ORACLES OF GOD WOMEN WHO PAVED THE WAY
january/february 2015
PAPAL VISIT TO SRI LANKA
POPE FRANCIS' SOLIDARITY WITH THE POOR
Informing, Inspiring, Challenging Today’s Catholic
AN INTERVIEW WITH
MARTIN McALEESE HIS LIFE, HIS FAITH, HIS WORK FOR RECONCILIATION
"WE CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT THE DAY OF THE LORD" IS IT TIME FOR A NEW MODEL OF PRIESTHOOD?
LIFE AS A REDEMPTORIST MISSIONER ON BEING A FEMALE MEMBER OF THE MISSION TEAM
PLUS CARMEL WYNNE ON THE 'ENTITLED' GENERATION PETER McVERRY ON VALUING LIVES DIFFERENTLY
www.redcoms.org Redemptorist-Communications @RedComsIreland �2.00 �1.80
24 DIVINE MERCY NATIONAL CONFERENCE th
RDS, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4
Saturday/Sunday 21st & 22nd February 2015
“Forgive us our trespasses...” Sr Briege Mc Kenna OSC (‘Miracles Do Happen’ – International Healing Ministry)
Fr Michael Ross SDB (Spiritual Director of the conference committee/Author)
Fr Kevin Scallon CM (Intercession for Priests/Author)
Philip Ryan (Testimony) (Medugorje Pilgrimage Tour Guide/ Youth Retreats)
Tickets available in advance from: Divine Mercy Apostolate, 22 Castle Grove, Clondalkin, Dublin 22 and by PayPal online. Fee: Saturday €30; Sunday €20; Weekend €35. Early booking advisable. Thank you for your prayer support.
www.divinemercyconference.com
divinemercyconference@gmail.com Phone/Text: 0860669203 (9am - 5pm only please)
IN THIS MONTH’S ISSUE FEATURES 12 AN INTERVIEW WITH MARTIN MCALEESE Serving the people of this island Interviewed by Sue Leonard
20 LIFE AS A REDEMPTORIST MISSIONER Young lay woman talks about her work By Sarah Smyth
23 ORACLES OF GOD The case for women preachers By Fáinche Ryan
28 POPE FRANCIS: IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE POOR OF THE WORLD
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Bringing the Church to the peripheries By Triona Doherty
34 "WE CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT THE DAY OF THE LORD" With the shortage of priests, it may be a time to consider a new model of priesthood By Fr Brian Holmes CSsR
38 THOMAS STEARNS ELIOT Remembered fifty years after his death By Fr Brendan McConvery CSsR
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47
OPINION
REGULARS
11 CIARÁN O'CALLAGHAN CSsR
04 REALITY BITES
19 KATY DOBEY
07 POPE MONITOR
27 CARMEL WYNNE
08 BORN THIS MONTH
37 PETER Mc VERRY SJ
09 REFLECTIONS 42 GOD’S WORD 47 TRÓCAIRE: DEVELOPMENT IN ACTION
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REALITY BITES REDEMPTORISTS ELECT NEW PROVINCIAL
DUBLIN
THE NEW BOSS
Fr Dan Baragry CSsR is the new Provincial of the Dublin Province of the Redemptorists. Until his election, he was a member of St Joseph’s community in Dundalk, where he worked with those in formation and as a curate in the parish. He is committed to effective collaboration with lay coworkers and others, and has worked with Redemptorist Associates around the country in recent years. Born in Limerick in 1954, where his mother and other family members still live, he entered the Redemptorists in 1972. As a student he spent two years in the Philippines, and after ordination in 1981, returned to minister in Iligan and Cebu. Fr Baragry has held various positions since his return to Ireland in 1990, including Rector of Mount St Alphonsus, Limerick, Coordinator of the Scala Youth community in Cork, Director of Formation. He has also been a parish missioner and retreat-giver and served on many of the Congregation’s councils and commissions.
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Former Provincial Fr Michael Kelleher (left) hands over to newly elected Provincial, Fr Dan Baragry
THE BELL OF THE FALLEN ITALY
FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS
The small North Italian town of Rovereto stands between the better known cities of Trent and Verona. For those who know it, it is the City of Peace. Shortly after the end of World War I, the parish priest had the idea of making a bell from the metal of the guns of every nation that had participated in the war. The result was the second largest bell in Europe
which was dedicated to Maria Dolens (Mary the Grieving One). It was first hung in 1924, recast in 1939 and again in 1964. On the occasion of its last recasting, Pope Paul VI dedicated it in St Peter’s Square before it returned to its home. Each evening, the bell tolls one hundred times in memory of those who have died in wars and as a reminder of the call to end all wars.
REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
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BARONESS RESIGNS
Baroness Nuala O'Loan
BELFAST
"NO OPTION BUT TO RESIGN"
Baroness Nuala O ’Lo an, former Northern Ireland Police Ombudsman and leading civil rights lawyer, has resigned from the ethics committee of the British Medical Association. According to a report in the Irish Catholic, Baroness O’Loan said that she could not support the committee’s support for the proposal to extend the 1967 British Abortion Act to Northern Ireland. “I believe in the sanctity and sacredness of human life so I could not commit to anything inconsistent with that position.
I felt I had no option but to resign.” The act has given Britain one of the most liberal abortion regimes in the world. It allows termination up to 24 weeks of pregnancy. It never applied in the Northern Ireland. Over the years, proposals to extend it have been supported by some political and social groups but strenuously opposed by the majority. Most members of the main Christian churches are united in opposition to the Act, even if they differ in whether or not abortion might be permitted in certain circumstances.
PIONEERING CATHOLIC JOURNALIST DIES DUBLIN
SUPERB REPORTS
Desmond Fisher, who died on 30 December last, was one of the few surviving members of a generation of Irish journalists who reported on the events of the Second Vatican Council for the Irish media. Born Derry in 1920, he was educated in Dublin. On graduation, he joined the staff of the Carlow Nationalist and Leinster Times. A few years later, he joined the Irish Press, then one of the leading Irish daily papers,
before going to London as editor of the weekly Catholic Herald. It was in this capacity that he went to Rome to cover the Council’s first two sessions in 1963 and 1964 for the Herald and the Irish Press. One of the major figures of the Council, Cardinal König of Vienna, sent him a note telling him that he learned more from Fisher’s “superb reports” than he did despite being on the spot as a Council participant.
Desmond Fisher
ENGLISH CATHOLIC DIRECTORY GOES ONLINE LONDON
SIGNS OF THE TIMES
The Catholic Directory of England and Wales will not appear this year as a printed book for the first time in 175 years. The directory
contains detailed information on all Catholic dioceses, parishes and religious communities of England and Wales. The directory first appeared in 1839. The 2014 edition was the last print edition. From
this year it will only be published online. It will include maps, local contact details and Mass times for parishes. It will also include information on Catholic schools. The new online edition was launched in January 2015. continued on page 6
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REALITY BITES THE CLONARD UNITY PILGRIMS BELFAST
A CALL TO BE TOGETHER
Each Sunday morning, a group of Catholics meet at Clonard Monastery. They call themselves ‘the Unity Pilgrims’ for they spend each Sunday making a pilgrimage: not to one of the usual holy places, but to somewhere which several years ago they might probably have never dreamed of entering on a Sunday morning. Their destination is the Sunday service of a church of the Reformation tradition. They will either have attended the vigil mass the previous evening in their local parish or an early Sunday Mass in Clonard. The idea of the Unity Pilgrims is the brain child of Fr Gerry Reynolds, a Redemptorist of Clonard Monastery. He tells how it began: “On Remembrance Sunday in November 1994, I decided, on a sudden impulse, to go on my
6 ROMERO A MARTYR? VATICAN CITY
KILLED FOR THE FAITH
Archbishop Oscar Romero
A panel of theologians advising the Vatican's Congregation for Saints' Causes voted unanimously to recognize the late Archbishop Oscar Romero as a martyr. The panel declared that the archbishop had been killed ('in hatred for the faith'.) The decision is a key step in the archbishop's cause, following an extended debate over whether he was killed for political reasons or for his faith. The next step in the process lies with the cardinals and bishops who sit on the Congregation for Saints' Causes. They will vote on whether to advise the pope to issue a decree of beatification. A miracle is not needed for beatification of a martyr though ordinarily one is needed for canonisation as saint. REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
own from Clonard Monastery to worship with a congregation of a church in the Shankill district, West Kirk Presbyterian. It just seemed right to me that I should worship together with them on that special Sunday. The IRA cease-fire had been announced on August 31st and the Loyalist cease-fire had followed on October 13th. Some grace drew me back on the following Sundays to visit other Shankill congregations and share in their worship.” Gradually, Gerry invited Catholic friends to join him. On most Sundays, seven or eight Catholics go to a service. Arrangements have been made before hand with the minister and local community. It is stressed that nothing special is to be arranged. The pilgrims simply want to join with the congregation in its ordinary worship. As a result, they have attended baptism services, harvest festivals, celebrations of the eucharist. The latter poses a special challenge. Most Protestant
ST DOMINIC'S WELL, ESKER ATHENRY
churches practise ‘open table fellowship’ which means that anyone who believes is welcome to share the Eucharistic bread Fr Gerry Reynolds and wine. The pilgrims abide with the practise of their own church but feel the pain of division that does not permit them to share this deepest mystery with one another. The pilgrims are conscious that they represent the worshipping community of Clonard on their pilgrimage. Each church they visit is announced in the notices and its community is remembered in the prayer of the faithful. They do not make a ‘return visit’ a condition of their visit but they extend a welcome to Clonard to any who wish to come, especially at the time of major celebrations like Christmas, Easter and the Annual Novena.
St Dominic's Well, Esker
A LITTLE SPRINKLE
On the feast of the Epiphany, 6th January, every year, a special ceremony takes place near the Redemptorist Church and Monastery in Esker, Co Galway. It is the blessing of the water from St Dominic’s Well. From mid-day on the vigil of the feast, water from the well is blessed in a large stone trough near the well. The blessing is repeated until darkness falls on the feast day itself. People come long distances to get bottles of the water to sprinkle in blessing on the land and the farm animals. The well is dedicated to St Dominic and goes back to the Dominican priory of Esker, which is a descendant of the monastery built in the town of Athenry in 1241. Following its destruction at the Reformation, the friars came to live in the region of Esker and remained there until the late nineteenth century when the house became the Clonfert diocesan college for a few years before the Redemptorists took possession of it. Esker is unlike most other Irish holy wells in that the water is only blessed on this one
occasion and there seems to be no relation between the well and St Dominic. Interestingly however, the Epiphany in other Christian communities is associated with the blessing of water for baptism. In Russia, for example, frozen rivers are blessed and hardy young men swim among the chunks of ice in search of a cross the priest throws into the water in blessing. The blessing of the waters
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POPE MONITOR KEEPING UP WITH POPE FRANCIS POPE VISITS BUDDHIST TEMPLE
Pope Francis greets Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka
During his visit to Sri Lanka, Pope Francis changed his schedule at the last minute to pay his respects at the Agrashravaka Temple, one of the most important places of worship in Colombo, Sri Lanka's capital. As a mark of respect for their distinguished visitor, the Buddhist monks chanted and opened the stupa, or casket, containing relics of two Buddhist saints. The abbot of the temple, Banagala Upatissa, said that allowing the pope to see the relics "is the highest mark of honour and respect we can offer to his Holiness." The abbot is active in inter-faith dialogue and had visited Pope Benedict in the Vatican. The last occasion of a papal visit to a Buddhist temple was by Pope John Paul II during the 1984 papal visit to Thailand.
HAITI REMEMBERED, FIVE YEARS ON Pope Francis thanked Catholics worldwide for helping people in Haiti recover from the devastating earthquake in 2010. Marking the fifth anniversary of the magnitude 7 earthquake that destroyed large parts of Haiti Jan.uary 2010, the pope met with international and church-based agencies, bishops and religious involved in offering assistance to those affected by the tragedy. Over 300,000 people are estimated to have died and many thousands more were injured or displaced. Those attending the papal audience in early January were taking part in a one-day conference organized by the Pontifical Council Cor Unum and the Pontifical Commission for Latin America to revive interest and commitment to reconstruction in Haiti.
A woman walks past makeshift tents in Portau-Prince, Haiti. Nearly five years after one of the most devastating earthquakes ever, more than 85,000 people still live in dozens of tent camps
POPE BREAKS WITH TRADITION IN CHOOSING CARDINALS Tonga, in the southern Pacific Ocean, with a population of just over a hundred thousand, is to have its first cardinal. Bishop Soane Mafi, at fifty-three, is the youngest of the cardinals appointed by Pope Francis in January, and leads a diocese where less than 15 per cent of the people are Catholic. With the new appointments, cardinals from Europe and North America will make up 56.8 percent of those eligible to elect the next pope, down from 60 per cent. The shift reflects the pope's emphasis on Africa and Asia, where the church is growing fastest, and on his native region of Latin America, home to about 40 percent of the world's Catholics. Three of the new cardinals are from Asia, three from Latin America, two from Africa and two from Oceania. Of the five Europeans, three lead dioceses in Italy and Spain that have not traditionally had cardinals as bishops. Only one of the new cardinals, the head of the Vatican's highest court, is a member of the Roman Curia. None of the new cardinals come from the U.S. or Canada. The new Mexican cardinal leads a diocese that has been hard hit by drug-related violence. And one of the Italian cardinals, the archbishop of Agrigento in Sicily, leads the Italian bishops' commission on migration, an issue on which Pope Francis has placed particular importance. Pope Francis has also honoured five retired bishops "distinguished for their pastoral charity in service to the Holy See and the Church," although these cardinals will not be eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Among them is a former Columbian archbishop who celebrates his ninety-sixth birthday in February.
