Trinity Orchestra; St Patrick’s Weekend; Church History Society to meet in Armagh; Church delegation on European concerns; Media review
Trinity Orchestra at Christ Church tonight
Tonight Wednesday, March 13th at 8pm, Trinity Orchestra will return to Christ Church Catherdral to present an exciting programme including Mussorgsky (Arr. Ravel) – Pictures at an Exhibition, Grieg – Piano Concerto in A Minor, Fauré – Pavane. The conductor will be Karen Ni Bhroin, with soloist Billy O’Brien. This event marks the orchestra’s final performance of the academic year.
St Patrick’s Weekend at Christ Church, Dublin
There’s so much on this St Patrick’s weekend at Christ Church Cathedral – from ceili dancing to craft, delicious hot food stalls to traditional music in the crypt and much more – events will run on 16th, 17th and 18th March.
And the jewel in the crown? A spectacular Eucharist on St Patrick’s Day itself at 10am featuring the combined choirs of Christ Church Cathedral and St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast. They’ll be performing a rousing rendition of Langlais’ Messe Solennelle complete with brass ensemble – all are very welcome to attend.
Easter Monday Craft Workshops and Egg Hunt!
This Easter Monday in the cathedral we’re holding an Easter egg-stravaganza in conjunction with our friends at Marsh’s Library and St Patrick’s Cathedral. For just
€10 per child participants can take place in an Easter craft workshop at 12pm, 1pm or 2pm and take part in an exciting egg hunt around all three sites. And accompanying adults are free! Advance booking is necessary – contact lesley-anne@cccdub.ie for more information.
Church History Society to meet in Armagh
The next meeting of the C of I Historical Society will be held in the Armagh Public Library (Robinson Library) on Saturday 20 April 2013. The library is located at the northwest entrance gate to the Church of Ireland Cathedral.
PROGRAMME
10.30am: Coffee in the Deanery (accessed via the entrance to the library)
11am: Brendan Twomey, ‘“It did not keep me awake beyond my usual time above a quarter of an hour”: the origins of, and the management of, Swift’s fortune.’
12pm: Daniel Ritchie, ‘Anglican and Evangelical Identities: William McIlwaine and the 1859 Revival.’
12.45 pm: Lunch will be provided at a modest sum in the Cathedral Music Hall
2pm: Dr Miriam Moffitt, ‘The inception and reception of Walter A. Phillips (ed.), History of the Church of Ireland (1933).’
3pm: Prof. Brian Walker, ‘Protestant experiences during the War of Independence and the Civil War: reports from Church of Ireland diocesan synods, 1919-23.’
The Speakers:
• Brendan Twomey is an independent scholar with an interest in the financing of Dublin’s development in the eighteenth century, the political role of the parish vestry and Jonathan Swift. Recent publications include Dublin in 1707 (Dublin, 2009), and ‘Financing speculative property development in early eighteenth century Dublin’ in The Dublin Town House (Dublin, 2010).
• Daniel Ritchie is a PhD student at QUB. His thesis is entitled ‘The public career of the Revd Isaac Nelson’. It focuses on issues such as anti-slavery, revivalism, and Irish home rule. He has a forthcoming article on William McIlwaine and the 1859 revival in the Journal of Ecclesiastical History.
• Dr Miriam Moffitt holds a PhD from NUIM. She teaches Church History in St Patrick’s College, Drumcondra, and is involved with the Centre for the Study of Irish Protestantism at NUIM. She published The Society for Irish Church Missions to the Roman Catholics, 1846-1950 (Manchester, 2010), and Soupers and Jumpers: Protestant missions in Connemara (Dublin, 2008).
• Prof. Brian Walker is Emeritus Professor of History at Queen’s University, Belfast. His main area of research involves Irish identity – A political history of the two Irelands: from Partition to Peace (Basingstoke, 2012). Other interests include the role of religion in politics as well as the impact of history and commemorations on contemporary society.
Registration:
There will be an opportunity for members to renew their annual subscriptions, if they have not done so already. The annual subscription is £35 or €40. Non-members are most welcome. They are asked to subscribe £7 or €10 to assist with conference expenses.
The Church of Ireland Historical Society meets twice a year: in the Robinson Library, Armagh, in April, and in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, in November. It exists to promote scholarly interest in the history of the Church, and to facilitate publication.
