The Saints and Scholars Foundation

06/14/2026

Mater Dei Academy ended the schoolyear with a lively soccer tournament at the Sam Allen Sports Complex in Churchfield!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/14/2026

Pilgrims to Ireland were able to experience Mass at the Black Abbey of Kilkenny, established in 1225 as one of the first houses of the Dominican Order in Ireland. Named for the black cloak worn by members of the Order, the site was originally selected as the midway point between communities of Norman settlers and indigenous Irish. The ancient walls of Kilkenny are also visible here.

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/14/2026

Wrapping up the schoolyear, Mater Academy’s students, supporters, faculty, and staff came together to celebrate a night of Irish community through Irish music, complete with jigs and reels!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/14/2026

Rev. Bjorn Lundberg never lost sight of his parish responsibilities while travelling on The Saints and Scholars Foundation’s pilgrimage to Ireland this spring!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/14/2026

Day Eight brought The Saints and Scholars Foundation’s pilgrims to the Rock of Cashel, County Tipperary. Still dominating the city skyline, the complex contains Saint Patrick’s Well, springing up in the middle of the 300 foot tall Rock of Cashel. It was here that Saint Patrick baptized King Aengus!

The cathedral at Cashel was destroyed by Cromwell’s forces, and a famous Celtic cross was broken here when it was hit by lightning. Pilgrims were also able to contemplate the River Shannon while at Cashel!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/13/2026

Participants in the 2026 Saints and Scholars Foundation Pilgrimage to Ireland were able to catch a glimpse of Saint Mary’s Cathedral in Killarney, designed by Augustus Welby Pugin. This was the first major Catholic church project in Ireland after emancipation from British rule, beginning construction in 1842. Relying heavily on funds raised in America, construction of the cathedral struggled to reach completion against the backdrop of the Great Famine, only finally being dedicated in 1855.

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/10/2026

When Saints & Scholars pilgrims were in Ireland at the end of May, there were flyers in the back of every church for this Rosary Rally:

Busloads of people from across Ireland converged on Knock on Saturday for the 41st All Ireland Rosary, with crowds exceeding last year’s attendance.

06/05/2026

Pilgrims for The Saints and Scholars Foundation’s tour of Ireland met for lunch in Glengariff, County Cork, with time spent at the Bantry Bay along the Wild Atlantic Bay, including a visit to a small shrine outside the town. During this visit, pilgrims also experienced the Glengariff Tunnel between Counties Cork and Galway.

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/05/2026

Mater Dei Academy’s 1st Year students recently engaged the literary contribution of William Shakespeare by performing Julius Caesar in class!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.

06/05/2026

Mass for Day Seven of The Saints and Scholars Foundation’s pilgrimage to Ireland was held at the nineteenth-century chapel at Gougane Barra, at the mouth of the River Lee in the Shehy Mountains of County Cork! With Padraig and Grace Cantillon-Murphy of Mater Dei Academy were present, their sons Luke and Joseph served the altar!

The region, named for Saint Finnbarr (colloquially styled ‘Saint Barra’) marks the site of a ruined monastery erected by the Saint in the sixth century, today updated with new Stations of the Cross. The remote site became an epicenter of Catholic activity during the British persecution of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and is the only site in Ireland where Mass has been celebrated without interruption for 1500 years!

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Please visit our website at www.saintsandscholars.us for more information, and please consider making a tax-deductible donation to this important cause. The Saints and Scholars Foundation is a Section 501(c)(3) charitable organization. All donations are fully tax-deductible.