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BORN IN FEBRUARY SR AGNES MORROGH BERNARD FOUNDER OF FOXFORD WOOLLEN MILLS
Sr Agnes
Reality Volume 80. No. 1 January 2015 A Redemptorist Publication ISSN 0034-0960 Published by The Irish Redemptorists, 75 Orwell Road, Rathgar, Dublin 6, Republic of Ireland Tel: 00353 (0)1 4922488 Fax: 00353 (0)1 4927999 Web: www.redcoms.org Email: sales@redcoms.org
BORN: 24 FEBRUARY 1842 DIED: 21 APRIL 1932
(With permission of C.Ss.R.)
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Agnes Morrogh Bernard was an Irish Sister of Charity, the daughter of a Kerry landlord. She had a privileged upbringing that stood in marked contrast to the life of most Irish people in the 1840s and 1850s. She was a boarder at the convent of the Faithful Companions of Jesus in Laurel Hill, Limerick for three years, and then went to a finishing school in Paris. She holidayed with her mother’s people in Cheltenham and London, rode out with her father in the forests of Normandy, and was the life of many society parties among her social class. Yet, as a young girl she had never lost sight of the wretchedness of the people on the Bernard family estate near Killarney, and when the opportune moment presented itself she joined the Irish Sisters of Charity in Harold’s Cross, Dublin. Parting with his muchloved daughter at the convent door in Harold’s Cross so distressed her father that he was a cause for concern among fellow travellers on the long train journey back to Killarney. Agnes was given the conventional training in religious life of the day and did not find it easy. In later life she recalled, “I used to sit down on the floor of my cell, and ask myself could I face it.” But face it she did. Her first assignment was to work with 600 poor children in Gardiner Street School and later a school for 1,200 in King's Inns Street. “Our schools were miserably poor and ill provided,” she commented. In 1875 Sr. Agnes was assigned to lead a new initiative in Ballaghadereen, Co. Roscommon. She found the same poverty-related problems here. Agnes and her community met the difficulties head-on with education, both theoretical and practical, in literacy and domestic economy. In later years letters would flow in from former students settled in England and America, thanking Agnes for the education and training received, and for the advantages it offered them for further improvement in their news surroundings. The most memorable achievement of the landlord’s daughter was the establishment of the Providence Woollen Mills in Foxford, Co. Mayo. The very concept of improving conditions there taxed the human imagination, but Agnes had a great trust in Providence: if God wanted something, God had the wherewithal to deliver the goods. Agnes made enquiries, wrote letters to bishops and industrialists, visited plant-sites, explored all avenues that might lead to helping the poor by providing employment. A reply that landed on her desk one morning began, “Madam, are you aware that you have written to a Protestant and a Freemason?” The author of that letter was a John Charles Smith of Caledon Mills, Co. Tyrone. Kind man that he was, Mr Smith came down to Foxford, sized up the situation and gave his opinion to Agnes that the project was a non-starter. She thanked him for his honesty and advice but added, “We will go on without you; Providence will provide.” Knowing then, that he was dealing with no ordinary mortal, John Smith said, “Madam, I place myself and my experience of twenty years at your disposal.” He was as good as his word, and so was Providence; and the rest can be read in the history books. John J. Ó’Riordáin CSsR REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Publisher Séamus Enright CSsR Editor of this issue Ciarán O'Callaghan CSsR Coordinating Editor Máire Ní Chearbhaill Design & Layout David Mc Namara CSsR Business Manager Paul Copeland sales@redcoms.org Circulation Claire Carmichael ccarmichael@redcoms.org Finance Administrator Veronique Coller vcoller@redcoms.org +353-1-4067272 Administration Michelle McKeon mmckeon@redcoms.org +353-1-4922488 Printed by Turners Printing, Longford Photo Credits Catholic News Service, Photocall Ireland, Shutterstock REALITY SUBSCRIPTIONS Through a promoter (Ireland only) €18 or £15 Annual Subscription by post: Ireland €22 or £18 UK £25 Europe €35 Rest of the world €45 Please send all payments to: Redemptorist Communications, 75 Orwell Road, Rathgar, Dublin 6, Republic of Ireland ADVERTISING Whilst we take every care to ensure the accuracy and validity of adverts placed in Reality, the information contained in adverts does not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of Redemptorist Communications. You are therefore advised to verify the accuracy and validity of any information contained in adverts before entering into any commitment based upon them. When you have finished with this magazine, please pass it to another reader or recycle it. Thank you.
REFLECTIONS Surely as cometh the winter, I know There are spring violets under the snow. ROBERT HENRY NEWELL
It is not my business to think about myself. My business is to think about God. It is for God to think about me. SIMONE WEIL
The secret of staying young is to live honestly, eat slowly, and lie about your age. LUCILLE BALL
Hope, even when it’s not specific, is bouncy and resolute. MICHAEL J. FARRELL
It is for God we serve the poor, and not for thanks.
Playwriting gets into your blood and you can't stop it. At least not until the producers or the public tell you to. T. S. ELIOT
Sometimes I wonder if men and women really suit each other. Perhaps they should live next door and just visit now and then. KATHARINE HEPBURN
Even if the last move did not succeed, the inner command says move again.
It is only through shadows that one comes to know the light. CATHERINE OF SIENA
It's discouraging to think how many people are shocked by honesty and how few by deceit. NOËL COWARD
CATHERINE MCAULEY
SEAMUS HEANEY
Two left-handed gloves don’t make a pair. Two half-truths don’t make a truth.
There is no such thing as conversation. It is an illusion. There are intersecting monologues, that is all.
I heard a wise saying once that has helped me: ‘Negative feelings are like stray cats. The more you feed them, the more they hang around.’
REBECCA WEST
JOYCE RUPP
EDUARD DOUWES DEKKER
We do not need to go out and find love; rather, we need to be still and let love discover us.
An aim in life is the only fortune worth finding.
JOHN O'DONOHUE
ONASSIS
They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.
JACQUELINE KENNEDY
The first beginnings of wisdom is to ask questions but never to answer any. FLANN O’BRIEN
The flowers of late winter and early spring occupy places in our hearts well out of proportion to their size.
I have a simple philosophy: Fill what's empty. Empty what's full. Scratch where it itches.
ANDY WARHOL
GERTRUDE S. WISTER
ALICE ROOSEVELT LONGWORTH
The one nice thing about sports is that they prove men do have emotions and are not afraid to show them.
Poetry begins where language starts: in the shadows and accidents of one person’s life.
Autumn arrives in the early morning, but spring at the close of a winter day.
JANE O'REILLY
EAVAN BOLAND
ELIZABETH BOWEN
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REDEMPTORIST PARISH MISSIONS & NOVENAS 2015 Please pray for the Redemptorist Teams who will preach the Word and for God’s People who will hear the Word proclaimed during 2015 in: Ballaghameehan, Co. Leitrim (18th – 25th April)
Glasthule, Co. Dublin (28th November – 5th December)
Ballincollig, Co. Cork (28th February – 6th March)
Glenamaddy, Co. Galway (3rd – 10th October)
Ballyshannon (Kilbarron), Co. Donegal (19th – 29th September)
Greenlough, Co. Derry (7th – 15th May)
Banbridge (Seapatrick), Co. Down (28th February – 8th March)
Holy Cross, Co. Tipperary (12th – 13th September)
Belfast – St Gerard’s Parish (11th – 19th May)
Horeswood, Co. Wexford (9th – 15th May)
Birmingham, Handsworth, UK (9th – 20th May)
Kanturk, Co. Cork (2nd – 12th May)
Clifden, Co. Galway (8th – 16th March)
Kilkenny City – St John’s Parish (1st – 11th February)
Clonard, Wexford Town (8th – 14th March)
Kilronan (Keadue), Co. Roscommon (7th – 14th November)
Clough Jordan, Co. Tipperary (14th–20th November)
Kingscourt, Co. Cavan (21st – 28th March)
Cooneal, Co. Mayo (26th September – 3rd October)
Lattin, Co. Tipperary (18th – 24th April)
Dingle, Co. Kerry (26th – 28th March)
London, UK – Parish of St Joseph, Wembley (14th – 21st March)
Dublin 6 – Marianella, 75 Orwell Road (15th – 23rd May)
Naas, Co. Kildare (31st October – 6th November)
Dublin 17 – St Francis’ Parish, Priorswood (16th – 26th May)
Newtownards and Comber, Co. Down (28th February – 8th March)
Dunboyne, Co. Meath (21st – 28th February)
Ogonnelloe, Co. Clare (7th – 14th November)
Dundalk, (St Joseph’s Redemptorist Church), Co. Louth (8th – 16th October)
Roscommon Town (21st February – 1st March)
Dungannon, Co. Tyrone (17th – 24th October)
Shanagolden, Co. Limerick (7th – 13th March)
Ederney, Co. Fermanagh (21st – 28th March)
Shinrone, Co. Offaly (14th – 21st February)
Feenagh-Kilmeedy (17th – 23rd October)
Termonfechin, Co. Louth (21st – 28th March)
Foxrock, Co. Dublin – Our Lady of Perpetual Help Parish (16th – 26th May)
Windgap, Co. Kilkenny (10th – 17th October)
Galway City – Cathedral Parish (9th – 17th February)
Breaking The Word in February 2015 BALLINCOLLIG, CO. CORK 28th February – 06th March 2015 Parish Mission preached by Séamus Enright CSsR, Dan Baragry CSsR and Ms. Niamh O’Neill
GALWAY CITY – CATHEDRAL PARISH 9th – 17th February 2015 Solemn Novena preached by Brian Nolan CSsR and Ms. Sarah Smyth
ROSCOMMON TOWN 21st February – 1st March 2015 Solemn Novena preached by Brendan Keane CSsR, John Hanna CSsR and Ms. Sarah Smyth
DUNBOYNE, CO. MEATH 21st – 28th February 2015 Parish Mission preached by Laurence Gallagher CSsR, Derek Meskell CSsR and Ms. Niamh Niamh O’Neill
KILKENNY CITY – ST. JOHN’S PARISH 1st – 11th February 2015 Solemn Novena preached by Laurence Gallagher CSsR and Johnny Doherty CSsR
SHINRONE, CO. OFFALY 14th – 21st February 2015 Parish Mission preached by Denis Luddy CSsR, Michael Dempsey CSsR and Ciarán O’Callaghan CSsR
The details above are accurate at time of printing. If you have any views, comments or even criticisms about Redemptorist preaching, I would love to hear from you. If you are interested in a mission or novena in your parish, please contact me for further information. And please keep all Redemptorist preachers in your prayers!
Ciarán O’Callaghan CSsR, Provincial Delegate for the Proclamation of the Word Email: delegate@proclaim.ie Tel: +353-1-4067253 The Redemptorist National Mission team is fully booked until September 2015. We are now taking bookings from October 2015 onwards.
EDI TO R I A L UP FRONT CIARÁN O'CALLAGHAN CSsR
IS THIS SCRIPTURE FULFILLED IN YOUR HEARING?
