Rainbows in the sky at historic Laois wedding
Ciara Burke and Har Kaila pictured at Clonkeen Church on 13 September. Photo courtesy of Noel Burke
TWO rainbows above a sixth century Laois church heralded a historic wedding last week, the first at the site in more than 800 years.
The ruins of Clonkeen Church welcomed Ciara Burke from Abbeyleix and Har Kaila from Canada, as they exchanged vows before family and friends at a memorable ceremony celebrated by Fr Paddy Byrne PP.
Ciara’s overwhelmed dad Noel said: “In all my 70-plus years living on this earth, I’ve never seen the end of a rainbow. Just as the wedding ceremony was about to begin, suddenly not one but two rainbows appeared in the sky, the larger one shining more brightly than the other.”
Despite falling rain, the congregation remained in their seats, as if captivated by the evocative service. Noel said: “Suddenly the rainbows’ end seemed to settle briefly on the graveyard wall behind the gazebo where the priest was celebrating this mass, creating something unique for all those present. It was the first wedding at Clonkeen in at least 800 years and will be remembered for many generations to come.”
A native of Ballytarsna, Abbeyleix and now living in Canada, Ciara travelled with her Canadian boyfriend Har for the idyllic ceremony. The youngest of seven, she is a daughter of Patricia and Noel Burke, a local historian and member of the Clonkeen Church committee that has overseen ongoing conservation at the site. She was also joined at the celebration by siblings Paul, Helen, Lorraine, Noel Jnr, Kevin and Tara.
While the ‘official’ wedding was held in Clonakility, West Cork on 3 September, the Clonkeen blessing at 7pm on Wednesday 10 September was truly the icing on the cake. Flowers were supplied by Laura and Jason from the award-winning House of Blooms in Rathmoyle, Abbeyleix.
Ciara spent two years working in Australia before emigrating to Vancouver in September 2019. A recruitment consultant officer, she was selected to represent Canada in an international future leaders programme, one of 40 across the world.
A monastic site was founded at Clonkeen in the sixth or seventh century but the present-day stone church ruins date primarily to the mid-12th century.
The historic marriage ceremony coincided with the final cemetery Mass of 2025 in the parish of Abbeyleix, which was celebrated by Fr Byrne in Clonkeen Church graveyard.
