
Nano Nagle:
A Poem by Edwina Gateley in honour of Nano being made Venerable 2014
You didn't have to live like that Nano.
you didn't have to spend your days and countless nights
seeking out "the least" --the little ones,
clad in rags, sniffling, dirty and ignorant in the slums and dark corners of the city.
No normal person, Nano, would go to such lengths to love.
But you were not normal, Nano.
You were possessed and driven by God--calling you into A Great Love-Conspiracy-
to make a difference in a hurting world,
leaving all of us, timid and doubting souls, with a legacy of miracles -
born and forged from your courage, determination and deep hidden suffering.
what divine seduction led you, Nano, to turn from wealth, privilege and comfort
to take an untrod path with the poor, the homeless and the uneducated?
What kind of love affair? discipleship gone mad turned your life around,
propelling you from light, glitter and glory into darkness, terror and pain?
Your first response to the horror of utter poverty,
was to enclose yourself within safe convent walls in France to pray for the poor souls who had filled your heart with pity and compassion.
But it was not enough.
You succumbed, Nano, to the Love-Conspiracy,
the whisper in your soul which would not let you rest --
safely ensconced within the convent walls.
Reluctantly, yet with a deep inner knowing of certitude
you returned to Ireland and your birthplace in Cork.
It was a violent and dark time in Irish history.
Your people were living under the ruthless oppression of a brutal Penal Code
which deprived them of their land and human rights,
leading to desparate poverty and wide spread misery.
But your family -- of noble heritage-- were rich and privileged, Nano.
You could have simply become a generous philanthropist --
handing out food and alms from behind your secure, warm walls.
that would have been safe, commended, and applauded as generous ----
but it was not enough, Nano,
for the insatiable Conspiracy of Love which had seized your soul and led you later to declare:
"Spend yourself for the poor."
A Poem by Edwina Gateley in honour of Nano being made Venerable 2014
You didn't have to live like that Nano.
you didn't have to spend your days and countless nights
seeking out "the least" --the little ones,
clad in rags, sniffling, dirty and ignorant in the slums and dark corners of the city.
No normal person, Nano, would go to such lengths to love.
But you were not normal, Nano.
You were possessed and driven by God--calling you into A Great Love-Conspiracy-
to make a difference in a hurting world,
leaving all of us, timid and doubting souls, with a legacy of miracles -
born and forged from your courage, determination and deep hidden suffering.
what divine seduction led you, Nano, to turn from wealth, privilege and comfort
to take an untrod path with the poor, the homeless and the uneducated?
What kind of love affair? discipleship gone mad turned your life around,
propelling you from light, glitter and glory into darkness, terror and pain?
Your first response to the horror of utter poverty,
was to enclose yourself within safe convent walls in France to pray for the poor souls who had filled your heart with pity and compassion.
But it was not enough.
You succumbed, Nano, to the Love-Conspiracy,
the whisper in your soul which would not let you rest --
safely ensconced within the convent walls.
Reluctantly, yet with a deep inner knowing of certitude
you returned to Ireland and your birthplace in Cork.
It was a violent and dark time in Irish history.
Your people were living under the ruthless oppression of a brutal Penal Code
which deprived them of their land and human rights,
leading to desparate poverty and wide spread misery.
But your family -- of noble heritage-- were rich and privileged, Nano.
You could have simply become a generous philanthropist --
handing out food and alms from behind your secure, warm walls.
that would have been safe, commended, and applauded as generous ----
but it was not enough, Nano,
for the insatiable Conspiracy of Love which had seized your soul and led you later to declare:
"Spend yourself for the poor."