Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from The Irish Times
For Saturday 14 January 2005
Egyptian Church Leaders Visit Ireland
Muslim and Christian leaders from Egypt will visit Ireland next week to promote Islamic-Christian dialogue. The visit, at the invitation of the Church Mission Society Ireland, is part of CMS Ireland?s programme in Muslim-Christian dialogue. During the visit CMS Ireland will launch a new study pack on dialogue, ?The Hand of History?, in Armagh next Thursday and in Dublin today (Saturday) week.
The visiting group includes the leading figures in Islamic-Christian dialogue on Egypt. The Episcopal (Anglican) Bishop in Egypt, the Right Rev Dr Mouneer Hanna Anis, says one of the four key goals of the Episcopal Church of Egypt is ?to be a bridging church with other denominations and faiths?. He is travelling with Shaykh Dr Ahmed al-Tayyib, the Grand Mufti of Egypt and Rector of al-Azhar University, the oldest university in the world; Shaykh Fawzy el-Zefzaf , President of the Permanent Committee of Al-Azhar for Dialogue with Monotheistic Religions; and Dr Ali El Samman, Vice-President of Al-Azhar Mosque Permanent Committee for Dialogue with Monotheistic Religions.
They will be welcomed to Armagh on Thursday by the Archbishop of Armagh and receive a civic reception from Armagh City Council. In Dublin, they will be received by the President at Aras an Uachtarain, visit the Egyptian ambassador, meet Christian, Muslim and civic leaders, visit mosques, churches and museums, and launch ?The Hand of History? at a public meeting in the Chapel of Trinity College Dublin at 3 pm on Saturday next. ?The Hand of History? is designed for use in churches and schools as a resource for Muslim-Christian dialogue. During the visit, Dr Mouneer will also preach in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, on Sunday morning, 22 January, and at the ?Discovery? service in St George?s and St Thomas?s Church, Cathal Brugha Street that afternoon.
Tomorrow (Sunday) morning at the Sung Eucharist in the Chapel of Trinity College, Dublin, the Chaplain, Dr Alan McCormack, will inaugurate a new series of lecture sermons for Hilary term. In the following weeks the theme, from the question posed by the Greek dramatists, ?Why then should I dance?? will be addressed by, among others, the Irish Ambassador to the Holy See, Philip McDonagh, Peter Preston, former editor of the Guardian, Bride Rosney, Director of Communications in RTE, and the pianist, John O?Connor. In St Mary?s Cathedral, Limerick, the preacher at the Sung Eucharist will be Dr Alan Acheson who is preparing a biography of John Jebb, Bishop of Limerick, 1823-33.
Tomorrow (Sunday) afternoon in St Mary?s Cathedral, Tuam, the Archbishop of Armagh will commission the Bishop of Tuam, Dr Richard Henderson, as All Ireland Chaplain of the Mothers? Union in succession to the late Bishop James Moore. The Primate will preach at the service which will be attended by members of the MU from all twelve dioceses of the Church of Ireland.
On Wednesday evening in Galloon parish church, Co. Fermanagh, the Bishop of Clogher, Dr Michael Jackson, will institute the Revd Richard Seymour-Whiteley to the incumbency of Galloon, Sallaghy and Drummully. Mr Seymour-Whiteley, who was trained in Lincoln Theological College, has been Rector of Greyabbey in the Diocese of Down since 2001.
Cumann Gaelach na hEaglaise and Pobal an Aifrinn will host an interdenominational Service of Prayer and Music in Irish in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, on Friday evening at 8 pm. The service, on the theme of ?Where two or three are gathered in my name?, will be part of the celebrations of the Octave of Prayer for Christian Unity and the preacher will be An tAthair Pádraig O Maille.