Galway Advertiser 2005/2005_03_17/GA_1703_E1_008.pdf 

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8 N E W S

Galway Advertiser

March 17 2005

Alt.com
BY JEFF O'CONNELL

Patrick of Ireland
Today, all around the world, anyone with a drop of Irish blood will be celebrating St Patrick's Day. And unlike some national patron saints - St George of England, for example, does not seem to have ever actually existed - Ireland's patron saint is a real historical figure. Although little enough is known of Patrick's life and career, we are lucky to have two documents that even the most sceptical historians agree come from the fifth century saint himself. They are the so-called 'Confession' of Patrick and the 'Letter to Coroticus'. The fifth century in Europe is sometimes taken as marking the beginning of what historians call the 'Dark Ages' - that period after the authority of the mighty Roman Empire finally collapsed, and what was later to define itself as Europe split into large and small 'kingdoms', each ruled by a strong man who grabbed the title of 'king' to invest his shaky claims to power with a bit of old-fashioned dignity. In Britain, where young Patricus was born, this descent into barbarism was traumatic, since Rome had successfully ruled the country for almost four hundred years, bringing the benefits of what was at that time the most advanced civilisation in the Western world to the subject people living south of Hadrian's Wall. According to his 'Confession', a band of plundering Irish, taking advantage of the breakdown of central authority, raided an area in the west of England and carried off the 16-year-old Patricus to Ulster where he was to spend six long years as a captive until he eventually managed to escape from his captors and make his way back to the security and civilised comforts of a Britain that was still Roman. However, as Patrick tells us, he found it hard to settle back into his old life. Finally a dream came to him "And there I saw in the night the vision of a man whose name was Victoricus, coming from Ireland with countless letters. And he gave one of them to me, and I read the opening words of the letter which were - The voice of the Irish! And as I read the beginning of the letter I thought that at that moment I heard their voice - they were beside the Wood of Voclut, which is near the Western Sea - and thus did they cry out as with one mouth: 'We ask thee, boy, come and walk among us once more'." So Patrick returned to the land where he had been a captive, and in the years that followed he introduced his former captors to Christianity, the faith in which he had been raised. The rest is, as the cliche has it, history. Ireland became Christian, and in the long centuries after Patrick, Irish monks and scholars carried the message of Christianity first to Europe and then throughout the world. In 2005, in an Ireland which has seen so many enormous changes during the past half century, what significance - if any - does Patrick still have? Is he simply a shadowy historical figure, an excuse for those of Irish descent throughout the world to have a convivial drink together? Christianity is still the faith of the majority of the population of this island, but does Patrick have any sort of relevance in today's world? Patrick is part of Irish history, and history, it could be argued, if it is to retain its importance, must be reimagined and given meaning in the present. However, Ireland, some would say, suffers from far too much history, and history characterised by division, bloodshed, and intolerance. Joyce memorably declared he was trying to escape from Irish history, and many would heartily second him on this point. Yet here is where Patrick's contemporary relevance comes into its own. First of all, he wasn't even Irish; he was - if recent scholarly research is taken into account - a Welshman And then, he can be seen as an immigrant, who came from another country and devoted his life to the people among whom he chose to live. Furthermore, Patrick is not 'Catholic' except in the strict sense of 'universal'. He is, in fact, the patron saint of all Ireland and of all the Irish. And as people from Africa, Russia, Germany, Iran, and Iraq settle here and become citizens, perhaps never before has Patrick's 'parish' encompassed so much diversity, and so much difference, freed from the narrow nationalisms which have too frequently blighted the history of the country he first saw more than 1,500 years ago today! ________________ FINALLY - Free elections in Afghanistan. Free elections in Iraq. Free elections in the Palestinian Authority. Municipal elections in Saudi Arabia. Free vote in Bahrain to become a constitutional monarchy. Free elections in Qater. Presidential elections in Yeman scheduled for later this year. Multi-candidate presidential elections in Egypt later this year. Free elections in Lebanon scheduled for May. Syria withdrawing troops from Lebanon. Lybia renounces programme to develop WMD. * 'Was Bush right after all?' - headline in The Independent March 8. * Saturday, March 19, Global protests against the Occupation of Iraq and Palestine. Main Irish march leaving from Parnell Square 2.00pm. * Memo to organisers: I sincerely hope it rains on your parade.