The
Nazareth synagogue that Jesus knew is long gone. Yet what Jesus did and said there is not forgotten. His words echo down the centuries and can still inspire us – if we let them. Saint Luke tells how Jesus entered the synagogue, took the scroll of the prophet Isaiah and read these words: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour.” Then he added: “Today this scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” Luke presents it as a dramatic beginning to the ministry of Jesus – a kind of manifesto. However, unlike some of our politicians with their manifestos, Jesus did exactly what he promised. He reached out to foreigners, Samaritans, the poor, the sick, the politically unacceptable and the morally unclean. He told them of God’s special love for them and how they were central to God’s plan to save all people. He generated fierce opposition, not only in Nazareth but throughout Israel as well. I do not know what Pope Francis’ favourite Gospel is, but I would hazard a guess that it might be the Gospel of Luke. Certainly he seems to have heard Jesus’ words from the Nazareth synagogue and has acted on them. He has set himself the task of reaching out to all people. He has met with desperate refugees who have braved the Mediterranean Sea between Italy and North Africa. He has visited prisoners. He has highlighted the issue of trafficked women. He has met the victims of clerical sex abuse. He has stood in solidarity with the victims of the Mafia. He has worked for reconciliation between the Israelis and the Palestinians. He played a crucial role in restoring diplomatic ties between Cuba and the United States. He
has even made himself a terrorist target by opposing the barbarity of the Islamic State. Within the Church he has reached out to gay people, to those trapped in broken marriages and has promised a new role for women in the life and ministry of the Church. Following the example of Jesus he has told those on the margins of God’s love for them and of the central place they have in God’s plan for the world. He too has generated fierce opposition and not all of it is from outside the Church. I take great pride in Pope Francis. After the years of scandal and of the battering the Catholic community has taken, finally we have a Church leader who inspires us and leads us with Christ-like courage and simplicity. However, I do believe that it is not enough simply to hear of Pope Francis’ words and say “isn’t it grand!” Our pride in Francis can never be a substitute for our own personal responsibility to hear Jesus’ synagogue manifesto and to act on it too. There are indeed people in the Irish Church and in Irish society that we should have great concern for. There is urgent need to find ways in which women can take new roles in administration, leadership, teaching and preaching that do not have to be linked to ordination. This could go some way to address current difficulties. I think of asylum seekers. There have been protests about the conditions in the state-run direct provision centres and the Irish bishops have called on the government to act urgently to address the situation. I think of the children growing up in these places. I think of children who have gone missing from state care and
are still unaccounted for. I think of the working poor. I think of those who are visibly homeless and of those who are the hidden homeless – living in temporary, insecure, low quality or overcrowded housing. We look back in shock and shame at the way people were treated in the past by Church and State. Will future generations look back and condemn us for not acting? Saint Alphonsus once said to the first Redemptorists, “Seek God in the abandoned poor and you will make Jesus happy.” It might not be the language we would use today, but it captures the message of the Gospel. If we are to be faithful to the Gospel and if things are going to change, then our care for those in need must shape both our Christian discipleship and our politics. We live in a democracy where we get to choose our public servants. If our political choices are based purely on self-interest then nothing will change. If those choices are shaped by Jesus’ synagogue manifesto and by the example of Pope Francis, how things might change radically.
Ciarán O'Callaghan CSsR Editor
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C OVE R STO RY
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MARTIN REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
AN INTERVIEW WITH MARTIN MCALEESE
DR MARTIN MCALEESE HAS SERVED THE PEOPLE OF THIS ISLAND THROUGH HIS WORK FOR RECONCILIATION AND HEALING. RECENTLY HE WAS INTERVIEWED FOR REALITY BY SUE LEONARD
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If
President Mary McAleese is remembered for just one thing, it will surely be for her role in facilitating the Queen’s visit to Ireland in 2011. That Queen Elizabeth II visited at all is seen as something of a miracle. That the State visit was such a success and an emotionally charged event was in the realm of dreams. Who can forget the Queen’s respectful dignity when she visited the Garden of Remembrance? Her words of Irish, the standing ovation she received after the concert in the Convention Centre, and her sheer joy during interactions at the English Market in Cork. These are moments that few of us will ever forget. Happening near the end of the President’s second and final term it copper-fastened her as a President to be proud of. What is less well known is the role the President’s husband Martin McAleese performed in ensuring that such a visit could be possible. He had been working quietly in the background, ever since Mary was elected in 1997.
Being consort to a President might have daunted many. But McAleese saw it as an honour. “Coming from our background to the Áras was such a huge honour for us. I arrived there with Mary sensing that there
“Meeting … [the Loyalists] was very special and I have the greatest respect for them. In some ways they did more for me than I did for them in that they refocused my mind on my own faith. That may not have happened otherwise.” would be a role for me to play. The theme of Mary’s presidency was ‘building bridges .’ This included building bridges to all communities in Northern Ireland. The ultimate aim was to contribute, along with the contributions of many others, to the creation of the
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Dr Martin McAleese, Chancellor, Dublin City University with Senator George J Mitchell (centre) and Professor Brian MacCraith, President, Dublin City University.
conditions that would permit the Queen to visit Ireland and be well received. It was difficult for Mary to visit Northern Ireland without a high profile but I could.”
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enemy. For people living in a paramilitary environment the consequences of this could have been very brutal. Meeting them was very special and I have the greatest respect for them. In some ways they did more for me than I did for them in that they refocused my mind on my own faith. That may not have happened otherwise.”
“My only connection during those days to my Irishness and Nationalism was the GAA. I will always be grateful to that organisation; my great love for it has endured.” The first time Martin met with Loyalist paramilitaries it was insisted that he do so with security. He felt this contributed to an atmosphere of distrust, and for future visits he dispensed with it entirely. Surely he was taking a great risk and was putting himself in danger? “People do say that, but I don’t see it like that at all,” he says. “I see it from the other side. I knew we had to engage with Loyalist paramilitaries but I was nervous about making the first move. What if it had been rejected? The first step in everything we do is always the most difficult, like deciding to ask someone out on a date or deciding to change your career. Those Loyalists who reached out to me in return took the greater risk because they could have been regarded by their communities as engaging with the perceived REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Mary McAleese is known for her strong, if somewhat liberal faith. She has spent the last two-and-ahalf years studying in Rome and is currently completing a doctoral degree in
Canon Law. She incurred some controversy when, as President, she received communion in a Church of Ireland cathedral in Dublin. She is in favour of women priests but there is no doubting the fervency of her belief. Martin McAleese, who was brought up as a Catholic in the heartland of Loyalist and Protestant East Belfast, is less convinced. “I have a questioning faith; I was born with it, though my mother had an unquestioning faith. We said the rosary every night and after the five decades the prayers ended, I clearly remember, with a prayer for the conversion of Russia. I don’t have that blind faith. Mine is very questioning, and it has its ups and downs. But I have to say it has been strengthened by our engagement with Loyalist paramilitaries. There is a goodness in every human heart and we found it in theirs, in places where we least expected to find it. They demonstrated a real willingness to find a way to resolve the conflict and move on to a better future for all of us and our children.” Many would expect Martin to feel a sense of bitterness towards the Loyalist community. Brought up as a Catholic in such a community he always felt disconnected from his Protestant neighbours and a ‘loner’ in his own community. He was constantly made to feel second class and unwanted. This had a hugely detrimental effect on his confidence and self-esteem, resulting in a natural instinct to fade into the background and do anything not to be noticed. When the
The McAleeses with the late Reverend Ian Paisley and Mrs Eileen Paisley
family lost their home during the early part of the Troubles his mother, he says, never really recovered. “I have never felt bitterness, and never experienced a sense of wanting revenge or to get my own back,” he says. “I cannot explain why that is but I am very grateful for it. My upbringing gave me a strong survival instinct and my education gave me the tools to control my own future.” It’s one thing managing to engage with your perceived enemies; it’s quite another to build strong friendships with them; and ones that seem set to endure. Yet that is exactly what the McAleeses have done. “The first Loyalist I met was Jackie McDonald, a UDA brigadier, and a member of the UDA inner council. We talked on the phone in December, 2002 and a few months later I went to Belfast and met him for the first time. Subsequently he came to visit us in Áras an Uachtaráin with a group of Loyalists. At lunch he sat on Mary’s right. Mary stood up to welcome everyone and when she had finished speaking, to our surprise, he stood up. He spoke about the honour of being there, about the relationship he and I were building and of how good that relationship was. Before he sat down he presented Mary with a number of gifts including a Glasgow Rangers football scarf. Mary subsequently gave that scarf to her father, a devout Nationalist, and it became one of his proudest possessions. I looked across the room at the two of them, one, the face of Loyalism, the other the face of Nationalist Ireland, and, seeing the warmth of their body language, their comfort in each other’s company and how well they were getting on, I knew then that there would be no going back and that our long hoped-for peace was safe. I also felt that lunch was a vindication of Mary’s election as President. At the time of her election there were those who said, ‘What is the point in electing a President from Northern Ireland?’ That lunch, for me, was proof of why she was elected. She was the right person at the right time.” At the time of Mary’s election as President, she and Martin were no strangers to the
Republic. After studying physics at Queen’s University Belfast he came to Dublin to study accountancy. He worked in finance before returning to Trinity College Dublin at the age of 30 to study dentistry. “I lived in Dublin from 1972 to 1974; then spent two years in Belfast before marrying Mary in 1976; we moved to Dublin the following year, staying for ten years; then it was back to Northern Ireland for a further ten – then back to Dublin when Mary became President.”
organisation; my great love for it has endured. During that time I looked southwards with envy. I regarded the Republic as my natural
“Changing mind-sets, building friendships and building trust is not the end of peace-building. There needs to be a quantum leap to move from trust to generosity, and that is what is currently lacking.”
The visit of Queen Elizabeth to Ireland
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Martin has always looked to the Republic. “Growing up in Belfast, experiencing sectarianism, fear and discrimination I don’t remember a time that was free of trouble. As a Catholic I always felt excluded, not respected and I felt there wasn’t equal opportunity in terms of jobs and housing or equal standing in the eyes of the law. I felt no allegiance to the United Kingdom, and did not see myself as a subject of the Queen. My only connection during those days to my Irishness and Nationalism was the GAA. I will always be grateful to that
hinterland, a place I was so cruelly cut off from with partition in 1922. It was a place of equality, justice, and equal opportunity for all its citizens. And, even more important, it was a place where one could freely express feelings of Irishness and Nationalism.” When he first arrived in Dublin, was it the utopia he had imagined? “It wasn’t all I had hoped for,” he says. “I came after Bloody Sunday, and whilst most people expressed interest – and were sympathetic and aware of the Northern problems, some were hostile to Northern Ireland – there was a mixed bag
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of what needs to happen in Northern Ireland before the Troubles can be said to be entirely over. “We need to have open conversations about everything. We have to honestly sit down with the ‘other’ and confront the issues that are normally swept under the carpet to avoid embarrassment or profound disagreement.”
16 of views. That was a surprise to me, because I had expected more uniformity of views.” Martin worked as a dentist in Northern Ireland for thirteen years and says had Mary not become President he would most likely still be doing so. “I worked in Bessbrook, County Armagh for two days a week, and in Crossmaglen for three days. The patients in Bessbrook were largely Protestant and Unionist, whereas those in Crossmaglen were Nationalist and Catholic. The contrast was striking. The dental problems in both practices were identical, the treatment was the same, but the conversations with patients were completely different. In Bessbrook you avoided talking about some issues. You didn’t talk about the Troubles, and what happened last weekend; you kept your distance because you didn’t want to cause embarrassment or offend or indeed be offended. You kept to the weather or football, and I suppose there was an element of dishonesty in that. In Crossmaglen you felt more comfortable with patients and everything was discussed.” That experience has made McAleese aware REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
The Good Friday Agreement signed in 1998 represents, McAleese believes, only the beginning of peace in Northern Ireland. “There are still many elements of peace building to be completed. The peace process is long, it is a process or work in progress and we need to remember that. I don’t think you can ever get to a point where you can say, ‘the peace process is over, it ended last week.’ We’ve achieved the ending of violence and the decommissioning of weaponry – that was high profile and publicly played out. Phase two, the consolidation of peace and the rolling out of normal politics around issues of education, health, jobs and so on is a relentless business, most of which is done in the background. Changing mind-sets, building friendships
on the interests of the whole community rather than mainly on the interests of the constituencies they represent; they have not yet moved to where they are all working together for one community. We all need to move from a past characterised by two communities and two traditions to a future characterised by two traditions but just one community. That is the crucial step.” As McAleese sees it, the peace process is still in its early stages. “The Good Friday agreement is nearly seventeen years old. I’m Chancellor of Dublin City University and for the fifteenth anniversary of the Agreement in 2013 the University conferred honorary degrees on David Trimble, Seamus Mallon and Senator George Mitchell. The Agreement is right in the middle of its teenage years – difficult, rebellious, hormonal even but like our teenage sons and daughters it will mature and come right in time. It needs to be nurtured and protected. We just have to realise that there is a long way to go, and we are going through a particularly difficult phase at the moment. The key thing,” he says, “is to make a distinction between cross-community and cross-interface. Cross-community is relatively easy; you can make friends with someone twenty miles away because you don’t have to live opposite each other. Developing and fostering healthy crossinterface relationships is vital.” McAleese is a strong family man. His father
“Politicians need to focus more on the interests of the whole community rather than mainly on the interests of the constituencies they represent; they have not yet moved to where they are all working together for one community.” and building trust is not the end of peacebuilding. There needs to be a quantum leap to move from trust to generosity, and that is what is currently lacking. It’s missing both at the heart of politics and at the heart of communities. Politicians need to focus more
lived with them since the death of his mother in 1981. He was a constant in the lives of his grandchildren, caring for them whilst their parents worked. What was it like for Emma, Sara and Justin when their mother became President? How did they cope, living
in the glare of the media? “They didn’t want to come to Dublin; they suddenly found themselves there through no choice of their own; but they were young enough to make the transition. The great thing,” he says, “is that they never bought into the celebrity culture. We didn’t have to tell them how to conduct themselves. They intuited the way to go. If they were making new friends or developing friendships, they would be pretty sure to wait until they were certain the new friend was a friend because of them as a person, and not because of where they lived or who their mother was. If someone asked them, ‘where do you live?’ they would say, ‘Blanchardstown,’ or ‘Castleknock.’ They would never say, ‘Áras an Uachtaráin.’ It was an amazing experience for them, and they gained a great deal of confidence. Whilst staying in the background, they did meet a lot of extraordinary people: Presidents and Prime Ministers, the Queen, the Clintons, the Blairs and the Obamas, to mention a few.” All
are now doing well. Justin works for Ryanair, Sara is doing post-doctoral work at the Royal College of Surgeons and Emma has taken after her father. Initially studying electrical engineering, she retrained as a dentist. She is married, and recently gave birth to Martin’s first grandchild. “Charlie is my greatest joy. He was named after my father.” As for Martin, he hasn’t been idle since his wife left office. He is currently Chancellor of Dublin City University, has been a Senator, was the independent chair of the InterDepartmental Committee that established the facts of State involvement with the Magdalen laundries, is currently chairing the implementation Group set up to resolve the Priory Hall housing issue and is still involved in Northern Ireland. “Those friendships we developed with Loyalist paramilitaries and members of their communities were not just friendships for fourteen years – they are for life.” There were many good moments for him
during Mary’s Presidency. Whilst the Queen’s visit, one she herself enjoyed, was clearly the pinnacle, he enjoyed other moments too. “Ireland hosting the Special Olympics was amazing,” he says. “Being in Cardiff to see Ireland win the rugby grand slam in 2008 – that was wonderful. It was the first time we had won it in sixty odd years. But my most treasured memory is the warmth of the welcome that ordinary Irish people accorded to Mary and myself everywhere we went, the length and breadth of our island, during the fourteen years that she was in office and to see the respect that they hold for the office and for the office-holder. That impacted on everything we did. We were very careful not to do anything that would demean or undermine the office or the office-holder.”
