Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from 'The Irish Times'
Saturday 19 January 2008
Archbishops to address Immigration Conference
The Archbishop of Armagh and the Archbishop of Dublin will be keynote speakers at the Hard Gospel Conference on Immigration, entitled ‘A Pilgrim People’, which began yesterday (Friday) and continues today (Saturday), in the Emmaus Retreat Centre, Swords, Co Dublin. Other speakers include the Minister for Integration, Mr Conor Lenihan TD and a number of clergy from outside the EU serving in the Church of Ireland.
The conference will include a trip for delegates to a local migrant ministry project, where delegates will see the work of the Meath and Kildare Diocesan Social Inclusion Group. There will also be a number of parish materials launched at the event, such as the Church in Society’s Embracing Difference book, multi-lingual ‘welcome’ posters and Select Vestry questionnaires on integration guidelines for parishes. The conference will also feature the world premiere of ‘All the loves’, which was written by Roddy Cowie. This new composition was the winning entry in the Hard Gospel hymn-writing competition and it will be performed by the Discovery Gospel Choir.
‘A Pilgrim People’ is the culmination of a number of diocesan consultations on immigration. In response to the key concerns raised at these consultations, there will be workshops on the following themes; ‘Guidelines for Ecumenical and Inter-Faith Events and Dialogue’, ‘Responding To the Needs of Migrants’, ‘Ten Key Integration Guidelines for Parishes’ and ‘Positive Approaches to Integration in Schools’.
Today (Saturday), during the conference, Embracing Difference will be launched by the Minister for Integration, Conor Lenihan. Written by Canon Patrick Comerford, Director of Spiritual Formation in the Church of Ireland Theological College, Embracing Difference will inform Church of Ireland parishes on the new, multi-ethnic context they are working within. It also seeks to assist the Church to engage with the new faith communities in Ireland and to fuse the experiences and knowledge of the Church and these new immigrants together to create a relevant dynamic for Ireland in the twenty-first century.
Embracing Difference has been published by Church of Ireland Publishing for Church in Society Committee of the Church of Ireland.
Tomorrow (Sunday) morning RTE radio will broadcast a Service of the Word with the staff and first year ordinands of the Church of Ireland Theological College.
This year is the 100th anniversary of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. In St Anne’s Cathedral, Belfast on Wednesday evening Br Fintan Lyons OSB from Glenstal Abbey will be the preacher at the annual church unity service while in Dublin Fr Godfrey O’Donnell from the Romanian Orthodox Church will preach in the Chapel of the Church of Ireland Theological College. On Friday at 8pm the Irish language unity service organized by Cumman Gaelach na hEaglaise and Pobal an Aifrinn will be held in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, where the preacher will be An tAthair Caoimhín Ó Mórdha.
The Dublin and Glendalough Church Music Committee has arranged another Living Worship course in music and worship, on Saturday mornings during January and February, in the Theological College, Braemor Park. The course is broadly based and will interest anyone who would like to learn more about the ‘what, why and how’ of the music of worship. Each seminar includes a time for singing and the course leaders are John O’Keeffe (NUI-Maynooth), Colin Mawby, Judy Martin & Alison Cadden, and Dr Donald Davison. The final three sessions take place on 26 January, 9 February and 16 Februray. Places may still be available. Call David McConnell on 087 668 3998.