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The monastic settlement of Lough Derg was established in the fifth century by St Davog, a disciple of St Patrick, on a remote, rocky island in a mountain lake in Co. Donegal. It remains one of Ireland s most hallowed pilgrimage sites and has fascinated and inspired mystics, poets and supplicants for centuries. On Lough Derg, first published in 1988, includes fascinating essays by Bishop Joseph Duffy, who explores the historical background to the site, and novelist Deirdre Purcell, who travels to Lough Derg during Holy Week to meet pilgrims partaking in three arduous days of prayer and fasting. Featuring captivating images by award-winning photographer Liam Blake, this book, which includes a new foreword, is an ideal gift for former or would-be pilgrims who wish to follow in St Davog s footsteps and for anyone interested in Ireland's impossibly rich cultural heritage. Concentration on prayers is not the point. It s the sacrifice of yourself. Sacrifice of sleep. You re suffering in your feet and sacrificing food. The point is self-denial. The repetition of the prayers is just an exercise, it s a further pushing. The whole thing is a two-way dialogue. If I want to get to know someone I have to spend some time with that person. If I keep rattling away at God I give him no time to get in. So here, I stop and listen. I feel so joyful now, I could jump. Lough Derg pilgrim
