ISSUE 47 / JULY - SEPTEMBER 2020
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ONE IN CHRIST Reflections on race and diversity
Finding Faith 2020 Beyond the walls
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VOX.IE JUL - SEP 2020
EDITORIAL
What Matters? ingers pressed to a pane of glass. The sweet song of a blackbird perched on top of a telegraph pole. When he admitted, “We only have two tins of soup in the cupboard.” A golden sunset reflected in the lough. The heartbroken catch in the voice on the phone. These were just some of my deep breath moments. The seismic events of 2020 have profoundly altered our reality. We’ve been forced to shift our perspectives, to re-evaluate programmes and to question our priorities. Here in Ireland, we are still experiencing the aftershocks; around the world others are in the epicentre of catastrophe. Largely confined to an armchair in my living room, I travelled zero kilometres but “visited” 32 counties in 31 days for this year’s Finding Faith Tour. Some things were comfortingly familiar - like the copious amounts of coffee I consumed and the most common answer to my favourite question, “What does Jesus mean to you?” Even without video, it is impossible to miss the spark in someone’s eye when they describe a pivotal moment in their faith journey (see pages 25-30 and 32-33) or feel my heart resonate with common themes and repeated phrases (Beyond the Walls page 14 and What is God Saying? page 39). Our unchangeable God is still at work, no matter what. And in the midst of all those deep breath moments, He is reminding us of what matters most.
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“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”
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- Dr Martin Luther King Jr The rollercoaster events of recent months have revealed so much, not least the profound inequalities in our world and within our own communities where some have experienced a “comfortable” lockdown while others continue to walk through the darkest valleys of pain, loss, isolation, deprivation and injustice. Acknowledging and lamenting these painful realities (One in Christ page 12) will be as much part of our journey to restoration as the joyful reunions we all long for.
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www.vox.ie Ruth Garvey-Williams Editor (editor@vox.ie)
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CONTENTS Cover Stories
One in Christ - Reflections on race and diversity Finding Faith 2020 - Beyond the walls
Features and Interviews
A Time to Preach - Black Lives Matter and preaching in the Irish church. Alpha Online - new opportunities during lockdown. The Bible and the Bishop - “The Psalms are a go to book in times of trouble.” Inspiration behind Bars - Christian books delivered to Irish prisons Practising Hospitality - The secret ingredient has nothing to do with food. Finding Faith 2020 – Stories of personal transformation Mental Health during the Pandemic - church responses in tough times Journeys of Faith - Life changing encounters A Colourful Life - Ana Mullan continues her inspiring series. Finding Faith 2020 - God is at work all over Ireland. What is God Saying? - Church leaders share their thoughts. A Place to be Still - visiting Murlough House in County Down. From Shore to Shore - An “emotionally honest and spiritually enriching” book of poetry and prose.
Regular features VOX: Shorts
Confessions of a Feint Saint
VOX: World News
Music Reviews
Your VOX: Inbox
Book Reviews
Musings with Patrick Mitchell
VOX: PS with Seán Mullan
July - September 2020 Issue 47 ISSN: 2009-2253
EDITOR Ruth Garvey-Williams editor@vox.ie LAYOUT, ADVERTISING & DISTRIBUTION Jonny Lindsay jonny@vox.ie SUBSCRIPTIONS Ireland & UK: Min. €12 for four issues Overseas: Min. €20 for four issues Subscribe online at www.vox.ie. All cheques should be made payable to ‘VOX Magazine’. VOX Magazine Ulysses House 22 - 24 Foley Street Dublin 1 Tel: 089 415 4507 info@vox.ie www.vox.ie DISCLAIMER The views expressed in letters and articles are those of the respective authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the VOX Team or our partners. The acceptance of advertising does not indicate P32 endorsement. PRINT Ross Print, Greystones, Co. Wicklow VOX magazine is a quarterly publication, brought to you by a passionate team of volunteers.
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VOX SHORTS
SUMMER CONFERENCES ONLINE RACE AND PLACE IN THE CITY
Richard Carson of ACET Ireland has developed a new walking tour based solely on the 500 metre stretch of Lower Gardiner Street in North East Inner City Dublin. Inspired by the work of black theologian Willie Jennings, the tour addresses three ideas related to the development of race: displacement, ownership and segregation. How did the singing of a racist hymn in a local church reach the bookshelves of millions? Was a church caretaker living just off the street actually a slave owner? How did the historic landlord-tenant relationship in the area lead to the eviction of 21st century migrant-led churches? The tour shows how ‘whiteness’ sustains itself in the community by always remaining at the centre. The work of ACET and other agencies in addressing this is highlighted and the hope, freedom and joy that comes with the Gospel is proclaimed. For details of upcoming tours please contact Richard at richard.c@acet.ie.
CALM FOR THE SOUL – READINGS AND PRAYERS FOR ANXIOUS TIMES A booklet compiled by Ruth Gyves is an excellent resource for focusing hearts and minds on God in these days of uncertainty. Ruth has taken scriptures and prayers and put them together in an accessible and appealing format. The booklet is easy to keep close and read throughout the day and has proved to be a great source of comfort and hope to many people of all ages. It is available for churches, care homes, groups or individuals – you can obtain copies by contacting Ruth on 085 858 2939 or by email, ruthgyves@gmail.com. Ruth is a Lay Reader in the Dublin and Glendalough Dioceses of the Church of Ireland, and is Lay Assistant Pastor with Holy Trinity, Rathmines, Dublin. 06
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With the cancellation of so many Christian conferences this summer many were disappointed at missing out on an annual highlight. But after hastility reviewing plans, a number of conferences are moving online with a range of resources available from teaching and worship to children’s ministry and youth programmes. Here are a few details SLIGO 2020 ONLINE 12 - 17 July The New Wine Ireland team writes,“This is not what we expected or planned. But even in these strange days we want the opportunity to hear God’s word, worship Him and respond to His call upon our lives. And for this one year – all from the comfort of your own home.” Evening sessions will premier at 8pm starting on Sunday 12 July. Speakers include Noel Kenny, Charlotte Curran, Clive Atkinson and Tom Burke. The kids and youth programmes – featuring familiar faces that your kids will know and love will premier each morning at 10.30am finishing on the Friday morning with a Family Celebration. Connect with Sligo 2020 Online on the New Wine Ireland website www. newwineireland.org or on Facebook. NEW HORIZON 2020 ONLINE The New Horizon team writes “We can’t have a proper New Horizon online – the buzz of being together as God’s family in a big tent can’t be recreated – but many of our regulars have been expressing their hope that we can do something to encourage them through the summer. We have been listening and praying and we believe it is right that we contribute something to feed God’s people and, through them, to encourage their church fellowships. Coronavirus has changed much but God’s Word is not chained* and we are still called to be a healthy, serving church in our time.” Evening celebrations on the theme ‘Healthy Church; Serving Church’ will be available at 8pm from Sunday, 26 July to Thursday, 30 July. Visit www.newhorizon. org.uk for more details. *2 Timothy 2:9
VOX MAGAZINE
FURTHER DELAYS IN MOTHER AND BABY HOMES INQUIRY
Already delayed until June, the final report of the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes has been further delayed by Covid-19 restrictions. The Minister for Children and Youth Affairs, Katherine Zappone, announced that the deadline has been extended until 30 October 2020. The investigation which includes the Protestant-run Bethany Home was established in February 2015 and was originally due to report in three years. The delays are a blow to elderly survivors who have spent years campaigning for justice.
FREE BIBLE COURSE ATTRACTS HUNDREDS
Linda Desmond writes: “The church I’m a part of (Elim Tallaght Family Church) recently had the opportunity to do a 4-week online course in Ephesians offered for free by the Irish Bible Institute. I’m told that nearly 500 people enrolled. We’re a lively bunch and we love nothing more than to come around the Word of God and devour as much as we can from the text – along with copious cups of tea and cake also! With most of us complete novices in the world of online courses we didn’t know what to expect but IBI did not disappoint us. “It never felt as if you were learning on your own; there were regular emails, discussion questions posed and posts from fellow students all which helped to create a wonderful sense of a collaborative learning community. The content of the course and the material provided were outstanding. There were also lively video teaching sessions presented by international scholars. However, we particularly enjoyed the IBI teachers as they provided an Irish Church context within the study. “It was really helpful that a church group could journey through an online study together. Discussion forums become hubs where open and honest dialogue can take place. For church leaders, this means you can not only enjoy the experience of the course you can also retain pastoral input into the congregation’s active discussion. To sum up, it was very enriching and is something we will happily explore doing again. Ultimately, it brought a greater sense of how glorious the Lord is and who we are in Him.” To find out about Irish Bible Institute online courses for autumn 2020, visit www.ibi.ie.
‘THE IRISH BLESSING’ PART OF GLOBAL CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT
During the pandemic, churches on every continent came together to release collective sung blessings, from Singapore to Canada resulting in over 30 million views on YouTube. On Pentecost Sunday 31 May, ’The Irish Blessing’ (Beannacht uile-Éireann) was launched. The then Taoiseach Leo Varadkar TD described it as a “lovely gesture”. While ‘The Irish Blessing’ was inspired by the international recordings, it sought to honour the unique Christian history and culture of Ireland, by adapting ‘Be Thou My Vision’ and ‘St Patrick’s Breastplate’, with a spoken ‘Aaronic Blessing’. Individuals from 300 Christian churches and organisations located in every county on the island submitted selfrecordings of vocals and instruments which were carefully compiled by a talented creative team, including Greg Fromholz and Joseph von Meding (video), Stu Reid and Dave Walker (sound) and music arrangement and orchestration by Jonathan Rea. ‘The Irish Blessing’ has now been viewed close to 1 million times, making it the third most viewed national ‘Blessing’ on YouTube. Co-organiser Philip McKinley, a Dublin-based Church of Ireland ordinand said, “Ireland is famous for its blessings, words to encourage friends, family and neighbours along the journey. We wanted to bless those on the frontlines with words of hope and life and relationship with the Creator of all things.” Another co-organiser Fr Martin Magill, Parish Priest, Belfast said, “Ireland has well-documented historical divisions, making ‘The Irish Blessing’ all the more poignant as a source of God’s healing, wholeness and love. Growing up in Northern Ireland, I could never have imagined 300 churches representing an enormous range of Christian denominations taking part in something like this. It has certainly given me great hope.”
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WORLD NEWS
Tackling Coronavirus in Ethiopia To mark International Women’s Day earlier this year, Ethiopian Airlines flew an all-female flight crew, transatlantic from Addis Ababa to Washington DC. At the press conference, that followed the airline’s vice president said it was a message to young Ethiopian women that there was “no profession that was reserved for men only”. At Tearfund, we celebrate messages like this. But in Ethiopia, with its population of over 100 million, we are acutely aware that with a very low media penetration rate (40% have radio access and general internet access is only 15%) most young Ethiopian girls won’t hear that wonderfully inspiring message. So when the WHO declared the Coronavirus pandemic on March 11 our first thought was how to get the Covid-19 preventative and protective messages into Ethiopia’s rural communities. Tearfund Ireland supports about 700 Self Help Groups, facilitated by the local church in Ethiopia. At these groups the poorest of the poor gather to help find ways to lift each other out of poverty – the results are remarkable and have been the subject of international research for their effectiveness in bringing whole-life transformation. Working with local partners our network of Self Help Groups quickly became a channel for communicating accurate public health messages and modelling social distancing and hand-washing to their local communities. Also through our network of 1,400 local churches, we were able to distribute posters and leaflets in local languages to communicate WHO recommended practices. It seemed remarkable to me that members of our Self Help Groups who were once seen as ‘outsiders’ in their communities because of their poverty, were now helping to stop the spread of the coronavirus. Until recently infection rates have remained low but last week Bereket Tassew the Director of Tearfund’s local church partner TDA (Terepeza Development Association) reported that the numbers infected are escalating and that these new cases are not linked to international travel; the virus is now spreading through community transmission. Ethiopia has approximately one GP to 10,000 people and its health care system is totally unequipped to manage a large-scale coronavirus outbreak. It is unimaginable that people are weighing up the consequences of going to work and exposing themselves to the virus to provide for their families or going hungry. The UN’s World Food Programme is predicting that internationally the coronavirus will put 130 million people on the edge of starvation. Other reports suggest that coronavirus will push a half a billion people into poverty.
Staying Safe and Raising Funds Ava Guilfoyle is a 16-year-old fifth year student at St. Finian’s College Mullingar. She had never been involved in fundraising before. That changed when she saw Tearfund’s suggestions of “climbing Carrantuohill on your stairs” to raise funds for hygiene kits and PPE equipment in Ethiopia and for refugees in Lebanon. “I thought it was a great idea, it was something I could do from home during the restrictions and help make a difference for people facing coronavirus outbreaks without all the resources we have here in Ireland,” she said. Carrantuohill is the highest mountain in Ireland at 1,038 metres - the equivalent of climbing 4,852 steps, which is approximately 325 ascents up an average staircase and you have to come down each time too! Ava says physically it was much more demanding than she anticipated and thinks climbing Carrantuohill for real might be easier. But what really stood out to her was the support her friends showed by sponsoring her. Nearly immediately the funds started to come in and Ava is delighted with the outcome. Help Ava reach her fundraising goal by sponsoring her on www.idonate.ie/avaguilfoyle.
Photo: Verona McQuaid
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Come to IBI from where you are Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, students can now apply for our Certificate in Applied Theology via remote learning. This is a unique opportunity to come to IBI from wherever you are!
Applications Now Open For more information visit our website|www.ibi.ie phone|01-8069060 email |sarah@ibi.ie
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YOUR VOX
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No Complacency I’m writing in response to the article by Dr Ebun Joseph (VOX magazine April - June 2020). As a young black Irish woman, I can easily relate to Ebun’s experiences. In the workplace, there is indifference when it comes to racism. Many people are quick to turn a blind eye. In doing so, they refuse to be allies. Silence equals complacency. It is not enough to be against racism, we must be actively anti-racist. My previous experiences in church included microaggressions similar to Ebun’s, particularly people touching my hair without asking my permission, which is an invasion of my personal space and the constant question of “Where are you really from?” There is no need to emphasise our differences. We don’t want to be tolerated - we want to be valued, appreciated and recognised. In relation to the Black Lives Matter movement, my question to the church is, “Do all black lives matter?” It’s
INSPIRED TO LOVE OUT LOUD
Online Comment: “A Place of Welcome and Acceptance” April - June 2020 Thank you for this. It means a lot to read something so powerful and relatable. It ticks all the thoughts I have circling in my head and more! Yet it comes with such an inspiring ending. Thank you Dr. Ebun Joseph.
SEEING RACISM WHERE IT DOESN’T EXIST?
