage tombs. Afterwards, you will travel north to Dundalk to visit St. Bridget’s Shrine. Then enjoy some local touring in counties Louth and Meath before returning to the castle for dinner and overnight.
Today after breakfast, you will depart for some local touring of the Wicklow county area. Stopping at Glendalough and then on to St. Brigid Cathedraland Well in Kildare and Solas Bhríde Centre and Hermitages. Return to your hotel this afternoon for a little free time. Tonight, you will have time to wander the town of Dalkey and enjoy dinner at the hotel.
Day 5: Friday, Sept 20, 2019 Killarney
This morning after your final castle breakfast, we will be heading to Killarney. Stopping on the way at the infamousRock of Cashel to see the site of the conversion of the King of Munster by St. Patrick in the 5th century. Then on to Cobh to visit the Heritage Centre. This museum has wonderful artifacts from many lost ships that sailed from this port before their final demise.
Continuing on to Blarney where you will visit the BlarneyCastle and have the opportunity to kiss the Blarney Stone. On the way to Killarney, you will have the opportunity to stop in Ballyvourney to visit Gobnait’s Well before heading into Killarney for the night. Dinner and overnight in Killarney at Scott’s Hotel.
Day 6: Saturday, Sept 21, 2019 Dingle
After a buffet breakfast, a delightful day takes us along the Kerry coast to the Dingle Peninsula, which offers magnificent coastal scenery. Beyond Slea Head, we see the Blasket Islands, the last outpost of Europe and you will visit the Blasket Visitor's Center, and alsoGallarus Oratory to see some BeeHive Huts. A full day tour returning to Killarney, where we enjoy dinner at our hotel this evening. Dinner and overnight in Killarney.
This morning, eat an early breakfast than walk over to St. Mary’s Cathedral for an 8am Mass before departing forAdare. Take some time to stop here and take some photos of some thatched roof cottages before moving on to Bunratty. Here you will stop to visit theBunratty FolkPark and Castleto see how life was in medieval times. Then onto Liscannor tovisit St. Bridget’s well before stopping for a visit at the incredible Cliffs of Moher. Continue onto Galway for dinner and overnight at the
After breakfast, enjoy a tour of the Connemara region. Including a stop atKylemore Abbey and the Celtic Crystal Factory and Connemara Marble Factory. Then into Galway for a panoramic city tour and some free time. Back to Galway Hotel for your dinner and overnight.
Enjoy a leisurely morning with breakfast. Then a later start to Dublin. Stopping along the way in Athlone to visitClonmacnoise. Then on into Howth to visit Malahide Castle and Gardens. Check into Maldron Airport Hotel and then onto a dinner and show for your final night.
Eight Nights in Mystical Ireland with tour hosts Bridget Mary Meehan, ARCWP and Mary Theresa Streck, ARCWP
September 16 - 25, 2019
Estimated cost for land only: $2393
Single Room Supplement: $659
Estimated cost for air from Newark: TBA
Land cost is separate from air for those who wish to use frequent flyer miles!
September 16 - 25, 2019
Estimated cost for land only: $2393
Single Room Supplement: $659
Estimated cost for air from Newark: TBA
Land cost is separate from air for those who wish to use frequent flyer miles!
RATES INCLUDE:
- Accommodations for EIGHT NIGHTS (8) nights at the following hotels:
DUBLIN: Fitzpatrick’s Castle 3 Night(s)
KILLARNEY: Scott’s Hotel 2 Night(s)
GALWAY: Imperial Hotel 2 Night(s)
DUBLIN: Maldron Airport Hotel 1 Night(s)
- Full Breakfast daily, except day of arrival.
- Seven (7) Hotel dinners and One (1) Dinner and Celtic music and dance show in Dublin
- Visits/Admissions: Panoramic city tour of Dublin, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Trinity College-Book of Kells, Hill of Tara, Monasterboice, Newgrange/Knowth, St. Bridget’s Shrine in Faughart, St. Bridget’s Cathedral and Well and Solas Bhride Center in Kildare, Rock of Cashel, Cobh Heritage Centre, Blarney Castle, Gobnait’s Well, Gallarus Oratory, Blasket Tourist Centre, St. Mary’s Cathedral in Killarney, Bunratty Folk Park and Castle, St. Bridget’s Well in Liscannor, Cliffs of Moher, Kylemore Abbey, Clonmacnoise and Malahide Castle.
- All transportation and sightseeing via deluxe touring motor coach with the services of a professional driver/guide throughout
- Tips and taxes on items included. NOTE: Tip to driver / guide is not included - plan on $5 per day.
- Porterage of one suitcase per person
Itinerary:
Day 1: Monday, Sept 16, 2019
Depart on your overnight flight from Newark, NJ to Dublin Ireland. Dinner served shortly after take-off.
Depart on your overnight flight from Newark, NJ to Dublin Ireland. Dinner served shortly after take-off.
Day 2: Tuesday, Sept 17, 2019 Dublin
 |
| St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, Ireland |
 |
| Fitzpatrick Castle Hotel |
Day 4: Thursday, Sept 19, 2019 Wicklow County
 |
| Glenalough |
 |
| St. Brigid's Well, Kildare |
Day 5: Friday, Sept 20, 2019 Killarney
 |
| Rock of Cashel |
 |
| Blarney Castle |
Day 6: Saturday, Sept 21, 2019 Dingle
 |
| Dingle Coastline |
 |
| Gallarus Oratory - Beehive Hut |
Day 7: Sunday, Sept 22, 2019 Killarney – Burren – Galway
 |
| Adare |
 |
| Cliffs of Moher |
Day 8: Monday, Sept 23, 2019 Connemara Touring
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| Kylemore Abbey |
Day 9: Tuesday, Sept 24, 2019 Galway to Dublin
 |
| Clonmacnoise Ancient Monastic Site |
 |
| Malahide Castle |
Day 10: Wednesday, Sept 25, 2019 Dublin to US
If flight time allows, enjoy breakfast at the hotel tonight before heading to the airport. Return to the US same day.
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