Fr. Brick Secures Padre Pio Glove for the Parish

Special guest, Fr. Bryan Shortall pictured with Castleisland Parish Office staff members: Nora Fealey, Noreen O’Sullivan and Martina O’Donoghue at the first Padre Pio, Tuesday night novena at the Church of Saints Stephen and John. Fr. Shortall will return to Castleisland on Tuesday, January 17th at 7:30pm to deliver the Padre Pio glove to the parish. ©Photograph: John Reidy 7-1-2020

**Castleisland PP Fr. Mossie Brick pictured with parish council Chairman Jack Shanahan before the Dawn Mass at St. John’s Graveyard on Easter Sunday morning. ©Photograph: John Reidy 17-4-2022**

Castleisland Parish Priest Fr. Mossie Brick is a desperate man for analogies.

But they work in getting his message across to his renewing ‘live’ congregations. He was at it again during the December 20^th Padre Pio Devotions.

Then, he told his gathered devotees, that Kerry football manager, Jack O’Connor addressing his team, our team, before they ran out onto Croke Park to face Galway in the All-Ireland final: “How much do ye want it ?

Devotion to Padre Pio

Fr. Brick has brought a level of devotion to Padre Pio / Saint Pio to a height never reached by any other in the long history of the parish – and he’s not stopping there.

He kept an important and ‘game changing’ announcement to the end of Tuesday night’s devotions.

Driven by his undoubted devotion to St. Pio, Fr. Brick, wearing the parish geansaí, went through, with diplomacy no doubt, his Bishop Ray Browne, the Capuchins in Dublin, the administrators in San Giovanni and eventually to Rome itself, in order to secure one of Padre Pio’s finger-less gloves for his parish.

‘The Glove is the One’

“Everyone involved with St. Pio, even the child on the street knows that the glove is the one. If you look at a statue of St. Pio or a picture – as he’s giving a blessing – it’s the glove you see.

“The glove is tangible and it’s visible. The heart bandage is all powerful but we can’t see it as we can see the glove,” said Fr. Brick.

“He was forbidden by Rome to uncover his hands in public and when he died all these gloves were discovered in his cell.

“We’ve spent the last 18 years or so looking to get a glove and it’s well nigh on impossible to get one.

Capuchin Superior to Re-Visit

Correspondence came through to the parish office recently saying that second time visitor, Fr. Brian Shortall the Capuchin Franciscan Order Superior in Ireland, will travel to Castleisland to present Fr. Brick with a glove worn by St. Pio.

The presentation will be made on January 17th at the first 7:30pm evening devotion of 2023.

And, for his pulling on of the parish geansaí with purpose, for his knowing how much he wanted it and his determination in bringing home such a prize, Fr. Mossie Brick got a thunderous and sustained round of applause for his growing live congregation.

Tuesday, January 17^th 2023 will be some evening in Castleisland.

The Programme of Masses for Christmas 2022

Castleisland Parish Church Christmas Eve Saturday 24th December: 7pm Children’s Mass and 12 Midnight Mass.

Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25^th: 11.30am Mass.

Cordal Church: Christmas Eve, Saturday, December 24^th. 7pm Mass. Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25^th. 9am Mass.

Scartaglen Church: Christmas Eve, Saturday, December 24^th. 8.30pm Mass. Christmas Day, Sunday, December 25^th. 10.15am Mass.

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