I felt I needed to comment on Dr. Ebun Joseph’s article (VOX magazine April - June 2020). When I was growing up pretty much everyone was the same colour as me but since the early 90s my life has been enriched with friends from many nationalities and I am very thankful for that. I never heard any of my non-Irish friends speak about the racist Irish. I am sure people encounter unkindness in work and other areas, I am also sure some may feel a bit on the outside but that’s what happens when you move to a different country. I experienced it when I was in Texas for
10 VOX.IE JULLETTERS - SEP 2020TO SEND YOUR
inappropriate to claim to be part of this movement if you’re going to cherry-pick, which black lives to support. Because of the lack of those who have stood in solidarity, it has led to an increase in the number of black churches. Here, there is no fear of judgment and it is a safe space for the black community. More allies would encourage people to integrate and make active changes. I am in agreement with Ebun; little things do go a long way. There should be no complacency with any form of racism whether it is casual or violent. I hope that we can embrace more diversity in Ireland, that all people of colour will be proud of the skin they’re in, and that we will no longer be made to feel inferior.
Lucy Colman-Black Dublin
a year but I understood it was because I was an outsider. I didn’t blame the Americans for how I felt. Dr Joseph seems to be seeing racism where it doesn’t exist, for example to claim asking things like “where are you from?” is painful. Anytime I’ve asked that question is to make conversation and try to make [someone] feel at ease. She is saying we need to be culturally sensitive but Irish culture will include (what we consider) polite questions like these as well as comments on the weather. Cultures are different. When we travel we don’t expect everyone to accommodate our Irish-isms, we would understand the need to adapt. This is not to say there are never any racist incidents that occur here, of course there are. But I would suggest the micro-aggressions she says people experience every day are in fact internal reactions from people who are looking and expecting racism everywhere they turn. We do all need to be sensitive and
kind meeting new people but this works both ways. Telling a group of people that are genuinely open and welcoming of strangers that we don’t accept people because of the colour of their skin is simply untrue and puts us on edge.
Linda de Courcy Dublin
IN RESPONSE TO THE MURDER OF GEORGE FLOYD
Our task now is not to deliver ‘better’ outcomes on racism. That will keep the white-dominated spaces intact and in a few decades we will be watching the video clips of the inspirational speeches of today just as we now watch those of the past and wonder why so little has changed. Rather the church’s task is to lament, confess and repent while lifting high the torture technique of Calvary on which a black man was lynched. Our ‘non-understanding’ runs deeper than our perceived mastery of the issue and we need God to set us free.
Richard Carson ACET, Ireland
EDITOR@VOX.IE OR YOUR VOX, ULYSSES HOUSE, 22-24 FOLEY STREET, DUBLIN 1
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How has your church responded to Covid-19?
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After three months of lockdown, we asked Christians around Ireland to tell us about worship, fellowship and outreach during the pandemic. With responses from all over Ireland here are a few of the key findings and some of the highs and lows people experienced.
WORSHIP SERVICES (MANY HAVE USED MULTIPLE PLATFORMS) 68% have used pre-recorded videos published online 48.5% Live Streamed
74% Gathered on Zoom for prayer and fellowship
PASTORAL CARE 93% Supporting members through phone calls and texts 64% Running small groups on zoom (or similar platform) 63% Running prayer groups on zoom (or similar platform)
41% Live service on Zoom
CARING FOR THE WIDER COMMUNITY 47% financial support or donations in kind to community groups (e.g. Meals on Wheels, Food Banks, etc.) 42% Financial support for Christian charities providing a response 43.5% Volunteers from church helping with community response
WHAT YOU SAID ABOUT LOCKDOWN:
This has been a very special time to interact with people and God has been busy working in the lives of people.
Minister and others provided daily reflection at noon. Home Groups continued to meet on Zoom. Each elder kept in touch with people in their district and met on Zoom to pray every week. As a result we stayed connected and people from all over the world are tuning in.
I was disappointed my priest did not organize some kind of meeting or chat on social media. I have been in shielding and to be honest I have been so lonely and isolated. It was eight weeks before I got a txt and ten weeks before I got a phone call.
We had a lunchtime prayer online four times per week. We also set up a new Bible study group weekly online for those who live alone.
In particular, the feedback about the prayer meetings, which are still going, has been really encouraging and people have said how it has helped them personally during this time.
Our denomination had 40 days of prayer and worship online for 13 hours a day. I am so enjoying the prayer buddy time and it has enriched my friendship and fellowship with my friend. It was very difficult to maintain community with a congregation that is spread out over the city. Hard to get people to commit and engage on regular basis. I live in the countryside and, not being in work, have been very isolated. I have noticed that as the lockdown progressed there were fewer and fewer communications from friends. Having Zoom meetings as an interactive service, rather than a received service, resulted in greater involvement of the congregation. There are some of us who do no longer associate with an organised church but still follow Jesus. We have been involved in shopping for elderly neighbours, social support of family, transport for someone medically vulnerable and donating to a wide range of charities. My aspiration is that these things become the new normal for every believer, even when Covid-19 is gone!
We ran the 24-7 Prayer Course on Zoom. Old and new people experienced growth. We also started a prayer list, contacted front-line workers we knew and asked if they would like to be prayed for during this time. They really appreciated it. Pastoral care, especially in times of serious illness and death has been incredibly difficult and frustrating. As a pastor I’ve felt very isolated and my mental health was unstable. We already run a CAP centre and we have been supporting current clients along with new referrals from social services and local councilors. We have delivered over 300 hampers in the local area. The church focus seems to be on selfservice within the church family via Social Media platforms and WhatsApp groups. Notable was there was no church initiative on caring for the wider community. I believe the church can be internally focused... and is failing in its mission. I think the real work for the church begins now as we deal with many people who are struggling with trauma, and other side affects of the pandemic.
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REALITY
ONE
Reflections on Race and Diversity
W
hen Dr. Ebun Joseph wrote her powerful article for April issue of VOX magazine “A Place Of Welcome And Acceptance” we had no idea that events in the USA would soon catapult the subject of racism to the forefront of global media reports. The murder of George Floyd (like so many previous murders) was a symptom of systemic injustice that didn’t just begin in May and is not confined to the USA. But in Ireland, many still deny or minimise the existence of racism. Rather than writing our own editorials, we offered the VOX platform as an opportunity for black Christians to share what was on their heart. Here we bring you a taste. See our on-going series on www.vox.ie/one-inchrist for these full-length articles and more.
CITIZENS OF HEAVEN
Pastor Gerard Chimbganda leads AFM Praise Tabernacle, an international church in north inner-city Dublin
My parents brought me onto this earth in Zimbabwe. Ireland is now my home and I’m naturalised Irish. I’m privileged to carry two passports. But as we talk spiritually, Philippians 3:20 says we are “citizens of heaven.” That doesn’t mean we become of no earthly use. It means that we start representing the values of the kingdom of heaven. Our kingdom passport becomes more important. 12
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CHRIST
In the kingdom of God there is no segregation by race, by language or culture. Whenever we are more kingdom-conscious, the way we relate as a church becomes loving and sacrificial. Jesus said, “Unless one is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.“ We can think of being “born again” as merely believing in Christ but the second stage involves us changing our identity, becoming like Christ and bringing the kingdom to prominence in the way we relate to one another. It is not about my language, my colour or the way I like to worship but it is about what pleases God in the context of a diverse society. It is about the inclusion of everyone at the foot of the cross. We are all made in the image of God. We look different, when we look from a physical point of view. But when we look at it spiritually, we are united as we worship in spirit and in truth. Paul said, “I sought to know nothing else among you but Christ crucified.” When we become more like Christ, we become one because it is the same spirit that works in each one of us and unites us. When we love one another, we show that we are His disciples. We are so different. We are so diverse. But God says though we are many, we are one body in Christ. That is a spiritual thing. It is impossible without the Holy Spirit doing His work in each one of us individually. When we can really love one another as the family of God, then the church becomes God’s instrument in Ireland to show what true unity, true racial cohesion looks like today.
RACISM IS AN OFFENCE AGAINST THE CREATOR.
Yvon Luky is an Irish citizen, originally from the DR Congo. He is the senior pastor of LA GRACE Christian Assembly in Dublin 12 and Coordinator of the Platform of French Speaking Churches in Ireland [PEFI].
IN THE KINGDOM OF GOD THERE IS NO SEGREGATION BY RACE, BY LANGUAGE OR CULTURE.
The dramatic death of George Floyd in the USA is reminding us of the damages of unchecked racism, embedded in most societies. Racism is like a ‘worm in the fruit’. While it may go unnoticed or be knowingly overlooked, not addressing it will eventually undermine the whole society. And one day, we will wake up and realise that the fruit is completely rotten, humanity is no longer valued and society is disintegrating. One of the key questions that everyone should ask is: Would I be happy to be treated like I am treating the other person? The expected answer is “no”. Racism hurts deeply because it attacks the human dignity of the other. No race is superior to another. We are all created in the image and after the likeness of God. Nobody should be hated, mistreated, discriminated against, insulted, belittled, excluded or
AS THE BODY OF CHRIST, WE NEED TO LEARN HOW TO DEMONSTRATE THE LOVE OF GOD TO MIGRANTS AND ETHNIC MINORITY COMMUNITIES. marginalised because of their race; it is an offence against the Creator. We can all do something: talk about it, raise the awareness, contribute to stop it, promote dialogue and harmony in society, support the victims, pray for their relief or consolation and to pray for the grace of the Lord to enlighten the perpetrators. Racism is an expression of the lack of love, a blatant disregard of God’s commandment. Simply put; racism is a sin.
HELP US BREATHE
Pastor Caleb Adewunmi leads The Glorious Church Int’l, a young and growing church in Lucan, Co. Dublin. The church is an active member of the South Dublin County Public Participation Network (PPN).
Until you’re at the receiving end of racism, you may never comprehend its damaging effect and the impact on its victims and their families. No one is born racist; we are all born into this world with a clean slate. Racism is learned and can also be unlearned. Racism, in my opinion, is a psychological illness, it is a phobia born out a deep feeling of inferiority.
Racism has nothing to do with whiteness. That is another stereotypical narrative that has to change. I have had my own share of racist attacks here in Ireland, ranging from being told by a Filipino to go back to my country and a South African at work who said, “I don’t like you Nigerians”. On the flip side, there do exist so many racist white people. We come across them everywhere; at work, in our neighbourhood, at schools and in the wider community. A good example is the recent racist attack I encountered from a cruel and violent Irish person on a public bus. The recent murder of George Floyd by officer Derick Chauvin accompanied by three of his colleagues in the State of Minnesota in the United States was a callous act of racism born out of hatred and personal vendetta. This is just one example but there are too many, which explains why hundreds of thousands trooped out en-mass in the US and the world over in support of the #BlackLivesMatter movement. Similar protests occurred in various places here in Ireland. The protesters insisted, we either die by Covid-19 or by racism; it’s a choice between the two. The population of white, especially young, protesters far outnumbered the people of colour, which further attests to the fact that racism has nothing to do with whiteness. This new generation is sending out a clear message, “We ain’t buying into those archaic cultures and practises of keeping quiet in the face of obvious racism.” The onus now rests on our government here in Ireland to put more strict measures in place to combat this menace and stamp it out of Ireland.
VOX MAGAZINE
DEMONSTRATING LOVE
Pastor Amos Ngugi from Acts of Compassion Ministry in Dublin runs a drop in centre for migrants and asylum seekers and co-ordinates the Ethnic Policing Forum.
We have a lot of people who come to us struggling with depression and anxiety. Many of the people living in asylum hostels have no family in Ireland and live on their own. They struggle with metal health issues. The majority of the people we talk to are experiencing a lot of fear. When anybody is in that process of asylum and then something like this happens (a global pandemic) it can be overwhelming. People who come to us are very lonely and it takes time to build trust. As the body of Christ, we need to learn how to demonstrate the love of God to migrants and ethnic minority communities. When we do that, we shine the light of Jesus into people’s lives. Personally, I think here in Ireland we are doing quite well in integration. The majority of Irish people have been very good to us. We run the Ethnic Policing Forum to help anyone who is afraid to go to the police. In the forum, people can address their problems and concerns in smaller groups. An Garda Síochána Dublin have been very friendly and people feel safe to talk to them. In February, we had the Ethnic Policing Forum conference. It was well attended by 70 people. And the Assistant Commissioner joined us. JUL - SEP 2020 VOX.IE
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BEYOND THE WALLS
In our April issue of VOX magazine, we were facing into an unknown season of lockdown and the call from church leaders around Ireland was to “be the church” even at a time when we could not go to church. And this is exactly what has been happening up and down the island as congregations learnt new ways to connect with one another and with their wider community. Here are a few stories and updates gathered during the Finding Faith Tour as VOX editor Ruth Garvey-Williams “visited” all 32 counties during the month of May (from her own home in County Donegal).
MEETING NEEDS
Churches and Christian ministries all over Ireland were at the forefront of responding to the needs of their communities. Many stepped up as volunteers for community response teams, others providing funding, ran food distributions or supported individuals affected by the lockdown.
ARMAGH
For Dean Forbes from Armagh Vineyard the pandemic brought new opportunities to connect with people in his community. “Obviously when the Coronavirus kicked in, it felt like our doors were closing. We usually run a café on Thursdays for people who are lonely or struggling with mental health issues but we could no longer do that. Instead we started delivering soup and bread lunches.” Beginning with 25 deliveries, the church soon discovered the extent of the need and increased deliveries until they were serving up to 120 portions of soup every week. “We linked with a lot of the agencies to help vulnerable people on their own who couldn’t get out,” Dean added. “It gave us a chance to go to their door and see how they were. I love that. I love delivering soup and asking people how they really are. We’ve even had people coming to the door of our (closed) café asking for prayer!”
ROSCOMMON
Light of the People Church in Roscommon has regularly supported families going through rough times with Food Cloud deliveries. During the lockdown they were able to extend the support to 25 local families with regular donations of food from Tesco and Aldi topped up with donations from church members.
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WICKLOW (AND NIGERIA) At the start of lockdown Pastor Solomon from Arklow Christian Community Church contacted the local Meals on Wheels and the Arklow Resource Centre to ask a simple question, “What do you need?” These local charities had begun providing hot meals for vulnerable people in the community. Resources were tight, so the church donated funds to enable Meals on Wheels to provide hot meals every day of the week, while the Resource Centre helped 100 families. Recognising that people in other parts of the world were also coping with the pandemic but without the same supports we have here in Ireland, the church also gave a gift to a church in Nigeria, enabling them to help 300 families. “God has been so faithful to us,” Pastor Solomon shared. “It is the best time to let our light shine!”
TIPPERARY
When Rev Steven Foster began recording online services for the Methodist church in Roscrea, his 22-year-old organist offered to record some hymns to encourage church members in worship. As they were working together on the project, the young man shared about a friend who had to leave his home because of domestic violence and so the church was able to provide additional support. This friend found solace by going into the empty church hall to play the piano, “We were looking for ways to support him (safely) and this was one way we could do that by providing him with a key to the hall,” Stephen said.
VOX MAGAZINE
BUILDING COMMUNITY The importance of fellowship, community and spiritual wellbeing was highlighted during lockdown and many churches found innovative ways to connect with one another and to re-focus their lives on God.
