“Feast
of St. Brigid - February 1st”
Oh
dear St. Brigid hear our call,
And guard our native isle,
In olden days you spread the light
Of love o’er the soil,
Your mission full of ardent love,
With pleadings did not fall,
And ever shall thy memory live,
As Mary of the Gael.
How
oft you prayed with fervent hope
To save our native land,
The fire of Faith you kindled here,
By a heavenly breeze was fanned,
Thy earthly life our guiding star,
A beacon of light to all
Fond patroness of Erin’s Isle,
You heard the plaintive call.
Tho’
years have flown O Glorious Saint,
Since you trod the Emerald Isle,
The hills and pleasant valleys,
Seem acalling all the while.
Come dwell again O Brigid true.
Amidst the scenes so fair,
Where first thy virtues flourished
From thy Convent at Kildare.
The
Irish race O faithful Queen,
Shall ever breathe thy name,
With Patrick’s aid Apostle true,
Our land shall rise to fame.
And when all earthly things shall end,
We pray our trials are o’er,
To meet our Glorious Irish Saint,
Yes meet to part no more.
Note: “Poem by Paddy McCormack of
Kildare Town dedicated to St. Brigid, to commemorate St. Brigid's Day, 1st
February. The McCormack family have long been in business in Kildare Town and
Paddy McCormack, who was well known for his poems and songs throughout Ireland
and the US, is buried in Lackagh Cemetery.” Leinster Leader, 2 February
1941.
Previously
published in ‘The Lily of Erin; Saint Brigid,’ by Rev. P. A. Sharkey (New York;
1921), pp. 65-66.
From Leinster
Leader, 2 February 1941, republished Grey
Abbey Conservation Project, 30 January 2009.
Image: Mary of the Gael, uncredited.
