Press Releases
Politicians and Church Leaders to address Immigration Conference
Politicians and church leaders will tomorrow, Saturday 19 January 2008, tackle the issue of immigration in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The Republic’s Minister for Integration, Conor Lenihan TD, and Gerry Kelly MLA, junior minister in the Office of First Minister and Deputy First Minister Northern Ireland, will be among the keynote speakers at the Hard Gospel Conference on Immigration, entitled “A Pilgrim People”. Other key speakers will include the Church of Ireland Primate and Archbishop of Armagh, Most Revd Alan Harper, and the Archbishop of Dublin, Most Revd Dr John Neill.
The conference begins this evening, Friday 18 January at 6.00 p.m. at the Emmaus Retreat Centre, Swords, Co Dublin. Tonight’s session includes a trip to a local migrant ministry project at the Mosney Accommodation centre for asylum-seekers, where delegates will see the work of the Meath and Kildare Diocesan Social Inclusion Group.
Tomorrow’s session starts at 10.00 a.m. with speeches by the keynote speakers beginning at 10.15 a.m. The conference will also feature the premiere of “All the loves”, the winning entry in the Hard Gospel’s recent hymn-writing competition. Written by Roddy Cowie, a member of St Bartholomew’s parish church in Stranmillis, Belfast, it will be performed by the multi-racial Discovery Gospel Choir based in Dublin.
“A Pilgrim People” is the culmination of a series of diocesan consultations on immigration held throughout Ireland. In response to key concerns raised at these meetings, conference workshops will take place tomorrow afternoon 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.”
The Director of the Hard Gospel Project, Revd Earl Storey, says: “The conference is most timely because the Church of Ireland is really at a crossroads. Historically, churches in Ireland have drawn themselves along tribal boundaries. But now immigration to Ireland places a huge challenge on such shallow divisions. The question, however, is whether the Church of Ireland can rise to such a challenge.”
For further information, please contact:
Philip McKinley
Mob: +353 (0)87 132 5531
E-mail: Philip McKinley
Or
Noreen Erskine
Mob: +44 (0)796 8904 637
Visit our website at www.hardgospel.net
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