TYRONE
As a keen runner, Rev. Peter Ferguson came up with the idea of running a marathon around the Church of Ireland parish in the Derg Valley during the lockdown. “I combine running with praying and I find a lot of inspiration while I’m out,” Peter said. “Quite often God will put someone on my heart to pray for. The idea came to do a marathon around the parish, starting and finishing at the Rectory door. I miss being out in the parish with my people and in the community. I thought this would be a way of connecting and bringing encouragement and hope, a way to get out and pray for people in their homes, businesses, farms and schools. “From when this [crisis] began, my prayer was that we would see just how strong our bonds are in Jesus. I believe our faith and our Christian friendships will be stronger and deeper. I’ve had parishioners contacting me that are making a stronger and fuller Christian commitment during this time.” Many parishioners lined the route to cheer Peter on as he completed the course!
LIMERICK
During their online service Limerick Baptist Church introduced “Community Time” - an opportunity for church members to send in photos of the children, to celebrate the birth of new babies and to upload short videos sharing about what God was teaching them. “This has been so good that we want to do more of it when we get back to meeting together in the church building,” said Pastor Paul Ritchie.
WEXFORD
Exciting new opportunities for fellowship and ministry have emerged for Wexford Christian Community Church. Paul and Cathy Philips were thrilled by the Monday night Zoom Bible studies. “We’ve asked people who have never led Bible study before to host one of the studies. It is really stretching people but it is amazing to see them getting into the scriptures. One lady was terrified but she did such a fantastic job!” Paul said. And Cathy has been encouraged by the way her women’s group has been able to connect for coffee and a catch up.
GALWAY
Pastor Peter Burrows in Galway Christian Fellowship believes the pandemic has provided an opportunity for the people of God to get rid of the “clutter” and focus on relationship with God. “Jesus invites us to come and He will give us rest. People have become so extremely busy. They are on the go all the time and do not get time for the most important things,” Peter said. “This time has come as an enforced Sabbath. As a church we want to come out of this better than when we went into it; more filled with the Lord and more determined to live out our calling as His people.”
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CARING FOR THE CARERS
A number of churches found innovative ways to support and honour frontline workers.
KILDARE
Recognising the challenges faced by frontline workers, Open Arms Church in Newbridge, Kildare sprung (safely) into action. Pastor PJ Booth told VOX, “Over a dozen of our members are working in care homes and nursing homes. Nurses would send us photos of their hands and faces after wearing PPE all day - their skin was dried out, their faces were bruised and their ears were cut from the mask elastic. We wanted to thank them and show care.” The church began to gather high quality products such as hand cream, moisturising hand sanitiser, Lily O’Brien’s chocolates, shampoo and more. “We were able to create quite a substantial package and deliver them to 15 local care homes, nursing homes and hospitals,” PJ said. With support from local businesses and funds raised from selling “Thank You All Frontline Services” T shirts, the team of volunteers have created and distributed 1,000 care packs in recent weeks, extending their reach to Tusla homes and KARE (a Kildare group supporting people with physical and intellectual disabilities).
LAOIS
Life Church in Portlaoise members were concerned that nurses in the local Psychiatric Unit might be forgotten so the church prepared care packages and encouraging messages for the staff. “I love to see the church being the church,” said Pastor Noel Cammack. “There were great conversations with the nurses as a result.”
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VOX MAGAZINE
THE GOSPEL UNLEASHED “This is my gospel, for which I am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained.” (2 Timothy 2:8-9) New Gospel opportunities opened up throughout the lockdown!
CARLOW
Like so many other churches, the pandemic has brought exciting new opportunities for Barrowvalley Community Church in Carlow. Online services attracted increasing numbers of people. One person came to faith as a result and a local Chinese woman wrote to request a copy of the Bible. “This time of lockdown has forced us to open up our doors in ways that we have never done before (even though our building is closed) and there has been an incredible reach. I believe in this time of lockdown, the Lord is preparing our hearts for the coming harvest,” said Pastor Paddy Grant said.
MAYO
James McMaster is one of the leaders of Calvary Church in Westport. “We’ve been putting up messages on our church Facebook page and at first I found it difficult speaking to a camera,” James said. “You wonder what the Lord is doing. But there are people watching our services online who would never have previously thought of walking through our doors. “I had a phone call from a guy who had done some work on our house. Although he had not previously shown any interest in faith, he had been watching our services online and phoned to ask us for prayer for his brother who had been electrocuted while working on some power lines. The brother was still alive but seriously injured.”
MONAGHAN
With four tech-savvy members of his congregation, Presbyterian minister, Rev Stephen McNie found it was relatively easy to live stream services on Facebook and YouTube and he was delighted that over 90% of his congregation were able to log into the live stream or watch the services afterwards. “We’ve been seeing local people engaging with us,” Stephen said. “One local community group shared our links encouraging people to watch the services. A man from Armagh reached out to me over the phone and prayed to become a Christian. He has a church connection but never came to that point of following Jesus. He has now reached out to his pastor and his fellow church members to share the news. I have also deepened a great relationship with the local priest who is also watching our services.”
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FAITH
A Time to Preach? BY KEVIN HARGADEN
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il Scott Heron famously declared that the revolution would not be televised. It may well turn out to be live-streamed. None of us can escape the barrage of footage of American police responding to protests against criminal justice brutality with acts of blatant force. The latest round of Black Lives Matter protests, came in response to the police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. Watching these rallies, many of us are left marvelling at the patience and restraint of African American communities. Faced with a myriad of prejudices and obstacles, ranging from micro-aggressions to outright lethal state-sanctioned violence, black communities respond primarily with non-violent protest and grassroots political activism. Putting myself in their shoes, I would be tempted to go far beyond such peaceable means. A striking feature of this movement, from its modern origins around the ministry of Dr Martin Luther King Jr and his companions, right up to the present day, has been the prominent role given to religious leaders. It is not just that the pastors and priests stand with the protestors but the protests are often informed explicitly by preaching. Today we remember King’s “I have a dream” speech but we easily forget the speech was really a sermon on Isaiah 40. We see this legacy continued in the work of someone like Rev William Barber, whose activism with the NAACP and the Poor People’s Campaign rotates around his public reflection on the Scriptures.
But it is even present in those who are not ordained. A clip of the philosopher, Dr Cornel West, went viral as he explained the protests seeking justice for George Floyd on CNN. In sermonic cadences, he declared that it was his responsibility to “bear witness” to the “least of these” and that over the nine minutes when the full weight of a man rested on the neck of “Brother George” American society at large was “reaping what it had sown” through its failure to address its racist foundations. None of us can fail to be moved by what Dr West called “the work in the soul” of those who habitually face racist violence without succumbing to violence or race-hatred themselves. It is wholly appropriate that Irish people stand in solidarity with those protesting across American cities. But this runs the risk of pious irrelevancy and sanctimonious triviality (to quote King in his Letter from Birmingham Jail) if we do not reflect on the ways in which our society displays similar dysfunctions. Standing within the Irish church, I am struck by how impossible it would be to conceive of an Irish social justice movement directly influenced by preaching. We read the same Scriptures as our African American neighbours but to a remarkably reduced response. The Bible is a sharp word with contemporary relevance on one side of the Atlantic, and a slight embarrassment, best acknowledged briefly and left aside, on the other. Our literary culture is recognised around the world. But as a rule, our
I AM STRUCK BY HOW IMPOSSIBLE IT WOULD BE TO CONCEIVE OF AN IRISH SOCIAL JUSTICE MOVEMENT DIRECTLY INFLUENCED BY PREACHING.
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clergy do not appear to have the same grá for language as our authors. At times, the Irish church seems Scripturally illiterate. Some sermons amount to a trite bromide about private morality, laden with anecdote but lacking attention to the meaning of the Scriptures passages. When this is so often the norm, we can understand how people have come to equate a “good mass” with a short homily. Many more direct comparisons can be drawn about the failure of Irish society – especially around the Direct Provision system and the disproportionate presence of Mincéirs in Irish prisons – but one lesson that the Irish church can draw from these protests is that our failure to value the potential potency of preaching has widespread consequences. Perhaps we overdosed on pontification and there needed to be a spell when we remembered that practicing the faith is more important than merely propounding it. But the subversive message of Christianity is only unleashed – and people are only formed for the long, hard, slow struggle for justice – when the strange new world of the Bible is communicated with passion and learning, directed towards the pressing concerns of our lives. The revolution will not be televised. But it can be preached.
Dr Kevin Hargaden leads the Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice, where he works as a social theologian. He is an elder for the Presbyterian Church in Lucan. His most recent book is entitled Theological Ethics in a Neoliberal Age.
Musings...
VOX MAGAZINE
on the Virus of Sin - and the Mission of the Church With Patrick Mitchel
W
e’ve learnt a lot about the destructive power of viruses over the last few months. All of us have been part of an unprecedented experiment by the Irish government to contain Covid-19. Takenfor-granted freedoms have been curtailed. We’ve had to quarantine ourselves in our homes; at risk groups in strict isolation for their own protection. And it seems as I write that such drastic measures have, by and large, worked. We’ve been willing as a nation to take steps to save lives – particularly the vulnerable and the elderly – and to enable the health service to cope. In Ireland the threat posed by the virus was taken seriously. Of course there were failures, particularly in the tragically high death rates in care homes. But overall, so far, the virus has been contained – unlike in some countries whose leadership failed to take it seriously enough. All of this got me thinking about sin. That might seem like a bit of a leap but let me explain. Sin tends to be trivialised and individualised in our Western culture. It’s the self-indulgence of having too much cream with your strawberries. Or perhaps if you are a Christian, sin is a wrong action or attitude for which each person needs to confess to God and repent from. But in the Bible sin is not trivial, nor is it limited to a wrong action by an individual. It’s much more like a deadly virus which every one of us carries – an infectious agent let loose that wreaks havoc in the world. Over the last few weeks, with the killing of George Floyd, we’ve been graphically reminded of the reality and destructive power of systemic sin and the immeasurable suffering it causes: racism, inequality, hatred, violence, injustice and death. And such sins aren’t the preserve of America of course – we are pretty good at them here in Ireland too. From Genesis 3 on, death is inextricably connected to sin. Indeed, sin is so toxic that God will not allow it to survive. God is a trinity of love and justice, the author of love and peace and joy. Sin – hatred, violence, injustice, exploitation, selfishness, greed and so on – is antithetical to God’s being and good purposes. And so sin has a death-by date. One day it will be destroyed for good.
But here’s where Christianity gets really surprising. The only ‘solution’ to the problem is for each of us to die – and somehow come out the other side of death, free from sin’s power. This is precisely what the gospel announces has happened. Out of love, God takes its destructive power upon Himself. In the death and resurrection of Jesus, God atones for sin and defeats death. For everyone ‘in Christ’ sin has been quarantined. Its curse has been broken. But there’s a further twist. This quarantining of sin and death is not only in the future. The future has already arrived. Believers are already ‘raised’ to new life in Christ through the Spirit; they are already ‘new creations’. The mission of the church in the present is to be a window through which the world sees something of what God’s future sin-free new creation looks like: a kingdom of peace; justice; love; joy; of a self-giving community, transcending all racial and ethnic distinctions; of sharing burdens and resources; of together being conformed to the image of her Lord. This doesn’t mean the church isn’t broken and imperfect – we know all too well it is. We live in the overlap of the old age of sin and death and the new age of the Spirit of Life. But we do so awaiting in hope God’s final defeat of sin, death and all powers that oppose His good purposes, resurrection and the new creation. I find that a pretty inspiring vision for the church – and for my life. I hope you do too. Let’s live up to our God-given calling!
With the killing of George Floyd, we’ve been graphically reminded of the reality and destructive power of systemic sin and the immeasurable suffering it causes.
Dr. Patrick Mitchel is Senior Lecturer in Theology at the Irish Bible Institute. You can follow his blog at www.faithinireland.wordpress.com.
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FAITH
Alpha Online New opportunities during lockdown
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cross Ireland, many churches were taken by surprise by the imposition of lockdown. By March, some parishes were halfway through Alpha courses and had to suddenly re-think their approach. “The whole point of Alpha is gathering,” said Tanya Olhausen from Alpha Ireland. “But when Alpha international began a big push for Alpha online, we decided to run three webinars.” In Elphin Diocese, Deacon Frank McGuinness was one of the first to
THE BEAUTY OF ALPHA IS THAT IT IS A FULL FAITHFORMATION PROGRAMME. launch a new online Alpha Course to connect with young adults. “Through our WhatsApp group I asked if anyone was interested in joining an online Alpha course,” Frank said. “Initially, I got 15 responses and we’ve had 11 people turning up consistently. Alpha seems ideally suited to the online environment, especially for young adults. If I was to try and get them physically in a room there is no way I’d be able to attract so many and the distances in a rural diocese make that particularly difficult.” 20
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“I live in Galway but the group come from right across the Diocese which covers Sligo, Roscommon and parts of east Galway,” Frank explained. Although some participants knew each other before, others did not and they were meeting for the first time online. “I noticed that the bonding that happens naturally in an Alpha course is still happening online. As we start the meetings conversations are happening naturally as people grab a cup of tea and sit down. We use Zoom to connect with one another but I share the video link on Vimeo so the quality is maintained, we simply mute the microphones while everybody watches the presentation. “Silence can be even more unnerving during an online conversation but it is important allow for that space. I usually spend a couple of minutes quietly before jumping into the discussion to allow people to reflect on what they’ve seen and heard.” Encouraged by the way this group of young adults is engaged with the programme, Frank added, “The beauty of Alpha is that it is a full faith-formation programme. If people turn up week after week they begin to forge a strong foundation. The online thing seems to work with this age demographic. My hope is that as we move people into a new level of discipleship, they in turn can learn to lead others.”
Alpha Ireland has provided a range of resources for parishes considering running Alpha Online and a number of churches launched new courses as the lockdown continued. In Dublin, two Church of Ireland parishes decided to run the Alpha Marriage Course online. Couples that would not normally be able to attend because of work commitments or babysitting concerns could tune in from their own homes. One parish had 23 couples taking part. Although previous experience of running a course is important, Frank says this is a time to try new things! “Many people are sitting at home anyway so they are not greatly inconvenienced. An hour is the equivalent of most episodes on TV so it is not a major commitment and there is no travel involved! I would encourage people to be brave and give it a lash.” “The wonderful thing is how flexible it can be. We’ve had two bank holidays since I started this course and we were able to adjust to a different night to suit people without having to worry about re-arranging a venue.” If you are interested in finding out more about the Alpha Course or running any of the Alpha resources online, visit Alpha Ireland’s new website www.ireland.alpha.org.
