94 years ago, Father Creagh, a redemptorist priest thundered his way into the uncomfortable and dark history of Ireland.

His target was the 100 or so Jewish families that had settled in the area of Collooney St Limerick, most of them recent immigrants who had set up home outside the larger Jewish populations of Dublin, Cork and Belfast. A synagogue was established upstairs in someone’s house. Most were small business people, shopkeepers, travelling salesman and such, who had introduced a paying system for goods received that the poorer people of limerick were finding most acceptable - the practice of paying off in weekly instalments. Trade was being diverted from long established shops. This economic pinch was at the heart of sermon, in which he reached into the long tradition of Christian apocrypha to rail against his Jewish neighbours. Boycott, intimidation and unilateral reneging on debts were so effective that within a year there were only about 25 Jewish families left in the city.

Annette Black's documentary has the framework of a diary kept by a fictitious teenage boy. 'David' who attends the local Christian brothers.

Produced by Annette Black.

Originally Broadcast February 25th 1998. 

An Irish radio documentary from RTÉ Radio 1, Ireland - Documentary on One - the home of Irish radio documentaries