Sue Leonard lives in Wicklow. She is a freelance journalist and best-selling author who frequently contributes to Reality.
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COM M E N T THE WAY I SEE IT KATY DOBEY
WINTER HIKE
FIR TREES GLISTENED WITH SNOW AND THE MOUNTAINS ALL AROUND US WERE BROWN, AUBURN AND GREEN I have always had some experience of hiking. I have vivid memories of early morning rises, picnic packing and lots of excitement in the rush to get outside for a nice long walk. When I was in sixth class, my parents took my sister, brother and me to the Lake District in England. On our short visit, we stayed in a cosy B&B and did three hikes over three days. These felt like much more serious adventures with proper backpacks, water bottles, sandwiches and lots of chocolate to keep us going over the hours we’d be spending in the great outdoors. Since then, my dad has organised such a trip annually. My dad is the oldest in his family, and when he was sixteen years old, he travelled alone across the Irish Sea to visit his Auntie Sheila in the Lake District. Auntie Sheila was living in Keswick at the time. He must have had a wonderful time, as some years later, he organised for his siblings to join him on a similar holiday in the lakes. They hiked and camped and again they too must have enjoyed the experience as thirty years later, they decided to recreate that trip. An open invitation was sent to all my dad’s siblings, his nieces and nephews, cousins and friends. Not all the original siblings could be present but a date was picked and a Dobey crew met on the ferry to Holyhead early one July morning. This trip has become an annual tradition and I must confess they have all become confused in my
that this is one of the few Lake District trips I missed, but I heard that she was a great addition to the party and I wait in hope that she will join us again another year.
head. They start off the same way: meet the Irish-based family and friends on the ferry, meet the English-based at a rest-stop on the motorway half-way from Wales to Cumbria. There we eat and catch up and quickly get back to the cars. The first evening, we drive straight to a car park where we do a short two- to three-hour walk followed by an evening meal out in one of the local country pubs. We check into a hostel and spend the evening playing cards and board games and catching up with cousins, siblings, nephews, nieces, uncles, aunts and friends. Two more days of hiking follows with the hardest and longest walk taking place on the final day. The weekend is always great fun. On a good year, the numbers reach the high teens, other years there have been as few
as five or six, but whatever the number, there are always shared experiences, shared meals and shared rooms that bring the family closer together. There are games, jokes and laughter which keeps us all motivated as we sometimes climb in abject weather and wonder why we put ourselves through this torture! In 2013, Auntie Sheila, who had since moved away from the area, joined the family trip to the Lake District. My great-aunt (who has always been a great aunt) wanted to see her one-time home again. Having heard so much about the tradition her invitation to my dad had begun in 1973, she decided to join her fellow Dobeys on their walking holiday. She drove up with the other English-based relatives and met the clan in the usual way. It is a great pity to me
This year I have been doing much more hiking in the Wicklow Mountains. I am no mountainleader and have been spoilt by my dad’s willingness to plan a variety of trips for us over the years. I have discovered other friends with both the skills and desire to go hiking on a regular basis, though, and have recently joined them on many organised day-trips. The most recent was in the week after Christmas, when we took the cars to Glendalough and climbed the Spink and Derrybawn Ridge. My dad and I almost instantly regretted our choice to leave the blazing fire at home, when the initial steep climb was accompanied by a heavy shower of snowy sleet. The six in our party were all well wrapped up, but nothing can save the face from the sting of wet and cold. This lasted only a short while however, and was totally worth it for the snowball fight we had when we made it onto the ridge. The fir trees glistened with snow and the mountains all around us were brown, auburn and green, as we alone stood in the glittering white. It was a magical encounter to hike in the winter and I hope to get lots more experience of the same. If you agree, disagree or just want to add your own thoughts to our comment pieces, email: editor@redcoms.org or write to: The Editor, Redemptorist Communications, 75 Orwell Road, Rathgar, Dublin 6
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R E D E MP TO R I ST LI FE
Sarah Smyth
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LIFE AS A REDEMPTORIST MISSIONER SARAH SMYTH SHARES HER EXPERIENCE OF BEING A MEMBER OF THE REDEMPTORIST MISSION TEAM
Four
years ago if someone were to ask me what a Redemptorist parish mission was I would not have been able to offer any sort of answer. Four years ago I was a supply teacher on the Northern Ireland substitute teacher register. This meant that I could be called in to cover a teacher in a school who was off sick or away training within a 50 km radius from my home in Forkhill, County Armagh. I thoroughly enjoyed this work. Teaching is what I had trained for at Saint Mary’s College, Twickenham, after having completed a BA in theology and religious studies. I come from a 'normal’ family background, baptised a
REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Catholic and raised in a small village on the border between County Armagh and County Louth. It seems that I was always aware of, and familiar with, the Redemptorists. My mum has great faith in the intercession of Saint Gerard Majella, and as a child no matter what else was going on in the month of October, she would have always taken us to the annual novena in his honour in Dundalk, a novena that still to this day is attended by thousands of people. GETTING INVOLVED IN THE PARISH When I came home from London I became
involved with my local parish pastoral council and at the time they were planning a parish mission. Having met the mission leader I agreed to be the liaison between the Mission Team and the parish. My role was to work towards having an evening where the youth of our parish would organise and lead the mission service. Working with the Redemptorist Mission Team that was assigned to our parish gave me an insight into the ethos of the Redemptorists and the purpose and message of the work the missioners do. Although I had an idea of who they were, I realised in the preparation of our own mission that the Redemptorists
try to answer the questions that people are asking. They relate to people in a way that unfortunately does not happen in all areas of our Church. The work they do intrigued me and I enquired about becoming more involved with the Mission Team and I began as a temporary member of the team a number of months later.
and small rural villages. As well as celebrating the Eucharist and evening mission services during the week of mission, we also reach out to as many people as possible – visiting schools, working with young people, visiting the sick and housebound. I get involved in as
such as, “what sort of training have you had?” “Are you going to be a nun?” “How can you have a social life or a relationship doing this work?” Kids and young people can be very comical in their innocent and genuine questioning. On one mission after myself and
As a member of the Mission Team, I get involved in as much as I can – singing, sharing a witness of my faith, liaising and visiting schools, working with young people, bringing Communion to, and praying with, the sick and housebound, as well as offering time to those in the parish who want an ear to listen.
LAY MEMBER OF THE MISSION TEAM I have since become one of two fulltime lay members of the Mission Team. As a co-worker missioner I find myself working with any combination of Redemptorists depending on what best suits the parish. There are no two weeks of a parish mission or nine days of a novena that are the same, just as there are no two parishes that are the same. It amazed me just how much time and work it takes on the part of the parish and Mission Team to put together a week of mission. The parish priest and parish pastoral council meet with the assigned Mission Team leader up to a year in advance and preparations begin. Missions happen during the school year and take place all over the country. I have been on parish missions in sixteen of our thirty-two counties including cities, towns
much as I can – singing, sharing a witness of my faith, liaising and visiting schools, working with young people, bringing Communion to, and praying with, the sick and housebound, as well as offering time to those in the parish who want an ear to listen. PEOPLE ARE VERY POSITIVE Being the only woman on the Mission Team in a parish can lend itself to all sorts of comments and indeed criticisms. Most of the time people are very positive about having both a lay person and a woman on the team. People are intrigued and ask questions
two Redemptorists visited pupils in a primary school a young child went home and told her parents that a boy priest, a girl priest and the bishop had visited their school that day! I personally believe that we are in a very exciting time in the Catholic Church with Pope Francis leading the way. He does not only talk about the Church being for everybody, he shows it through his daily interactions with people. Pope Francis gives examples of working with, meeting with, and sharing with people from all walks of life. In a recent homily, he said that “many times, Christians seem to look more like they are going to a funeral procession than going to worship God.” He went on to say “that we must be joyous in our worship of God, that is when we truly receive the grace of God through the Holy Spirit.” WHY ARE MISSIONS AND NOVENAS SO POPULAR? The Church in Ireland is still very strong and committed. There may be fewer in the pews but if you look at the attendance at the novenas that take place all over the country and in Redemptorist churches, as well as the positivity and the real sense of needing the mission that we get as we travel around the country, it is very obvious that the faith is still there. We hear a lot of talk about falling numbers of practising Catholics and we can take that in and focus on that. But in my limited experience of travelling the country
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R E D E MP TO R I ST LI FE
People ask questions such as, “what sort of training have you had?” “Are you going to be a nun?” “How can you have a social life or a relationship doing this work?” with the Mission Team it has become very apparent to me that the Catholic faith is still very much alive in Ireland. People come out in their droves to missions and novenas and yet for some that is the only time they would entertain the thought of going to church. Why so? Each person has their own reasons for making that choice but it may be down to the fact that a week of mission is something new and different in their parish. It offers a different way of celebrating faith, affirming the faith of the parish, renewing that faith and challenging believers to continue to be the most effective Christians they can be.
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CELEBRATING THE EUCHARIST Missions are known for their uplifting liturgies. The celebration of the Eucharist is, in my opinion, central to our being an effective community of faith. The Eucharist is where we are nourished by the body, blood Sarah with her mission co-worker, Niamh O'Neill
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and words of Jesus. It is supposed to be a time where we are supported and encouraged by the faith of those around us to be the best that we can be individually and collectively. In the Gospels Jesus is constantly telling us that in order for us to be effective Christians we must do our upmost to use our Godgiven gifts and talents. We can be very shy at coming forth and recognising what it is that we have been given in way of gifts and talents that can be of any service to others. We all have something to give, and from working on the Mission Team I am finding what it is that I have to offer and I hope that I am helping those I work with in parishes to recognise and utilise their talents. It is these talents that can be used to enhance the life of our parish and the celebration of Eucharist. REDEMPTORIST PILGRIMAGE TO ITALY In 2014, I had the opportunity to travel to Italy and go on pilgrimage with some
Redemptorists and associates. The pilgrimage took us to the south of Italy and along the Amalfi Coast – the birthplace of the Redemptorists. This pilgrimage brought about great camaraderie among those who were there. We visited a number of Alphonsian sites as well as places associated with Saint Gerard Majella. This gave us a real sense of Saint Alphonsus’ purpose in founding the Congregation, of bringing us back to the origins of the Redemptorists and of reminding us that they were founded to bring the Good News to those in most need. In January last year Pope Francis said, “Effective Christian witness is not about bombarding people with religious messages, but about our willingness to be available to others.” This is what a Redemptorist mission offers a parish, a week of witness, of exploring the word of God and of responding in whatever way possible to meet the needs of that parish. I love every minute of being a member of the Redemptorist Mission Team and I plan to continue on it for as long as they’ll have me!
Sarah Smyth is from Forkhill, County Armagh and lives in Dundalk. She is a fulltime member of the Redemptorist National Mission Team.
ORACLES OF GOD
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POPE FRANCIS WANTS WOMEN TO HAVE NEW ROLES IN THE LIFE AND MINISTRY OF THE CHURCH. WE LOOK AT SOME HISTORICAL EXAMPLES THAT POINT TO A WAY FORWARD FOR WOMEN PREACHERS. BY FÁINCHE RYAN
As
I begin to write this article, a religious sister in full habit walks past my window. She is elderly, using a stick, walking slowly. I look at her and consider what her contribution to the Church of Christ may have been. I wonder how many of God’s people she has nurtured and helped, as she has journeyed through life
following this particular way of fulfilling her baptismal anointing. Many, I am sure. And then I begin to wonder if she has ever “been called upon to cooperate with the bishop and presbyters in the exercise of the ministry of the word” as is stated in canon law (canon 759). I wonder if she has ever been called upon to preach?
