Today, sitting within St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny, I found myself writing a hymn to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The inspiration came from a much older source: a Marian hymn by Bishop Richard Ledrede of Ossory, preserved in the medieval Red Book of Ossory. Seven centuries separate his world from mine, yet the same stones stand around us, the same prayers rise heavenward, and the same longing for God remains in the human heart.

There is something deeply moving about writing new words in a place where generations have prayed before us. Faith is never invented from scratch. We receive it, cherish it, and add our own small verse to the song. In this way, the communion of saints feels less like an abstract doctrine and more like a living fellowship, joining our prayers to those offered across the centuries.

As I looked out across Kilkenny and thought of the Nore, the fields, and the ancient tower of St Canice, I was reminded that grace gathers a patina over time. The prayers of countless pilgrims, worshippers, and seekers seem to have soaked into holy places, not as ghosts of the past, but as witnesses to God’s enduring presence. Their voices may be silent now, yet their faith continues to echo in the Church’s prayer, carried forward from one generation to the next.

Perhaps that is what pilgrimage often reveals: that we are never the first to walk a path, nor the last. We simply take our place for a while among the great company of those who have sought Christ, and found Him, along the way.

O Mary, Queen of angels high

1. 
O Mary, Queen of angels high,
Star of the morning’s grace;
Your name is balm for weary hearts,
Your mantle wraps this place.

2. 
O Mother of the Light divine,
O Gate of Heaven’s peace;
Where ash and hawthorn guard the paths,
Your blessings never cease.

3. 
By Canice’ tower of ancient stone
You keep your vigil still;
The curlew’s cry becomes your hymn
Across the Nore‑bound hill.

4. 
Through valerian and barley fields
You walk with gentle hand;
And lead us to the Eucharist,
The Life of every land.

5. 
O Maiden mild, O Mother true,
O Hope of those who roam;
Guide us to Christ, your holy Son,
And bring our spirits home.

Hymn information 

First line: O Mary, Queen of Angels high
Text: Michael McFarland Campbell
Metre: CM
Tune: Bangor

Copyright

© Michael McFarland Campbell. 2026. 
Permission granted for local church or parish use with attribution. Not for commercial reproduction.

Written while sitting in St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny, and inspired by a hymn of Bishop Ledrede of Ossory, preserved in the Red Book of Ossory. The hymn is shared here as part of the NeuroDivine hymn collection.