Manresa House is a retreat centre run by the

Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...

in the

Dollymount Dollymount (), often known as "Dollyer" to Dubliners, is a coastal suburban area on the north coast of Dublin Bay, within Clontarf, on the northside of Dublin, Ireland, just east of Saint Anne's Park. Dollymount Strand The famous Wooden Br ...

area of Clontarf in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, near

Saint Anne's Park Saint Anne's Park () is a public park situated between Raheny and Clontarf, suburbs on the northside of Dublin, Ireland. It is owned and managed by Dublin City Council. The park, the second largest municipal park in Dublin, is formed from pa ...

. In the 19th century it was home to Robert Warren and

Arthur Guinness Arthur Guinness ( 172523 January 1803) was an Irish brewer, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. The inventor of Guinness beer, he founded the Guinness Brewery at St. James's Gate in 1759. Guinness was born in Ardclogh, near Celbridge, County Ki ...

, and it is a protected structure.History
from Manresa.ie, retrieved 22 June 2013

History

Origins

Manresa House is a large house originally constructed in the mid 18th century. It was originally known as ''Granby Hall'', and then ''Baymount Castle'' and included 17 acres of land surrounding the house. From 1775–83, it was a residence of the

Bishop of Down and Connor The Bishop of Down and Connor () is an episcopal title which takes its name from the town of Downpatrick (located in County Down) and the village of Connor (located in County Antrim) in Northern Ireland. The title is still used by the Catholic C ...

, James Traill. The house was used briefly as a school named Baymount House School from 1834-38. In 1838, it was leased from J.E.V. Vernon by Robert Warren who largely remodelled the house in a gothic revival castellated style, possibly by the architect

George Papworth George Papworth (1781–1855) was a British architect who practised mainly in Ireland during the nineteenth century. Early life and career Papworth was born in London in 1781 and was the third son of the English stuccoist John Papworth (1750–1 ...

. New outbuildings and gate lodges were also constructed at this time. In 1845 it became the property of the

Sisters of Loreto The Institute of the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose members are commonly known as the Loreto Sisters, is a Roman Catholic religious congregation of women dedicated to education founded in Saint-Omer by an Englishwoman, Mary Ward (nun), Mary Ward, i ...

who opened a school there from 1847. In 1851, it was renovated by the sisters, because the building was damaged by a serious fire that year and they ultimately moved to Balbriggan in the years following. In the later 19th century the house was owned by George Tickell, a property developer. In 1898, it was sold to

Arthur Guinness, 1st Baron Ardilaun Arthur Edward Guinness, 1st Baron Ardilaun, (1 November 1840 – 20 January 1915), styled Sir Arthur Guinness, Bt between 1868 and 1880, was an Anglo-Irish businessman, politician and philanthropist. He is perhaps best known for giving St Stephe ...

Baymount School

In around 1904 William Scott opened a school on the premises called Baymount Preparatory School, of which he was headmaster until 1936. The school was then later acquired by John Tudor Gwynn, who ran it until 1948 when the school closed. John T Gwynn was a descendant of John Gwynn and a member of the Gwynn family that included noted literary figures such as

Stephen Gwynn Stephen Lucius Gwynn (13 February 1864 – 11 June 1950) was an Irish journalist, biographer, author, poet and Protestant Nationalist politician. As a member of the Irish Parliamentary Party he represented Galway city as its Member of Parliamen ...

and

Edward Gwynn Edward John Gwynn (1 April 1868 – 10 February 1941) was an Irish academic who served as the 36th Provost of Trinity College Dublin from 1927 to 1937. He was also President of the Royal Irish Academy from 1934 to 1937. Professor Gwynn was a sc ...

Establishment of Spirituality Centre

In 1948, the

Archbishop of Dublin The Archbishop of Dublin () is an Episcopal polity, archiepiscopal title which takes its name from Dublin, Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Since the Reformation in Ireland, Reformation, there have been parallel apostolic successions to the title: ...

John Charles McQuaid John Charles McQuaid, C.S.Sp. (28 July 1895 – 7 April 1973), was the Catholic Primate of Ireland and Archbishop of Dublin between December 1940 and January 1972. He was known for the unusual amount of influence he had over successive gover ...

asked the Jesuits to establish a spirituality centre in the

area, so they bought Baymount Castle. They renamed it Manresa House after

Manresa Manresa () is the capital of Bages county, located in the central region of Catalonia, Spain. Crossed by the river Cardener, it is an industrial area with textile, metallurgical, and glass industries. The houses of Manresa are arranged aro ...

Catalonia Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a ''nationalities and regions of Spain, nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy of Catalonia of 2006, Statute of Autonomy. Most of its territory (except the Val d'Aran) is situate ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, where

St Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola ( ; ; ; ; born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Basque Spaniard Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the So ...