The question seems somewhat strange, for most of us are familiar with the preaching of ordained ministers at our Sunday eucharist. This is because traditionally preaching in our Church has been linked with teaching, and the office of teaching has been reserved to men. In 1967 the New Catholic Encyclopedia stated that
“No woman has been proclaimed (Doctor of the Church), although Teresa of Avila has popularly been given the title because of the influence of her spiritual teaching; it would seem that no woman is likely to be named because of the link between this title and the teaching office, which is limited to males.”
F E AT U R E
Pope Francis has suggested that we need to re-examine the role of women in the Church. More active participation of women in preaching would be one way forward
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Teresa of Avila
Catherine of Siena
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WOMEN DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH Yet just three years later, in 1970, Pope Paul VI proclaimed Saint Teresa of Avila the first woman Doctor of the Church. In the address he gave that day he noted: “The meaning of this act is very clear … Saint Teresa of Avila’s doctrine shines with charisms of truth, of conformity to the Catholic faith and of usefulness for the instruction of souls.” Thus St Teresa of Avila, founder of the Discalced Carmelites (1515–1582), that brave and wise Spanish woman, is henceforth to be officially recognised as a Doctor of the Church. The term ‘doctor’ comes from the Latin docere (‘to teach’). For the first time in Church history a woman is formally recognised as an official teacher within the Church. Also in 1970, Catherine of Siena (1347–1380), a Dominican tertiary, joined Teresa of Avila in being recognised as an official teacher in the Church. This was indeed an historic and remarkable step in Church history. Notably neither of these women waited, as the 1983 Code of Canon Law advised, to be “called upon to cooperate with the bishop and presbyters in the exercise of the ministry of the word.” They both recognised a need, and shared a desire for the truth and so, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, they bravely wrote and spoke with authority. CATHERINE OF SIENA AND THE POPE Indeed, their audacity is astounding. Catherine of Siena, in a letter to Pope Gregory XI, while affectionately addressing him as
'sweetest Babbo,' suggested that he might resign: “Since God has given you authority and you have assumed it, you ought to be using the power and strength that is yours. If you do not intend to use it, it would be better and more to God’s honour and the good of your soul to resign … if you fail to execute justice on the abundance of many iniquities committed by those who are fed and pastured in the garden of Holy Church.” Catherine pleads with Gregory to be obedient to the will of God, as she believes it to be revealed to her, and warns him not to “treat as jests the works of the Holy Spirit, which are demanded from you because you can do them.” Pope Gregory’s role gifts him with authority, an authority that calls for a courageous response to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. Catherine encourages him to be faithful to the Holy Spirit – or resign. A brave woman indeed, a Doctor of the Church, who like Teresa of Avila, taught and preached primarily through her writings. Thérèse of Lisieux, again a Carmelite, and Hildegard of Bingen, a Benedictine abbess and mystic were also declared Doctors or Teachers of the Church, in 1997 and in 2012. HILDEGARD, TEACHER AND PREACHER Of the four, Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) was the most active teacher during her life. At a time when few women wrote, she produced three major works of visionary writing. She also wrote on medicine and nature, as well as writing plays, poetry, and music. Like Catherine of Siena, she advised bishops, popes, and
kings. Her story is particularly important in any consideration of women and preaching for she not only advised leaders, preached to monastic communities, and recorded her visions, she also preached publicly. Her biographer tells us that during her life she undertook four preaching tours, and during these tours she preached publicly to the clergy and people. The authority, and influence, with which her preaching was received is indicated by the fact that Philip, dean of the cathedral chapter in Cologne, requested a copy of her sermons. Philip is said to have regarded Hildegard both as a fragile vessel, and as “the very oracle of God.” LONG TRADITION This is all very interesting. The idea and practice of women preaching has a long and venerable tradition in our Church. While not a lot is said about preaching in the documents of Vatican II, as we have seen the Code of Canon Law which followed, reminds Catholics of the importance of preaching, and also advises that lay people be “permitted to preach in a church or oratory, if necessity requires it in certain circumstances or it seems advantageous in particular cases” (canon 766). There is precedent, and it is permitted by law, not as a norm but as a possibility, so one is left wondering if it shouldn’t happen more often, for the good of the Church and the salvation of souls. Pope Francis has suggested that we need to re-examine the role of women in the Church. More active participation of women in preaching would be one way forward.
CRITERIA FOR PREACHING Things are not so simple, though. Order must be maintained in the Church, and poor preaching benefits no one. The ability to preach is indeed a gift. Hildegard had it, and so had Teresa of Avila, who preached through her writings and teachings. The charism of preaching needs nourishing and formation. Hildegard, who publicly preached in the twelfth century, was a learned woman. Educated in a Benedictine monastery she was literate, and able to read Latin, and sources tell us that she read extensively. Her preaching was informed by prayer and learning. People came to hear her preaching not because she was a woman but because she was a person of faith, gifted by the Holy Spirit with a charism of preaching. Criteria are needed to determine who can, and cannot, preach in public. Perhaps changed criteria of charism, faith, theological formation and ef fective communication might help to discover preachers, female or male, in unexpected places. The harvest is rich, the labourers are aging, and getting fewer, as we pray and beseech the Lord of the harvest to send labourers, let us not be deaf to the promptings of the Spirit. That elderly sister passing my window might have been a great preacher. If this is so, our Church is poorer for missing the opportunity.
Dr Fáinche Ryan is from Tralee. She is assistant professor in systematic theology at the Loyola Institute, Trinity College, Dublin, and a parttime member of the Redemptorist National Mission Team.
Since 1970, four women have been declared Doctors of the Church
Hildegard of Bingen
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The harvest is rich, the labourers are ageing, and getting fewer
Thérèse of Lisieux
Spiritfest 2015 Disciples Together! Drumcree Pastoral Centre, Garvaghy Road, Portadown
Saturday March 21, 2015 Keynote Speakers Fr Michael Drumm
Ms Breda O’Brien
Fee: €35 or £30 Contact: OPRFM, Armagh Diocesan Pastoral Centre, The Magnet, Dundalk, Co Louth. 042 9336649 or parishandfamily@gmail.com
COM M E N T CHRISTIAN PARENTING CARMEL WYNNE
THE ENTITLED GENERATION
DIFFERENCE BETWEEN WHAT CHILDREN WANT AND WHAT THEY NEED Parenting is one of the toughest jobs that anyone can undertake. And even in what appear to be the happiest of families, it is inevitable that there will be many situations that cause parents to wonder why children are uncooperative and to question, what makes this generation of young people so demanding? Some would have us believe that children who live in a democracy have learned too much about children’s rights. From adolescence onwards many girls and boys expect to be treated as equals and when this does not happen their relationships with parents can be soured by resentment that ends in conflict. ‘The Entitled Generation’ is a media label that says as much about indulgent parents as it does about spoilt or demanding children. How teenagers are parented has a powerful impact on what happens when they demand their ‘rights.’ Children absorb some of their parents' patterns of relating without conscious choice. Part of how they learn to deal with not getting their own way is by witnessing how their parents relate to each other when they feel angry or want different things. Families who have a pattern of sitting down and talking things out together can usually find a way to discuss what children see as their rights without a lot of tension or conflict. There is poor communication in homes
where young people get away with being demanding and manipulative. It’s understandable that parents, who feel coerced into giving in to demands, can recognise that they are being manipulated, feel furious at being exploited but rationalise that it is easier to give in than have conflict. Every parent carries memories of how their emotional and physical needs were met or not met in childhood. People who grew up in alcoholic, violent or emotionally abusive families will normally be determined that no child of theirs will ever go through what they suffered in childhood. Some are not aware of how their parenting skills are affected by those early family experiences. Much of what people know about showing love in family relationships comes from what they observed when they were growing up. If dad showed anger by shouting and name-calling, children learn that it is okay to call people names. If mum reacted by withdrawing love or punishing, the children lacked appropriate modelling around how to talk things through. The positive intention of parents may be to be warm, loving and affectionate towards every child but no two children have identical needs. The attention that is experienced by one child as secure love, may be experienced by a sibling as over-control and frustrate a
teenager who thinks it shows a lack of trust. A parent who had to take on adult responsibility too early as a child may become an over-protective parent who finds it hard to let a child grow up. Parents who give in to the demands of indulged young people may be under the illusion that they are acting out of love. They’re not. They’re meeting their own needs to feel like a good parent and in that process they create co-dependency and insecurity. Some parents make their c h i l d re n’s d e s i re s m o re important than their own. They give the material things they believe will make their children happy. They feel upset when everything is taken for granted. Wanting to feel loved they give bigger, better and more expensive gifts. When everything is handed to a child who is not asked to contribute or make any effort the child starts to believe that s/he is entitled. Children who miss out on learning that there is a difference between what you want and what you need grow up with a sense of entitlement. Unconsciously believing that this is how life works young people go into the world expecting others to treat them in the same way. The parent who wants to give a child the material things they were deprived of in their own childhood is seldom aware that indulged children
who feel special and deserving are deprived of important life lessons. Being an unselfish giver is not necessarily a good thing for either the parent or the child. Parents who believe they are giving out of love are often motivated by fear, afraid that if they stop giving their children will stop loving them. Demanding children have self-esteem issues. It’s as if they measure how much they are loved by the quantity and quality of things they own. It can be helpful for a parent to look beyond a child’s demands to find out what specifically he or she needs to feel happy. When children are uncooperative or demanding it is usually because they don’t feel loved. The challenge some people need to explore is that a parent cannot give a child the love and respect they don’t have for the self.
Carmel Wynne is a life and work skills coach and lives in Dublin. For more information, visit www.carmelwynne.org
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POPE FRANCIS:
IN SOLIDARITY WITH THE POOR OF THE WORLD “IF WE STEP OUTSIDE OF OURSELVES, WE WILL FIND POVERTY” – POPE FRANCIS BY TRIONA DOHERTY
Pope
Francis has defined his papacy by a simple message – a concern for the poor and the marginalised. The idea of reaching out to the edges, or the ‘peripheries’ as he puts it, is a thread that has run through much of his public speaking.
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He consistently warns the Church not to get so fixated on the centre that it forgets those on the edges of society, whether through economic poverty, displacement, homelessness, race, or sexuality. In a pre-conclave speech which is widely thought to have copper-fastened his election, Pope Francis is quoted as saying: “The Church is called to come out of herself and to go to the peripheries, not only geographically, but also the existential peripheries: the mystery of sin, of pain, of injustice, of ignorance and indifference to religion, of intellectual currents, and of all misery.”
From his informal style and meetings with prisoners and refugees to his strongly worded criticisms of unfair structures and economic systems, Francis is certainly putting it up to us all when it comes to reaching out to those less fortunate. In his first apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel) in 2013, he said: “Each Christian and every community … all of us are asked … to go forth from our own comfort zone in order to reach all the ‘peripheries’ in need of the light of the Gospel.”
SIMPLE LIFESTYLE As Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio in Argentina, he had already captured people's attention with his simple living. In the run-up to the papal conclave of March 2013, I remember reading brief profiles of some of the contenders and speculating on the outcome with a friend. “This is my guy,” said my friend, on reading of Bergoglio's lifestyle as cardinal in Buenos Aires: he lives in a modest apartment, does his own cooking, uses public transport! So the commentators enthused in the days following Bergoglio's election. That such ordinary lifestyle choices should be so remarkable for a senior clergyman tells its own story. As soon as he was elected pope, Francis continued to surprise. Conscious, perhaps, of a regular criticism of the Church, that it does not always practise what it preaches in terms of wealth, Pope Francis took steps to
ensure that his life would serve as a powerful example to the Church. He rejected the ermine-trimmed red cape in favour of the white papal cassock, and kept his own iron pectoral cross instead of the gold one offered. He turned down the papal apartments in favour of the more humble surrounds of the Casa Santa Marta. FRANCIS REACHES OUT Then there were the early stories of him leaving his living quarters at night, dressed as a regular priest, to go out onto the streets and meet with the homeless and those in need. These early actions soon saw Francis earning the nickname ‘pope of the poor,’ a fitting tribute to the saint whose name he had assumed. The pope had already caught the world's attention, and the tone had been set for his papacy. Would he continue to impress? In
short, yes. Not long after his election, Pope Francis broke with tradition for his first Holy Thursday Mass, which he celebrated at a youth detention facility. Here he washed the feet of twelve young men and women of different nationalities and faiths, saying: “To wash your feet, this is a symbol, a sign that I am at your service.” Another image that went around the world was when he embraced Vincio Riva, a severely disfigured man suffering from a rare disease that causes painful tumours to grow throughout the body. Riva commented: “The thing that struck me most is that he didn’t think twice about whether or not to hug me ... I'm not contagious, but he didn’t know that. He just did it: he caressed me all over my face, and as he did I felt only love.” Francis has not confined himself to those in material poverty. He is conscious, too, of those who find themselves at the ‘peripheries’ of
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Francis has not confined himself to those in material poverty. He is conscious, too, of those who find themselves at the peripheries of the Church.
