Did you know Easter was determined in Co. Carlow?

Lesser Known Facts about Carlow

Easter was determined in Co. Carlow

Easter is the most important day of Christianity but by the 5thand 6thcentury there was a divergence within the church as how to calculate Easter. In a nutshell, the Celtic Church celebrated Easter on a different date than the Roman Catholic Church.

In 630 AD Pope Honorius wrote to the Irish threatening excommunication if they did not conform to the Roman way of calculating Easter. The result was an synod held by the Irish church which took place in 630 – 632 at Magh Léne, today known as Old Leighlin in Co. Carlow. The synod probably took place at the site of Old Leighlin Cathedral which is built upon the ruins of an early monastic site.

When St. Patrick and his followers started to convert the Irish to Christianity, they changed already existing traditions and re-named them, for example, the Spring Festival of Bealtaine became Easter. That way the people didn’t feel under pressure to get baptised, it rather became “fashionable”.

That is also the reason why pagan believes and traditions still run parallel to the Christian rituals. So it is not surprising to find a rag tree right beside St. Laserians well close to the Cathedral.

Today Old Leighlin is a small rural village a few miles to the South of Carlow town and St. Lazerian’s Cathedral now belongs to the Church of Ireland.

Why not join us on a tour during the Easter Period? All our tours are 10% off when you mention “Easter” in the special request box on the booking form.