Life

Frank Rogers: A persecuted people - early penal times in Ireland

The Catholic experience in Ireland was marked by long periods of persecution and repression during penal times, explains Frank Rogers

Mass rocks, such as this at Colin Glen on the outskirts of west Belfast, were established during penal times when Catholic Mass was banned. A Presbyterian woman called Belle Steel would keep watch on behalf of her Catholic neighbours as they secretly attended Mass, and call out a warning if danger was approaching; the Bell Steel Road in nearby Poleglass is named after her. Picture by Mal McCann.
Mass rocks, such as this at Colin Glen on the outskirts of west Belfast, were established during penal times when Catholic Mass was banned. A Presbyterian woman called Belle Steel would keep watch on behalf of her Catholic neighbours as they secretly attended Mass, and call out a warning if danger was approaching; the Bell Steel Road in nearby Poleglass is named after her. Picture by Mal McCann.
By Frank Rogers