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the Church for various reasons. In September 2014, he officiated at the marriages of twenty couples, including some who had been living together and who had children from previous relationships – hardly an unusual event for a priest in this day and age, but a decision which nonetheless sent out a message of openness. As Bishop Brendan Leahy of Limerick puts it, “his life is speaking volumes. A comment people repeatedly make is that he is a breath of fresh air. He is considered by many a voice of conscience. In making decisions, people now ask themselves: what would Pope Francis do ...?” ASKING WHY PEOPLE ARE POOR Compelling though Pope Francis's actions are, he does not stop there. For him, there is no charity without reflection. It is not enough to reach out by offering practical assistance to our brothers and sisters; we must ask ourselves why they are in the situation they REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
are in, and what we can do to challenge the circumstances that led them there. Evangelii Gaudium, seen by many as the blueprint for his papacy, has a sizeable chunk on the inclusion of the poor in society, coupled with heavy criticism of market economies and unfettered capitalism, which he describes as “a new tyranny.” Francis certainly does not mince his words when highlighting what he sees as the injustices in our societies. “How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points? This is a case of exclusion. Can we continue to stand by when food is thrown away while people are starving? This is a case of inequality,” he writes. “The culture of prosperity deadens us; we are thrilled if the market offers us something new to purchase. In the meantime all those lives stunted for lack of opportunity seem a mere spectacle; they fail to move us.”
The biggest challenge and injustice, he says, is the wide gap separating the prosperity enjoyed by the happy minority, and the struggling majority. Helping the poor involves not only charity and almsgiving, but working towards an ethical approach to economics and finance that “favours human beings.” The dignity of each human person and the pursuit of the common good are concerns which ought to shape all economic policies. And lest anyone be offended by his words, Pope Francis has an answer for these people too! “My words are not those of a foe or an opponent. I am interested only in helping those who are in thrall to an individualistic, indifferent and self-centred mentality to be freed from those unworthy chains and to attain a way of living and thinking which is more humane, noble and fruitful, and which will bring dignity to their presence on this earth.”
HIS COMPASSIONATE TONE Some of the ideas expressed in Evangelii Gaudium took a more concrete form when Pope Francis met with migrants and asylum seekers on the tiny Mediterranean island of Lampedusa in the summer of 2013. Speaking from a lectern built from fishing boats which had been used to transport migrants, many of whom arrive from Africa in search of a better life in Europe, Pope Francis condemned what he called the “globalisation of indifference” towards the plight of refugees and urged “brotherly responsibility.” Often, it is not so much what Pope Francis says, but the marked change of tone with which he says it. His early comments on homosexuality were so widely praised and welcomed that LGBT news magazine Advocate saw fit to name him ‘Personality of the year.’ With one simple phrase “Who am I to judge?” Francis reached out to many who may have felt ostracised and hurt by the Church's attitude to homosexuality. Pope Francis also put a call out to Catholics around the world in the run-up to the October 2014 Synod on the Family to
collect their views on issues pertaining to marriage and family life. While there are no indications that any major changes in Church teaching will arise from the Synod, Pope Francis is certainly listening. Social justice activist Fr Peter McVerry says: “People come to hear Francis talk about a God of compassion, a God who cares about the suffering of the poor, migrants, prisoners, homeless people. They listen to Francis hoping for a new world in which the rich will share with the poor, the economy will serve everyone, not just a privileged few, and those who rule will promote the common good, not their own self-interest."
charities are going so far as to attribute a surge in volunteers and charitable giving to this renewed focus on the poor that is sweeping through the Church. Executive director of Trócaire, Eamonn Meehan, says the words and example of Pope Francis have given the organisation and its staff a renewed energy and focus. “In early June 2014 I had the good fortune to meet Pope Francis. It was at a meeting in Rome about Syria and the Church's responsibility, and his justice message came
“How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points?” – Pope Francis
TRÓCAIRE: A RENEWED ENERGY It is clear from the enthusiasm with which commentators write and speak that the ‘Francis effect’ has widely taken hold, both within and outside of the Church. Some
across strongly. We can certainly see the impact in Trócaire. We employ 400 people worldwide in 20 countries, and they are engaging with the language of Pope Francis in a way they wouldn't have with previous popes. That's not to say other popes
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reaction to wealth and inequality. He is exercised by the extremes between those who have wealth and assets and the huge needs of others.” John-Mark says the pope’s message on poverty and justice tie in closely with the work that the St Vincent de Paul Society does. “In The Joy of the Gospel, Pope Francis is struck by the clash between opulence and poverty. Frederic Ozanam, founder of the SVP, could have written it – the quotes that
On a tiny Mediterranean island Pope Francis stood on a lectern built from fishing boats used to transport migrants who had arrived from Africa in search of a better life in Europe. 32
we often use from our founder are based on structural questions and fairness. It is a language that is often lost in charitable discourse; it is a dynamic conversation between charity or alms-giving and tackling structural injustice. If Irish politicians really took Evangelii Gaudium on board,” he says “we wouldn't have a system where people in the private rented sector are living in such poor conditions, or have the
The Pope at Lampedusa, Summer 2013
haven’t talked about justice and solidarity, but he is so direct, and he really speaks to our work. “The real opportunity for Trócaire is to take that opportunity, and bring this message to parishes and the public about how we can express their faith in a practical way, not just through fundraising but by engaging with issues of justice.” Eamonn says he has been struck by some of the similarities between the 1973 pastoral letter of the Irish bishops on the establishment of Trócaire, and the language Pope Francis is using forty years on. One of the most memorable passages from that 1973 letter reads: “It is our Christian duty as individuals to share our wealth and to help our needy brothers. It is equally our Christian duty to demand that the political authorities representing us act always with justice and responsibility REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
towards less fortunate countries and be prepared to use all means necessary for this end … These duties are no longer a matter of charity but of simple justice.” POPE AND WORK OF SOCIETY OF ST VINCENT DE PAUL The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) is another Irish charity that is harnessing the renewed emphasis on social justice. Head of social justice and policy John-Mark McCafferty says the current pope strikes him as a person who “passionately believes in fairness and in challenging structures in favour of lower income people, the voiceless and powerless. Pope Francis seems to be drawing from a strong personal sense of social justice and fairness, and a strong
number of people we do on housing waiting lists. Pope Francis is a breath of fresh air at a time when the Church needs leadership and needs to talk about what really matters.”
KEEPING THE CONVERSATION GOING IN IRELAND Francis has started – or at least reignited – a conversation about the kind of societies we
live in, how we treat those less well off, and what practical steps can be taken to ensure the world is a fairer place. In this vein, an interesting conversation is under way in Ireland with the launch by President Michael D. Higgins in September 2014 of an initiative to examine the ethics and values governing Irish society. The Society of St Vincent de Paul is coming on board, with plans to initiate dialogue during 2015 with a wide range of social, economic, education, culture, spiritual, and NGO groupings, with a view to finding a shared vision for Irish society into the future. Speaking about the initiative, SVP national president Geoff Meagher said, “Social justice must be at the centre of a nation which cares for all of its people equally. That has been largely ignored in recent years while political and economic issues have been concentrated on.” It is a statement I’m sure Pope Francis would agree with. Perhaps our pope has shown us the way to start a meaningful conversation in our own country.
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P RI E STH O O D
“WE CANNOT LIVE WITHOUT THE DAY OF THE LORD”
MANY CHRISTIAN COMMUNITIES THROUGHOUT THE WORLD HAVE NO OPPORTUNITY TO CELEBRATE THE SUNDAY EUCHARIST BECAUSE OF THE SHORTAGE OF PRIESTS. FR BRIAN HOLMES SUGGESTS IT IS TIME TO CONSIDER A NEW MODEL OF PRIESTHOOD. BY BRIAN HOLMES CSsR
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in 1971, Redemptorist Dom Jaime (James) Collins, Bishop of Miracema do Norte, Brazil, was preparing his report for his visit to Pope Paul VI in Rome. He showed me the report and asked for comments. While he covered a lot of ground, I felt he was omitting an important dimension. I suggested that he include a few paragraphs on the situation of
the Church in over 600 remote rural communities throughout the diocese. These communities, if they were lucky to have an energetic priest as pastor, might get a visit once a year or perhaps every two or three years. In most rural Brazilian dioceses at the time, priests were so few, distances so great and most travel was done on mule back.
Fr Brian Holmes
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CHURCH NOT FULLY ALIVE I had just finished my theology studies at the time, and I remembered how we had been told that where there is no Eucharist the Church is not fully alive. I reminded Dom Jaime of the story of Emeritus, who, when asked in the fourth century why Christians disobeyed the Emperor Diocletian’s orders and continued to gather on Sundays,
replied: “We cannot live without the day of the Lord.” Commenting on this text in more recent times, Pope Benedict put it bluntly: “without the Eucharist, the Church simply does not exist.” Yet back in 1971 in Miracema do Norte we had literally thousands of Catholics who had no Sunday Eucharist, often for years at a time. Even with committed programmes to
develop priestly vocations, there was no realistic hope of having priests to celebrate for these hundreds of communities. So I suggested to Dom Jaime that he ask Pope Paul VI for permission to prepare married community leaders to be ordained for these communities. He said to me: “type that out for me and I will put it in.” Which I did. I never heard anything about it again. That was Brazil in 1971. To d a y t h e s i t u a t i o n remains unchanged for these communities. They still gather every week for their Sunday celebration of the Word, but for most of the year they cannot celebrate the Eucharist.
Fr Brian presides over a simple Eucharist in Malawi
spread over an area bigger than counties Cork and Kerry together. For thirty years, these communities have carried on practically on their own, with no priest to minister to them. In that period two bloody wars have totally disrupted the lives of the people and reduced them to subsistence living. Even if the Diocese of Tete could somehow find many missionary priests over the next few years, the people would still not be able to celebrate the Eucharist and have a full life in Christ. In 2014 I was in a remote part of our second parish, near where Mozambique, Malawi and Zambia meet. When I arrived in a little community, I found a huge congregation gathered. The community leaders asked me to
Even if the Diocese of Tete in Mozambique could somehow find many missionary priests over the next few years, the people would still not be able to celebrate the Eucharist and have a full life in Christ MOZAMBIQUE: VAST AREAS, FEW PRIESTS I now work among the rural poor in the Diocese of Tete in Mozambique with other Irish and Brazilian Redemptorists. We have responsibility for two parishes with over 140 Christian communities
bless their church before we started. They had a coloured ribbon across the door, and after the blessing, they gave me half a razor-blade to cut the ribbon. As I went into the church I noticed that it was not so new: the floor had holes here and there, the altar was a bit chipped, and the tin roof looked rusty. So after Mass I enquired if the church was new. “No,” they replied. “We built it in 2004!” Finally, ten years later, they had their first visit from a priest and their first-ever Eucharist. RE-THINKING PRIESTLY MINISTRY Pope Francis speaks boldly and inspiringly about a Church that needs to reach out to the peripheries where God’s people are to be found. If the Church is going to turn the pope’s desire into reality, then we need diversified ministries. Every Christian community needs its own ministers, men and women who are ministers of the Word, ministers of the Eucharist, ministers who visit the sick, comfort
the bereaved, counsel the young, catechize the new generations and administer the finances. It also needs ordained ministers who will celebrate the signs of Christ’s sacramental presence in our lives. For many years now – but not from the beginning – our Church has proposed one unique model of priesthood, the celibate priest. I believe that the Lord does call some men to live this special vocation. But I also equally believe that the Lord wants to be present in every Christian community through the regular celebration of the sacraments. If we want to really reach out to God’s people and touch the lives of those on the periphery of society and Church, we need to rethink priestly ministry creatively and move away from the present one-type-only model of priesthood. Pope Francis would seem to agree. He has freely acknowledged that a celibate-only priesthood is not based on Church doctrine, but on Church discipline. He has also
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stated that the door is open to change in the future. I certainly
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men in each local community having the responsibility of priestly ministry in their community, alongside the other lay ministries that we now accept and value. The Lord will still call some men to live out their priesthood as celibates. As he said himself: “let anyone accept this who can.” The celibate priest will be the support person for these married ministers, visiting them, providing ongoing formation and liturgical training, providing spiritual support, through retreats, gatherings, studies, maintaining unity with the greater Church at parish and diocesan level. These married ministers will discover how to reconcile this ministry with their family and professional lives, as they continue to witness to the Christian way of life in their jobs
Parish clustering or amalgamating neighbouring parishes, or bringing priests from Africa, Poland or the Philippines, is not going to be a realistic or permanent solution to the shortage of priests in Ireland can imagine a different way of being Church in Latin America, in Africa, and in Ireland. CHURCH IN IRELAND The Church in Ireland is facing this problem too. Parish clustering or amalgamating neighbouring parishes, or bringing priests from Africa, Poland or the Philippines, is not going to be a realistic or permanent solution. I can imagine ordained married
A typical turnout to Mass in Mozambique
or professions, and care for their families, so as not to sacrifice the important values of time for family, and being professional in the work-place. I m a g i n e a ti m e w h e n communities in remote rural areas, as well as in sprawling city suburbs, or in inner city shanty towns, will all have a full Christian Eucharistic experience in their own community. Finally the Lord’s plea, to “do this in memory of me” will be fully and generously answered. Pope
Francis’s desire for a Church that reaches out to those on the peripheries will finally be well on the way to becoming reality.