CONFESSIONS OF A FEINT SAINT
VOX MAGAZINE
Wearing my Zoomday Best By Annmarie Miles
A
s we navigate this season of Zoom meetings, YouTube sermons, Facebook Live gatherings, and dial-a-Pastor (I bet there is such a thing), I wonder if you have noticed some of the strange phenomena of online church. The hypnotic power of the reflection of a white square on a speaker’s glasses. Or the unfortunate position of their notes which, every time they glance at them, makes us think they are keeping one eye out for a delivery. There were high jinks and hilarity Chez Feint Saint as we got to grips with virtual church. I won’t embarrass my beloved by giving specifics, suffice to say that when recording, he might look dressed for church, but anything out of camera shot is better suited for digging the garden. When he started recording in our living room we had to clear our shoe corner (and find a new place for the shoes!), make sure the door to the downstairs loo was closed, clear shelves, and move a vase that was causing a glare. We tested recordings with lights on, lights off, curtains open and closed. I was moving lamps around the room, trying to get rid of shadows and reflections. The laptop was too far away - he couldn’t be heard, then it was too near – you could count his eyelashes, it was too high, then it was too low. At one stage I started singing, Jesus’ love is very wonderful, Oh wonderful love. It was that, or cry. Oh, for those times he could just walk out of the vestry and stand in the pulpit. Happy days. Here in South Wales, lockdown restrictions are changing very slowly, so we’re expecting to be using the internet for quite some time, but do you know something…? It’s going well. Those of our church family who are comfortable with the internet are really engaged and with us most weeks. Those who don’t have internet are making and receiving lots of phone calls from others in the church. We are so encouraged by the family atmosphere that has only increased by our inability to gather face to face. As a leadership team, we are already talking about our online presence beyond lockdown, and how bad weather and dark nights need never stop folk from being at church. Things will look a lot different after this is all over. As long and I can still go to church with big fluffy slippers on, I’ll be happy.
“Things will look a lot different after this is all over.”
Annmarie Miles is originally from Tallaght and now lives in her husband Richard’s homeland, Wales. As well as VOX articles, she writes short stories, and is working on a book about her journey with food, weight gain, weight loss and God. Visit her blog at www.auntyamo.com. On Twitter she is @amowriting.
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FAITH
“W
hen I was made a bishop, they gave me a Bible and I promised, before God and before people, to open the Bible, to teach the Bible and to live by the precepts of the Bible.” In Cavan, the Church of Ireland Bishop of Kilmore, Elphin and Ardagh, Rt. Rev Ferran Glenfield launched a new weekly podcast during lockdown to help people go deeper with the Psalms. We caught up with him on the virtual Finding Faith Tour to find out more about this project and about his passion for the word of God. “The Psalms are a kind of go-to book in a time of trouble. There are echoes in the Psalms that resonate with us. In my home life and ministry, when I’ve been in hard and tough places, I invariably turn to the Psalms,” Bishop Ferran said. The new podcast was not something he would have considered in normal times but during lockdown people approached Ferran and suggested a regular online Bible teaching slot. “I would normally be preparing one or two sermons every week and that stopped during lockdown. I wasn’t going anywhere. I felt like Paul, when he said to Timothy, ‘I’m in prison but the word is not bound.’ We are in a form of selfimprisonment but that should not limit the word of God!” And so the “Bible and the Bishop” podcast was born. To tune in, find the Podcast on www.keadiocesecoi.podbean. com. Every Wednesday, Ferran looks at a different Psalm. As we spoke he was preparing next week’s message on Psalm 16, digging deep into the Hebrew meaning of those ancient words to understand more of what David was saying. Like most things, reading and studying the Bible requires an act of the will, Bishop Ferran explained. He recalled a time early in his ministry when a group of ladies came to him wanting to learn more about the Bible. Some of them had limited literacy but they were so committed to reading the Bible, that they learned to read well as they studied! “Covid-19 has taught us what matters and what is really essential. You always find time for the things you really want to do (if you are in love with someone from Lithuania, you will learn the Lithuanian language!). But we will only prioritise reading the Bible when we have the desire to do that. The Holy Spirit is the one who gives us that desire!” “If there is a desire and a pressing need, you will do it. I’ve been very privileged in the sense that I’ve been very well taught. Over the years, I have developed a huge repository of stuff in my head and in books and notes. I would like to pass that on.” At one time, Bishop Ferran ran a Book Club using Biblica’s publication “The Books of the Bible” which strips out chapter and verse formatting to encourage continuous reading. When people joined the club, they devoured the book. “I would tell them, ‘Read page nine to page 20 and next week we’ll come back and talk about it.’ But they would say, ‘Why are we only reading ten pages?’ None of them were in a Bible study group but they were readers. I honestly think it was one of the best things I’ve done to introduce people to the scriptures.”
THE BIBLE AND THE
BISHOP
“THE PSALMS ARE A KIND OF GO-TO BOOK IN A TIME OF TROUBLE.”
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REALITY
VOX MAGAZINE
Outside Shelton Abbey Open Prison with some of the books, L to R: Librarian / English Teacher Una Ward, Interim Irish Prison Service Head Chaplain Rev Alan Rufli, Speaking Volumes’ Paula Renouf, Governor Joe Donohue, ChristianBooks.ie’s Julie Carvill, Headmaster Brian Doyle, Release Prison Partnership’s Philip Larragy
Inspiration Behind Bars Christian books delivered to Irish Prisons just in time for lockdown
“I
am suffering even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But God’s word is not chained.” 2 Timothy 2:8-9 When a speaker prophesied that Julie Carvill would be involved in prison ministry, the words didn’t resonate but she did not write them off completely. She remembered them when she read news from Speaking Volumes, an English charity providing grants to supply Christian books to libraries through partner bookshops worldwide. They announced they had secured special funding to donate books to prisons. Through ChristianBooks.ie, Julie had been partnering with Speaking Volumes to place Christian books in Irish libraries. So when she read about the new initiative, Julie felt compelled to pursue it. But it didn’t prove easy. Prison librarians were unenthusiastic because donated books are typically overstocks that didn’t sell. Then Alpha Ireland pointed Julie to Philip Larragy of Release Prison Partnership. And through Philip, Julie linked up with Rev Alan Rufli, Interim Head Chaplain for
the entire Irish Prison Service. Only God could have set this up, because Julie, Philip and Alan already knew each other from a Scripture Union Camps Committee many years earlier. After many negotiations, the time came to deliver the books. Paula Renouf of Speaking Volumes came over from England. At each prison, when the boxes of books were opened people’s eyes lit up. Whether governor, officer, librarian or prisoner, they were amazed and delighted. Rachel Lacey, Senior Librarian for the Dublin area prisons commented, “I immediately recognised the thought and care that you had taken in selecting great quality titles suitable for the needs of our prisoners”. As in other libraries, books in prisons are classified by the Dewey system. But Rachel decided these books should be given pride of place with special labels - INS for Inspirational. That was at the beginning of March, and within days the whole Irish Prison Service would be locked down due to the threat of Covid19. God’s timing was perfect! Prisoners have
been confined in their cells almost 24/7 to keep them safe from the virus. Julie, Philip, Rev Alan and their teams have been praying that God would speak powerfully to the prisoners and change their lives through these books. Some further titles have been requested, and Julie will process additional grant applications when Speaking Volumes re-opens. The great news is that the Irish Prison Service has remained Covid-19 free, despite housing large numbers at close quarters. Prison Services in other countries have even asked for advice on how this has been achieved. Philip gave great assistance to Julie but in turn, the books paved the way for new opportunities for the volunteers from Release Prison Partnership. Find out more at release.ie. More recently, Philip and Julie set up Books Behind Bars, a scheme whereby a Christian can purchase a book to bless an individual prisoner. If you would like to see Christian books donated to a library known to you, visit speakingvolumes.org.uk. Julie would be delighted to guide you through the application process. Contact Julie about Books Behind Bars or Speaking Volumes at info@christianbooks.ie or +353 (0)86 839 1870. JUL - SEP 2020 VOX.IE
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FAITH
Practicing Hospitality in a Pandemic BY SETH LEWIS
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n his letter to the church in Rome, Paul gives a simple command: “practice hospitality”. It must be important, because he also tells Titus that being hospitable is a requirement for church leadership. Peter agrees, telling Christians everywhere to offer hospitality “without grumbling”. But what would Peter and Paul say about practicing hospitality during a global pandemic? Usually when we think of hospitality, it smells a lot like dinner. It’s hard for us to imagine hospitality without food, or at least a cup of tea or coffee and a few biscuits. So how can we practice hospitality when we’re not allowed to have people over? Or even when home visits are allowed, but must be short, small, and socially distanced? Perhaps the command to practice hospitality must be put on hold until the danger has passed and restrictions are lifted. Which would be sad, except for the fact that it isn’t true. These strange circumstances give us the perfect opportunity to remember that hospitality never was the same thing as dinner. Think about it: we’ve all had lovely dinners in beautifully kept homes where we didn’t feel welcome at all. Is that really hospitality? We know that it isn’t, even if it’s hard to put our fingers on what exactly is missing. Search every cookbook that’s ever been printed—there won’t be a recipe for hospitality. There’s some kind of secret ingredient that isn’t written down, and if we want to practice hospitality properly, we can’t do without it. Lovely dinners are lovely, of course, but even the best of flavours can’t overcome the feeling that the host doesn’t care two beans about us as
people. We’d trade any feast with a host like that for two beans with someone who actually cares. Actually, we don’t even need the beans. Two ears will do just fine, if they’re really listening. And so we discover that the secret ingredient to hospitality has nothing at all to do with food—the secret ingredient is love. Hospitality is so much more than houses and tables. Jesus Himself didn’t have either, and we only hear about Him feeding people a few times. Yet He was the most hospitable man who ever lived. Why? Because He shared much more than food or shelter. He shared Himself. He welcomed people into his life, even (especially!) if they had nothing to offer in return. He really listened, and responded to what He heard. He sought out those who were in need and provided for them. He offered Himself to all people as the “bread of life”, broken once and for all time to provide true life to all who would come to Him. Pandemic or not, a hospitable heart looks the same: It is an open heart, ready to welcome others deep into its life and affections, regardless of what they can give in return. A heart like this won’t be stopped by a pandemic. It won’t be stopped by rules about not having people over. It will find ways to communicate love, to welcome people and to share life with others, even from a social distance. Most of the New Testament letters were written from a distance, from men who had welcomed people into their hearts, and were longing to see them in person again. Yes, hospitality might look different in a pandemic but we need it more than ever.
WE DISCOVER THAT THE SECRET INGREDIENT TO HOSPITALITY HAS NOTHING AT ALL TO DO WITH FOOD.
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Seth Lewis, who is originally from the USA, has lived in County Cork for the last 11 years with his wife Jessica and three children working with a network of local churches. Seth blogs at sethlewis.ie.
VOX MAGAZINE
A SEARCH FOR IDENTITY
Antonio Moldovan moved to Ireland with his family when he was 11 years old but he struggled to find his identity until he encountered Jesus in a Brazilian Bible Study!
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come from Romania but I’m actually from I would three different backgrounds - Romanian, meet up Hungarian and Gypsy. Growing up, I was with the always trying to find my identity. It seemed a gentleman bit unfair because I would hear comments that who had people didn’t like me because I looked like “those invited me people”. to the Bible Study and he began to teach me When I moved to Ireland in 2003, I think we everything about the Bible and to answer all the must have been amongst the first foreigners in questions I had. our area and I did not have a word of English. I began to realise that God made me unique My parents bought me my uniform and said and I stopped blaming Him for my background. the best way to learn is to go to There are a lot of people who school with your brother. It was struggle with their identity incredibly tough because of the or are embarrassed about THERE ARE A language barrier and there was where they come from. LOT OF PEOPLE a lot of bullying, because I could Only people who are truly not communicate. Gradually that confident in what Jesus WHO STRUGGLE improved, with the help of my has done on the cross can WITH THEIR teachers but I never really had understand, accept and love the courage to tell people about IDENTITY OR ARE themselves for who they are. my background. This is why I am here and I EMBARRASSED I was concerned that am comfortable talking about ABOUT WHERE Romanians don’t always have the things that God has done the best reputation here and THEY COME FROM. for me. especially in job interviews, I kept I’m probably the only quiet. person from my village All that changed in 2011. I was a college with a Masters Degree. I’m very proud that God student and working a part time job in a shop. has enabled me to achieve this. I now work for One day a Brazilian gentleman came over to me Dublin Airport Authority. and I helped him find what he needed. He invited Two years ago, I got married to Almudena, me to his house and so I went the following day. a beautiful Spanish lady. I had prayed for about Little did I know that he had actually invited six months and there she was! God is involved in me to a Bible Study! I turned up and the entire every part of our lives. Even when I play football, service was in Portuguese from beginning to end. I get on my knees before the game and pray that I I had no clue about God but at the end of the will play with everything that I have. evening I gave my life to the Lord. Today, I’m a deacon in the church and a lot Growing up in the Romanian Orthodox of my energy goes into investing in people and Church was very boring. You just went to pay helping them to grow in their relationship with respects, not to enjoy being there. God. We are meant to demonstrate the life we No one had ever spoken about the Lord Jesus have as Christians. Our church has also been the way these people did. They were so joyful! I involved in feeding the homeless and that has had no understanding of what was going on but I been a testimony to our family members. They knew I was in the right place. see how we love others and they want to help.
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AN AMAZING JOURNEY
Vivien Kelly from County Derry shares her story of loss and new life.
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had a normal happy childhood back to when I took living with my Granny and the overdose and Granda and they spoilt me rotten. to wonder, “What But I lost my Granda when I was just happened that day?” 16. I had this big emptiness in my I always put it down life that I tried to fill with drink and to my Granda but I drugs. realised it was the At 19, I took a really bad overdose. grace of God that It was so bad that the paramedics saved my life. phoned my family to say, “We don’t God gave me my know if she will make it.” I remember life back! a tunnel and at the end of this tunnel, Finally, two and a I could see this figure. Then suddenly half years ago I gave I felt hands pump on my chest and my life to Jesus. This I woke up but there were no doctors massive weight lifted or nurses in my room. Something off my shoulders. It changed in me from that day is like that sense of onwards. I got things a bit more under relief you get when control. I met my husband Jonathan you arrive home after and we had three kids but I was still a long day and sit drinking to fill the void in my life. down! All the burdens Then when I was 25, we lost a were gone and my life baby. I carried her to full term but she turned around. died and we had to bury her on the I would not be day she was due to be born. Things the person I am today were just horrible. without Jesus. It is just We moved to Derry city in an an amazing journey attempt to make life better. One to be on. Now, when day a Presbyterian minister came I wake up in the morning, I say, “Ok to my door. I thought, “Seriously, Lord, the day is yours.” what do you want?” He kept coming I volunteer on the Hope Bus to the house in Derry city centre. A and eventually lot of youngsters are MY FIRST I thought, “I’m getting into drugs and going to have to the paramilitaries are THOUGHT let you in because after them. We serve WAS, “WHAT you are not free tea and coffee and IS GOING TO leaving me alone.” provide a place of safety When he them. Some are really CHURCH GOING for encouraged me to hungry because they are TO DO FOR ME?” not getting enough to go back to church my first thought eat at home so we give was, “What is going to church going them some food. Once a month, to do for me?” But I said, “Okay” people share stories about what God more to satisfy him and not because I has done in their life and the young wanted to. people are so open. I went the following Sunday Since lockdown we can’t go out and I loved it! I began to think on the bus. I was listening to the
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lyrics of a worship song, “Is somebody going to testify to the Lord?” And I prayed, “Lord I need a chance to share my testimony.” Then a friend texted to ask if I would chat with VOX magazine! It took longer for Jonathan to find faith but he has always enjoyed listening to worship songs and he made a playlist of worship music to listen to at his work. Then one day just before Christmas, he was listening to a song and he suddenly realised, “That’s me.” When he came in that night, there was something completely different about him. Five days later he told me, “I gave my life to the Lord while I was at work.” It was the best thing ever!
