A Visit to Derry

If you are in Northern Ireland, you would be remiss if you did not visit Derry. Most people know Derry as Londonderry, however, the process is in place to officially change the name back to Derry.

Derry is a pretty city. The violence that was there twenty years ago is almost a thing of the past. The people are working hard to overcome the feelings that caused the violence and they are doing a good job of it. They are not completely finished the process yet, but they are getting there.

Derry was a city that was divided along religious lines. It was the Catholics against the Protestants but as the younger generation grew to become adults, they did not understand why there were such problems. As most people are aware, many of the younger generation do not go to Church and even those that do have no idea why the fighting went on for so long.

The people of Derry are working out their differences and both sides of the conflict want the violence to end. Housing for the working class is becoming equalized for both Protestants and Catholics. Job opportunities no longer specify religious preference. Stores cater to all.

The people are also being cautious. There is a wall in one of the areas of Derry that separates homes of the Protestants from homes of the Catholics. The people on both sides of the wall were asked if they wanted the wall to come down. People on both sides said no because they don’t want to chance an outbreak of violence. This wall is not the only wall that is in Derry.

The location of the barracks for the military also has a wall that was meant to help protect the British Army. Some of the guns are still in position but these are older cannons that do not get fired. We had the opportunity to walk along the top of the wall in Derry and you can see that it was strategically placed. It also provides a pleasant walk on a nice spring evening.

When you look over the city of Derry, you can see where the churches are and the amount of land that Derry occupies. One of the pictures that I took looked like the fog had rolled in and that it was quite dense. About ten minutes later, we looked out the window and the view was sharp except for one area in the distance. Ten minutes after that, you could see rain falling nearby but the whole view was clear. It was the rain that caused the view to look like it was affected by fog.

The Irish have a saying, “If you don’t like the weather, wait five minutes and it will change.”

Good Friday – What Does It Mean to You?

It’s Good Friday, today. It’s the beginning of the Easter weekend. I know what it means to me, but sometimes I wonder what it means to other people.

Growing up, it did not mean very much to me. It was a day off school and the beginning of a long weekend. Easter meant chocolate eggs. There was no thought about the significance of Easter. Even now, Easter isn’t Easter without chocolate.

One of my memories of Good Friday as a teenager was spending it at the home of friends of mine. My sister was also there. It just so happened that the friends were daughters of an Anglican minister who ministered to our parish. Their mother had a tradition of making hot cross buns every Good Friday and feeding them to whomever came to spend time with them on that day. Her buns were fabulous and I have absolutely no idea how many I ate that day.

Another Good Friday memory that I have from when I was much younger, is of my mother cooking fish. Fish was not very common in our house at that time. In fact, it was very rare. I have no idea why. I had asked my mother why she was cooking fish and she told me that it was because that it was Good Friday. I still did not understand why. She tried to explain it to me but I think that I might have been too young to understand.

As I grew older, I learned about what Good Friday was supposed to be about, according to the Anglican Church. At that time, however, it was a day off school, maybe go to church for an hour and then do whatever I want.

Over the years, I have learned the true meaning of Good Friday. It is not a government holiday but it is a religious holy day. It is meant to bring people together to think about and discuss the death of Jesus Christ and the Atonement that He performed for us. A great many people think that the Atonement was performed on the cross.

The Atonement as explained by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints states:

“As used in the scriptures, to atone is to suffer the penalty for sins, thereby removing the effects of sin from the repentant sinner and allowing him or her to be reconciled to God. Jesus Christ was the only one capable of carrying out the Atonement for all mankind. Because of His Atonement, all people will be resurrected, and those who obey His gospel will receive the gift of eternal life with God.”

 (https://www.lds.org/topics/atonement-of-jesus-christ?lang=eng)

As I said earlier, many people believe that the Atonement was performed on the cross. I don’t believe that it was done there, but instead, I believe that the time that Christ spent in the Garden of Gethsemane, He worked out the Atonement. As it reads in the New Testament:

“ 39 ¶And he came out, and went, as he was wont, to the  Mount of Olives; and his disciples also followed him.

 40 And when he was at the place, he said unto them, Pray that ye enter not into temptation.

 41 And he was withdrawn from them about a stone’s 

cast, kneeled down, and prayed,

 42 Saying, Father, if thou be willing, remove this cup 

from me: nevertheless not my will, but thine, be done.

 43 And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven,

strengthening him.

 44 And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly: 

and his sweat was as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”

Luke 22: 39 – 44

(https://www.lds.org/scriptures/nt/luke/22?lang=eng)

Here, it says, right in the New Testament, that Christ sweat great drops of blood. Why would this happen unless He was taking the sins of all of the people of the world, past, present, and future, and paying the price for them so that if they would only believe in Him and follow His laws, then they would be able to return to our God and live with God and Jesus Christ throughout the eternities.

Let it suffice that we can read these things in the scriptures.

Some of you may not believe the way that I do. That’s alright. It is not my place to tell you that you are wrong in your beliefs. My object in this is to present a slightly different slant than you think and ask that you think about it. I hope that you observed Good Friday in the manner that you feel comfortable with.

Introducing Me

I am the Wanderer. I currently live in what is considered a semi-isolated community in Newfoundland. I call myself the Wanderer because I have lived in many places, some of which I liked and others were not so well liked.

I do have opinions which I will be expressing in this blog. These are my opinions and not my spouse's. I am a family historian and will "spout off" about things to do with family history or genealogy. I will also be expressing my religious convictions. If you do not agree with my comments or convictions, do not hesitate to express your opinion. I cannot hold your opinions against you but I will not tolerate any off colour comments or foul language. If I deem that your language is foul, I will delete your comment. If you wish to use my blog as a rant against any religion, think again. It will not be tolerated. Yes, I am Christian. No, I don't like the fact that there is terrorism going on in the world in the name of religion. There are good people and bad people in every religion. 

Please, do not be offensive in your comments.