Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church is a Roman Catholic church in Dublin, Ireland maintained by the Carmelite order. The church is noted for having the relics of Saint Valentine, which were donated to the church in the 19th century by Pope Gregory XVI from their previous location in the cemetery of St. Hippolytus in Rome.[1]
| Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church | |
|---|---|
| Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and Shrine of Saint Valentine | |
Séipéal Cairmilíteach, Sráid na mBráithre Bána | |
 | |
  Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church | |
| 53°20′23″N 6°16′01″W / 53.339860°N 6.266999°W | |
| Location | 56 Aungier Street |
| Country | Republic of Ireland |
| Denomination | Catholic |
| Tradition | Roman Rite |
| Religious institute | Carmelites |
| Website | whitefriarstreetchurch |
| History | |
| Dedication | Our Lady of Mount Carmel |
| Consecrated | 11 November 1827 |
| Relics held | Saint Valentine Albert of Sicily |
| Architecture | |
| Architect(s) | George Papworth |
| Groundbreaking | 1826 |
| Construction cost | £4,000 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 2,000 |
| Length | 83 metres (272 ft) |
| Width | 24 metres (79 ft) |
| Materials | limestone, marble |
| Administration | |
| Archdiocese | Dublin |
| Deanery | Cullenswood |
| Parish | Whitefriar Street |
The church is on the site of a pre-Reformation Carmelite priory built in 1539. The current structure dates from 1825 and was designed by George Papworth, who also designed St. Mary's Pro-Cathedral in Dublin. It was extended and enlarged in 1856 and 1868.[citation needed]
The church also contains relics of St. Albert, a Sicilian who died in 1306. On his feast day (7 August), a relic of the saint is dipped into the water of St. Albert's Well, and the Carmelites say that those who piously use the water receive healing of both body and mind through the intercession of St. Albert.[2]
The church also contains a life-size oak figure of Our Lady of Dublin.[3]
The 1825 building features in Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833 as 
The Church of the Carmelite Friary., an engraving of a painting by George Petrie of the interior being accompanied by a poetical illustration by Letitia Elizabeth Landon.[4]
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Shrine of St. Valentine -
The Church of the Carmelite Friary, 1830 -
Interior 1832
_(cropped).jpg)
References
edit- ^ "The Shrine of St Valentine in the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Whitefriar Street". www.carmelites.ie.
- ^ "Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Whitefriar Street, Dublin 2". www.carmelites.ie.
- ^ "The Shrine of Our Lady of Dublin at the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, Whitefriar Street". www.carmelites.ie.
- ^ Landon, Letitia Elizabeth (1832). "picture". Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833. Fisher, Son & Co.Landon, Letitia Elizabeth (1832). "poetical illustration". Fisher's Drawing Room Scrap Book, 1833. Fisher, Son & Co.
External links
edit- Whitefriar Street Church website
Media related to Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church, Dublin at Wikimedia Commons
