Saturday, December 18, 2004
Pearse-A Proud Patriot
Here are some truly inspiring words from the controversial but inspirational,Padraig Pearse:
"Education should foster;this education is meant to repress.Education should inspire this education is meant to tame.Education should harden;this education is meant to enervate.The English are too wise a people to attempt to educate the Irish in any worthy sense.As well expect them to arm us."
"Life springs from death;and from the graves of patriot men and women spring living nations.The Defenders of this Realm have worked well in secret and in the open.They think they have pacified Ireland.They think that they have purchased half of us and intimidated the other half.They think they have forseen everything,think that they provided against everything;but the fools,the fools,the fools!-they have left us our Fenian dead,and while Ireland holds these graves,Ireland unfree shall never be at peace." -O'Donovan Rossa oration at Glasnevin cemetery,August 1,1915.
"We seem to have lost.We have not lost.To refuse to fight would have been to lose;to fight is to win.We have kept faith with the past,and handed on a tradition to the future."
"Believe that we too love freedom and desire it.To us it is more desirable than anything else in the world.If you strike us down now we shall rise again and renew the fight.You cannot conquer Ireland;you cannot extinguish the Irish passion for freedom.If our deed has not been sufficient to win freedom then our children will win it by a better deed."
Pearse was truly a genius.A flawed one perhaps,but a genius nonetheless.An enigma,a mystery but a patriot.A man who gave his life for the sake of his country.If men from another point in history chose to continue his ideas,this should not count against Pearse.Pearse came from a time when it was honourable to fight for what you believe in.Pearse sought to alter Ireland.
Present day Republicans who advocate Pearse's teachings ignore the alteration the world has underwent.
Pearse loved his country.I find quotes such as the ones above to make me proud of my country,proud of my nationality and proud of the sacrifice men like him made for later generations of Irish people.People like me.
Erin go Bragh.
"Education should foster;this education is meant to repress.Education should inspire this education is meant to tame.Education should harden;this education is meant to enervate.The English are too wise a people to attempt to educate the Irish in any worthy sense.As well expect them to arm us."
"Life springs from death;and from the graves of patriot men and women spring living nations.The Defenders of this Realm have worked well in secret and in the open.They think they have pacified Ireland.They think that they have purchased half of us and intimidated the other half.They think they have forseen everything,think that they provided against everything;but the fools,the fools,the fools!-they have left us our Fenian dead,and while Ireland holds these graves,Ireland unfree shall never be at peace." -O'Donovan Rossa oration at Glasnevin cemetery,August 1,1915.
"We seem to have lost.We have not lost.To refuse to fight would have been to lose;to fight is to win.We have kept faith with the past,and handed on a tradition to the future."
"Believe that we too love freedom and desire it.To us it is more desirable than anything else in the world.If you strike us down now we shall rise again and renew the fight.You cannot conquer Ireland;you cannot extinguish the Irish passion for freedom.If our deed has not been sufficient to win freedom then our children will win it by a better deed."
Pearse was truly a genius.A flawed one perhaps,but a genius nonetheless.An enigma,a mystery but a patriot.A man who gave his life for the sake of his country.If men from another point in history chose to continue his ideas,this should not count against Pearse.Pearse came from a time when it was honourable to fight for what you believe in.Pearse sought to alter Ireland.
Present day Republicans who advocate Pearse's teachings ignore the alteration the world has underwent.
Pearse loved his country.I find quotes such as the ones above to make me proud of my country,proud of my nationality and proud of the sacrifice men like him made for later generations of Irish people.People like me.
Erin go Bragh.
# posted by United Irelander @ 10:11 PM 
© 2008 United Irelander.
