The Angelus
The Angelus (Latin for Angel) in the cache name refers to the Angelus bell which is traditionally rung in many Irish churches at 6am, noon and 6pm. It's a traditional call to prayer and to spread good-will to everyone on Earth. The angel referred to in the prayer is Gabriel, a messenger of God who revealed to Mary that she would conceive a child to be born the Son of God. (Luke 1:26-38).
The Angelus can be heard in many towns and villages right across the Republic of Ireland and is traditionally heard as 6 peals of three bell rings.
However, this location is interesting in that there are two churches very close to each other that sound the Angelus synchronously and can be heard coming from opposite directions at the cache location.
To the north east is the Friary Church which is part of the Carmelite Friary Retreat and Spirituality Centre. The bell can be clearly seen mounted on a small tower to the right of the church. Originally manually rung, today it is electronically triggered.
To the south west is the parish church of St. John the Baptist, where the parish extends from Kilcaw in the east to Dunderrow in the west.
The Angelus bells from both churches ring with exactly the same pattern and speed - however they don't ring at exactly the same time and the parish church is at a fractionally lower pitch giving the ringing almost a strange echo sound effect.
The cache
The cache itself is a no nonsense small Tupperware style container with space for Geocoins and small swaps, hidden above ground level. I would recommend visiting the cache to time with the ringing - but possibly not on a Sunday at noon unless you want to hear it to the background of many cars starting up as noon is when Sunday Mass ends at this church!
