Irish webcam churches viewed as a focus of the landscape
Since my discovery of the Irish church webcams I've been inspired to look at these churches from two viewpoints:
- The first one is the traditional Catholic viewpoint of the the Real Presence of Christ, which I tend to feel most intensely in the empty church at night, when the only light in the church shines from the altar lamp. For me this is a deeply significant, almost mystical experience. And I feel it even through the medium of the webcam, in the night.
- The second one is inspired by an experience during an Irish bus ride. When we drove past a church one of the older men on the bus made the sign of the Cross. This made me aware that the Real Presence was not only felt and acknowledged in the vicinity of the Tabernacle, but maybe from all places where the church was visible.
- So, in the investigations below, I present the view of the church at night, and then I explore the visibility of the in the surrounding landscape. I try try to find the furthest places that are influenced by the presence of the church as their focal point. I hope you enjoy this exploration as much as I do.
We explore the church surroundings on streetview. We start at the church door and see how far we can go before we lose sight of it. In this hilly landscape it's surprisingly easy to go far.
St Patrick’s Church, Celbridge - Streetview
This church is situated in a place with high building density. It's impossible to find a nice far view.
From an industrial parking lot:
From a bungalow area:
St Brigids Church - Streetview
From here: a short walk down Lovers Lane (really!).
From here: in this dense area you cannot go far without losing sight of the church.
