Press Releases17 Sep 14

Roman Catholic and Church of Ireland bishops meet to discuss contribution of the Churches to society

Issued by the Catholic Communications Office:

In the spirit of the recommendation of the International Anglican / Roman Catholic Commission for Unity and Mission, regular meetings of Anglican and Roman Catholic bishops take place in individual countries to discuss issues of common concern. The third such meeting of Irish bishops took place in Dublin on 11 September last.

Ten bishops were present representing the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference, and the Archbishops and Bishops of the Church of Ireland, and it was a special delight to all present that the Catholic Primate of All Ireland, Archbishop Eamon Martin, was among the participants in his first week as Archbishop of Armagh. Archbishop Richard Clarke was also present and the two primates introduced a fruitful discussion of how the Irish Churches might best contribute with intelligence and vision to the debates of the public square in the rapidly changing Ireland both north and south. Time was also taken for shared prayer, biblical reflection and informal encounter.

The bishops present included:

Church of Ireland – Archbishop Richard Clarke (Armagh), Bishop Harold Miller (Down and Dromore), Bishop Michael Burrows (Cashel Ferns and Ossory) and Bishop John McDowell (Clogher).

Roman Catholic – Archbishop Eamon Martin (Armagh), Bishop Raymond Browne (Kerry), Bishop Kieran O ‘Reilly (Killaloe), Bishop Tony Farquhar (Auxiliary Bishop of Down and Connor), Bishop Brendan Leahy (Limerick) and Bishop John Fleming (Killala).