The Highland Jesuits

The Jesuit Mission & Fasnakyle Alexander MacRae S.J (who founded the church at Dornie) took over the (excellent, excellent link) Jesuit Strathglass mission when Father Munro was captured. By 1714 there were over a hundred Catholic families and Mass was openly celebrated. By 1720 Father MacRae had made 395 further converts in Strathglass alone. He was joined by a famous triad of Jesuits -John Farquharson and his brother, and Alex Cameron. Father John built the priest’s house and chapel at Fasnakyle. Mass houses were also built at Crochail and Strathfarrer.

Father John, or Maghistair Ian as he was known locally, dressed in kilt and tartan hose, learnt Gaelic and was the first person to make a collection of Gaelic poetry, which unfortunately did not survive.

There is a a short story of his altercation with the devil asan ‘old carle, with a noise like a thousand thunders, and spitting fire, flame and smoke’ who dived into the river at Cannich bridge. After the ‘45 and the defeat at Culloden, the penal laws were reinforced.

Father John was captured at Balnain, and transported to Hanover, but the captain of the convict ship smuggled him back to Scotland.

He returned to Cannich and the three priests hid up Glen Cannich in a temporary hide at the Brae of Craskie. It was at this time that he is supposed to have baptized the locals in the Clach-a-bastaidh, now at Marydale.

The Farquharson brothers gave themselves up when the redcoat captain threatened them with burning every Catholic home in Strathglass: Alex Cameron was captured later. They were sent to a prison ship where Alex Cameron died. After 15 months the brothers were released, Fr. John later returning as chaplain to his nephew at Balmoral.

Chisholms & the Strathglass ‘nursery of priests’ In 1773, the same year that the Jesuits were temporarily suppressed the emigration from Strathglass to Nova Scotia took place, and from 1803-31 the Highland clearances in Strathglass and Glen Affric. It was at this time that the ‘fair brothers,’ John and Aeneas Chisholm were priests in Strathglass, and the ‘fair lady’ Chisholm tried desperately to prevent the clearances in the lets she controlled. John was priest in Strathglass for 17 years before being made Bishop of the Highland District in 1791: Aeneas succeeded him as Bishop in 1814. Father Aeneas built a small chapel at Inchullie, for lower Strathglass, which was replaced with a slated chapel at Aigas in 1801: he rebuilt the mission chapel at Fasnakyle on a grander scale. The old cross from Fasnakyle chapel, dated 1780, Leo XIII, was saved and now tops St. Ignatius well at Guisachan.

Link (here) McCrae's of Strathglass history (here)

THE CATHOLIC HIGHLANDS OF SCOTLAND (here)

Photo is of The Church of St. Mary and St. Bean 

.