Mary Immaculate Refuge of Sinners Church

St. Mary’s is an absolutely stunning piece of architecture that has become a symbol of the Rathmines area. It’s an absolutely massive structure tucked in next to a row of Georgian houses that only helps to further off set it from the rest of the area. In fact, it’s clearly visible from the Guinness Storehouse’s Gravity bar.
The uniqueness of this church does not end in it’s external beauty. It’s also a very popular church for Rathmines parishioners so it might be difficult enough to find a spot in the pews. However, the big draw is the folk mass held on Saturday evenings, in which the usual church music is replaced with a sort of rock and roll band. A kind of hip, cool tribute to the young population of Rathmines. I’d say it’s definitely worth a visit even if you’re not of the religious persuasion.

Mary Immaculate Refuge of Sinners Church, I mean, have you ever heard of anything with a cooler name?
The coolness doesn’t end here, the Mary Immaculate Refuge of Sinners Church is topped with an enormous copper dome which is visible all the way from Rathmines straight through to Camden St. In fact, I wonder if the placement of this church, and it’s glorious roof, is not intentional.
Seeing as Camden St. is one of the oldest thoroughfares in Dublin, it may well have been precisely positioned so as to seem as to dominate the skyline from the perspective of a 19^th century commuter. It certainly achieves that effect today, and will work well as a handy reference point for anyone who can’t figure out which way they’re facing in their map.
Built in the Greek Style in 1856 by Patrick Byrne, the church is 153 by my count, and was partially destroyed in a fire in the 1920s, allowing for the dome to be made even bigger in the renovation.
I absolutely love this church and it has loomed large in my imagination since the first time I saw it.