Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from 'The Irish Times'
Saturday 16 January 2010
Week of Prayer for Christian Unity
The annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, although not perhaps having the impetus which it once had, continues to be an important vehicle for bringing churches and congregations together. This year marks the centenary of the World Missionary conference held in Edinburgh in 1910 which is seen as the precursor of the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. An account of the conference, The world missionary conference, Edinburgh 1910, by Brian Stanley, has been published by Eerdmans.
Tomorrow (Sunday) at 5.15pm there will be a special service of Evensong in the Chapel of Trinity College, Dublin, where the preacher will be Professor Linda Hogan, Professor of Ecumenics and Head of School at the Irish School of Ecumenics.
Correction:- This service of Evensong will take place on Thursday 21st January.
The Archbishop of Dublin will participate in the opening service for the Dublin Week of Prayer for Christian Unity which will take place next Monday at 8pm. This year it is hosted by the Roman Catholic parish of the Church of the Assumption in Booterstown, Co. Dublin where he preacher will be Gillian Kingston from the Methodist Church. This year’s liturgy has been prepared by Churches Together in Scotland.
On Tuesday evening the Belfast Cathedrals’ Partnership will host a church unity service in St Anne’s Cathedral at 8pm. The choirs of both St Anne’s and St Peter’s cathedrals will take part. The order of service will be that which has been jointly prepared and published by the Pontifical Council for Christian Unity and the Commission on Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches.
In Armagh the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity Service will be held in St Patrick’s Roman Catholic Cathedral on Wednesday evening while in the Church of Ireland Theological Institute the visiting preacher will be the Revd Vanessa Wyse Jackson from Rathgar Methodist Church.
Cumann Gaelach na hEaglaise and Pobal an Aifrin will host an Interdenominational Service of Prayer and Music for the Octave of Christian Unity in Irish in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, next Friday evening at 8pm
Tomorrow (Sunday) morning the Archbishop of Dublin will preach and celebrate the Eucharist in St Bartholomew’s Church, Clyde Road. In St Mary’s Church, Nenagh, the Trinity College Chapel Choir will sing at the morning service at which the TCD Dean of Residence, the Revd Darren McCallig, will preach. The Rector of Nenagh, Canon Marie Rowley-Brooke, is the mother of this year’s conductor of the Chapel Choir, Ms Roisin Rowley-Brooke. In the evening the Bishop of Cork will institute the Revd Steve McCann to the incumbency of the Ballydehob union of parishes in succession to the Very Revd Paul Draper who is now Dean of Lismore. Mr McCann comes to the Church of Ireland from the Diocese of Carlisle where he has been curate in Kendal, since 2005.
The Diocese of Dublin has announced that the new Rector of Clondalkin & Rathcoole is to be the Revd Alan Rufli who has been Rector of Holmpatrick, based in Balbriggan, since 2001. He succeeds the Revd Paul Houston who is now Rector of Castleknock. The institution will take place in March.
The Diocese of Connor has announced that the new Chaplain of Queen’s University, Belfast, will be the Revd Barry Forde who is currently a curate in Coleraine. Mr Forde, who studied law in Dundee University, trained to be a barrister in the Legal Institute which is part of Queen’s University. He will take up his new post on 1 April.