Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland notes from the Irish Times
St Patrick’s Tide Celebrations
Many and varied are the churches and cathedrals of the Church of Ireland which are dedicated to, or associated with St Patrick, and equally varied will be the celebrations therein to mark the patronal festival of our national saint.
Tomorrow (Sunday) evening BBC1 will televise Songs of Praise from Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, with the choirs of Christ Church, St Patrick’s and the Pro-Cathedral. In St Patrick’s Cathedral, Trim, the Dean of Kildare, the Very Revd Robert Townley, will preach at Festival Evensong while at the Civic Service in Cashel Cathedral the Dean, Dr Philip Knowles, will make a presentation to 92 year old Mgr Christopher Lee to mark his long ministry in Cashel. At the invitation of the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Councillor Dermot Lacey, the life of St Patrick will be celebrated at a fiesta of food, music and dancing for young adults in City Hall to which the many new communities in multi-cultural Dublin will be encouraged to bring their gifts. This event is an initiative of the Dublin Council of Churches and the Ecumenical Relations Committee of the Archdiocese of Dublin.
In Armagh tomorrow evening (Sunday) the Archbishop of Armagh will dedicate a Millennium Window in St Patrick’s Cathedral. The iconography of the window, which commemorates successive Archbishops and Deans of Armagh, was inspired by the scholarship of Archbishop George Simms whose work on the Book of Kells and the early Irish saints was familiar to many. On St Patrick’s Day the Revd Dr Eric Culbertson will preach in Irish at the 10.00 am Eucharist in the Cathedral and following the noon Eucharist Irish stew will be served in the Music Room.
Downpatrick, the traditional place of burial of St Patrick, will be another focal point of celebration on Monday. Following a Eucharist in St Patrick’s Memorial Church, Saul, the Bishop of Down and Dromore will lead a pilgrimage to Downpatrick where the preacher at the Festival Service in Down Cathedral will be the Bishop of Pittsburgh, the Rt Revd Robert Duncan.
RTÉ will broadcast Sung Eucharist for St Patrick’s Day from St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, where the preacher will be the Dean of Liverpool, the Rt Revd R.W.N. Hoare. Earlier there will be a Eucharist in Irish in the Lady Chapel.
In St Fin Barre’s Cathedral the Bishop of Cork will preside and preach at a Civic Eucharist which will be followed by a reception in the Palace while the Bishop of Cashel and Ossory will be in St Canice’s Cathedral, Kilkenny, for a celebration of the Eucharist in Irish.
Today (Saturday) in Dublin the Revd Eddie Coulter, formerly Rector of Milltown, Co. Armagh, will be introduced as Superintendent of the Irish Church Missions in succession to the late Revd William Bridcut.
Tomorrow (Sunday) RTÉ will broadcast Sung Matins with the Revd Tom Gordon and Canon W.J. Marshall. At Evensong in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, the Lenten address will be given by Fr Peter McVerry SJ from the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice.
On Tuesday the lunchtime lecture in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, will be given by Professor Sean de Courcey who will speak on “Some Liffey Influences on Medieval Dublin”, while on Wednesday the Bishop of Cork will institute the Revd Daniel Owen to the incumbency of Cobh and Glanmire.
At Evensong on Friday in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, there will be a memorial service for the musician and broadcaster, Dr W.J. (Billy) Boucher who was widely known as a frequent presenter of Songs of Praise.