VOX MAGAZINE
GOD’S TAXI DRIVER Sean Casey was transformed by “God’s right hook”!
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itting in the kitchen where he grew up, Sean Casey told Elizabeth I was going up to the North for rehab, she points to the little stool where he used to sit as a nearly had a heart attack!” child. He can remember his dad quoting, “Man does Sean spent six months in a Christian centre near not live by bread alone,” as he sat down having a fry! Belfast and during that time God took hold of his life. Brought up in Mullingar, Sean starting drinking at an One day, a woman came up and asked Sean if she could early age and was a rebel in secondary school. Eventually pray with him. “I don’t know if this will make sense but he was expelled when he was 15 and started work, first the Lord has told me to pray for your feet.” as a barman in Dublin and then in the building trade in Four years earlier, he had broken both heels in a fall. Manchester. There had been times when he would be walking down “For 30 years my life was drink, work, drink, work... the street and his two legs would go out from under him I really was what God calls a ‘drunkard’,” Sean said. “In because of the pain in his feet. But when that woman January 1991, doctors told me I had an enlarged liver and prayed, the pain disappeared. if I kept drinking I’d be dead in 12 months.” “I’ve had no pain in my feet since then,” Sean said. On a visit home the following year, Sean called in Returning home to Mullingar, Sean soon got in to see his sister in Newbridge. “I blame them for me contact with other Christians through Mullingar Christian becoming a Christian,” Sean grins. “Elizabeth and PJ had Fellowship. He was offered a job in a taxi business and his only been Christians for a few months. I was well jarred. first reaction was to say, “No.” But instead he decided to She looked at me and said, ‘Sean, do ask God about it. you mind if I get somebody to pray “That was the biggest ‘mistake’ I ever with you?’ I knew prayer couldn’t do made. I ended up driving a taxi and that GOD HAD HIT me any harm so I said, ‘Okay’”. became my mission field for 20 years. I ME BIG TIME. Knowing that Elizabeth had didn’t have to go to China or Russia to tell I THREW MANY people what God had done for me. I could arranged for him to meet Margaret and Stephen at 3pm, Sean headed down to A PUNCH IN MY meet all these people right there in my taxi. the off license for some “fuel”. Stephen “Everybody knew what I had been. I LIFE BUT THAT remember when my mum passed away, there had prepared a whole load of Bible verses but he took one look at Sean and WAS A PROPER were guys taking bets that I would be back knew he’d be wasting his time. on the drink. They are still waiting 28 years RIGHT HOOK! Instead he said, “Sean, do you later. It is amazing what God has done.” believe in God.” Sean told him, “I do.” Now aged 72, Sean is not fazed by talk (“I always knew there was a God. All of pandemics, “The first time I heard of this you have to do is look around you. I couldn’t go with that Covid-19, I just read Psalm 91 and I prayed, ‘Lord you said evolution thing at all,” Sean says.) it and that settles it.’ Stephen and Margaret began to pray and as they did, “Jesus is with me all the time, waking or sleeping. As Sean’s craving for drink disappeared. “I knew something soon as I get up off this chair, He is walking out the door had happened. God had hit me big time. I threw many a with me. He is the centrepiece of everything.” punch in my life but that was a proper right hook! Even 12 months previously when I had been handed a death sentence, I couldn’t stop. God was the only one who could ever stop me from drinking.” Sean asked Elizabeth for a Bible and started to read. The first scripture he saw was, “Man does not live by bread alone.” He had started reading in Deuteronomy the story of the Israelites wandering in the desert for 40 years and it felt like reading his life story. “I had been in the wilderness for so long.” PJ and Elizabeth knew Sean would need help so they put him in touch with Teen Challenge. There were rehab places available in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. “I had never been up to the North and it was the last place I would have thought to go. When I heard a northern accent in those days, I would grind my teeth. But one night as I was lying in my bed, God spoke to me and said, ‘There are no borders in my kingdom.’ When I
Sean (middle) together with his sister Elizabeth and her husband PJ JUL - SEP 2020 VOX.IE
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rriving in Ireland from South Africa in 2005, Tania in on her death and Shaun knew that God had opened the door for bed and then she ministry here. They moved to Tralee in County Kerry walks out again. but after just one year, Tania was diagnosed with cancer. In the She must have last 14 years, Tania has faced four bouts of cancer while Shaun 10,000 angels has continued to minister alongside churches in County Kerry. guarding her.” Tania: I had cancer before I came here but I’d Tania: I received the all clear and the doctors discharged me. recently found Then suddenly, after a year, I got sick again. We had out that they are become part of a church in Tralee and we felt strongly going to stop my that God wanted us to stay. God opened the door for me chemotherapy to have treatment here in Ireland. because it will Shaun: Our heart is for church planting, discipleship start affecting and leadership development. We sensed back then that my heart. They here these things would take a lot of time and patience. are uncertain Tania was sick and the ministry was hard. We were what to do and struggling with resources and lack of manpower and will re-assess my wondered if we should call it quits. But eventually, we treatment. decided to stay and stick it out. Shaun: For Tania: I’m now into my fourth bout of cancer. us it is important Sometimes I struggle deeply, that is the honest truth! that we have When I’ve been really weak, Shaun has been the strong lived with cancer. one. He has come alongside me and helped me by Sometimes Tania reminding me of God’s promises. It has not been an easy describes cancer Tania and Shaun find God’s grace is sufficient road but it has been easier because the two of us have as her “friend” in their long journey with cancer. been together. I receive the comfort, sustenance and because her assurance I need from God’s word. It is not just head mum’s cancer knowledge but something that I feel deeply. I receive a was the reason I lot of comfort from the Psalms - there are so many verses became a Christian that are precious. Whenever I feel low, I mostly turn to and the amount of opportunities that we have had the Psalms. It doesn’t take long to find some comfort talking to doctors, nurses and surgeons. And they can’t there! argue with us. The Lord has helped us to see answered Shaun: You can never exhaust God’s word or ever prayer. Because we’ve lived on the edge, we’ve so often understand Him completely and when the next trial seen God’s hand of care and love. comes around, there is always something new to learn. Tania: Jesus is my best friend, He really is. Even if Tania: This year, I’ve been really ill and Shaun has everybody else has abandoned me, He is still there. He is stepped in. His main ministry has been in the home my protector and I can turn to Him, no matter how low taking care of me. I don’t have to worry I feel. I tell Him everything (He knows about the things that I would normally. anyway but He is the one I can talk to NO OTHER I’m really thankful for that. It has been and I know that He understands.) He is a strange getting used to that. I’m used CANCER PATIENT so precious to me because of what He to doing things. I’m the one who helps for me. He gave His very life for me. IN THAT ENTIRE did Shaun, not the other way around. I know that I can trust what He has done Shaun: I do the cleaning and for me and I never need to be afraid or to HOSPITAL HAS cooking and I’m learning to enjoy doubt that even for a moment. SURVIVED SO cooking. I realise that my number one Shaun: Paul said, “Christ Jesus came LONG. ministry at the moment is to take into the world to save sinners of which I care of Tania. The Lord wants me to am the worst.” I will never forget the honour Him and worship Him by caring for my wife and enormity of knowing the weight of my sin when I found that’s what I want to do as well! I love ministry. That Jesus and experiencing His complete forgiveness. The was always our priority but in this season, the Lord has slate was wiped clean. He is my Saviour but He is also the helped me to have the calm assurance that He is taking perfecter of my faith. He is worthy of all the worship I care of my life and I am serving Him as I care for my can give. wife. Sometimes I have to speak to myself and say, “This One thing that has helped is to see Him answer is what you know about God. This is what He is like.” It prayers. No other cancer patient in that entire hospital helps me to keep trusting. Faith is not about deserving has survived so long. Tania has gone through so much something, it is about holding on to the promise. My chemo. One of the nurses told someone, “That girl comes faith is refined and every day He gives me enough grace.
HOLDING ON TO THE PROMISE
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NO LONGER BROKEN
VOX MAGAZINE
Proud Corkman Tadhg O’Connell was born with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) known as brittle bones disease. Struggling to cope with the illness, he began drinking at the age of 12. He spoke with VOX editor Ruth Garvey-Williams about the long journey to wholeness and freedom in relationship with Jesus.
TELL US ABOUT GROWING UP WITH OSTEOGENESIS IMPERFECTA
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would have a very mild form of OI but I have broken bones over 100 times in my life. Growing up, I could not play football or other sports. I remember always feeling scared and I created a fantasy world to escape. Eventually, I disconnecting emotionally because I was so afraid of being hurt. I would go to mass and look at Christ on the cross. I was curious and I kept wondering why He went to the cross but if the lads saw me going into the church, I would get slagged. We used to check to see who was saying mass (so I could tell my mother) and then we would leave. I remember visiting a friend of mine. At the time, I was after breaking a wrist and collarbone and his mam said, “Look at you, are you broken again?” None of my family had OI so I kept asking, “Why am I like this?”
money for drink.” One day, I ended up by the river and my head was telling me to go in. “Your family will recover. The pain will go if you go in here, everything will be grand.” I remember standing there for a long time, looking and contemplating suicide. Looking back, I don’t know how I survived.
WHAT BROUGHT YOU TO YOUR SENSES?
One day, I ended up in hospital. I had a bleeding ulcer and I was vomiting blood. So I finally got a bit of help. I came off the drink for seven years. I got married and we had four kids. But by now I was having all these feelings of shame and guilt from my past. I returned to the Catholic Church and threw myself into everything. I spent three WHAT MADE YOU START DRINKING? days fasting at Lough Derg. At the age of 12, I was going down an I climbed Croagh Patrick alleyway and met a group of lads. One and travelled to Lourdes and handed me a flagon of cider. When I Medjugorje. But nothing I did took the drink, it seemed to be exactly could get rid of the shame I what I was looking for. It made me was feeling. comfortable for the first time. The fear It got so bad that all of and anxiety were gone and the knot in a sudden I went back to the drink. I my stomach eased. thought that was the only thing that The lads would could take away my look after me because feelings of guilt. I I REMEMBER I was younger. It gave wasn’t violent but my STANDING me a sense of security, wife and the kids were like a gang. I never felt afraid of me. THERE FOR A safe even when I was Eventually, I LONG TIME, at home but I felt safe managed to stop hanging around the and I went back to LOOKING AND streets with them. confession but I could CONTEMPLATING not understand why I Soon I was taking alcohol all the time. I had fallen even after I SUICIDE. remember how we’d had done so much and stand outside the off tried so hard to be a license waiting for someone to come good person. along who would buy us drink. But the more I went on, the more unpredictable WHEN DID THINGS BEGIN TO I became. I’d be laughing one minute CHANGE? and then start verbally abusing people One day I picked up the Bible and I the next. started to read. I came to Romans 7 By 18 I was isolated and consumed where Paul talks about doing what he with suicidal thoughts. I’d go to sleep doesn’t want to do and I thought, “This saying, “Please don’t let me wake up in guy is on to something.” I kept reading the morning.” I’d make bargains with and reading and slowly I was getting God, “I’ll go to mass if you find me used to the idea that God’s grace is freely
given and that the blood of Jesus washes away sin and shame. I’d go to confession with all these questions for the priest but he would say, “I haven’t got time for you today.” The more I read, the more questions I had. I was in a mental anguish. I couldn’t sleep so I’d be walking around town. I remember thinking, “If I could save myself I would not need a Saviour.” Early one morning I began looking online for a church because I wanted to
know who Jesus was. One or two seemed too “jumpy” (charismatic) but eventually I reached out to Bryce from Douglas Baptist Church and we arranged to meet up. Afterwards I went and confessed to the priest. For a while, I stayed away but I talked to Billy O’Mahony from the Christian bookshop. He told me his story and answered some of my questions from the Bible. And all the time, I was reading the Bible and the battle was raging in my head.
WHAT DID YOUR WIFE THINK OF ALL OF THIS?
I’d heard that there was a meeting down in Bandon but my wife told me, “You are not going out to them weirdos!” I said, “Would you please come down with me because I’m after giving up and if I do, I know the alcohol will come back.” Eventually, the wife, three kids and myself went down to Bandon. In the community centre, all the Baptist churches in Munster had gathered.
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When I looked in and saw all the people, my wife wanted to run away and the kids were crying. But we went in and sat next to Bryce and his family. They had a Sunday School but my youngest was crying so I went out with the kids. My wife was left alone and I was like, “She is going to kill me.” Afterwards the kids came in smiling and laughing and on the way home she said she wanted to know who this fella Jesus is. She felt her heart pounding and she had never felt like that before. So she wanted to meet up with Bryce’s wife for a Bible study. I nearly crashed the car. For years, I was trying to persuade her. Ten minutes
into a sermon, her heart was turning. I got quite jealous and I told God, “She wasn’t even looking for you and you found her.” There was me searching for years and I still had no clue.
HOW DID YOU FINALLY MAKE SENSE OF EVERYTHING? I just had to go back to Scripture and I realised that my sins were forgiven and my shame is washed away. Every time I read something, I could feel the heaviness was dropping away from me. Jesus is my Saviour. There is no other. There is a power in that name. I realised then all my life I had seen
myself as a victim because of OI. I was blaming everybody. But I realised I wasn’t a victim at all. I became an addict because I wanted to. The victim mentality was removed and then my heart started opening. I had thought of myself as broken but someone told me, “You are not broken, you are just a person who breaks a lot.” Some days it is still hard. Two of our kids have OI. Life is not always awesome but I know that God has a plan for my life and my family. I’m blessed! I’m definitely looking forward a new body in the next life!
“NOTHING FILLED THE HOLE IN MY SOUL” Alcohol, depression and homelessness brought Caroline to rock bottom but God’s love brought her back.
