A bigger Ulsterman
Although I'm a Protestant, I'm delighted to see the Roman Catholic Irish Primate, Dr Seán Brady, elevated to the position of cardinal today. It's a big honour within his church, and it's well deserved.
Dr Brady has said that, no matter what else he achieves, his most important goal is to help people know Jesus better. Now, as a good Prod, how can I argue with that?! He's quite right, and it warms my heart.
I'm sure he and I could crack open a bottle of Tullamore and have a brave evening discussing some differences on the finer points of theology, but I think we'd be doing it as brothers in Christ, and at the end of the day we'd probably both not be 100% on-target on many unfathomable things of God.
Any reader of Romans chapter 4 to 8 will discover that it's not the right theology that gets us our place at the big table, but rather a spirit renewed by a living faith in God. I can see that spirit in Dr Brady, and I find it quite inspiring.
Plus he's an Ulsterman ('nuff said).
posted by B.U. @ 5:49 p.m.
8 comments
8 Comments:
Really is he an Ulsterman he is from cavan after all.I mean for a lot of people Cavan stoped being part of Ulster a long time ago
Good post, big man.
Cavan may not be part of Norn Iron, but it has never stopped being part of Ulster. Hang on to it for us a while longer and we'll be back to pick it up.
Cavan wasn't really part of Ulster to start with anyway. Bloody English meddlers.
What about Donegal Beano.I think all the good loyal men and women in cavan who signed the covenant would be turning in their graves to hear people now say they were not real Ulstermen.Carson thought of it as Ulster by the way.
For the avoidance of doubt, the province of Ulster consists of the six counties of Northern Ireland plus Donegal, Cavan and Monaghan (the Irish Rugby Union also regards players from Louth as Ulstermen, but there's no historical basis to that). Today's administrative counties do not match the old provincial borders completely which used to be bordered by what's known as the Black Pig's Dyke, a 6-metre earthwork stretching from coast to coast protecting the territory inhabited by the pre-Gaelic Cruthin tribes (akin to Picts) against incursion from the south (ironically it can be argued that, ethnically, Ulster Protestants and Catholics may have have more in common than with the English and Gaelic Irish, respectively).
I've always tended to believe that.
As far as I was aware, Cavan (along with Leitrim) was part of the mini-province of Breffni. It was ruled by the O'Rourkes and was variously under the patronage of Ulster, Connacht and er no-one at all.
Also, (again as far as I know) from a Catholic point of view Cavan is part of the Ecclesiastical Province of Armagh which coalesces generally with Ulster but also takes in Louth and Meath.
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