Hundreds of years ago, the lush green island of Ireland was
controlled by the British crown, which suppressed the
Catholic faith brought by St. Patrick centuries before. To
keep their culture alive, the Irish people formed secret
societies for the protection of the priests they needed to
carry on the faith.
When the potato famine struck the country, more than 1
million Irishmen immigrated to places like Australia and
America. The concept of those fraternal, secret societies
came with them.
In the United States, one such group called the Ancient Order
of Hibernians tried to safeguard the welfare of the newly
arrived Irish immigrants against the prevalent anti-Catholic
and anti-immigrant sentiment.
Today, Hibernians exist to remember Irish heritage and to
give back to Catholic organizations in the community. Each
year the Father Mychal Judge O.F.M. Division of St. Francis
of Assisi Church in Triangle hosts a St. Patrick’s Day
concert to do just that.
Last year, the thousands of dollars they raised went back
into their church, their parish school, Saint John Paul the
Great Catholic High School in Dumfries and other Catholic
organizations. They hope to do the same with the earnings
from this year’s concert featuring Celtic Crossings, starring
singers Phil Coulter and Andy Cooney.
The celebration also remembers the 100th anniversary of the
Easter Rising, a watershed moment in Ireland’s long struggle
for independence.
Easter Rising
After a failed Irish rebellion inspired by the American and
French revolutions, Ireland was ruled by the British
parliament in London. More than 100 years later in 1914, the
British once again granted the Irish “home rule,” but the
outbreak of World War I postponed the action. Two years went
by, and many Irishmen were growing impatient.
On Easter Monday 1916, the Irish Republican Brotherhood and a
group of women tried to take over the government buildings in
Dublin. The uprising lasted six days with casualties on both
sides, including many civilians. British troops executed many
who were involved, sharply turning Irish public opinion
against them.
Hibernian Fred Rash compares the Easter Rising to the
American Boston Tea Party or the Boston Massacre. Like the
Boston Tea Party, it was a planned rebellion by a few against
the British. Like the Boston Massacre, the brutality with
which the British reacted spurred the people to action.
“The Easter Rising was a really important event that gave
birth to modern Ireland,” said Rash. “At the beginning it
seemed like home rule was a great idea, that they would be
able to control their own local policies. The Easter Rising
showed (the Irish) that they weren’t going to get what they
wanted. They were going to have to take it.”
Music and heritage
The March 18 Celtic Crossings concert will celebrate that
spirit of independence, as well as the distinctive Gaelic
style of music. Hibernian Harry Flynn, who helped organize
the concert, said he has always enjoyed Irish music but has
listened to a lot more of it since he joined the Hibernians.
Just like country music, each song tells a story.
The group hopes to sell out the Celtic Crossings concert,
just as they did last year. “Everybody likes to tie back to
their roots,” said Flynn.
The concert will be held at Forest Park High School March 18,
7 p.m. Buy tickets here.
Di Mauro can be reached at [email protected] or on
Twitter @zoeydimauro.