Brian Holmes CSsR is a Redemptorist from Cork. He has spent most of his life working among the poor of Brazil. With other Irish and Brazilian Redemptorists, he recently began a mission in Africa on the border of Mozambique and Malawi. He lives in Furancungo in the Diocese of Tete, Mozambique.
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VALUING LIVES DIFFERENTLY
IN THE CHRISTIAN VISION, EVERY LIFE IS OF EQUAL VALUE In 2008, there were 279 road deaths. The Government set a target of no more than 252 deaths per annum by the end of 2012 and this was achieved three years ahead of target: 239 road deaths in 2009. By 2012, the number of deaths from road accidents had dropped to 162, the lowest number on record. Government concern at the number of road deaths led to an increase in penalty points offences, speed cameras – called ‘safety cameras’ by the authorities, concerned at the allegation that they were just a money collecting device – analyses of where accidents occur most frequently, all of which contributed to the lowering of the number of road deaths. However, when the number of road deaths began to increase again in 2013, from 162 in 2012 to 190 in 2013, and looked set to further increase in 2014, veteran broadcaster Gay Byrne resigned as chairman of the Road Safety Authority, complaining of a lack of Garda resources to tackle road safety. He said that “enforcement has gone off completely and totally.” This huge concern at the number of people killed on our roads (and rightly so, “behind every statistic is a human face,” as the road safety ads remind us) contrasts sharply with the lack of concern for those who have died from drug-related deaths. Over 630 drug-related deaths occurred in 2012, more than four times the number who died on our roads that year. Drug-related
deaths have increased by almost 50 per cent between 2004, when the number was 432; there were 630 in 2012, almost two a day. Yet there are no expressions of concern from Government, no targets they want to achieve, and no new policies or actions to try and reduce the number. Many drug services are frustrated at reductions in funding, lengthening waiting lists and little political interest. Indeed, in the recent Government re-shuffle, they forgot to assign the drug portfolio to any minister; when asked who was responsible for drug policy, the responsibility was quickly laid on the shoulders of the Minister for Health who already has so many problems to address that it is clear that drug policy will continue to receive little or no attention. The lives of those who die from drugs are clearly considered of lesser value than the lives of those who die from road accidents. Perhaps that is because drug users are seen to be ‘them,’ whereas those who die from road accidents could easily be ‘us.’
During the decade 2000 – 2010, 196 children died while in State care, or shortly after leaving care, many of whom died from unnatural causes: drug overdose, suicide, violence. When that news originally broke, the nation was shocked. The Government set up an investigation into their deaths, appointing highly regarded experts to carry out the investigation. The subsequent report revealed some appalling deficiencies in the care they received and confirmed that some of the deaths were avoidable. Politicians queued up to express their shock and horror at the failure of the State to adequately protect and care for them. Government ministers committed themselves to rectifying those deficiencies and to make available the resources necessary to do so. And of course, this is as it should be. During the same decade, approximately135 people died in the care of the State while in our prisons or shortly after leaving prison, many of whom died from unnatural causes: drug overdose, suicide, violence. There was no
media reporting, no outrage, no investigation, no report, no politicians queuing up to express their shock and horror at the failure of the State to adequately protect and care for them, no commitment to change or to ensuring the resources would be available to try and reduce the number of deaths in the future. While an internal investigation took place into each death, the Inspector of Prisons found that there was no consistent procedure for such investigations, that they did not meet the requirements of international best practice, and the results were not published, unlike England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Even the relatives of the deceased person were not given the investigation results. “The internal investigation is neither robust, independent nor transparent.” (Inspector of Prisons Report into deaths in prison custody, 2010). Are there deficiencies in the prison system and policies that may have contributed to the deaths of those in custody or recently released? Almost certainly. Did the State adequately protect and care for them? Almost certainly not. Could more be done to prevent some prisoners dying in the future? Almost certainly. An investigation would provide the answers and might recommend changes. But there was none. The lives of those who die in our prisons are clearly considered of lesser value than the lives of children who die in the care of the State. But in the Christian vision, every life is of equal value.
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COMMENT
THOMAS STEARNS ELIOT
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REMEMBERING THE POET AND HIS WORKS FIFTY YEARS AFTER HIS DEATH BY BRENDAN McCONVERY CSsR REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
CHRISTIAN WI T N E S S
Thomas
Stearns Eliot is better known by the initials of his given names, ‘T.S.’ He was regarded as one of the leading poetic voices of the twentieth century. Born in St Louis, Missouri in 1888 of upper-class ‘Boston Brahmin’ stock, his university education took him to Harvard, to the Sorbonne in Paris and to the University of Oxford. He arrived in England at the outbreak of the First World War and spent the rest of his life there, taking out British citizenship in 1927. The same year, he joined the Anglican Church and remained a devout and practising member of its Anglo-Catholic wing. For most of his life Eliot was an editor and director of the publishing house, Faber and Faber, which published the works of most of the leading poets in the twentieth century. EARLY WORKS Eliot’s first poems were not well received. ‘The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock’ (1915) is a portrait of a man who realises he is a social failure: “I have measured out my life with coffee spoons.” ‘The Waste Land’ (1922) reflects the sense of a meaningless world that followed on the First World War. The poem is obscure and lacks a coherent plot. Instead, it echoes
Murder in the Cathedral, a 1940s production
the literature of the world, including the great medieval quest for the Holy Grail, Shakespeare, Dante and the Indian epic, Bhagavad-Gita. Eliot’s ‘The Waste Land’ and James Joyce’s novel, Ulysses, were published in the same year, and both became icons of literary modernism. For the modernists, the picture of a world where traditions, meaning and values were passed down from one generation to another, had disappeared. The proof was the devastation of the First World War. Foremost among the forces that had held the traditional world together was religious faith. Faith had no place in the modernist vision of things. The age saw the first generation that positively claimed to be ‘post Christian.’ While modernist literature can be hilariously funny, its humour can sometimes appear like whistling passing a graveyard. As Eliot wrote in ‘The Waste Land,’ “I will show you fear in a handful of dust.” CHRISTIAN POET AND PLAYWRIGHT Eliot shocked many of his admirers by announcing, out of the blue, that he had sought baptism in the Church of England. The public announcement came in the preface to a book of essays on literary style
published in 1928 and titled ‘For Lancelot Andrewes.’ Andrewes was a seventeenthcentury Anglican theologian and bishop, noted for his preaching. His short collection of private prayers became for Eliot a constant companion. Eliot’s conversion was the end of a long journey rather than a single moment of shattering insight. His poem, ‘The Journey of the Magi’ (1927) may provide some clue to its meaning. Its opening words, “A cold coming we had of it” echo a sermon for the Epiphany by Bishop Andrewes. “It was no summer progress. A cold coming they had of it at this time of the year, just the worst time of the year to take a journey, and specially a long journey. The ways deep, the weather sharp, the days short, the sun farthest off ... the very dead of winter.” In the poem, one of the elderly magi relates the story of the journey and the quest for the child. Although the quest was successful, it entailed pain, a departure from old and familiar ways.
Cyril Cusack as Beckett in Murder in the Cathedral
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C H RI STI A N W I T N ESS
For the rest of his life, Eliot’s poetry was in substance a defence of the Christian tradition and its place. He not only wrote poetry for publication but also revived the form of the verse play. His best-known play, Murder in the Cathedral (1935), tells the story of the martyrdom of Thomas a Becket, murdered by royal command because of his defence of the rights of the church and conscience against growing state interference. It is a believer’s commentary on the growing power of Fascism in Europe at the time. PLAYFUL POET Given the seriousness of most of Eliot’s output, it may come as a surprise to learn that one of his collections, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats, provided the inspiration for the musical Cats, with music by Andrew Lloyd Weber. It started life as a collection of short humorous poems written for his god-children. SENSE OF PLACE Much of Eliot’s poetry has a strong sense of place. This is particularly true of the long poem, ‘The Four Quartets,’ named after four places that held special significance for him in England and America. The final part, ‘Little Gidding’ is called after the English village in Cambridgeshire where there had been an attempt to found a religious community in the seventeenth century.
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Manuscript of 'Waste Land' with Eliot's corrections
Inspiration for the musical Cats, composed by Andrew Lloyd Weber, came from T.S. Eliot’s, Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats. The collection of short, humorous poems was written for Eliot’s godchildren.
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CHRISTIAN WI T N E S S
Bishop Lancelot Andrewes was a hero of Eliot's. The opening of 'The Journey of the Magi' was based on his Epiphany sermon
For Eliot, it is a holy place because it contains the prayers of those who have prayed there, who are moments in the living cord of tradition. Visiting a holy place, whether it is Little Gidding, Lourdes, Jerusalem or just a church loved from childhood, is an invitation to be part of that living tradition. You are not here to verify, Instruct yourself, or inform curiosity Or carry report. You are here to kneel Where prayer has been valid. T.S. Eliot died in London on 4 January, 1965.
WINTER
Fr Brendan McConvery is author of The Redemptorists in Ireland, published by The Columba Press.
Church at Little Gidding. This was a holy place for Eliot. One of his 'Four Quartets' is set here
Ennismore Retreat Centre ST DOMINIC’S
7th February - €55 A Planet in Peril: Cosmology, Ecology and Christian Spirituality Today. Margaret Twomey, RSM Saturday 10.30am - 4.30pm 8th February - €15 Homecoming - Journey towards Forgiveness, Reconcilation and Letting go. Fr. Michael O’Regan Sunday 3pm-6pm 14th February - €55 Awakening Joy - The Psychology and Spirituality of Happiness. Patrick Sheehan Saturday 10.30am - 4.30pm 27th February - 1st March Weekend Lenten Retreat Fr. Stephen Cummins OP €165 Residential - €100 Non Residential
Ennismore Retreat Centre is set in 30 acres of wood, field and garden overlooking Lough Mahon on the River Lee. It’s the ideal place for some time-out, reflection and prayer. For ongoing programmes please contact the Secretary or visit our website Tel: 021-4502520 Fax: 021-4502712 E-mail: ennismore@eircom.net www.ennismore.ie
GOD’S WORD GOD’S PITCHED TENT In today’s Gospel, we are told that “The Word became flesh and lived among us.” But the original FIRST SUNDAY OF Greek translation reads: CHRISTMAS “The Word became flesh and pitched tent among us.” God set up camp among us. That pitched tent, that Word, is Jesus. In today’s first reading, we read that the wisdom of God pitched her tent among the people of Israel.
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During Israel’s wandering in the desert, the tent was the place where God dwelt. It was a temporary holy place where they could encounter God. A tent has advantages over a temple or building: it is moveable. As the people continued towards the Promised Land, the tent accompanied them, ready to be pitched wherever they camped. The same image is used in today’s Gospel. With the phrase ‘pitched his tent,’ John captures the way God follows his people and is always available to them. In pitching his tent among us, God takes
on all our weakness and limitations. In Jesus, God knows what it means to hunger, to thirst, to suffer loneliness. God knows even what it’s like to die. In Jesus, God has entered fully into humanity.
as Christians and are drawn into unity with Jesus. First, we share in the priesthood of Jesus through the worship we offer God in prayer and in our participation in the sacraments. Second, through baptism we share in the dignity of Jesus as prophet. To be a prophet is to speak of God’s kingdom with courage and conviction. It is to witness to the Gospel by what we do and say. Third, we share in the kingship of Jesus by being someone who serves others. Jesus
washed people’s feet, and had nowhere to lay his head. His rule was all about service. When we try to worship, to speak out against injustice and to serve as Jesus did, we live out our baptismal calling.
Today’s Readings Sir 24:1–2, 8–12; Ps 147; Eph 1:3–6, 15–18; John 1:1–18
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PRIDE IN THE NAME OF LOVE The baptism of the Lord marks the start of the public ministry of Jesus. He recognises his calling BAPTISM OF from God and sets about THE LORD responding to that call. He begins to preach the Gospel. It is a time for us not only to celebrate our vocation as baptised children of God, but to think about what this means. It is from baptism that we receive our dignity
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REALITY JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015
Today’s Readings Is 55:1–11; Is 12:2–6; 1 Jn 5:1–9; Mark 1:7–11
HERE I AM, LORD Today’s liturgy is about invitation. In the first reading, young Samuel is sleeping when he hears God calling him: “Samuel, Samuel.” It takes him a while to figure out who is calling him. The next time God calls to him, Samuel replies: “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening.” In today’s Gospel, an invitation is also issued. Two disciples of John the Baptist decide they want to follow Jesus. When Jesus sees them, he asks, “What do you want?” They reply by asking where he lives, but Jesus doesn’t give them a direct answer. Instead, he simply says, “Come and see.” There are two levels to this invitation. On one level, he is inviting them to come to his house to spend some time with him. But on a deeper level, he is inviting them to follow him, to be his disciples. It is the invitation he offers to each one of us also.
