REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MCALEESE AT RECEPTION HOSTED BY MR THÉO THIRY, MAYOR OF ECHTERNACH
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT MCALEESE AT RECEPTION HOSTED BY MR THÉO THIRY, MAYOR OF ECHTERNACH HOTEL DE VILLE, ECHTERNACH
Här Buergermeeschter, Dir Excellenzen, léif Gäscht, e schéine gudde Moijen
[Mayor, Excellencies, distinguished guests, good morning]
I am delighted to be here with you today in Echternach, perhaps the most important town in the history of relations between Luxembourg and Ireland.
You know, probably better than I do, the story of Saint Willibrord and his Irish colleagues who braved turbulent seas and dangerous lands to become Ireland’s first ambassadors to Luxembourg. Saint Willibrord was a true European – an Englishman, educated in Ireland who travelled to mainland Europe to share his knowledge, and in the process became Archbishop of Utrecht and patron Saint of Luxembourg. It seems he also passed on his desire to reach out to other cultures to his new Luxembourg friends – never have I encountered a population with such impressive language skills, or such an outward view of the world, though I suppose that is inevitable when you can actually see Germany from the Abbey courtyard!
I am delighted to see that the centre of learning which Willibrord established here at Echternach still stands today, a monument to the deep-rooted friendship between Ireland and Luxembourg. How appropriate that part of the Abbey now houses a school, continuing Willibrord’s goal of spreading the light of education to as wide an audience as possible.
Despite being damaged over the centuries, the Basilica and the Abbey are in pristine condition today and help to educate our children about our shared past. The Gospels illuminated at the scriptorium here form an important part of Luxembourg’s patrimony and the shared patrimony of Ireland and Luxembourg. We were honoured that during his State Visit to Ireland in 2002, His Royal Highness the Grand Duke, opened an exhibition of facsimiles of manuscripts, some of which had been produced here in Echternach, at Trinity College in Dublin. The Abbey museum also does much to remind us of the links between our two countries with an exhibition on Ireland in the time of Willibrord, and even a facsimile of the Book of Kells.
The care and attention that the people of Echternach have devoted to preserving these links with our shared past is truly inspiring, and I thank you for keeping a little bit of Ireland alive in the heart of Europe. I was delighted to hear that the Willibrordus –Bauverein of Echternach and the Carlow County Museum have recently re-entered into contact with a view to honouring the relationship, originally established by Willibrord, between our two countries.
I have been told that are many theories about the origins of the dancing procession to Willibrord’s grave which takes place in Echternach every year. Some think the dance imitates the movements made by sick pilgrims who hoped that their pilgrimage would be rewarded with a cure, others think that the procession attracted so many participants that progress was slowed to a “two steps forward, one step back” pace. Personally, I have another theory. You’ve probably heard how much the Irish like to dance. Perhaps their skills in illuminating manuscripts were not the only talents that Willibrord and his colleagues brought with them from Ireland! Joking aside, I understand that an application has been made to UNESCO to have this unique dancing procession added to its list of intangible cultural heritage and we look forward to hearing good news on this next year.
Just as Ireland recently wrote a new chapter in its relationship with the European Union through the overwhelming ratification of the Lisbon Treaty, so too through this visit we have also written a new chapter in the history of the relationship between Ireland and Luxembourg, between Carlow and Echternach. Martin and I are very grateful to you Mayor Thiry, to you Mr. Walin and to all those who extended such a warm welcome to us today. We arrived as strangers, but you made us feel like old friends and reintroduced us to our shared patrimony through Willibrord’s Abbey and Scriptorium. I thank you for all you have done to make us feel so welcome today, for all you have done to preserve the bonds of friendship between us over the years, and I wish you, and our friends in Carlow, all the very best in your plans to maintain and develop these links in the future. Merci villmols.