A nasty shock awaited parish priest, Fr William Hennessy when he arrived back at his home in Knocklong after saying Mass on a recent Saturday evening. The presence of Gardai and neighbours alerted him that something was amiss. He was told there had been an attempted burglary at the parochial house.

The intruders forced a window open at the back of the house in an attempt to gain entry but were unable to do so. They fled after activating the alarm which quickly brought neighbours to the house. The parish priest said he was very grateful to them for their quick reaction.

“They were marvellous,” he remarked. It’s believed there were two men involved, both of medium height. They had hoods on and were disguised with scarves around their faces. Fr Hennessy was grateful that they hadn’t managed to get into the house but the incident has left him, he says, much more security conscious.

“You do feel that your security has been threatened. It does raise the level of fear. When I pull into the yard now I’m conscious of looking around me, I’d be that bit more careful.” He said it was “a shocking indictment” on some elements of society but, on the other hand, it shouldn’t be forgotten that there are very many good members of the community willing to look in on their neighbours.

Two other parochial houses, in Knockainey and Hospital, were broken into in recent times. Some time ago the Diocesan Office issued a circular advising priests not to keep money in their houses because of a rise in such incidents.