Religion and Identity

The Irish have emigrated in vast numbers for centuries. More than any other Europeans they have been obliged to transplant, maintain and develop a national culture in novel, indifferent or hostile surroundings. This series of six books is an account of their various experiences all over the world. It is a comprehensive synthesis - drawing on history, geography, social science, and studies of literature, music and the arts to provide a detailed picture of the experience of migration and assimiliation over the centuries to the present day. Thus the series represents a major contribution both to migration studies and to the history of Ireland and the many countries in which the Irish have settled. Inter-religious rivalry was, and to a certain extent still is, one of the mighty engines powering the course of Irish history. The theme of religion in the study of the Irish migrations is a huge, almost over-powering one. "The Irish World Wide" looks to its subtitle, "history, heritage, identity" for guidance in approaching this theme.
The aim is not to construct a volume of religious history, but the work looks at the place of religion and religious controversy in provoking immigration, and in supporting or creating an Irish identity in the new communities. The extent to which Irish conflicts were transported to the new countries is also examined. The core of the book is Gilley's discussion of the question of religion and Irish identity - with particular reference to North America he shows how, in different communities, at different times, religion sometimes supported, sometimes undermined an Irish identity.