Women at pulpit for ‘Munster final of religion’

After folk singer Niamh O’Neill finished a gig of a different nature in Limerick last night, she remarked: “The buzz was great, but to be honest I feel much more comfortable with a guitar in my hand.”

For 10 minutes, Niamh stood in the pulpit of Mount St Alphonsus Redemptorist Church giving a sermon to a congregation of nearly 2,000.

Niamh from Portlaoise and Sarah Kenwright from South Armagh are the first female “double act” in the otherwise all-priest lineup of sermonisers at the annual Solemn Novena which draws 10,000 a day.