Galway Advertiser still has highest local newspaper circulation in the country
The Galway Advertiser continues to be the highest circulation regional newspaper in the country in either the free or paid for category, according to the most recently audited circulation figures. Indeed, no other newspaper, either local or national has as high a readership in Galway city and county as the Galway Advertiser, as the newspaper reaches more than 190,000 readers a week; while the content on the Advertiser website (which now includes the full newspaper) is accessed by a further 40,000 online readers across the globe, ensuring that ads and news in the newspaper have a massive audience. With an audited bulk distribution of 30,149 copies and an audited door-to-door circulation of 18,325 copies, and an additional city centre street distribution of 1,152, the Advertiser has a total circulation of 49,626 copies making it not only the most widely read newspaper in the west of Ireland, but the highest circulation regional newspaper in the entire country. Welcoming the figures, Galway Advertiser managing director, Peter Timmins, thanked all those who are involved in the distribution of the paper and predicted that the figures will continue to grow in line with the expansion of the city and county. "Our circulation figures increase every year, and our print run at the Irish Times printing facility in Citywest never goes below 50,000 copies a week, an unprecedented figure in the history of regional newspaper publishing in this country," Mr Timmins said. "The demand for the paper is also continuously growing, and the affection with which the paper is held by all sectors of Galway life is a great tribute to those involved in its production," he added. "Unlike other newspapers, you won't see the Advertiser lying discarded on newsagents' floors a week after publication, or indeed a day after publication. It is snapped up as soon as it comes out which is good news for our advertisers, as newspapers left un-taken or un-bought are wasted ads," he said, adding that for three decades, Thursday has become Advertiser Day in Galway. "This is unique in the newspaper industry in either Ireland or the UK and shows that in spite of our print run being the biggest in Ireland, demand for the paper is insatiable." Mr Timmins thanked all those advertisers and readers who had made the Galway Advertiser something of a Galway institution, and he expressed the determination that the paper would continue to surpass the expectations of all those advertisers and readers to whom the paper owes its continued success.

Shoplifter to do community service in lieu of prison sentence
An African woman who was heavily pregnant when she stole clothes from Dunnes Store in Edward Square Shopping Centre and ran via College Road getting as far as Lough Atalia Road before being caught, was ordered to serve 130 hours of community service in lieu of a three-month prison sentence, when she appeared before Galway District Court this week. The case first came before the court last January when it heard that just two weeks after her baby was born last December, Precious Ofili (29), 30 Dunabhan, Roscam, went into Tesco's on December 23 at Galway Shopping Centre, and stole three bottles of vodka and 48 cans of Heineken, worth 173. The mother of three has one previous conviction for shop lifting and others for motoring offences The chase from Dunnes Stores which ended at Lough Atalia Road, occurred on September 9 last year when Ofili was pregnant with her third child which was subsequently born in early December. Judge Mary Fahy had adjourned both shop lifting charges to this week to await the findings of a community service report from the Probation Service and she indicated at the time that if the accused was deemed suitable to carry out community service she would impose 130 hours of service on each charge, to run concurrently, in lieu of a three-month prison sentence.

FACE 2 FACE
FAIR SOCIETY
Tuam Cancer minimarathon Care Centre
YOU ARE INVITED TO MEET PAT RABBITTE
Menlo Park Hotel, Galway Thursday March 24th at 8pm.
Would like to invite you to Run, Walk or Jog the 2005 Ladies Mini Marathon for the Tuam Cancer Care Centre
Attending the recent business lunch hosted by The Oranmore Lodge Hotel were (from left) Brian and Mary O'Higgins of The Oranmore Lodge Hotel, Noel Grealish TD, and Frank Gilmore of Galway County Council director of service for Oranmore. The lunch attended by members of the Oranmore business community discussed Oranmore planning for future growth. Photo:-Mike Shaughnessy

for a

Bank Holiday Monday June 6th 2005.
Please complete the official entry form in the Evening Herald during March/April. Drop in or mail the completed entry form with fee to the Tuam Cancer Care Centre before April 23rd 2005. Tuam Cancer Care will then look after the all the rest of the formalities such as acceptance letters and race packs. All Tuam Cancer Care Participants will receive a free Tuam Cancer Care T-Shirt and baseball cap. Complimentary transport to Dublin will be available on the day with refreshment stop on the return journey

Chinaman DELIVERY
Oranmore

Ph 792211