Irish Courage and the Path to Well-Being

Have you ever looked at your family's history as a sacred pilgrimage? Centuries ago, families in my heritage like the Magills and the Junkins fled political unrest and poverty in Scotland and Ireland, undertaking a perilous eight-week ocean voyage to America. They faced incredible unknowns with remarkable courage and determination to build a new life.

When we look back at the upheavals of the past—whether it's our ancestors stepping onto foreign soil 300 years ago, or the rough patches in our own modern lives—we can often see how God has carried us through. Just like the Jewish patriarch Jacob, who dreamed of a staircase to Heaven while traveling through a strange land, we can look at our difficult journeys and realize, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!”

Call to Action: Ideas to see your own history as a walk with God. 

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This week many celebrate their Irish heritage. Both My family and my wife’s are connected to this national identity So, I’ll share a little history lesson and a wee bit of green. 

My maternal ancestors spent 37 years in Ireland, while Jan’s paternal relatives were there for about 30 years. Both families were part of a huge migration that began in Scotland, spent a generation or two in Ireland, then sailed to America. Famine, religious intolerance by Anglicans against Presbyterians, and economic failures in the linen trade forced the Scotch-Irish to leave Ireland in 1720-1775. More than 200,000 made the eight-week trip across the North Atlantic.

 MY MAGILL CLAN

My maternal sixth great grandfather William Magill left Scotland with his parents and brothers around 1691 and settled in County Antrim, Ireland. Their move came as many Presbyterians from Scotland flooded northern Ireland. They did not have the political or economic power of the English Anglicans who owned land in Ireland. During the first half of the 18th century, they were excluded from the higher professions and political office. A positive occurrence was the growth of the Irish linen industry, which flourished from favorable laws. It’s probable that William’s father, Robert III, benefited from this, raising flax to be made into linen and exported. He farmed at the family estate in Tullycairn, Ireland, for more than 50 years. He died in 1749.

William wasn’t content in Ireland, though. He took his wife, Mary, and their eight children on the long voyage to America. William and Mary settled in Bucks County, Pennsylvania in 1726. William and his family were part of a great migration from Ireland in this era. His descendants would make their way through Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri.

So, big news, this year I’ll celebrate 300 years of my maternal family in America!

 JAN’S ANCESTORS, THE JUNKINS

Jan’s family was another clan that fled Scotland, then Ireland, during that era. Jan’s fifth great grandfather, William, moved from Scotland to Ireland around 1776. He became a flax farmer. His son John made the bold move to America as a 15-year-old in 1795! There is no record of whether he had permission or was a runaway seeking to escape the poverty of crop failures and political unrest that limited his future. He arrived as a stowaway in Baltimore. He followed many Scotch-Irish in moving south to Hampshire County, Virginia, where he married and became an engineer. Later generations moved to Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, and Missouri to seek their fortune.

Jan can celebrate 230 years of her family living in America!

 LEGACY OF COURAGE

I find it nearly impossible to empathize with the courage and grief involved in the risky immigration from one nation to another. John Junkins and William Magill embodied these qualities. I thought it was a big deal in 2018 to move 120 miles, with a massive trailer of belongings, to a newly completed house and welcoming relatives. How much more did these ancestors sail to the unknown with determination to make a new life! That makes me grateful—and a bit awed—of this legacy of hope and bravery.

Your call to action is to do some research on your family history. It’s worth your time. At the very least, ask your parents or grandparents to share their stories. Or invest some time using the family history apps to see what others may know about your relatives. It’s fun to find some skeletons in the closet or testimonies of courage to overcome the upheavals of the past.

I suggest you consider your own history as a sacred pilgrimage. Can you look back and find where God has met you in new places or carried you through the rough patches? It’s time to see your autobiography as a walk with God and others that is building a unique human story.

The Jewish patriarch Jacob had a dream of a staircase to Heaven. He was in a strange land with a difficult journey ahead and found inspiration from the vision. When he awoke he said, “Surely the Lord is in this place—and I did not know it!” 

By looking back in our sacred journey we can find a way forward with new courage and inspiration. I hope we’ll meet on the path to well-being someday soon.