3 Nov-10 Dec 2017: ‘Jesuit Chaplains and Rathfarnham Castle in the First World War’, Rathfarnham Castle, Dublin 14
From 3 November to 10 December 2017 Rathfarnham Castle, Dublin, hosted an exhibition by the Irish Jesuit Archives, entitled ‘Jesuits Chaplains and Rathfarnham Castle in the First World War’. This exhibition tells the story of the Jesuits chaplains and Rathfarnham Castle in the First World War. In 1913, the Jesuits purchased Rathfarnham Castle. During the war, it housed Jesuits who were attending university and missioners, including Frs Willie Doyle, Joseph Flinn, Henry Gill and Patrick O’ Mara, who were all missioners based at Rathfarnham Castle, prior to their serving as chaplains in the First World War. Jesuit chaplains served at the frontline with the soldiers. In the circumstances of war, some chaplains underwent transformative experiences, while others who survived the conflict never recovered from the trauma they had experienced and witnessed.
The exhibition, curated by Damien Burke, was launched on 8 November by Anne Cassin (RTÉ) and featured the award-winning graphic short, A perfect trust, by Alan Dunne, along with photographs of the First World War by Fr Henry Gill SJ.