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All Ireland County Donegal St. Patrick's Purgatory

St. Patrick's Purgatory

The world's toughest modern Christian pilgrimage leads directly to the gates of Hell.

County Donegal, Ireland

Added By
Eric Grundhauser
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Saint Patrick’s Purgatory, Lough Derg   Kenneth Allen / CC BY-SA 2.0
Saint Patrick’s Purgatory, Lough Derg   Kenneth Allen / CC BY-SA 2.0
“Saint Columba” approaches St Patrick’s Purgatory   Kenneth Allen / CC BY-SA 2.0
Statue of St. Patrick   Andreas Franz Borchert/Flickr
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About

On a small island in the middle of an Irish lake called Lough Derg, there is a gateway to hell. Before anyone panics, there is already a monastery over the portal called St. Patrick’s Purgatory.

The story goes that Jesus showed St. Patrick a cave on Station Island (sometimes described as a “pit” or “well”, of which there are a few shallow ones remaining), in which the saint received visions of the punishments of hell, and was subsequently able to use the site as proof of a Christian afterlife for his wavering followers. Actual history does not confirm whether the saint truly visited the island or if it was simply associated with him later, but the monastic compound constructed on the island exists to this day. Much expanded from its founding in the 15th century, some of the foundation still remains, and the bare stone style of the existing priory buildings recalls the site’s ascetic Christian roots.  

While casual visitors are not generally allowed on the island, yearly pilgrimage to the site continues to this day where devout worshippers come in droves to take a three-day sojourn of contemplation through the holy site, all while barefoot. The local Lough Derg website even touts the pilgrimage as “the toughest in all of Europe, perhaps even in the whole Christian world,” thus keeping the “purgatory” in St. Patrick’s Purgatory. 

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Islands Saints Lakes Pilgrimages Rites And Rituals Sacred Spaces Subterranean Sites

Community Contributors

Added By

EricGrundhauser

Edited By

ahvenas, Allison, Michelle Cassidy

  • ahvenas
  • Allison
  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

June 2, 2013

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St. Patrick's Purgatory
County Donegal
Ireland
54.608664, -7.870338

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Photo of County Donegal

County Donegal

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Photo of County Donegal

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