Lora O'Brien – Irish Author & Guide
Your Authentic Connection to Ireland
As you may be aware, the Irish language (Gaeilge) is a bit of a sore spot for most Irish folk, due to a variety of reasons both historical and personal. At the Irish Pagan School, we believe that the native language is fundamental to the expression of and engagement with our native spiritual and magical…
Pagan Holidays (Holy Days) worldwide are coming back to a more general use and understanding, with folk often asking questions about whether Christmas is a Pagan Holiday (it is, sort of), and observing the 8-fold Wheel of the Year. The current Neo Pagan calendar (and its primarily Wiccan holidays) is ostensibly based off the ‘Celtic…
Most of us will know, or at least know of, a child who attends a gaelscoil. These Irish language medium schools are those which function in accordance with the usual rules of the Department of Education, just like a regular school, except that Irish is the language of instruction and the language of communication amongst…
It’s been suggested a couple of times that I should get on ‘the other side of the interview’, and talk about my own Irish Spirituality, and Pagan or magical practices. So recently I queried my Community for their questions on Irish Paganism and Spirituality (or my history/practice in particular). Then I went on FB Live and…
It’s not that hard, really. Us Irish actually have the toughest time of it, with our outdated dinosaur curriculum forced-by-nuns-and-christian-brothers system of learning the Irish or Gaeilge, from the age of 4 or 5 until we leave school at 17 or 18. There’s many an Irish person who’s done over 13 years of schooling here,…
Part 5 – As Gaeilge, In Irish… I found a Book Proposal from 13 years ago, that I had agreed to write before life took a different turn for me – a ‘Who’s Who of Irish Mythology & How to Work with Them’. I may or may not turn it into a book at some…
National Anthems come about, not because of the suitability of the particular words or notes, but because they are adopted generally by the nation. That is exactly how the “Soldiers’ Song” became a National Anthem in this country. It happened to be the Anthem on the lips of the people when they came into their…