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aroline Nolan was born in County Galway, the youngest of a family of five. “For as long as I can remember, I never felt good enough,” she said. “I would not say my upbringing was too difficult but I believe I was very sensitive, so things affected me more.” When she was 18 years old, Caroline’s mother died and she turned to drink in an attempt to cope. She sobered up when her first son was born and joined a 12-step programme but she struggled to live without alcohol. “Nothing filled the hole in my soul,” she said. “Even drink was a temporary fix. Then at the end of an AA meeting, a man handed me a prayer and said, ‘This might help you.’” It was called the Miracle Prayer: Lord, Jesus, I come before You, just as I am... I repent of my sins, please forgive me... I give You my entire self. Lord Jesus, now and forever, I invite You into my life. I accept You as my Lord and Saviour... Amen. Caroline repeated it every night until she meant every word. But after a while, she fell into a black depression. “One night I was having terrible, dark thoughts,” Caroline said. “I cried out with everything that was inside of me, from the depth of my being. Suddenly I felt His unconditional love. I knew I was encountering God. I don’t know how long it lasted but I would say from that moment on, I knew without doubt that there was a God. I had met Him.” Things improved. Caroline got into college as a mature student but the problem with depression kept coming back. Her doctor discovered that her body wasn’t making enough serotonin. Her pursuit of alcohol and food (comfort eating) had all been an attempt to make her feel normal. “He gave me tablets to take but I thought it
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was a weakness to be dependent on tablets,” Caroline explained. “Eventually I stopped and I was constantly battling my depression to the point that I took to the drink again.” For the next 16 years, Caroline’s life spiralled downwards. She had another son but was separated from both her children and eventually became homeless. “The only thing that kept me going was the knowledge that there was a God,” she said. “One day, a man who was homeless led me to Nigerian Christian church and when I heard the preaching I knew I was home. That was the beginning of my journey back to God. “Even though I stopped drinking, I still had the same faulty thinking about taking anti-depressants. But eventually I went to the GP and I prayed, “Lord, it is your will not mine - I’ll do whatever the doctor decides is best. “The GP told me, ‘You need to take the medication because your body doesn’t make enough serotonin. It is not your fault. If you were a diabetic and had to take insulin, that would not be your fault either.’ He took the shame out of it so I put my pride away and I began to take what I need to be well.” Although it was a struggle, Caroline stopped drinking and has been sober for 18 months. She joined Shannon Christian Church and returned to adult education. “Today, I have a roof over my head. I wake up in a clean, dry bed,” she smiles. “I can put on a kettle. I have hot and cold running water. It is amazing! These are my successes. Most important of all I belong to the most high God. I’m amazed that He loved me so much that He would go to the cross for me. The love of God is what kept me going. “What does Jesus mean to me? Everything! Sure, my life is not worth living without Him. Every good thing comes from Him. He is wonderful!”
REALITY
VOX MAGAZINE
Mental Health during the Pandemic The impact of COVID-19 on mental health was mentioned frequently during this year’s Finding Faith Tour. Here are a few examples from different churches and different parts of the island.
SUPPORTING LEAVING CERT STUDENTS
The Redeemed Christian Church of God Seat of Mercy Parish in Drogheda organised an online workshop for teenagers on Saturday 16 May, facilitated by a trained counsellor. “The young people preparing for exams this year were facing increased fear and anxiety because of the uncertainty,” explained Tosin Kayode. “I empathise with them because my daughter is also in her Leaving Cert year.” Mental health and wellbeing, especially for young people, is a focus for this parish. The pastors and youth workers have completed their safeTALK* training and some of the young people raised money for mental health charity SoSAD. “Many of the young people feel isolated at school. They really want to belong but they are torn between what society says and what God says. My husband, Pastor Kayode and I, seek to be there for them and provide support and encouragement for those who are struggling.” *Training in Suicide Alertness through LivingWorks in partnership with the HSE.
THE CHALLENGE FOR CHURCHES IS TO BECOME PLACES WHERE WE CAN TALK OPENLY ABOUT MENTAL HEALTH.
LET’S TALK ABOUT DEPRESSION AND MENTAL HEALTH
Paul Ritchie from Limerick Baptist Church has faced his own struggles with mental health. He is passionate about supporting people who are coping with mental ill health and “breaking the taboos” around the subject in the church. “Sometimes a church can be a hurtful place. Every depressed person I’ve talked to has experienced difficult and hurtful things being said to them in a church setting,” Paul said. “Mental health is just like physical health. You would never say someone is ‘unspiritual’ because they have cancer or even the flu. The fall affected us both physically and mentally. We need the freedom to talk about these things. “The challenge for churches is to become places where we can talk openly about mental health; to create a gracious environment where people can feel free to be honest about their brokenness. To be totally vulnerable as a Christian is a good witness. It is not about me having it all together. The Gospel is not about ‘good’ people but about a gracious God who loves people even in the midst of their brokenness.”
PROVIDING EXTRA SUPPORT
Ministry for Welcome Evangelical Church in Belfast shifted in painful directions during the pandemic, “I’ve buried two people from the virus and two people who died by suicide,” Pastor Jonathan Clarke shared. Recognising the devastating impact of grief and mental health problems in the aftermath of lockdown, the church has already arranged for a trained counsellor to offer counselling support to individuals within their community. JUL - SEP 2020 VOX.IE
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JOURNEYS OF FAITH
Whether self-isolating with Covid-19 or changing a car tyre, God meets people and transforms lives. Here are some stories from around Ireland.
“IT IS WELL WITH MY SOUL” COUNTY DONEGAL
Retired science teacher Liam Burns was enjoying his twilight career teaching English as a foreign language. But self isolating with coronavirus caused him to think deeply. Before it hit me personally, I had a comfortable lockdown. I baked more kinds of bread than ever before and went for walks in beautiful Greencastle. When I felt the symptoms descending I realised the virus had crossed the threshold of our home, despite all our efforts. I moved into our extension to self-isolate. Driving to get tested reinforced the sense of descending doom. You find your mind turning to putting your affairs in order. I wasn’t expecting to die but you have to leave your mind open to the possibility. People were kindly praying for me to be well. But a lot of people have died and I have to allow that sometimes God requires His people to journey with the others who are suffering. No matter what happens, I believe that God is sovereign, He is all powerful and He is good. Although I don’t reject prayer for healing, if anybody is praying that I will get back into my comfort bubble, I’m not saying “Amen” to that. For 12 days I spent more than 80% of my time in bed. There was overwhelming exhaustion. I discovered how to send notes to my family using voice recognition and lengthy chats over WhatsApp with my daughter who is an occupational therapist. I loved listening to her talk about her work. She helps people re-purpose their lives after an accident. That got me thinking how it is God’s prerogative to re-purpose our lives. He does protect His people but at times, He allows us to go through deep, dark valleys and to find new purpose there. I’ve been thinking about the old hymn, “It is well it is well with my soul” and the context (of suffering) in which it was written. I find myself wondering if we should redirect our prayers to ask God to help us understand what He is doing in our lives through all of this.
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“I WANT WHAT YOU HAVE!” COUNTY WICKLOW
Raised in Nigeria, Solomon Aroboto now works for Wicklow County Council as a Town Planner. He shares his journey to faith and his passion for seeing people experience the presence of God. When I was a teenager some friends began to talk about the Holy Spirit and they invited me to a prayer meeting! They were praying and they seemed so excited about Jesus. They were my age and they had such a passion for God. I felt there was something missing in my life. This was a prayer meeting so there was no preaching but I burst into tears and said, “I want what you have.” It was a lifechanging encounter. That was August 1986 and from that day on I began to have a thirst for God. Within a few months, I had read the New Testament three times. I began to talk to everybody about Jesus. Through me a lot of my classmates became Christians. I am still passionate about Jesus Christ. I want people to come into the presence of God because it changes your outlook. Even in the midst of problems, there is hope, healing and rest with God.
“HE NEVER FAILS” COUNTY WICKLOW
Tricia Aroboto describes her story as unexciting but still precious. My journey has been to know God in a better and deeper way. I was raised in a Franciscan Friary in Tipperary. It was a beautiful church and I had a great experience there. When I moved to Waterford, I met people from all different denominations and I joined a Bible study. I began to ask questions and get to know God more. I always had a great fear of what might happen when my mother died but when I lost her, I had God in my life and that gave me such comfort. I’ve failed Him at times but He has never failed me. I’m blessed!
VOX MAGAZINE
“THE BEST THING THAT COULD HAPPEN” COUNTY ROSCOMMON
Originally from Portugal, Ana Paula and Pedro Marques lead the bi-lingual “Light for the People” Brazilian Church in Roscommon. For a lot of years Christianity was something that I kind of believed but it wasn’t everything to me. We had a good life in Portugal. We had our own business but in the recession, we lost everything: our car, our house. My husband and I went through a lot of ups and downs. One day in the car by myself, I prayed, “I surrender, I can’t do it anymore.” Then I felt peace come over me. I had an assurance that Jesus was with me. That is when my journey with Jesus started. Eventually we were surviving on credit cards and the help of our family. That was the way that God brought us to Ireland. It wasn’t really a choice; it seemed the only way out. When we look back, we see that it was the best thing that happened to our family. When we came here, we were so broken. We had always been people who wanted to fulfil our dreams and build something for ourselves but God took us to a place where we wanted to build His kingdom. Now in Roscommon, we are working part time and leading the church here. I wasn’t born here but I am now Irish. I believe God is bringing people here and He is going to do amazing things in Ireland.
“IT FEELS LIKE GOD WAS HAVING A LAUGH.” COUNTY OFFALY
Recently ordained as a Methodist Minister, Rev. Nigel Gill shares his call to the ministry: I was the manager of a tyre repair centre for 16 ½ years. I was never going to be a minister. I’m an ordinary Joe soap. I believe in the priesthood of all believers. Then the Lord said, “Nigel, that’s fine but I want you to be a Methodist Minister.” I was at work one day and I had been preparing a series of Bible studies on the book of Judges that begins with the death of Joshua. My prayer is that when I die I would have an epitaph like Joshua, “While he was living... Israel served the Lord.” The walk and fervour of one person actually held the spiritual fervour of a whole nation. So I was bending down to pick up a tyre gauge and the Lord spoke to me and said, ”Nigel, do you believe that one person can hold the spiritual fervour of a nation?” And I said, “Yes Lord... look at Joshua.” And then the Lord went and said, “Do you believe that you could be that person?” I laughed! “Me? Lord, I believe that you can do that through me but I haven’t the foggiest notion how.” Since then it has been one crazy adventure.
“THE LORD JESUS BROKE DOWN THE BARRIER.” COUNTY KILKENNY
Kieran Ryan thought the only way he could serve God was to become a priest. I grew up in a loving family and embraced all aspects of the Roman Catholic faith. I was a very God-fearing young man and considered priesthood. But God had other plans for my life. I was commissioned into the Defence Forces and while stationed in Dublin, I met a young lady who spoke of a personal relationship with God the Father, through Jesus. Laura had such a love for Jesus. I could sense she knew Him! It caused me to question my faith and I became hungry to search the scriptures for myself. Up to that point, the Bible had been an unknown book to me. There was so much vibrancy with Laura. She had such peace and joy in her life. But she was a Protestant and I really wanted to do the right thing. So I went to the priest to ask whether I could marry a nonCatholic. He told me to get rid of her but I knew Laura was a wonderful woman, who had such a lovely relationship with God. Finally one night I realised that what Laura had been telling me was true. Jesus wanted a personal relationship with me. I knelt down and received the Lord into my life and then I went to ring Laura. It was midnight and when she finally got on the line and I told her what had happened. Her reply was, “Pull the other one!” But when I joined the Bible study she knew I meant it. It wasn’t that I had become a Protestant. But my relationship with the Lord Jesus broke down the barrier between Laura and me. Now there was no more Catholic vs. Protestant. Laura and I have just celebrated our 41st wedding anniversary. I love Jesus more now than when I first began. As we face this pandemic, I have the greatest peace because I know He is in control.
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LIFE
A COLOURFUL LIFE BY ANA MULLAN
C
olour is everywhere; in our homes, schools, offices, colleges, streets, shopping centres and gardens. We cannot escape colour. Some colours feel more attractive than others, some energise us, some make us feel down. I love vibrant colours, colours that communicate joy and life. I get to “play” almost every day with those colours at my desk facing Smithfield square. Surrounded by paint, inks, pencils and papers I feel I am fulfilling my vocation: to put joy onto paper. Most of us have learned colour by association: the grass is green, the sky is blue and the tomato is red. And if I say black and white, immediately some sad images will come to mind that these days have become too familiar. Colour makes us think of an object, a fruit, a sign or a people group. But colour does exist within itself, apart from any of the things we associate it with. Green is still green even if there is no grass, blue is still blue even if the sky is grey and red is still red if there is no tomato. Colour has value for what it is in itself, not for what it represents; it has intrinsic value. When I paint my abstract paintings, it is colour that touches somebody’s soul. Each colour has its own value and it speaks to different people in different ways. Colour does not depend on an object to define it. You might be wondering if this is an article about art and colour theory. It is about art but not art as in painting. It is about the art of living and what colour taught me about that. During the last three months, we have been forced to slow down, to re-adjust and to do things differently. Like the majority of people, I have had to make some changes, cancel some appointments and get to know Zoom. To be honest it was not that difficult for me because I was not on my own and I didn’t have to homeschool children while still holding down a job. I did find the sudden change quite sad; the streets were empty, except for those who couldn’t follow the “Stay safe, stay home” rule because they had no home to stay safe in.
As time went by I found my new routine: every afternoon I would sit or stand at my desk and paint. I painted several canvases. I made loads of cards, all original paintings. I did what a lot of people do today; I put them on my Instagram page for sale. I was delighted when I sold a few paintings and a good selection of cards. As time went by I realised that a lot of voices were calling for my attention. They were having an effect on me and not a good one. I started to recognise that all these voices were expecting me to “produce” more; there was an audience to please. The desire to receive “likes” or positive comments was producing a lack of freedom within me. I was in danger of paying too much attention to the voices, looking for my identity to be boosted and becoming deaf to the Great Voice who created me. Don’t get me wrong, we all need affirmation; we all need a “well done” when we do something good. The danger is when we need constant praise and “likes,” even from strangers, to have our tank full. The reality is that if that’s what we seek the tank will never be full, because we have not been created to fully satisfy each other’s needs. There are two lessons that I learned from thinking about colour. One, even when something is good, like painting, it can easily make me a “slave” if it becomes the centre of my life. It will become what is called: a disordered attachment. Two, my worth does not come from the opinion of a big audience but from the audience of One. I don’t know about you but I need to constantly be reminded of these truths by looking to the One whose life had a very defined centre. This is what He said to His disciples, men who had very little status in society, who didn’t “produce” much in the eyes of the world: “What’s the price of a pet canary? Some loose change, right?
MY WORTH DOES NOT COME FROM THE OPINION OF A BIG AUDIENCE BUT FROM THE AUDIENCE OF ONE.
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VOX MAGAZINE
Artwork: Ana Mullan
And God cares what happens to it even more than you do. He pays even greater attention to you, down to the last detail - even numbering the hairs on your head! So don’t be intimidated by all this bully talk. You’re worth more than a million canaries”. “If your first concern is to look after yourself, you’ll never find yourself. But if you forget about yourself and look to me, you’ll find both yourself and me”. Matthew 10:29-31;39 (MSG) And when He had finished teaching a group of people and they said that the teaching was hard to take, and decided to leave, He asked His disciples: “Do you also want to leave?” He was not interested in how many followers He had, numbers didn’t matter to Him. What He wanted was to show how God’s kingdom is countercultural to the kingdom of this world. For that reason colour has become a joyful reminder to me that I am not defined by what I do, how much I do or how busy I am. Nor am I defined by the voices that are constantly telling me what is important, valuable and successful but
in the process diminish me as a person. Rather I find my definition in being attentive to His gentle whisper that tells me that life can be lived differently as I accept His invitation to make Him my companion in all aspects of life. “What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not to be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving”. Jesus - Matthew 6:32 (MSG).
Ana Mullan is from Argentina but has lived in Ireland for 35 years, the last 18 in Dublin. She is an artist, a spiritual director, retreat facilitator and an enthusiastic grandmother.
