Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland notes from the Irish Times
Lenten Studies
Lent is the season of the Church's year which is most associated in the popular mind with abstinence. "What have you given up for Lent?" used to be a popular question. But as well as giving up, Lent is also a time for taking up, for it is also a time for learning and reflection. Many parishes and theological groups will have special Lenten study programmes which afford opportunities to withdraw for a short time from the busy daily round and reflect on aspects of Christian life. A variant on this theme, and one which may be more accessible to those who find it difficult to make a commitment to a study course, is the Lenten sermon. Many cathedrals and churches will have Lenten series, which, week by week, challenge those in the pews to think a little more seriously about their faith.
In the coming week there are numerous examples of such activity. Tomorrow (Sunday) in St Catherine's and St Audeon's churches, Dublin, the visiting preacher will be the Revd Michael Harley from the Diocese of Winchester, and at Evensong in St Patrick's Cathedral the Lenten address will be given by the Revd Terence McCaughey on the theme of "A Time of Growth in Our Understanding of the Bible". On Tuesday evening the Bishop of Down and Dromore, the Rt Revd Harold Miller, will preach in Stillorgan on the relevance of the Bible today while the Archdeacon of Dublin, the Ven. Gordon Linney, will speak in Howth on "Issues Facing the Church". In the Centre for Christian Studies in St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork, on Wednesday, the second in a series of talks on "Discipleship" will be given by the Revd David Armstrong, Rector of Carrigaline. The parish of Rathfarnham and its Roman Catholic neighbour, the Church of the Holy Spirit, Ballyroan, are jointly sponsoring a Lenten series on "Scratching the Surface of Irish Society". The first session, in Rathfarnham parish church on Thursday, will be on "Sectarianism and Dialogue" and the speakers will be the Director of the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation, Ian White, and the Revd Professor Tom Norris from St Patrick's College, Maynooth.
Today (Saturday) the Church's Ministry of Healing will hold a Quiet Day in Kill o' the Grange parish centre, Co. Dublin, where the leader will be the Revd Stella Durand, curate of Kiltegan. In Holy Trinity Church, Lisnaskea, Co. Fermanagh, there will be a memorial Service of Thanksgiving for the life and ministry of the Ven. R.S. Jackson, at which the preacher will be the Bishop of Limerick and Killaloe, the Rt Revd Michael Mayes.
Tomorrow (Sunday) RTE will broadcast Morning Prayer from St John's Church, Clondalkin, where the rector is the Revd Paul Houston. The Bishop of Cork, the Rt Revd Paul Colton, will visit Mitchelstown, while in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, the speaker at the Annual Ecumenical Service for the Gift of Sport will be the Chief Constable of the RUC, Sir Ronnie Flanagan, a former inter-provincial rugby player. In St Ann's Church, Dublin, at 3.30 pm, the final recital in the Bach Festival 2001 will be given. Malcolm Proud, the internationally renowned harpsichordist, who will play Bach's Goldberg Variations.
On Thursday the Archbishop of Armagh, Dr Robin Eames, will begin a visit to the Diocese of Auckland, as a guest of the Primate of New Zealand, to deliver a series of lectures on Anglicanism.