Ballyconnell & Kildallan Parish
Ballyconnell Church
directions
Kildallan Church
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The Roman Catholic parish of Kildallan and Ballyconnell is situated in a beautiful area of Drumlin hills, lakes and rivers in west County Cavan. The parish stretches from Ballyconnell town in the north of the parish almost to the town of Killeshandra in the south. There are two churches in the parish, Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Ballyconnell and St Dallan’s church in Kildallan.
Back in medieval times the present-day parish was divided into two separate parishes called Kildallan and Tomregan, both of which could boast of being founded by an early Christian saint, Saint Dallán, who founded his church at Kildallan in the sixth century, was said to be ‘the chief poet of Ireland’ and is best known for the eulogy he composed in honour of Saint Colum Cille. Saint Bricín founded his church at Tomregan (Tuaim Dreagain), a place famous for its early university, in the townland of Mullynagolman and he is described in the Life of Saint Náile as ‘one of the chief saints of Breifne’ ( information continues on History page ).
Parish Mission, Vision & Values
St Dallan
Mission: To be the light of Christ shining
in the heart of the community.
Vision: To be a vibrant and inspirational
Catholic faith community growing in
lifelong prayer, sharing the joy of the
Gospel, and committed to evangelisation,
education and loving service to those in
need.
Values: To be a welcoming, caring and
inclusive faith community rooted in peace,
justice, and respect for everyone.
Our Lady of Lourdes
Mass Times & Adoration
Mass
Ballyconnell
Monday
Tuesday 9.30am
Wednesday
Thursday 9.30am
Friday 7.00pm
Saturday 7.00pm
Sunday 11.30am
Kildallan
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday 7.00pm
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
Sunday 10.00am
Eucharistic Adoration
Ballyconnell
Wednesday 1.00 - 4.00pm
Friday 7.30 - 8.00pm
Kildallan
Wednesday 7.30 - 10.00pm
History
Ballyconnell Church
From about 1600 onwards, following the Reformation and the subsequent persecution of Catholics, there were no Catholic churches in the parish. It was during this period that Mass was celebrated in secret at Mass rocks and in other out of the way locations. With the easing of the Penal laws from about 1750 onwards Catholics were once more able to gather for the celebration of Mass and the other sacraments and so in the year 1780 a thatched chapel was built just outside the town of Ballyconnell in the townland of Cullyleenan.
This chapel was a poor quality one even though it was used by Bishop James Dillon who lived in Church Street in Ballyconnell and was Bishop of Kilmore from 1800 until his death in 1806. A report in 1835 stated that while the Church of Ireland church in Ballyconnell was a fine Gothic structure of cut stone with a beautiful spire and fine stained-glass windows, the Catholic church which ‘is situated near the town, is a thatched building and undeserving of any description’. Another report two years later simply said that ‘the chapel at Ballyconnell is a plain building roofed with thatch’.
A new rectangular church, with fine stonework and gothic windows was built in 1843 in the same townland of Cullyleenan. The church, which still stands was dedicated to St Brigid and it was built when Fr Philip Donegan was parish priest. In 1868 William Hague, the renowned architect, was involved in overseeing repairs and improvements to the church. The marble altar and reredos in this church were sculpted by James Pearse, the father of the P. H. Pearse one of the leaders of the 1916 rebellion. St Brigid’s church served the people of the parish for 105 years, until 1968 when Our Lady of Lourdes church was built, when Fr Felix McCabe was parish priest.
Our Lady of Lourdes church, is a large rectangular church, with stained-glass windows by the stained-glass artist Helen Moloney. The architect was Philip Shaffrey and the contractor was P. J. McLoughlin. It was dedicated by Bishop Austin Quinn on 25 August 1968. In the year 2000, when Fr Patsy Young was parish priest, the sanctuary area was re-ordered and other maintenance work to the roof and windows was carried out. Gerald Fay was the architect this time and the carved wood sanctuary pieces were created by Fergus Costello. The church was rededicated by Bishop Leo O’Reilly on 13 May 2001.
Kildallan Church
The medieval church of Kildallan was in the townland of Kildallan in the old elliptical cemetery which is marked ‘The Relic’ (Relig meaning graveyard) on the earliest Ordnance Survey map. Following the Reformation this became the Church of Ireland parish church until the present Church of Ireland was built across the road from it about the year 1750.
In the year 1785 a rectangular thatched Catholic church was built, not in Kildallan townland but in the adjacent townland of Killyreagh, when the Penal persecutions were easing. Samuel Lewis reported in the 1837 that Kildallan ‘chapel … is a large thatched building with a neatly planned burial ground’. In 1843 a barn church was built parallel to the road near the earlier chapel in Killyreagh. A new nave, gallery and vestry, high altar and slated roof were added to this church in 1860 while Fr Peter Magauran was parish priest. This church served the people of Kildallan for 132 years until the present St Dallan’s church was built in the year 1975. When the new church was built work was carried out on the old church which then was converted into a Community Centre.
Philip Shaffrey was the architect of the new St Dallan’s church which was built in 1975 and the contractors were the Sheridan Brothers Construction from Moyne. The seating and the sanctuary pieces for the new church were made by Quality Wood Craft from Drumod. The church was dedicated by Bishop Francis MacKiernan on 4 May 1975 and at the dedication ceremony there was praise for Fr Thomas Woods, the curate and Fr Felix McCabe the parish priest for their leadership roles, and also for the people of Kildallan both at home and abroad for their generosity in contributing to the church fund over a period of almost two decades.
More recently, when Fr Patrick Farrelly was curate in Kildallan, stained-glass windows, which were donated by the Sisters of Mercy in Belturbet, were inserted as was a newly-commissioned stained glass window depicting St Dallan.
Parish Groups
Pastoral Council
Pat Shannon
Bernadette Shannon
Karolina Kaveicen
Olive Kinsella
Catherine Corcoran
Catherine Lunney
Gerard Gillis
Noel Lappin
Martin Leavey
Aideen Tobin
Fr Liam Kelly
Finance Committee
Jim McManus
Carmel Finnegan
Noel Maguire
Damien Brady
Seamus Loughlin
Philomena Maguire
Patsy McPartland
John Francis Brady
Brian Fee
Liam Sheridan
Martin Conroy
Fiona Donohoe
Social Media
coming soon
Contacts
Parish Priest Ballyconnell
Msgr Liam Kelly, Telephone 049 952 6291 & 087 987 7739
Other priests in pastoral area
Fr Sean Maguire, PP, Bawnboy, 049 952 3103 & 087 210 1540
Fr Sean Mawn, PP Ballinamore, 071 964 4039 & 083 021 9888
Fr Malachy Moses, 071 964 4054 & 087 490 4380
Parish Secretary
Carmel Mc Caffrey, Telephone 049 952 6291
Office hours: 9.30am - 12.30pm
Monday, Tuesday & Thursday
Church of Ireland
Rev Richard Waller
The Rectory,
Ardlougher, Co. Cavan.
H14 KH30
Tel: 087 172 4715