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AROUND IRELAND
It is exciting to be reminded that God is at work and not just during a pandemic! In all four corners of our island, in all four provinces and every one of the 32 counties the kingdom of God is being made visible by individuals and churches living and speaking out the good news of Jesus Christ. During this year’s virtual Finding Faith Tour, we visited all 32 counties. Here is a little glimpse - an opportunity to go beyond the borders of our own congregations and denominations to recognise and celebrate the body of Christ in Ireland!
A PASSION FOR YOUTH DROGHEDA, CO. LOUTH
The Redeemed Christian Church of God Seat of Mercy Parish in Drogheda was established by Pastor Kayode Popoola and his wife Tosin. The congregation has grown with an average attendance of 180 to 200 people including over 100 children and young people. With a special heart for teenagers, Tosin shared the wide range of programmes the church has developed including an annual Valentine’s Day Ball and a Hallelujah Night at Halloween. “We encourage young people to come together to learn new skills such as cooking, hair braiding or cosmetics but we also spend time in God’s presence.” Like so many young people growing up in Ireland, some have problems at home, others struggle with anxiety or the desire to belong. Standing for God in school can come at a price. “Society says one thing and the word of God says something else,” Tosin shared. “We are able to give them reassurance and to encourage them. Even during lockdown, we were meeting every week on Zoom and had special meetings for those who were doing Junior and Leaving Cert. exams this year.”
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“FOR ME THIS IS ABOUT THE CALLING OF JESUS’ MISSION STATEMENT TO STAND AGAINST INJUSTICE IN SOCIETY.”
BEING THE BLESSING ROSCREA, CO. TIPPERARY
Supporting three small Methodist Churches across a wide geographical area in Tipperary, Rev. Steven Foster acknowledges that for traditional churches to survive, they need to re-imagine mission and ministry across Ireland. “A lot of the time church life is about the more traditional concepts of church services and worship but people need to be led in imagining what the kingdom of God looks like. We need to be a blessing to our communities.” For Steven, this has meant getting involved in programmes to welcome and support refugees and asylum seekers in the area. “I am chair of the Roscrea Welcomes group that exists to look out for the needs of people in the local direct provision centre and to encourage social integration into the community. “But as we started on this journey, we realised that things were not right in the centre and in particular the residents were not getting adequate food. The speaking out wasn’t what we started out to do but it became necessary. For me this is about the calling of Jesus’ mission statement to stand against injustice in society.”
VOX MAGAZINE
“WE KNOW THAT CHURCH IS NOT THE BUILDING, IT IS THE PEOPLE BUT WE BELIEVE THE LORD GAVE US THIS NEW BUILDING AND WE WANT TO USE IT AS A TOOL IN HIS HANDS.
SEIZE EVERY OPPORTUNITY WESTPORT, CO. MAYO
After years of renting space in the local leisure centre for Sunday worship, Calvary Church in Westport finally moved into its own premises in November. James McMaster who has been one of the leaders for the last 19 years, shared, “We know that church is not the building, it is the people but we believe the Lord gave us this new building and we want to use it as a tool in His hands. Although we are a small congregation with limited manpower, we still want to seize every opportunity for the sake of the Gospel.” Along with a co-worker, James has developed a programme for schools called Bible Trekk - providing five one hour sessions looking at the Old Testament and five one-hour sessions looking at the New Testament. “We act out the main stories of the Bible. The kids really love that kind of stuff and really enjoy the programme,” James explained. “It is very exciting to think that there is a whole generation growing up with a love for God’s word.” Recognising that there are two secondary schools just around the corner from the new church building, James and fellow leaders see huge possibilities for the future. While there have been inevitable frustrations with lockdown, James has treated the time like a sabbatical and has taken the opportunity to prepare new Bible study materials.
WORTH IT
BELFAST, CO. ANTRIM Pastor Jonathan Clarke from Welcome Evangelical Church in Belfast shared, “A few weeks before the pandemic broke out, a guy came back to our church for a visit. Years ago, he used to live a few doors down from the building. At that time, he was a heavy drinker. His marriage had broken up and he had no prospects. One day, he came by the church and rapped on the door. He said, “I want to get saved!” But he was under the influence so I remember saying, ‘Why don’t you come back tonight? Go home and have a few hours sleep. Get yourself sobered up and if you are serious come back at 7pm.’ When I arrived at the church that evening and had a look down the street, my reaction was, ‘That was the drink talking, I sure he won’t come.’ But then I saw a head popping out the door. I remember having the joy of leading this guy to the Lord. He became the church caretaker and then God moved him on to another ministry. I didn’t see him again for years but then he arrived back at the church and we had the joy of seeing the fruit of our work. It made it all worth it.”
SOMETHING NEW
CARRICK-ON-SHANNON, CO. LEITRIM One of Ireland’s newest churches is in Carrickon-Shannon in Leitrim. “Groupon has a lot of answer for,” smiles Pastor Jeremy Burke from Lakeland Elim Church. While Jeremy was studying at Bible College, his wife Lesley booked a weekend away in Sligo using a Groupon voucher. “We went to Sligo just for a break, with nothing else on our minds. We went for a walk up the street and the only way I can describe it is that God gripped our hearts for Ireland.” It took a while for doors to open but eventually Jeremy and Lesley moved “lock, stock and barrel” to Carrick-on-Shannon in January 2017. Those early months were a time of getting to know the area and drinking lots of cups of coffee as Jeremy and Lesley built relationships with local believers and ran a mid-week Bible study in their home for several months before launching a Sunday service. “We are a rural community and a rural church. Our people are dotted around a 25 KM radius of Carrick and we are blessed with a wide age range,” Jeremy said. “Isaiah 43:19 was my baptismal verse and it keeps coming back to me, especially at the moment. ‘See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.’
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EVERY TRIBE, EVERY LANGUAGE ENNISKILLEN, CO. FERMANAGH
Across Ireland, there are many churches that serve particular groups of people who have come here to live and work. Along with several families from his local church in Lithuania, Robertas Guobys came to Enniskillen to build the new hospital. They discovered a number of Easter Europeans in the area who were Christians and so the group began to meet for worship in homes. Like many pastors of ethnic minority churches, Robertas has to work full time as well as preaching and taking care of his congregation. “My work in the past was civil engineering. But here, I do very simple work in the local steel company working on the shop floor. At the moment, I’m welding and producing structural steel.” “After a while, we decided to rent a public place once a week. This is a small town so everyone knows each other, especially the Easter Europeans,
so word got around,” Pastor Robertas said. Up to 50 people gather each week including Lithuanians, Latvians and one Ukrainian. “We were all from the former Soviet Union and one good thing came out of that - we can all understand Russian so we run our services in Russian.” Finding a place to rent provided challenging. “We could not find a premises and it is quite difficult for some churches to open their halls to an Eastern European group but there is a brilliant church that is continuing to help us. Fermanagh Christian Fellowship welcomed us and we have become part of that church, meeting as the Russian-speaking group. “Jesus is everything to us! When you get closer to God, you should be closer to people. We should have an open heart to love all the people around us,” Pastor Robertas added.
GROWING DEEPER
DUNSHAUGHLIN AND CULMULLEN, CO. MEATH A dynamic partnership with Youth for Christ Ireland enabled Dunshaughlin and Culmullen Parish in County Meath to help young people explore their Christian faith and grow deeper with God. “After studying theology and philosophy, I went into social work and then worked with Foroige for nine years. Doing youth work, I found that the spiritual piece was missing and that was what young people were asking for,” said Parish Youth and Family Pastoral worker, Jenny Leonard. “So four years ago I began talking with the priest in our parish here and my role developed. We set up ARK (which stands for Awareness, Relationship and Kerygma, the Greek word for proclamation) to teach the good news to young people and invite them to explore their faith in a safe place.” With only one other volunteer locally, Jenny needed extra support. She reached out to Youth for Christ and ran a Confirmation Retreat alongside a YFC team last autumn for 70 young people. “The greatest joy of my life has been knowing God. I believe it is really important to journey with the kids when they are in sixth class to think about what they believe and give them a chance to discuss it in small groups. Youth For Christ helped us with the programme for the retreat and also encouraged us as leaders to contribute. We were modelling coming together from different denominations and the young people could see the this is bigger than us and it is authentic.” Jenny considers it an incredible privilege to work with young people, to walk alongside them as they learn about Jesus and to watch them blossom in their faith. “We use Scripture and help them to see that the Bible is not something distant but it can speak into their lives today. After the retreat, it was so lovely to see the 6th class coming back and sharing their experience with the younger kids. ”
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WE SHOULD HAVE AN OPEN HEART TO LOVE ALL THE PEOPLE AROUND US,”
VOX MAGAZINE
WATERFORD
PASTOR NATHANIEL ADEMOYE
WHAT IS GOD SAYING?
During the Finding Faith Tour, we asked church leaders all over Ireland what they think God is saying to His people at this time. Here’s what they said.
As the body, it is a wake up call. We have neglected our assignment to be watchmen for the nations. The church is meant to be one body. We have allowed division. The issue of disunity and [the need for] evangelism has not be a primary concern. Too often, we are concerned with ourselves and our lifestyles. We have lost the core values. We need to acknowledge God and live a life of love. With all that has happened, it is a “pause” to reflect and come to know what really matters. It doesn’t really matter what your colour is. We need one another. I don’t think we can live without one another. We are not created to be independent. God was not in error, when He said, “It is not good for man to be alone.”
LOUTH
PASTOR TOSIN POPOOLA As a nation, God is asking us to come back to our first love. He is saying, if His people who are called by His name shall humble themselves and seek His face and turn to Him in repentance, then He will heal our land.
LONGFORD AND ARMAGH JOHN OLIVER (NEW GROUND IRELAND)
We have been given the same verse about 50 times by different people, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland.” Isaiah 43:19 At the end of John’s gospel, the disciples were on lockdown in the upper room. Suddenly the risen Lord Jesus stands among them and says, “As the Father has sent me I’m sending you.” I know that God is up to something. He is doing a new thing and we get to be a small part of it. What a privilege to be a wee cog!
WEXFORD PASTORS PAUL AND CATHY PHILLIPS
I believe God is saying, “Trust me.” He has everything under control. I personally believe that He is going to do something marvellous; to wake the church up from its slumber. God is preparing His people to stand up. I’m passionate about the church being who we are called to be. It is all hands on deck and every hand to the plough but fundamentally it is God’s work! The church has nothing to worry about because we are in His care. We have gone so far away from God but He is giving people a chance to seek His face. People have been able to spend more time in the Word of God and they are making an effort to connect with one another. This has enabled people to be strengthened in the Lord.
MONAGHAN REV. STEPHEN MCNIE
For me personally, the scripture that has touched me is 1 Peter 1: 3 - 9. We need to remember, we have been given new birth into a living hope through Jesus and in Him we are shielded and guarded (spiritual PPE). In this we greatly rejoice. Trials come so that our faith may be proved genuine. That is the key that I’ve seen during this time. People’s nominal faith has been completely challenged. People are asking where they are spiritually and in the midst of this uncomfortable season, people are recommitting their lives to the Lord.
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FAITH
A Place To Be Still
“Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalm 46:10) BY RUTH GARVEY-WILLIAMS
“WE HAVE LOVED SEEING HOW GOD HAS PROVIDED AND HOW THE PLACE HAS BEEN A BLESSING TO THOSE WHO COME.”
T
his year, I “visited” Murlough House in Dundrum near Newcastle, Co. Down by chatting with Keiron and Tricia Forbes. This historic property set on a National Trust nature reserve has recently been refurbished to transform the old dorm-style accommodation into comfortable en suite bedrooms. “We got involved rather reluctantly,” admits Keiron. “I happened to be visiting at a time when the leaders were struggling. On the way home we looked at each other and said, ‘Maybe we should give this a go for a year.’ “Slowly but surely it has taken over our lives. We have loved seeing how God has provided and how the place has been a blessing to those who come.” Before they arrived, Murlough House had been used primarily as accommodation for visiting teams, coming to work alongside local churches in mission and evangelism. But Keiron and Tricia sensed God leading them in a new direction. At weekends the centre is available for small church groups, meetings and small conferences but mid-week the focus has become more on providing a peaceful place for people to come and encounter God.
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“It has been very much a journey,” explained Tricia who has a background in pastoral care and counselling. “The vision has been developing step-by-step. We are sensing that we need to become more of a retreat, being here for people who are tired and weary or in need of some sort, although we are not sure what that will look like.” It soon became obvious that without some refurbishment, there was no future for the centre. They decided to do up the bathrooms and upgrade the heating system and suddenly the funding started to come in. Within two years everything was paid for. “It is a beautiful site, surrounded by 500 acres of a nature reserve with the sea on three sides. It is definitely a place to be still and know that He is God. We are just custodians of the house. Sometimes people who come through the door who don’t know Jesus and are impacted by the atmosphere and the people,” Kieron said. “I’ve been thinking about the Hebrew word “Mishkan” that described the tabernacle - it is a word that has many shades of meaning but one interpretation might be, ‘..where the presence of the Lord dwells to bring peace.’” Find out more about Murlough House on the website www.murloughhouse.org and on Facebook.
BOOK REVIEW
VOX MAGAZINE
From Shore to Shore: Living in God’s Global Kingdom BY PAMELA FERGUSSON
REVIEWED BY THE VERY REV DR KEN NEWELL
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rom Shore to Shore: Living in God’s Global Kingdom: Reflections in Poetry and Prose reveals a writer of deeply moving and beautifully crafted poetry and prose, who is an absorber of beauty, a cherisher of loving relationships, and a poet and storyteller who can inspire. It is emotionally honest and spiritually enriching, opening a door for all of us into the most personal and vulnerable moments of life. We are able to watch how the author coped with challenges, and moulded them into an inner resilience and deep trust that inspire us to believe in God’s loving presence in all of life’s circumstances. Pamela grew up in Nigeria where her parents worked with Mission Africa, and then moved to live in South Armagh in Northern Ireland where her father was a church minister. She later worked with her husband Jim in mission as teachers in a Christian university in Indonesia, and also in Japan. She draws on all her experiences and the range of themes is expansive: nature’s eloquence, God’s still small voice, the demands and enrichment of living in different cultures; cross-cultural adoption and the legacy of grandparents; the joy of belonging and the pain of separation; peace-making in a divided community; the silence that envelops visitors to Auschwitz; protecting the planet; the wisdom-quotations from Vincent van Gogh and the life-revealing art of Rembrandt. The Christian spirituality pervading From Shore to Shore resonates with the rich classical Celtic tradition of “the land of saints and scholars”, a spirituality that offers a way of encountering God, which re-energizes the human spirit through the gift of Jesus Christ. From Shore to Shore has made me look more closely at myself, at those around me and at the natural world in a life-enhancing way. I’m not in the habit of reading a book twice but for this compelling volume I will definitely be making an exception. Very Rev Dr Ken Newell OBE, winner of the 1999 Pax Christi International Peace Prize, author of Captured by a Vision.
