Former Limerick abbot recalls Sinead O'Connor's visit to Glenstal
SINEAD O’Connor once sang her heart out in Glenstal Abbey - alongside a Limerick monk who understood why she tore up a picture of the Pope.
In September 2003, the singer-songwriter and activist visited the Benedictine monetary in Murroe where she visited her friend and renowned musician Nóirín Ní Riain.
According to the former abbot of Glenstal in Limerick, Fr Mark Patrick Hederman, Sinéad had two passions in life - music and religion.
“She came to visit Nóirín at the time. Sinéad O'Connor, whose two passions in life were music and religion had a great admiration for her, who she regarded as a very accomplished singer in the Irish tradition,” recalled Fr Hederman.
He continued: “So the monks are singing with Sinéad O'Connor and she’s called Marie-Bernadette on the label of the album, because of legal arrangements she might have had with other labels.”
The unique recording features on the album Biscantorat: Sound of the Spirit from Glenstal Abbey, on which Fr Hederman also sings.
“I met her and we had very good conversations and she was actually trying to find out what the original Hebrew was for various prayers. She was not just a singer, she was also an artist. She was drawing and writing as a calligrapher various texts from the Bible. It was a very beautiful occasion and we were praying together.
“I didn't know her at all, I hadn’t met her before. She had an absolutely wonderful voice and to hear her singing, was amazing. I'm sure now she is singing forever in the presence of the God whom she always worshiped,” he said.
In the past, Fr Hederman defended her for tearing up a picture of the Pope.
“It was a gesture she made against the abuse that was happening in the Catholic Church, but it didn't mean that she was not a religious person.
“She was protesting against abuses in the church, not saying anything about God. God was for her a very important reality, which she searched for as enthusiastically as she did for music. I don't think it was a good idea myself, but I understand the reasons why she was trying to underline what was going on in the Church and what should have been the role and the example given by the church.”