About our Parish

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Harold’s Cross is a typical urban parish in 21st century Ireland – tending to the younger age group and racially/culturally diverse demographic. It is younger in age than the national average and has a dynamic population. In 2008, over 50% had been in the parish for less than five years.

Of those who have moved in, the majority are under 35 years and 19% of the parish population are of foreign nationality – over 40 different nationalities were represented in a 2008 survey. The proportion of households with families is 25%.

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Spread across at least 6 electoral wards and 2 Dáil constituencies.
Stretching from the Grand Canal to Terenure.
Directly adjacent to 6 other parishes (Rathgar, Rathmines, Terenure, Mount Argus, Drimnagh, Harrington St).
The population of Harold’s Cross is heavily skewed towards the young adult age brackets.
48% of our parishioners are aged 20-39 years (census 2011).
47% of parishioners live in private rental accommodation, compared with a national average of 29% – indicating a transient population.
Two out of three people (67%) in Harold’s Cross are single.
1,530 families live in our parish.
25% of households include children.
Children from the parish attend over 30 different schools.
St Louis is the most frequently attended school: 15.5% of children attend either the primary or secondary schools at St Louis Rathmines.
19% of people in the area are foreign nationals.
In 2008, individuals from 41 different nationalities were living in Harold’s Cross.
67% of the respondents in Harold’s Cross stated their religion as Catholic in the 2011 census. This is lower than the national figure of 84%, reflecting the urban nature of the parish.
18% of parishioners state that they have no religion, a proportion three times greater than the national average (6%). This large discrepancy may be partly explained by the high percentage of young adults in Harold’s Cross and a growing reluctance to be publicly committed to a particular lifestyle, image or institution. The preference for many is to be independent and able to embrace or reject specific aspects at will.
There is a comparatively low level of unemployment (8%) in our parish, compared with the national average (14%). 60% of parishioners aged 15 years and over are at work, 13% are students, 11% are retired and 5% are looking after the home or family. 3% are unable to work due to disability or long-term illness.

The National Census of Ireland in 2011 provided data for each parish in the country. More information is available on the results for Harold’s Cross.

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Prayer for Christian Unity

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Creator of light,
illumine our path by the light of Christ who moves before us and leads us.
May he be a beacon for our pilgrimage.
Enlighten us and dwell within us.
We thank you for the gift of that unfading Star, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Saviour.
Heal our divisions and draw us closer to the Light that we may find our unity in him. Amen.
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Even in the greatest darkness, God’s light is with us. Most perfectly, in the fullness of time, God sends Jesus Christ, who is the guiding light for all nations, the glory of God in the world, the source of divine light and life. The way ahead into unity with one another, into closer union with Christ, is not always clear. In our earnest attempts to build unity ourselves it is all too easy to lose sight of this fundamental message of the scriptures: that God does not abandon his people even in their failures and divisiveness. This is God’s message of hope for the whole world. God guides people of all kinds, by the light of the star, to where Christ, the light of the world, is to be found.