Faha in East Clare, a place of Heritage, Faith and Hospitality
There is something special about liminal spaces. Places of transition. Border territories. Passageways from one jurisdiction to another. On Sunday August 2nd the annual pilgrimage or pattern day will be held in Máméan in the Maamturk Mountains in Connemara. Máméan is so called because it was a passage way for the birds. Passing from south Connemara to north Connemara. From Galway to Mayo. Magnificent views on both sides give a great sense of the wonder of creation, the great gift of the Lord to us who are fortunate enough to live on this beautiful island.
Another such location is Faha cemetery bordering Killanena and Feakle. It’s also close to the border between Galway and Clare. In the middle ages it was a stop off or resting point for pilgrims en routefrom Kilmacduagh to Holy Island, Inis Cealtra. St. Colman to St. Caimin. Very much a liminal space. Biddy Early was a native of this locality and it is also renowned for many recent and outstanding Clare hurlers associated with last year’s outstanding All-Ireland win.
Characteristic of many pilgrim routes, they were designated places for rest and hospitality and it is clear that in Faha in the middle ages there was a centre for pilgrims to stop off for sustenance and a sojourn on the sacred journey. Obviously, the renowned East Clare hospitality was a draw for the exhausted and weary pilgrims who journeyed on foot. No doubt they were treated to some melodious traditional tunes and perhaps a dram or two of local brew to boot! Pattern days, pilgrimages and pilgrim venues were associated with sociable occasions for people to meet and gather and often a source of local rivalry and occasional faction fights. I’m sure such events never occurred in Faha! WB Yeats once remarked that “The history of a nation is not in parliaments and battlefields, but in what people say to each other on fair days and high days and how they farm and quarrel and go on pilgrimage”.
Bullaun stones are a common feature at Holy Wells around the county and their use tells us much about pilgrimage activity at these sacred venues. They were formed by the grinding by hand of one or more depressions in boulders. They are usually related to the healing properties of water contained in the bullauns. From Christian times the Holy Water therein was used as a source of blessing for various ailments. The holy well for example in Kilvoydan, Corofin, County Clare, known as Tober Voydan, Tobar Bhaighdeáin, or Bhiodán, is a pilgrimage site with a bullaun stone traditionally associated with wart cures. The well is located within a high cross and collects rainwater in a basin-like depression within the stone. It is one of several “still water” or rainwater wells in the area known for their healing properties for warts and skin conditions. The bullaun in Faha is a single depression made of sandstone, shaded by a decaying ash tree. Local tradition from the middle ages would maintain that the water has a cure for eye conditions. This cure was apparently obtained by sleeping under the ash tree next to the well.
Another fascinating aspect of the cemetery in Faha is the presence, just inside the gate of two large “lifting stones”. One larger than the other. The big one being a “he-stone”, the smaller a “she-stone”. According to tradition they were lifted in trials of strength during social gatherings, notably at funerals. One theory is that they were a gesture of defiance of the grim reaper in the aftermath of a death and a staunch affirmation of the vibrancy, strength and vitality of the living.
This year we mark the 400th anniversary of the only Irish man canonised in recent times, Sr. Oliver Plunket, Archbishop of Armagh. Tradition has it in Faha that a local man, a Fr. MacGabhann was ordained priest by him. The name MacGabhann continues to this day in the area.
A pilgrimage Mass for the Jubilee Year of Hope will be celebrated in Faha Cemetery, Inis Cealtra Pastoral Area on the Feast of Our Lady, August 15th at 7.00 pm. Other notable pilgrimages in this harvest month of Lúnasa include Mass at the Mass rock in Tulla on Sunday, 10th of August at 3.00 pm. The Novena in Drumellihy in Cooraclare, the parish of Kilmacduane begins with Mass at 6.00 am on August 15th. Similarly at the Mass Rock in Ballydonahane in Bodyke-Tuamgraney an annual celebration is held along with annual Mass on Inis Cealtra, Holy Island. St. Imy in Killimer is celebrated at 10.00 am on August 17th and St. Senan on Scattery Island, Inis Cathaigh that same day at 3.00 pm. Towards the end of August a number of celebrations of St. Augustine are held in Kilmaley, Kilshanney and other locations. Welcome to all on this Jubilee year of Hope to experience the hope of our faith on these unique pilgrimages and bring that gift of Christian hope into our daily lives.
✠ Fintan Monahan – Bishop of Killaloe
Clare Champion Article 1st of August 2025