Dean of Limerick installed; Connor Clergy Conference; Armagh Organ Recital; Media review
Dean of Limerick installed
Bishop Trevor Williams installed the Revd Sandra Pragnell as Dean of Limerick and Rector of Limerick City Parishin St Mary’s Cathedral, Limerick last night. The preacher was the Rt Revd Alan Harper, recently retired Archbishop of Armagh.
There have been 61 Deans of Limerick since the building of St Mary’s Cathedral in 1168. Dean Pragnell is the first woman in the history of the Cathedral to be appointed dean.
Dean Pragnell has been Rector of the Dundalk Group of parishes since 2005. Since her ordination in 2001 she has gained an MA (1st Class) in Pastoral Leadership specialising on ‘Spirituality and the Older Person: an ecumenical case study of two west Dublin parishes’. At present she is studying for a Doctorate in Ministry at Milltown Institute in Dublin.
She serves on the Liturgical Advisory Committee; led pastoral training in Theological Reflection for NSM ordinands at the Church of Ireland Training College (now the Church of Ireland Theological Institute), from 2004 to 2008. She chaired the Archbishop of Dublin’s Working Group on combating racisim and co–authored the report ‘Welcoming Angels’. She is a member of the General Synod, and (from 2011) the Inter–Faith Affairs Working Group of the General Synod’s Commission for Christian Unity and Dialogue.
St Mary’s is on the site where the Vikings had their ‘Thingmote’ (meeting place) before the O’Brien’s took it over and built a palace. Later, Donal Mor O’Brien, King of Munster gave the land to build a church.
St.Mary’s Church, in the heart of the Norse city of Limerick. was declared to be the cathedral of the diocese, named by the Synod of Ráth Breasail (1111). It was the only cathedral in any diocese in the country so named. The original church was replaced between 1150 and 1174 by the core of the present building. It’s arches are among the earliest in Ireland. They represent the only intact native Irish church built on a Continental scale to survive from before the Norman Invasion 1169. The cathedral remains in use in 2012 for the purpose for which it was built.
Connor Clergy Conference
Two guest speakers will take part in the 2012 Diocese of Connor Clergy Conference which takes place in Co Cavan from November 7–9.
The Rt Rev Paul Butler, Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham, and the Rev Dr Heather Morris, President Designate of the Methodist Church in Ireland, will each address the conference which takes place in the Slieve Russell Hotel.
Bishop Paul was installed as Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham in February 2010 after serving as Bishop of Southampton since June 2004. Before that he was in parochial ministry, an area dean, and served as an evangelist with Scripture Union. Until December 2010 Bishop Paul was also the chair of CMS, the Church Mission Society. He maintains a passionate interest in world mission, and his other big interest lies with children and young people in church and society.
The Methodist Church in Ireland elected Dr Morris as its first female president during its annual conference earlier this year. Dr Morris is the Director of Ministry at Edgehill Theological College in Belfast as well as mum of two teenage children. Both her father and her grandfather were also Methodist ministers. She has a particular interest in practical care and pastoral theology. Her PhD in Practical Theology is from the University of Edinburgh and focuses on pastoral communication with confused elderly people, and she has addressed a number of seminars in Connor Diocese in the past organised by the Ageability Committee.
The clergy conference opens with a Eucharist Service with the Bishop of Connor the Rt Rev Alan Abernethy at 3pm on Wednesday November 9.
Bishop Paul will speak before dinner, and following Late Office there will be a period of Bible Study. Following Morning Prayer the next day there will be a period of Bible Study with Dr Morris, and a second session with Bishop Paul, and delegates will then be able to relax and enjoy the hotel, the countryside, or the Enniskillen shops, as the afternoon is free. That evening there will be updates from the diocese, before Compline.
Dr Morris will lead another period of Bible Study on the final morning, and Bishop Paul will again address the conference, before a closing Eucharist with the Ven Barry Dodds, Archdeacon of Belfast. Connor’s last Clergy Conference was also held in the comfortable surroundings of the Slieve Russell Hotel in November 2009.
Armagh’s William Lauder Memorial Organ Recitals
A programme of organ recitals continued on Sunday 21 October 2012 n St Patrick’s Church of Ireland Cathedral, Armagh. The organist will be Revd Dr Peter Thompson, Succentor and Assistant Organist at the Cathedral, and Rector of the parishes of Castlecaulfield and Donaghmore.
Peter began his organ studies with Tim Allen at Derry Cathedral while Organ Scholar at Sligo Grammar School. He was awarded a double entrance scholarship to the Royal Irish Academy of Music, where he studied organ with Professor David Lee and piano with Professor Deirdre Doyle.
While reading Music and Theology at the Queen’s University of Belfast, he was the Harty-Brennan Organ Scholar at St Anne’s Cathedral and at the University, where he accompanied the University’s chamber choir, The Queen’s Consort, and played organ and continuo with the University Symphony Orchestra and choir. He is an Associate of the Royal Irish Academy of Music, a Fellow of the London College of Music, and holds the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Certificate in Church Music.
His recital programme opened with Johann Sebastian Bach’s ‘Fantasia & Fugue in G minor’, and include Mendelssohn’s Sonata in B flat, Howells’ ‘Siciliano for a High Ceremony’ and Stanford’s ‘St Patrick’s Breastplate’.
MEDIA REVIEW
Questions over school tests fault
Stormont’s education committee is due to question Department of Education and exams body officials about technical glitches affecting computer-based school tests.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20051831
Crime responsibility age may rise
The age of criminal responsibility in Northern Ireland should rise from 10 to 12, the Justice Minister has told the Assembly. David Ford needs to secure the agreement of his Executive colleagues if the limit is to be changed. While it is proposed that the age is raised by two years, it could remain at 10 for the most serious crimes.
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/local/crime-responsibility-age-may-rise-1-4399844
Lottery bid to save rare books
A religious library in County Tyrone could be in line for nearly £773,000 in lottery funding to help restore a huge collection of rare and valuable books.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-20051833
Need for loyalist engagement
Loyalists have been left disengaged by the peace process. Graham Spencer and Chris Hudson examine how to counter this impression. Because of this, there is a perception of disengagement from the benefits of peace. But what is also evident is that loyalism does not really know how to respond to this or how to counter the overwhelming impression of being left behind. There are three potential areas which can be used to challenge this perceived dislocation: reconciliation, inclusivity and community politics.
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/local/need-for-loyalist-engagement-1-4398451