Irish news digest May 28

Where to from Here for Faith Communities? – Ecumenical Bible Week to Explore Churches’ Digital Presence

Ecumenical Bible Week, which traditionally takes place from Pentecost Sunday to Trinity Sunday (31 May–7 June), has been postponed due to restrictions around Covid–19. However, there will be a number of opportunities to engage online. See –
[ www.bibleweek.ie) ]

The theme for 2020 is ‘Faith in the Public Square’. On Tuesday June 2 at 10am there will be Morning Prayer with Julie McKinley, Development Officer of the National Bible Society of Ireland and her husband Philip, who is an ordinand in CITI.

On Thursday June 4 at 3pm there will be a webinar on the topic: “In light of the C19 crisis and the increased digital presence, where to from here for faith communities?” The panel will be chaired by Pat Coyle, Jesuit Communications Officer, and panelists will include Scott Evans, Church of Ireland chaplain in UCD; Sam McConkey, RCSI, Associate Professor in International Health Tropical Medicine and ruling elder in Clontarf and Scots Presbyterian Church; and Bryan Shortall, Capuchin priest and author.

On Sunday June 7 at 7pm there will be Evening Prayer with Martin Sauter and the Lutheran community.

Ecumenical Bible Week’s organisers have invited musicians and singers from all Christian traditions to record and share a hymn, song, piece of music or an original piece that speaks to the EBW 2020 theme and to people’s current experience of faith in this most different of public squares. It is hoped to share these as reflections throughout this week to inspire, support, comfort, encourage, give hope and emphasise that we are connected in prayer and hope as a Christian family of faith, even in these most difficult of times.

Details, including registration information, can be found at
[ www.bibleweek.ie ]

Make Paper Dove Prayers for St Columba’s Day

Christ Church Cathedral is hoping to be filled with paper dove prayers to mark St Columba’s Day (June 9). And they are seeking help from people throughout Dublin & Glendalough to make this happen.

St Columba is known as ‘the dove of the church’. His name, Colum, means dove. As a child he was so committed to his Christian faith that he earned the nickname ‘Columcille’ or ‘dove of the church’.

The cathedral had planned to have a family activity around the time of St Columba’s Day where visitors would make paper dove prayers in honour of Columba.

“As with so many plans, Covid–19 has forced us to be more creative!” explains Dean’s Vicar, the Revd Abigail Sines. “We still hope to gather many ‘paper dove prayers’ but will need to do this from a distance instead, with people posting in their ‘paper dove prayers’ to the cathedral.”

She adds: “We hope that parishes, schools, Sunday clubs and Messy Churches across Dublin and Glendalough will take part. We would love to see the cathedral filled with colourful ‘paper dove prayers’! We will hold a livestream prayer service (with contributions in both English and Irish) at 12.00 on St Columba’s day (via our normal cathedral webstream and Facebook live) when all the ‘paper dove prayers’ received will be on display”.

A video with an explanation of the project and instructions for making paper dove prayers is on the Dublin diocesan web site. To be included, ‘paper dove prayers’ must be received in the cathedral by Monday June 8. Post them to Abigail Sines, Christ Church Cathedral, Christchurch Place, Dublin 8.

‘The world has changed before your eyes’  Archbishop of Dublin writes to the Class of 2020

The Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson, has written to the Class of 2020 to express his support for them at this time. His letter has been sent to sixth year students in schools of which he is a patron or which have Church of Ireland connections in the United Dioceses of Dublin & Glendalough. These students would have expected to begin their Leaving Certificate exams next week, had they not been cancelled due to Covid–19.

The Archbishop commended students for their patience over the past weeks and months and congratulated them for finding ways to cope in the crisis. The Class of 2020 had been denied being part of a community and a very special year group in their schools, he said. They had also been working towards a specific goal since the start of the year.

“You have every reason to be confused by what has happened. And even now when decisions have been made about The Leaving Certificate for this year, there still is confusion. Confusion always raises important issues about fulfilment and fairness. These questions will remain. They are currently beyond your control. I want to encourage you to do some simple things that are within your control. In this way, I am encouraging you to keep control over your own lives in these difficult days of the coronavirus. We continue to live in times that are as dangerous to you as they are to me and to everyone else. We all need to stay safe,” Archbishop Jackson stated.

He urged the members of the Class of 2020 to honour their gifts and talents. He added that they had no need to fear this world. “You need to remember that you have everything to offer. The world has changed before your eyes to a world that feels a lot more closed in. In whatever ways others, who are also doing their best to care for your future, they too are caught in the eye of a public health pandemic that has neither secure science nor viable vaccine,” he said.

He also asked sixth years to hold on to their life goals and nurture them and to retain their friendship group.

Food for thought

“Whatever may be the tensions and the stresses of a particular day, there is always lurking close at hand the trailing beauty of forgotten joy or unremembered peace.” ― Howard Thurman

Points for Prayer

Pray for the many people across the world who will need courage to cope with what today brings, whether because of the nature of their work, instability in their community, or their personal and family circumstances.

Pray for hospital janitors & for city garbage collectors & sanitation workers. “They are jobs no one sees, but they are necessary … May the Lord bless them & help them.”

Pray for those who work for peace and freedom throughout the world, that their efforts will bring an end to injustice and oppression

Give thanks for the many people who are using this time to volunteer in their local communities, asking that their simple acts of kindness would continue to make a big difference in the lives of the most vulnerable

God in Creation