They won’t find out how many of them can dance on the head of a pin, but later this month 600 people will pay €90 each to attend a seminar in Dublin to find out more about angels.

It’s part of a new angelic trend, which includes shops opening across the country to meet the demand for paraphernalia, and angel books on top of the bestseller lists. As Ireland balances on the cusp of economic crisis, spiritualism and the promise of hope is selling like never before.

“A lot of Irish people have always had an interest, ever since we were taught about our guardian angels as children,” said Mildred Ryan, who styles herself as Ireland’s first “angel teacher”. “It’s only in the past couple of years that interest has really exploded. The world is going through so much turmoil and people are looking for help. They want to learn how to connect to angels.”

Ryan became a teacher in 2002, and claims she can teach people how to meditate and connect to their angels. She “trained” in Britain and then returned to Ireland to organise workshops; her one-day events cost about €80 per head.

“I was totally booked out straightaway,” she said. “There are so many people who have been deeply hurt, and they just haven’t moved on. Angels give people so much help and assistance.”

Ryan has since become a “master teacher”, which allows her to train more angel teachers. A teacher-training course, which runs over four weekends costs each participant €930. There are now 50 “qualified” teachers in Ireland.

Among these is Annita Keane, from Clarinbridge in Galway, who left her job as a biomedical scientist in the public health service to become an angel teacher. Charging €111 per person for her workshops, Keane has found no difficulty supporting herself in her new job.

“My science background helped me to understand them,” she said. “A lot of it is based on the laws of physics and the movement of energy. I explain this in my workshops. I was surprised by the level of interest. I think the move away from religion has led people to look for something else.”

Angels in My Hair, an auto-biography by Lorna Byrne, in which she claims to see angels, has been on top of the Irish bestseller charts for 12 weeks.

“We can’t get over the interest we’ve had in Lorna’s book,” said Jean Callanan, Byrne’s agent. “We’ve had nine print runs already, and the editors of The Da Vinci Code got into a bidding war to win the rights to sell it in America. I don’t think anyone expected this interest. But Lorna always said that the angels told her it would be a bestseller.”

Angel books are not the only merchandise flying off shelves. The growing demand for angel statues, bracelets and candles has resulted in the emergence of shops nationwide dedicated to angel products.

One of those to identify this market niche was Stephen Buckley, who owns Angels of Ireland, in Finglas, Dublin. Buckley’s wife Patricia claims to have seen angels since she was a child. Four years ago the couple made the decision to sell their grocery store and open an angel shop instead.

“It came about when I tried to buy some angel statues for Patricia and I couldn’t find them anywhere in Ireland,” said Buckley. “Business is going great now. We sell everything from €2 bracelets to €500 angel statues for your garden. It’s more profitable than selling groceries and the job is much more fulfilling.”

Business is also booming for Philip Newell, who is organising an angel seminar in Dublin this month. Costing €90 a head it will feature Diana Cooper, a British “angel expert”. Cooper will tell the audience about “angel orbs”, which she claims are visible manifestations of angels.

“In the past year Diana has been inundated with photographs from Irish people who have seen these orbs and taken pictures of them,” said Newell. “We’re expecting around 600 people, from all walks of life, all coming together to meditate and connect with angels. It will be a very powerful experience.”

Desmond Connell, the former Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, is an academic expert on angels, regarding them as messengers of God who are capable of intervening directly in human affairs.

Those who believe in angels describe it as a feeling or awareness of a good spirit. Some say they can see a light, while others claim to see angels in a traditional physical form.

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