May 2016 Visit To Holy Family Church Waterford

My First Visit to the Holy Family Parish Church, Waterford - Luke Wadding Street, May 2016

• During my first visit to the Holy Family Parish Church in Waterford, I found myself reflecting on the unwritten rules of documenting religious spaces. Over the years, I have consulted numerous priests regarding the etiquette of photographing church interiors. The consensus has always been clear and accommodating: permission is generally unnecessary provided that no religious service is underway and that members of the public are not included in the frames.

• It came as a distinct shock, therefore, when a subsequent visit to this very church took an entirely unexpected turn. While I was quietly taking photographs inside the empty nave, a priest suddenly began shouting aggressively from the altar area, demanding that I leave the premises immediately. It was an unsettling encounter, and it ultimately marked my final visit to the building.

The Holy Family Parish Church, Waterford. Source: Buildings of Ireland

• The church itself is situated on a street named in honour of one of Waterford’s most illustrious historical figures: Luke Wadding, O.F.M. (16 October 1588 – 18 November 1657). An influential Irish Franciscan friar and historian, Wadding was born into a wealthy merchant family, the son of Walter Wadding and Anastasia Lombard—the latter being the sister of Peter Lombard, the notable Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of Ireland.

• Educated locally by Mrs Jane Barden and later by Peter White in Kilkenny, Wadding departed Ireland in 1604 to advance his studies in Lisbon and at the University of Coimbra.

• Wadding’s impact on both international theology and Irish cultural identity was immense. He founded the Pontifical Irish College in Rome to train secular clergy, and his formidable legacy was preserved for centuries; by 1900, his portrait and a significant portion of his private library were housed at the Franciscan friary on Merchants Quay in Dublin. Remarkably, it was also through Wadding’s tireless diplomatic efforts in Rome that St Patrick’s Day was elevated to an official universal feast day within the Catholic Church.

The relocated Luke Wadding statue at Greyfriars. Source: Heritage Ireland

• His native city has long sought to commemorate him, though his monument has proved somewhat migratory. In the 1950s, a bronze statue of Wadding was erected in one of Waterford’s most prominent locations on The Mall, adjacent to Reginald’s Tower. The sculpture explicitly celebrated his literary, academic, and theological achievements by depicting him with a quill pen poised in his right hand. In recent years, however, this monument was replaced by a statue of the nationalist leader Thomas Francis Meagher. The figure of Luke Wadding was subsequently relocated to its current home, standing watch at the historic entrance to the French Church on Greyfriars.

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