Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from The Irish Times
New Vicar for St Bart?s
A new vicar for the Dublin parish of St Bartholomew and Christ Church, Leeson Park, has been appointed. The Revd Michael James Thompson, aged 49, was born in Armagh, but educated and trained in Great Britain. He is a graduate of the universities of St Andrew?s and Durham and was trained for the ministry in the Church of Wales at St Michael?s College, Llandaff.
Mr Thompson was ordained in 1978 for the curacy of Aberavon and after a second curacy in the diocese of London was on the staff of Westminster Abbey and Priest-in-charge of St Margaret?s, Westminster. He subsequently served as Rector of Lowick (Peterborough), Priest-in-Charge Islip (London) which he combined with a honorary curacy in the splendid City of London church of St Bartholomew the Great, and Vicar of Sneiton (St Alban?s). Since 1998 he has been Rector of St Mary?s, Stamford in the diocese of Lincolnshire.
St Bart?s has a long tradition of good music and fine liturgy in the catholic tradition which previous incumbents of the stature of the late Maurice Carey and the recently retired Dean of Christ Church, Dublin, the Very Revd John Paterson, did much to foster and develop within the Church of Ireland ethos. Their careful stewardship, following earlier periods of controversy, which have been chronicled by Dr Kenneth Milne in his well crafted S. Bartholomew?s. A History of the Dublin Parish, did much to ensure that the new vicar will inherit responsibility for a rich and rare part of the kingdom of God in the Church of Ireland.
Mr Thompson will be instituted by the Archbishop of Dublin, himself a former Vicar of St Bart?s, on 26 October.
Tomorrow (Sunday) RTÉ will broadcast a Service of the Word from the Cathedral Church of St John the Baptist, Cashel, where the preacher will be the Dean of Cashel, Dr Philip Knowles. In St Patrick?s Cathedral, Dublin, the services will be sung by the Sarum Consort Singers from Wiltshire, while at 4.00 pm there will be a Sunday Evening Service in Clonmacnoise. The Linden Singers, from Victoria, British Columbia, will give a concert in St Multose?s Church, Kinsale, at 8.00 pm and will sing again on Tuesday, at the same time, in St Maelruain?s Church, Tallaght.
Next week, beginning on Monday, the Choir of St Patrick?s Cathedral, Dublin, will sing the services in Holy Trinity Cathedral, Norwich, and in addition will give concerts in Aldeburgh and Ipswich and a lunchtime recital in the cathedral. In their absence Evensong on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday will be sung by the East Wickham Singers from Kent.
On Tuesday there will be lunchtime recital in St Patrick?s given by the Loma Linda Academy Symphonic Wind Orchestra form California.
In St Mary?s Church, New Ross, where the rector is the Archdeacon of Ferns, the Ven. Paul Mooney, the Ros Tapestry Project will be holding its fourth annual exhibition on Saturday and Sunday 24 and 25 July. The project is a large community enterprise which intends to illustrate the history of the town beginning with the story of Dermot McMurrough and the Norman invasion. Nine panels will be on display from 10.00 am until 5.30 pm each day. On the Saturday evening, at 8.00 pm in St Mary?s Church, there will be a lecture by the medieval historian, Dr Catherine Swift, from NUI-Maynooth. She will speak on ?Early Trading Links between Wexford and the Wider World? after which there will an opportunity to sample some staples of medieval trade ? mead and herrings.
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