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| Location: Ireland is an island located 100 miles west of England in North-western Europe (map). It is about 3,500 miles from the United States, and is higher up in latitude than the State of Maine. For better maps, click here |
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| Capital City: Dublin in the Republic, and Belfast in the North. | |||||||||
| Chief Cities: Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Waterford, Galway, and Belfast (we have churches in Ballincollig and Mallow). | |||||||||
| Population: About 3,900,000 in the Republic, and another 1,500,000 in the North | |||||||||
| Land: 150 miles wide by 280 miles long - About half the size of Maine or West Virginia (Click here for some scenics of Ireland) | |||||||||
| Climate: Ireland has a basically cool climate, with its winter temperatures rarely below freezing, and its summers rarely exceeding 70 degrees. Winter can last about 6-8 months though. Average rainfall produces 30 to 50 inches of rain a year - or, three to five days a week of rainy or misty weather. |
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| Language: Primary language is English, with Gaelic (Irish) as the second language. | |||||||||
| People: Very independent, yet strongly "clannish". They love tourists, but despise "outsiders" who come and live among them. The Irish people up until recently have depended primarily upon farming for their exports, with the rest of the people (less than 50%) working in factory and service jobs. This is rapidly changing with Ireland becoming Europe's leading computer software and services centre. |
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Religion: Over
90% of the people of Ireland are practising
Roman Catholics. The remaining 10% are in the Church of Ireland
(Anglican, or just the Irish branch of the Church of England),
Presbyterian, and neo-Evangelical (Pentecostal and charismatic). For the
most part, the Irish people have no
concept of Biblical Christianity. These people on a large scale have never
been offered an informed choice, much less a presentation of the
truth from the Bible! There are less than 40 New Testament type churches
in Ireland that simply preach Jesus
Christ crucified, risen, and coming again, and teach ONLY God's clear
revelation as defined in the Bible! Here in Ireland,
Church and politics go hand-in-hand against the gospel.
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| Baptist Churches: There are a rapidly growing number of Bible-believing Baptist churches all over Ireland! They are filling with people tired of the corruption found in the state-churches, and they are hungry for a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and a clear understanding of God's word, the Bible. To see a small list of Bible-beliving Baptist Churches, that might be near you, click HERE. |
There might be a church near you if you can't get out to Ballincollig, or Mallow!
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| Cults: Besides Roman Catholicism, the Mormons, Jehovah's Witnesses, Seventh Day Adventists and every other possible religious group are in here Ireland by the thousands, who have come from England and the U.S. with one goal: to continue the deception of religion, and offer more false hopes to a people who simply need Jesus Christ! The Irish think that ALL of the cults are the way they are because of the Bible - which is the furthest thing from the truth! A soul-winner has to be very careful to explain that EVERY religion exists because people themselves do not know the Bible's message, and are therefore deceived and are part of a cult no matter WHAT they say! Click HERE for some materials that will help you deal with cults. |
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| History:
The earliest inhabitants in Ireland
lived approximately 4000 years ago, and built massive tombs to their
kings, some of which still exist today. The Celtic peoples arrived from
France and Scotland around 400 B.C., bringing with them the Gaelic
language. They organised the people into four consolidated kingdoms
(Leinster, Connaught, Ulster, and Munster). St. Patrick arrived in 432
A.D. and preached openly to the people about the Gospel, leading men to
Christ alone for salvation, and never claiming to baptize a single baby.
The Vikings arrived around 795 A.D., and modernised the country, building Ireland's
first towns including it capital, Dublin in 988 A.D. In 1152, Pope Adrian
(the only English Pope ever) granted Ireland
as a gift to King Henry II of England. The king promptly sent in thousands
of Scottish and English colonists in order to colonise it and create a
copy of England there. Ireland's people
rejected English rule. The Reformation in Europe saw England free itself
from Catholicism, but Ireland's people
remained solidly Roman Catholic, and resented Protestantism to the point
of killing some 30,000 Protestants in Ulster in 1641. The worst disaster
occurred in 1845-1847, when the potato crop (Ireland's
primary crop) failed due to disease, and famine set in for the next two
decades. Hundreds of thousands died or fled. In 1921, England granted Ireland
independence with only Northern Ireland
(Ulster) wishing to remain under the United Kingdom. Since then, the South
(Catholic) has been fighting in the North (controlled by the Protestants)
over the fact that it should not be part of the United Kingdom, but part
of the Republic as a unified country. For More Irish History, Go to: http://www.ireland.org/irl_hist/default.htm |
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For links to various sites here in Ireland go to: http://www.irish-directorylinks.com/