FAITHFUL FOLLOWERS Today’s liturgy is about being called and sent. God called Jonah and asked him to go to the THIRD SUNDAY IN city of Nineveh to tell ORDINARY TIME the people to repent of their evil ways. Jonah went to the city and preached to them and the people turned to God. In today’s Gospel, Jesus is starting out on his mission of preaching the Good News and he begins to call people to follow him. He starts
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SECOND SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Today’s Readings 1 Sam 3:3–10, 19; Ps 39; 1 Cor 6:13–15, 17–20; John 1:35–42
with four fishermen from near Capernaum, a small village on the Sea of Galilee. He sees Simon and his brother Andrew casting a net in the lake and he calls out to them, “Follow me.” They drop everything, and follow after Jesus. He issues the same invitation to James and his brother John. They leave their old lives behind and follow Jesus. There must have been something extraordinarily charismatic about Jesus that would make people give up all they knew to be his followers. And though there were difficulties along the way, those four first
followers continued to follow Jesus until the end of their lives. As so many countless others have done down through the centuries.
Today’s Readings Jon 3:1–5, 10; Ps 24; 1 Cor 7:29–31; Mark 1:14–20
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GOD’S WORD FEBRUARY
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FOURTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
COMMON TOUCH Jesus knew the importance of physical touch. We see it in today ’s Gospel. He FIFTH SUNDAY IN reaches out to touch ORDINARY TIME the hand of Peter’s mother-in-law, and she is healed. She is even strong enough to get out of bed and wait on him. His touch alone is sufficient. Time and again in the Gospels we find the same story repeated. Jesus meets someone who is ill or has a disabilility and he reaches out to touch them physically. The blind are able to see, the crippled can walk, haemorrhages are cured, the dead are restored to life. All because Jesus touches them. They are made new again through the power of his healing touch. The words of Jesus alone would have been enough to heal; he didn’t have to reach out and physically touch them, but he chose to do so. He wanted to do so. He was deliberately tactile. He knew how powerful and healing physical touch can be.
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BY WHOSE AUTHORITY? It’s no surprise that people tend to be cynical about those in authority. So often they do not live up to their promises or to what is expected of them. Jesus had extraordinary authority. In today’s Gospel, as soon as he begins to teach, the people are amazed. They are impressed because they can see the difference between how he teaches and how other religious leaders teach. His words not only have the power to move people, they can actually make things happen. They have the power to drive the unclean spirit from the man who is possessed. This is why the people marvel at what they have seen and heard.
The unique authority that Jesus displays in his words and in his actions is the authority of God himself. It is the power of the Holy Spirit, which he received at his baptism in the Jordan, that inspires him to speak with such conviction, authenticity and wisdom. Jesus’ teaching is unlike anything his listeners have ever heard before. It has the power to transform people’s lives for good, forever.
MADE WHOLE AGAIN FEBRUARY In the time of Jesus, leprosy was about the worst disease anyone could have. It not only SIXTH SUNDAY IN deprived its victims of their health, it also ORDINARY TIME deprived them of their dignity. The diseased were required to leave their families and to live for the rest of their lives in remote areas cut off from normal society. Ordinary people were repelled both by a terrible fear of contracting the disease and also by the physical appearance of its victims. But when Jesus encounters the leper in today’s Gospel, his attitude is different. He is not afraid to be in the leper’s presence, and
he reaches out and touches him. Jesus doesn’t have to touch the leper but he knows that the leper needs to be healed in spirit just as much as in body, that after years of being rejected, he needs to feel the gentle, caring touch of another human being. He needs to feel that he is lovable and human again. Jesus touches him to restore not only the leper’s physical health, but his spirit too. The way Jesus treated the leper in today’s Gospel is the way he responded to all those who were afflicted. He accepted them as they were and reached out to them with respect and love. As Christians, so also must we.
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Today’s Readings Deut 18:15–20; Ps 94; 1 Cor 7:32–35; Mark 1:21–28
Today’s Readings Lev 13:1–2, 44–46; Ps 31; 1 Cor 10:31– 11:1; Mark 1:40–45
Today’s Readings Job 7:1–4, 6–7; Ps 146; 1 Cor 9:16–19, 22–23; Mark 1:29–39
God’s Word continues on page 46
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THE REALITY CROSSWORD
NUMBER 1, JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2015 SOLUTIONS CROSSWORD No. 9 ACROSS: Across: 1. Scrimp, 5. Donors, 10. Opulent, 11. Goliath, 12. Iris, 13. Jonah, 15. Kiwi, 17. Lag, 19. Galway, 21. Random, 22. Vatican, 23. Victim, 25. Geiger, 28. Aid, 30. Nook, 31. Alarm, 32. Alms, 35. Assyria, 36. Gorilla, 37. Tsetse, 38. Naples. DOWN: 2. Crucial, 3. Ibex, 4. Patrol, 5. Dog tag, 6. Nile, 7. Readied, 8. Voting, 9. Chrism, 14. Namibia, 16. David, 18. Lanes, 20. Yam, 21. Rag, 23. Venial, 24. Croesus, 26. Galilee, 27. Rascal, 28. Alsace, 29. Dragon, 33. Fret, 34. Grip.
Winner of Crossword No. 9 Elsie Masterson, Limerick
ACROSS 1. African country, capital is Luanda. (6) 5. The former name of Sri Lanka. (6) 10. Wax from a sheep. (7) 11. Rock band representing the final goal of Buddhism. (7) 12. Deep track made by the repeated passage of wheels. (4) 13. The zealous Apostle. (5) 15. Verdi's Egyptian opera. (4) 17. The lair or shelter of a wild animal. (3) 19. Describes an infected wound. (6) 21. A list of items for discussion at a meeting. (6) 22. An inn in a French-speaking country. (7) 23. Mysterious, understood by few. (6) 25. To make into law. (6) 28. Irritate, annoy. (3) 30. A pleasant and gentle accent. (4) 31. Occur as a result. (5) 32. A part of a town or country. (4) 35. British Overseas Territory to disappear in. (7) 36. Acid in temper, mood or tone. (7) 37. Dull, staid or conventional. (6) 38. Early Christian hymn still in regular use. (2,4)
GOD’S WORD continued from page 45
DESERT TIME FEBRUARY Mark’s Gospel records the entry of Jesus into the desert to do battle with Satan, and his victorious emergence forty days later to begin his ministry. The time Jesus spent in the desert is of crucial FIRST SUNDAY importance. Jesus retreats from the world to OF LENT think, pray, and discover what God wants him to do. It is the time when he gets the measure of his enemy, Satan.Satan tries to get Jesus to betray his mission. He hopes to steer Jesus from the path of salvation planned by the Father, and to follow Satan’s way rather than God’s way. But all he succeeds in doing is helping Jesus to clarify his mission. Jesus is now ready to become God’s spokesman. He tells people that the time has come to let God rule in their lives. It is time to believe the Good News. Just as his forty days in the desert helped Jesus to focus on his mission, and to test his commitment to his Father, the forty days of Lent is that time when we are called to look more closely at our relationship with God, and to confront the power of darkness that prevents us from letting God rule in our lives.
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DOWN 2. At all times. (7) 3. The capital city of Norway. (4) 4. Virgil's epic poem. (6) 5. A deep valley with steep sides. (6) 6. Spun thread used for knitting, weaving, or sewing. (4) 7. Demonstration of popular acclaim through enthusiastic applause. (7) 8. Looks angrily at someone. (6) 9. The world's second largest country by total area. (6) 14. Shooting stars. (7) 16. Instrument with 88 keys, performed softly. (5) 18. A person who acts of behalf of another. (5) 20. A signal for action in billiards or snooker. (3) 21. A distinct time in history. (3) 23. Speaks without preparation. (2-4) 24. The person responsible for a crime. (7) 26. North American reindeer. (7) 27. In short supply. (6) 28. Evil reputation brought about shameful acts. (6) 29. Country bordered by Iraq and Saudi Arabia. (6) 33. A large difference between two people or groups. (4) 34. Repair, return to health. (4)
Entry Form for Crossword No.1, January/February 2015 Name: Address:
Today’s Readings
Telephone:
Gen 9:8–15; Ps 24; 1 Pet 3:18–22; Mark 1:12–15 All entries must reach us by February 28, 2015 One €35 prize is offered for the first correct solutions opened. The Editor’s decision on all matters concerning this competition will be final. Do not include correspondence on any other subject with your entry which should be addressed to: Reality Crossword No. 1, Redemptorist Communications, 75 Orwell Rd., Rathgar, Dublin 6
DEVELOPMENT IN ACTION TRÓCAIRE IN ETHIOPIA: STORIES OF HOPE AND PROGRESS
BY DEREK LEONARD
Since
my first days in primary school, I have known of the work of Trócaire. Every year without fail we would receive a Trócaire box at Lent and hear about the work it was doing through adverts, literature and our local parish. As an outsider looking in, I took it for granted that we support Trócaire because that’s what Irish Catholics do. I became Trócaire representative for Limerick Diocese last year and travelled to Ethiopia with a group of diocesan representatives from around Ireland, north and south. It was my first time in Ethiopia and through this journey, I have found a new and deeper reason for supporting Trócaire. I’ve had the privilege of seeing firsthand the difference that Trócaire is making in the developing world and the lives they are saving and changing in the name of Ireland and the Irish Catholic Church. Two incidents have stayed with me from my trip to Ethiopia. In Addis Ababa, we visited two projects for people suffering and living with HIV. HIV/AIDS is one of the key challenges for the overall development of Ethiopia, as it has led to a seven-year decrease in life expectancy and a greatly reduced workforce. The two projects we visited were run by the Brothers of Good Works and the Daughters of Charity and are being funded and supported by Trócaire. WELCOMED BY PEOPLE WITH AIDS At the centre run by the Brothers of Good works, we were greeted by a large group of mostly women of all ages from 20 up to 70 years old. It was very humbling to be welcomed by such a group of people, who are living with HIV. They showed so much enthusiasm and joy at meeting us. They saw us as the representatives of Trócaire, an organisation that had given them a lifeline and a real chance at a decent standard of living and hope for the future. When somebody in the community is identified as HIV positive, a care worker visits them in their home to assess their situation. They are provided with the medicine they need to recover their health and energy and invited to the centre to meet other people in the same situation. Counselling
Fr Derek Leonard with Fr Soloman Beyene Tesfayohannes of the Catholic Holy Trinity parish in Sebeya, Tigray, north Ethiopia
is provided to help the individual accept and deal with their illness. Next, the client is taught a trade, so that they can support themselves financially. The group of women we visited have set up a system similar to a credit union where each person regularly gives some of their profits to the group to save and other people can apply for loans from the central fund. A REASON TO LIVE We visited a young woman in her home, which she shares with her parents. It was basically a one-room shack in a slum area, without electricity or running water. She shared her story with us. When she was in her early twenties, she was diagnosed with HIV. She lost all hope and remained in bed, refusing to leave. She was afraid of how her neighbours would treat her, now that she was HIV positive and saw no light in the darkness. She wanted to die. The Trócaire-funded project gave her a reason to live. They gave her the medicines she needed, helped her to tell her community about her illness and trained her to be self- sufficient. Now she has a small business hand-weaving scarves and is saving up to buy her own loom. She is happy and very grateful for this second chance at life. When we were leaving, her father said: "My daughter has been brought to life." I won’t be able to read the gospel story of Jesus raising the daughter of Jairus without remembering this incident.
PROJECT BRINGS WATER TO DRY LAND There is a proverb in Ethiopia which says: "The best of mankind is a farmer; the best food is fruit." On travelling north to the city of Mekelle we visited an irrigation project run by the Adigrat Diocesan Catholic Secretariat that is helping local farmers with support from Trócaire. Drought is becoming a great problem in Ethiopia because of the change of climate. Up to now, this part of Ethiopia would receive rain in June and September, giving people an opportunity to plant and harvest food. In the last number of years, the rains have come only in June, leading to poor crop harvest and hunger. The irrigation project is invaluable as it brings water all year round to over 980 families living in this valley. They use the water to drink, to cook, to water their crops and for their livestock. Living in Ireland, where we get too much rain at times, it opened my eyes to be with people who were asking me to pray for rain. The diocesan irrigation project had diverted part of a river to bring life back into this valley. The valley we were standing in had been a barren desert, but now was green and lush and full of activity. "I will make rivers flow on barren heights, and springs within the valleys. I will turn the desert into pools of water, and the parched ground into springs" (Isaiah 41:18). Standing in this valley, surrounded by very happy locals, it made me proud to be a representative of Trócaire and part of the Catholic Church, seeing the real way that the church is changing lives on the ground. Through our support of Trócaire, it can be our hands to help our brothers and sisters who are in such need and our feet to bring hope to those who feel lost.
Trócaire’s Lenten campaign runs from Ash Wednesday, 18 February to Easter Sunday, 5 April 2015. To find out more visit trocaire.org. Fr Derek Leonard is Trócaire’s representative for the diocese of Limerick
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CHRIST COMMUNITY COMPASSION THINK ABOUT IT
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