, the founder of the Jesuits had many spiritual experiences that contributed to formulation of his

Spiritual Exercises The ''Spiritual Exercises'' (), composed 1522–1524, are a set of Christian meditations, contemplations, and prayers written by Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th-century Spanish Catholic priest, theologian, and founder of the Society of Jesus (Jesui ...

.Manresa Spirituality Centre
from Jesuit.ie, retrieved 22 June 2013

The Retreat Centre

The first retreat was held there in 1949. In 1966, a new building designed by Andrew Devane was added to accommodate more retreatants and was opened in 1967. Building and renovation work was undertaken in 2022 to provide a new dining and reception area, to renovate accommodation and to refurbish the castle structure.

Irish Jesuit Novitiate 1969–1991

The Irish Jesuit

Novitiate The novitiate, also called the noviciate, is the period of training and preparation that a Christian ''novice'' (or ''prospective'') monastic, apostolic, or member of a religious order undergoes prior to taking vows in order to discern whether ...

was moved from

Emo Court Emo Court, located near the village of Emo, County Laois, Emo in County Laois, Republic of Ireland, Ireland, is a large Neoclassical architecture, neo-classical mansion. Architectural features of the building include sash-style windows, pavilion ...

County Laois County Laois ( ; ) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and in the province of Leinster. It was known as Queen's County from 1556 to 1922. The modern county takes its name from Loígis, a medieval kingdom. Hist ...

in 1969 to a building in the grounds of Manresa House. In 1977, part of the property near the novitiate, was sold and the Park Lawn estate built. The novitiate moved to Santry in 1991 before the establishment of the joint British-Irish Novitiate in Birmingham, later to also become the novitiate for other Jesuit Provinces.

Jesuit European Tertianship

The European English-speaking Jesuit European Tertianship was located in Manresa from 2006 until 2021. Tertianship is the third period of formation of a Jesuit, before taking final vows with the order. In 2006, renovation and new building was undertaken to provide for the Tertianship, using the site of the old novitiate for the

Tertianship Tertianship is the final period of formation for members of the Society of Jesus. Upon invitation of the Provincial, it usually begins three to five years after completion of graduate studies. It is a time when the candidate for final vows steps ...

of the Jesuits in Europe. To allow for the reorganisation of the retreat ministry, this building rehoused the Jesuit Community when it moved out of the castle in 2023.

Interior

The centre offers a variety of directed retreats, seminars, and various day and evening events, as well as the 30-day retreat, from the

. In the oval meditation room are a set of windows designed by

Evie Hone Eva Sydney Hone RHA (22 April 1894 – 13 March 1955), usually known as Evie, was an Irish painter and stained glass artist.Nicola Gordon Bowe (May 2009)Hone, Eva Sydney (1894–1955) ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', online editi ...

. They were installed in the 1990s. The windows were originally in the former Jesuit school

St Stanislaus College St Stanislaus College (often called Tullabeg College) was a Jesuit boys boarding school, novitiate and philosophy school, in Tullabeg, Rahan, County Offaly. St Carthage founded a monastery of 800 monks there in 595 before founding his monaste ...

, Tullabeg, County Offaly. File:Manresa House Chapel nativity window, Dublin.jpg, Window depicting the Nativity File:Manresa House Chapel pentecost window, Dublin.jpg, Window depicting Pentecost

Courses

Manresa House, runs a two year ''Diploma in Spirituality (Spiritual Direction)'' accredited by

St Patrick's College, Maynooth St Patrick's Pontifical University, Maynooth (), is a pontifical Catholic university in the town of Maynooth near Dublin, Ireland Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mou ...

(Pontifical University)), and has been offered in centres in Galway and Larne. Training in supervision for spiritual directors is also offered, and successful complete the course requirements are awarded an ''Advanced Diploma in Spirituality (Supervision)'', a Special Purpose Award from, Maynooth. Manresa House Spiritual Direction training programmes are conducted in association with the ''Together in the Mystery'' supervisor training programme.Together in the Mystery
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People associated with Manresa House

Sean McCarron was the first superior in 1949, the social reformer Michael Sweetman served as Superior of Manresa from 1959 to 1960. Joseph Dargan, Laurence Murphy, Paddy Carberry were among those who served as masters of novices in Manresa. The rôle of Superior has been occupied variously by Dónal Mulcahy, Kieran Hanley (1989–1993), Paul Andrews, Joe Dargan and Mike Drennan. The current Superior of the Jesuit Community is Willie Reynolds SJ.

References

External links

Manresa, Jesuit Centre of Spirituality site
{{Jesuits in Ireland Country houses in Ireland Buildings and structures in Dublin (city) Ignatian spirituality Spiritual retreats Former Secondary schools in Dublin (city)