Queries may be addressed to Adrian Empey, Hon. Sec. Telephone +353-1-4055056 or e-mail: empeya@tcd.ie
Europe Needs A Social Dimension – Church Leaders Tell Irish EU Presidency
European economic governance needs to be balanced by a social dimension, according to Churches in Europe. At a meeting with the Irish EU Presidency in Dublin this morning (Friday 8 March), they questioned the sense in discussing economic austerity without including measures for social cohesion.
Efforts aimed at the eradication of structural poverty and inequality should all be considered when measuring economic progress, they maintained.
This was the main focus of a delegation of church representatives from across Ireland and Europe who met with the Taoiseach Enda Kenny (the Irish Prime Minister) in Government Buildings. The meeting carried on the tradition of regular encounters between churches and EU Presidencies.
In a cordial and open meeting, the delegation, representing the broad spectrum of Christian traditions in Ireland, raised a number of issues for consideration by the Irish EU Presidency including the social and economic crisis in Europe and development aid policy. The group was pleased with the sensitivity to their concerns shown by the Taoiseach and the other members of his delegation.
The meeting was organised by the Irish Council of Churches on behalf of the Conference of European Churches (CEC) and the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE).
Social Crisis in Europe
The delegation highlighted the social consequences of the severe economic crisis in the European Union and stated that those consequences were evident in the parishes of all of the churches and were a key concern for churches at local, regional and national level. The Irish churches were particularly concerned about the impact of austerity on present and future generations and on the most vulnerable in Society.
While acknowledging that employment and the creation of jobs in Europe was one of the main requirements to overcome the crisis, the churches highlighted the increased numbers of working poor. They urged that a common weekly day of rest, which they described as being a clear and visible sign for the reconciliation of personal, family and professional life, be included in the revision of the working time directive.
They also called for greater participation of civil society, social partners and social actors in shaping the National Reform Programs, the National Social Reports and the Country Specific Recommendations.
Development Aid Policy
The delegation stressed that Development aid continues to transform lives and highlighted the importance of EU member states recommitting to meeting overseas development aid targets by 2015. However, the churches spoke of the need to use aid to work towards a situation where countries no longer need aid. To reach that point revenue authorities in developing countries need to be able to collect the correct amount of tax from multinational companies operating in their jurisdiction. Strengthening the capacity of revenue authorities in these countries is important, but tackling the accounting rules and financial regulations that enable this to happen is crucial, the group said.
Highlighting recent successful negotiations on banking regulation in Europe completed under the Irish Presidency, the church representatives called for strengthened negotiations on:
· Defending the agreement reached on banking reform (CRD) between the Council, Parliament and Commission
· Including a robust review clause in the Accounting and Transparency Directives that allows for the inclusion of additional sectors, and more detailed information similar in scope to that agreed in the banking reform agreement
· Working towards tackling the insidious impact of tax havens
· Implementing the recommendation to OECD countries contained in the 2011 OECD/IMF/UN/World bank report Supporting the Development of More Effective Tax Systems, to conduct a spill over analysis of domestic tax policy to ensure there are no negative consequences for developing countries.
Delegation Members
Archbishop Michael Jackson, Church of Ireland (Anglican) Archbishop of Dublin and Primate of Ireland.
Rev Fr Godfrey O’Donnell, President of the Irish Council of Churches and Chair of Orthodox Network of Churches.
Bishop William Crean, Bishop of Cloyne.
Ms Gillian Kingston, Lay Leader of the Methodist Church in Ireland.
Dr Nicola Rooney, Council for Justice and Peace of the Irish Episcopal Conference.
Dr Kenneth Milne, Coordinator of European Engagement group, Irish Council of Churches/Irish Inter Church Meeting..
Mervyn McCullagh, Executive Officer, Irish Council of Churches/Irish Inter Church Meeting.
Rev Frank–Dieter Fischbach, Executive Secretary of CEC–Church and Society Commission.
Fr Patrick Daly, General Secretary of COMECE.
Michael Kuhn, Vice General Secretary of COMECE.
The meeting took place within the framework of Article 17 of the EU Treaty establishing a regular dialogue between churches and the EU.
MEDIA REVIEW
Ford rejects DUP/SDLP abortion amendment
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/ford-rejects-dup-sdlp-abortion-amendment-1-4882894
SF bid to block abortion move
Sinn Fein opposes a DUP/SDLP amendment would preventing abortions outside the NHS in Northern Ireland.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-21747570