Templeglantine Church
© Templeglantine church
The present day church in Templeglantine was built in
1829, during Fr James Cleary's time as Parish Priest. At the time Templeglantine
was part of the parish of Monagea. This is one of the oldest churches
in the diocese still in use today. Incidentally, the year 1829 coincides
with the granting of Catholic Emancipation to Irish Catholics under
the leadership of Daniel O'Connell.
© Inscription on the church
wall in Templeglantine
According to the inscription on the church wall, the church
was dedicated to the Holy Trinity in 1829. The Baptismal font is presumed
to date from 1829 also, as are the holy water fonts in the porch of
the church. The porch itself was built in the 1930s following a donation
received from parishioners who had emigrated to America.
© Templeglantine church belfry
According to local historian Tadhg O'Maolcatha, by the
mid fifties, the church bell, which was mounted on the western gable,
was taken down for safety reasons, and housed in a new free-standing
belfry in the church grounds. Mrs Bridget Kiely (nee Sexton) of Glenshesk
donated the bell to the parish earlier in the century. The old bell,
which it replaced, was sent to the missions in Africa.
© Statue of the Virgin Mary
In front of the church there is a large stone statue of
the Virgin Mary that seems to be welcoming the people into the church.
This statue was erected in the summer of 1995 and depicts Mary as a
loving mother with head bowed and arms slightly outstretched in a welcoming
and caring manner. It was sculpted from Limestone and is the work of
Newbridge sculptor Annette McCormack.
On the main door of the church there is a plaque to the
memory of Ann Connellan who died in 1969. John J., Mrs Joan Leahy and
Michael Connellan erected it. On one of the seats of the church there
is a small plaque that states that Michael Quirke was the principal
donor of seating in the church. The seats were donated to the memory
of his wife Julia.
© Statues in Templeglantine church
There is a stained glass window of St Patrick at the back
of the church. There is a stained glass window of St Brigid near the
Confessional box. Near this window there is a statue of the Sacred Heart
and a shrine to Our Lady of Perpetual Succour.
© Shrine within the Church
On the stairs of the gallery at the back of the church
there is a plaque to Tom Sexton who was parish clerk for more than 50
years who died on December 14 1996. In the gallery there is a stained
glass window of Jesus gathering/minding his flock.
© Altar in Templeglantine church and Holy Trinity Medallion
On the right of the nave, there is a wooden medallion
of the Holy Trinity. There is a statue to St Patrick on the right while
on the left there is a statue of St Theresa of Liseux. A glass depiction
of the Millennium Logo of the Diocese of Limerick is on a door to the
right of the altar. Behind the High Altar there is a stained glass window
of the Holy Spirit and the Body & Blood.
To the left of the altar there is a statue of St Joseph
to the memory of John Dillane and family. On the right there is a statue
of Mary and Child, which is to the memory of Mary (William) Dore and
family. Daniel Dillane of New York donated both statues.
© Stained glass windows in Templeglantine church
Within the church, the Stations of the Cross date from
around 1946 when they replaced the original Stations of the Cross. The
church also has a silver chalice that dates from 1796. Mr and Mrs Burke
donated the chalice to the church. The Burkes may have been from the
parish of Monagea, as it was another 70 years before Templeglantine
parish came into existence.
There are two doors to enter the church. The door nearest
the altar is locally called the "Penny Door". It acquired
this name because the seats in the church were from this point forward
and only those who could afford the princely sum of one penny in the
nineteenth century could sit in the seats. Most of the congregation
stood in the back of the church. The porch door was donated in memory
of Mrs Anne Connellan.
Buried in the grounds of the church are:
Fr James Galvin, Parish Priest, 1985 - 1986
Fr John
Houlihan, Parish Priest, 1944
Fr John
J. Kelly, Parish Priest, 1924 - 1943
Fr John
Fitzgibbon, Parish Priest, 1976 - 1978
Fr Daniel
Daly, Parish Priest, Died 1910