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AgapĂŠ Ireland
Camino de Santiago 23June 2021 STUDENTS For
Leaving cert & University
10 days 160km Agape.ie/camino â‚Ź499 Camino@agape.ie
3 July
(Not including flights)
Street Pastor teams will soon be back in Dublin City Centre every Saturday night, aiming to care, listen and help whomever we come across. We would love to have more teams out serving - would you consider joining us?
Find out more: www.streetpastors.org/locations/dublin Facebook.com/DublinStreetPastors | 085 102 1727
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MUSIC REVIEWS
VOX MAGAZINE
Hear (Part 1) WIRED WORSHIP
Writing, producing and recording an album is expensive. For many independent artists, the process is self-financed. It costs a lot of money and usually, the artist doesn’t even recoup the amount spent. Caroline Crawford is an independent musician based in Donegal. She is the founder of Wired Worship, a collective of Christian singers and songwriters, who pool resources to produce an indigenous sound for this island. They set themselves the goal of releasing an album of songs in 2020 until Covid-19 arrived. Undaunted, they worked remotely. Members invested in recording equipment, worked alone and collaborated online through video conferencing and social media. It has been an exhausting process but a real labour of love, which produced some beautiful music. Hear is the debut
album by Wired Worship, (well half of it). Caroline and the team decided that rather than wait for the entire project to be recorded, they would release the album in two stages. Hear (Part 1) is comprised of six beautiful tracks released at the end of May. It opens with All To Thee dedicating the album to God and continues inviting us to surrender to the love of God, to recognise and be in awe of His presence in everything that surrounds us, and to acknowledge His reign over all creation. These are beautiful songs, lyrically rich and musically simple, stripped back and accessible to all. This is music for the Irish Church. Listen to Hear (Part 1) on all music streaming platforms, watch on Wired Worship’s YouTube channel and send them a word of encouragement on their Facebook page.
Lockdown has been a strange time, especially for artists and songwriters who quickly found themselves out of work. Yet, despite the lack of opportunity, many songwriters kept busy by writing songs and producing and recording with little or no resources. I have been astonished by the quality of the work produced during these difficult times. I’d like to introduce you to some musical gems I’ve unearthed during the past three months. Listen to the songs and then look up the artist on their social media pages and drop them a line of encouragement!
Hidden
LAURA THOMPSON The Covid-19 Lockdown has been challenging for Christians. Following a conversation with a friend who was going through a difficult time spiritually and who just wanted to withdraw from the deluge of “experts” online, Westport-based singer/songwriter Laura Thompson wrote Hidden. The single released through Homegrown Worship and featuring the beautiful accompaniment of musician Nick Law, will resonate with anyone who longs for stillness in this noisy world. The lyrics say “Shun the chaos, give me Jesus. There’s too many voices to hear.” With plaintive vocals and lyrics that speak for those who feel oppressed and badgered, Hidden is a song to listen to when it all gets too much to handle. Listen on Spotify, all music streaming platforms and on the Homegrown Worship YouTube channel. Or on Laura’s Facebook page www.facebook.com/laurathompsongs.
God of Abundance KAT MILLS
Kat Mills has just released a single called
God of Abundance. This beautiful song is a reminder to model God’s generosity in our own lives. Kat Mills is a worship leader, a songwriter, a writer, and an advocate for those living with autism. Listen on Spotify and follow Kat’s music on social media at www.facebook.com/katmillsuk.
Not A Mistake ELLIE BUTTON
Ellie Button and her husband Tim are currently in lockdown in the UK having returned temporarily from Moldova where they are missionaries. During lockdown Ellie has released songs from her forthcoming album. Recorded with local musicians from Moldova they are of an astonishingly high standard. Ellie’s latest single is called Not A Mistake, an upbeat song affirming how precious you are to God. This song follows on from Ellie’s last single My Beautiful Child, also released during lockdown. These are words of encouragement we all need to hear at a time when so many feel a sense of loss resulting from isolation. Not A Mistake by Ellie Button is available on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and www. elliebuttonmusic.org.
Grace and Mercy JESS RAY
If you have never heard of the North Carolina based singer/songwriter Jess Ray, I urge you listen. She is one of America’s best-kept secrets, a songwriter of the highest quality. Her latest release is Grace and Mercy and I cannot stop listening to it. It is one of the most honest songs I have ever heard. Jess pours her heart out in a song that will stop you in your tracks. Listen on Spotify and watch the YouTube video - it is just sublime. www.jessraymusic.com
Albums reviewed by UCB Ireland Radio producer/presenter Vincent Hughes. Listen to his programme 123pm Monday to Friday and 11am3pm on Saturdays on Virgin Media Channel 918, on Sky Channel 0214 or via the smartphone app. You can contact Vincent at vhughes@ucbireland.ie | www.ucbireland.com.
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Bride’s Glen Farmhouse
Church Insurance
Shankill, Co. Dublin
a broker with a difference
We are a Christian insurance brokerage in business since 1984 and church insurance is an area in which we take a special interest. In addition to the usual cover (property etc) we can also arrange the following: -
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Shammah - Small meeting room with own kitchenette and toilet Bride’s Glen House is located in an idyllic location, quiet, yet convenient! Lovely place to relax and unwind. Ideal for visiting Dublin city or touring Co. Wicklow.
Betty Stevenson | 01-2822510 | 086-3504465 bettystevenson2014@outlook.com
CHURCH IN CHAINS CONFERENCE Living as a Christian under persecution in Pakistan Guest speaker Imtiaz Ashraf (originally from Pakistan and a regular visitor there with Release International) will share his insights about the daily challenges for Christians.
Saturday 12 September The conference will either be held at Clayton Hotel, Liffey Valley, Dublin or ONLINE ***** MORE DETAILS LATER *****
Professional Indemnity Pastoral Care Indemnity Public Liability Employers Liability (including volunteers) Charity Trustee Insurance Legal Expenses
Whether you are a large or small congregation, operate from a private home, rent space or own your own building we can protect you by providing advice and solutions for your insurance needs. For your quotation please contact Rodney Croly at: Email: Rodney@crolyinsurance.com Phone 01-2989166 | www.crolyinsurance.com R J Croly & Co Ltd is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland Registered in Ireland no. 108865. Registered office 4 Finsbury Park Dundrum Dublin 14 Directors Rodney Croly QFA FLIA , Sylvia Croly QFA
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Have you reviewed your pension lately? rement? How much will you need at reti How much can you co ntribute? Is it enough? Trillium Financial Services can go through all your options and find the pension that best suits you. We provide pension advice tailored to each individual’s financial aspirations. When a client meets with us, we carry out an assessment, review their current pension and discuss in detail their expected retirement objectives. Once we have a clear picture of our client’s retirement fund, tax liability and retirement goals, we can determine which type of pension is best suited to achieve those goals. The desired outcome is to have a financial plan that outlines the appropriate steps for the client and serves to guide them towards a financially secure retirement. James Garza, QFA, of Trillium Financial Services, has over 17 years experience in the financial services industry. Mention this advert to avail of a free one-hour pension consultation with James Garza, QFA. Contact James Garza at james@trillium.ie or 086 073 9902 or 01 442 9950.
Info: www.churchinchains.ie or 01-2825393 James Garza T/A Trillium Financial Services is regulated by the Central Bank of Ireland.
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BOOK REVIEWS
Where is God in a Coronavirus World? By John C Lennox
I was struck by the dedication of this little book – ‘To a world in pain’. This is no distant academic treatise, although the author’s clear logic as a Mathematics Professor is evident, as well as his fearless grappling with issues as an Apologetics Lecturer. But he is writing as if chatting with a friend in a coffee shop (if only!) who asks, ‘Where is God in a coronavirus world?’ He attempts to answer with honesty, and to give comfort, support and hope. Most books on suffering focus on moral evil – acts for which men and women are directly responsible, such as abuse and murder. But natural evil comes from fractures in the natural world - diseases and what we indeed call natural disasters, such as earthquakes and tsunamis. We need to make sense of these, and in particular of coronavirus, in three ways: intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. His conclusion about the atheist viewpoint is that removing God from the equation does not remove the pain and suffering of such disasters, but sadly it does remove hope. Then he addresses the big question – How can there be coronavirus if there is a loving God? His arguments here are enlightening. But I was surprised at his conclusion, that we might be better off looking at a different question - is there any evidence that there is a loving God whom we can trust? And that brings us back to hope. A thought-provoking read for Christians with honest questions, or to give away.
VOX MAGAZINE
Exploring the Psalms – a Creative Colouring Journal This book is certainly a timely testament to divine direction, having been commissioned long before coronavirus. it was published in early April, and is the perfect book for these days when many of us are still spending more time than usual in our homes. But what is a Creative Colouring Journal? If you like devotional colouring, you will enjoy colouring the images from 10 favourite Psalms, and if you like journalling, there is plenty of space to do that. But this is also the perfect introduction for anyone who has not yet explored colouring or journalling as part of their devotional time. To help you get started, the images are not too intricate. There are occasional thought provoking prompts, such as this one in response to Psalm 103: 11 – 12: ‘Have you ever wondered how much God loves you? What does it mean to you to know that you are loved with an unconditional and immeasurable love?’ There are also a few creative craft project ideas, a Bible study template, prayer diary, and space for answers to prayer, and verses to remember. The word ‘Selah’ is often used in the Psalms and is translated as to pause, stop and breathe, instead of rushing on to the next thing. Many of us have had our physical lives slowed down. But I am sure that Exploring the Psalms will also help you to slow down in your soul and your spirit, and to be still as you seek the presence of God.
5 Things to Pray in a Global Crisis By Rachel Jones
Coronavirus has people praying, even those who never prayed before. But what should we pray, and will it make any difference? With life not as stable as we thought, this short book starts with prayer for our own hearts. Once we re-establish ourselves in God, we can better focus on the needs of others. Five suggestions for prayer are taken from a Scripture passage for each section, e.g. ‘Comfort when I am lonely’ is based on Psalm 139. Then we move outward to needs of family, including ‘Loved ones whom I cannot visit’ - based on Paul’s longing to see the Thessalonians (1 Thessalonians 3). ‘Praying for healthcare’ is written by a doctor on a Covid-19 ward. Then there are ways to pray for one’s church, including vulnerable friends. Finally we pray for kingdom growth, e.g. ‘In my community’ highlights Paul’s attitude under house arrest in Rome (Acts 28). There are many ways to use this resource – sequentially or dipping in and out.
Book reviews by Julie Carvill of christianbooks.ie, from where you can order these and other inspiring titles: info@christianbooks.ie or +353 (0)86 839 1870
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MEASURING WHAT MATTERS BY SEÁN MULLAN
“C
hurch is a matter of ABC,” he said confidently. I looked at him, puzzled, which is what he intended. “Attendance, building and collection,” he said, smiling. Cynicism? Humour? Or a simple statement of what he believed? I never found out. But the words of that church leader resurfaced in my head when Covid-19 set church attendance counts to zero, closed all church buildings and reduced collections to what was coming electronically and what was being hidden under the mattress for the day when dues could again be paid. And what now? As churches hit restart, re-close is still a threat that packs a punch. So before all church measurement gauges are reset to start counting again it might be the moment to consider what’s worth measuring. What should churches measure? What matters for churches, be it the local congregation, or the denomination is what should be measured. Are attendance, buildings and collections the key issues? If they are then two success stories spring to mind. I’m thinking of the Catholic Church of the Ireland I grew up in and the Evangelical/Pentecostal churches of that part of the USA that is commonly known as the Bible Belt. Back in the days when tweeting was for birds and phones came with wires attached, the Catholic Church in Ireland scored almost off the scale on attendance, buildings and collections. 94% of the population identified as Catholic and the weekly turnout was somewhere north of 80%. The buildings that stood tall in every village, town and city parish probably represented the largest property portfolio in the nation. And the collections? Even in hard times there seemed to be adequate cash in church coffers. Apply the same measures to “gospel preaching” churches of the US Bible
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Belt and you get similarly impressive results. One local church in Houston boasts a weekly attendance of over 40,000 people. Most cities of the Bible Belt have a selection of church buildings that look like concert venues, the Point on steroids, running multiple services each weekend and pastors with the status of rock stars. And the collections? Adequate is understatement. But those measurements don’t tell a full story. Underneath the shine of success lies a darker story. In the Ireland of that era many of the most vulnerable and weak were brutally abused and then silenced by a church overloaded with power and prestige. Attempts to expose that abuse were met with an orchestrated cover up that protected the prestige of the institution at the expense of the wounded. There is also a darker side to the Bible Belt story. During the same period that these churches grew in influence and fame, laws were enacted and enforced to create a “justice” system that per-capita imprisons more adults, and more children than any country on earth. One tale might show what this means. In Florida in 1990 a 13-year-old homeless boy who had used a gun in a robbery was tried as an adult. Having pleaded guilty he was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole. Imprisoned in an adult prison he spent the next 18 years in solitary confinement. No prizes for guessing his racial background. This is not an isolated incident. There are many such stories and race plays a huge part in many of them.
Unlike the Irish situation, the churches are not directly responsible for the injustice. But it is highly likely that many of those involved in creating and maintaining this system are signed up members of Bible-believing gospel preaching churches. And, unlike Ireland, these things have not been done in secret. No one can say, “We didn’t know.” It is all in the public arena. What matters enough to measure? Instead of ABC the prophet Micah suggests JMH. Justice, mercy and humility. Harder to measure but worth a lot more. I recently met a friend who leads a small community church in a challenging part of Dublin. A local community organiser who has been working on social action in that community for years interrupted our chat. Without prompting he began telling me about the effect of this little church on their community, how they had helped change their approach to community action, becoming less confrontational and more relational and how that had delivered very significant change. “I’m not religious at all,” he said “but I have the feeling there is a shield over us, that we are being protected.” This church would be crowded if 50 people turned up. They have no building and, I’m guessing, a small income. My friend won’t headline any conferences or feature in any books. But they measure what really matters.
WITHOUT PROMPTING HE BEGAN TELLING ME ABOUT THE EFFECT OF THIS LITTLE CHURCH ON THEIR COMMUNITY
Seán Mullan has been working in church leadership for many years. He has developed a project in Dublin City Centre called “Third Space”.
UCB IRELAND
Serving the Church, Reaching the Nation
THE WORD FOR TODAY R TO DAY W OR D FO// OCT 2020 AUG // SEP
WRITTEN BY S Y GAS BOB & DEBB
M EVANGELIS H MONT
IS MAY 2020
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2020 will be remembered for a lot of things. Why don’t you remember it as the year when you did something you’ve never done before to help the poorest people on the planet? Shave your head, climb Carrauntoohil on your stairs, run, cycle or walk a distance you never thought was possible… Help us to continue to resource our work of providing hygiene kits and PPE equipment to people living in poverty who will be impacted most by Covid-19. Set up an online fundraising page today!
Visit tearfund.ie/20k-in-2020 Tearfund Ireland, 2nd Floor, Ulysses House 22–24 Foley St, Dublin 1 D01 W2T2 Registered Charity No. CHY 8600. Charities Regulatory Authority Number: 20021337 People Illustration: Tartila/mushakesa/Adobestock.com
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