Wren Boys

In his sermon on St Stephen’s Day, a priest from County Cork recalls the now-outmoded wren hunting tradition.  

Boys on the cusp of manhood would be sent out to kill a wren, and later the parish would gather for the burial of the bird.  

The tradition symbolized the burial of the past, promising a fresh start in the new year.  

But it was cruel, and tradition, Father Conor concludes, does not legitimise cruelty. Later that day, Conor drives his nephew to prison to visit a battle-worn inmate.  

Their visit is one born of a new 21st Century Ireland, which casts a critical eye on tradition.  

But within the prison walls, progress operates at a different pace; and runs alongside the threat of violence.