The following statement has been published following the conclusion of the Summer General Meeting of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference today in the Columba Centre of Saint Patrick’s College Maynooth:
· Statement of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference welcoming the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes
· Launch of the Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults
· Safeguarding Children
· Vocations
· Towards Peace spiritual support service
· Liturgy on weekdays when the celebration of Mass is not possible
· Presentation on behalf of the Commission of Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union
· Pope Francis meets members of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum
· Trócaire – the overseas aid agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland
· Supporting Marriage and Family
· 45th Irish Church Music Summer School
· Campaign to support young Irish emigrants
· Call for prayer to mark the opening of the Synod on the Family in October
· New Moderator of the Presbyterian Church and new President of the Methodist Church
· Prayers for those suffering due to civil unrest in Iraq and Ukraine
· Tributes to Bishop Christopher Jones and Bishop-elect Kevin Doran
· Father Joseph Dargan SJ RIP
Detail:
· Statement of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference welcoming the Commission of Investigation into Mother and Baby Homes
This statement was published yesterday, 10 June 2014, and is available on www.catholicbishops and @catholicbishops on Twitter, and also on Facebook
· Launch of the Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults
Bishops launched and commended the Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults to members of the faithful for study and reflection. Published by Veritas the Catechism was inspired by a recommendation in the Catechism of the Catholic Church suggesting that local bishops’ conferences should consider the “writing of new local catechisms, which takes into account various situations and cultures, while carefully preserving the unity of faith and fidelity to Catholic doctrine.” This is the first time a catechism has been tailored and produced specifically for an Irish adult audience. The Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults offers an accessible narrative and it explains the doctrine of the Church in a structured and user-friendly style. It links itself to the reader by revealing the life and ministries of well-known Irish figures of faith from Saint Augustine, Nano Nagle, Edmund Rice and Saint John XXIII, amongst others. Their stories in the Catechism show how the teachings of the Church were put into action in their respective lives. Each chapter also provides material for reflection on Church teaching in the context of today as well as offering pointers for action. The Catechism is a very useful resource for individuals, parishes or other faith groups. A study guide is also available. The Catechism will also assist those working to implement the recommendations in Share the Good News, the Church’s national directory for catechetics.
Bishop Leahy, Chair of the Bishops’ Council for Catechetics, said, “The Irish Catholic Catechism for Adults is a ‘go-to’ resource for adults looking for explanations and apt examples of what Catholics believe. Many people today who were brought up as Catholics have a lot of questions about faith. This Irish Catholic Catechism tries to meet people where they are using an adult methodology for personal learning that reaches our spirit, our individuality and our personal existence. It contextualises for Ireland the presentation of faith by providing positive experiences of people of faith as well as reflecting on the challenges today facing people of faith. A new phenomenon in Ireland in recent years has been the emergence of study groups of the Catechism of the Catholic Church with many claiming it has been a life-changing experience for them. Exploration of the Catechism is aimed at helping us link faith and worship, life and prayer, social commitment and intellectual insight. The text of the Irish Catholic Catechism will be promoted in a range of ways, including with the publication of the study-guide and helpful and brief video-clips.”
Ireland is only the second country in the English-speaking world to publish a local catechism based on the Catechism of the Catholic Church. It received the official recognitio of the Holy See in late April and was launched by the Irish Bishops’ Conference on Monday, 9 June.
· Safeguarding Children
Ms Teresa Devlin, the Chief Executive Officer of the National Board for Safeguarding Children, along with the chair of the National Board, Mr John Morgan, appraised the Bishops’ Conference of current issues including the status of the National Board’s review process of dioceses and congregations into safeguarding practice in the Catholic Church in Ireland. All twenty six dioceses on the island have now been reviewed. The National Board also provided an update on the revision of the Standards and Guidance document for the Catholic Church which is being reviewed to take account of developing legislation in the Republic of Ireland and best practice in safeguarding children. The National Board is assisting with the administration of the forthcoming Anglophone Conference which will take place in Rome from 7 – 11 July next. Amongst the speakers will be experts in the field of offering counselling and support to survivors and monitoring perpetrators of abuse within the Catholic Church
· Vocations
Bishops welcomed the Year of Consecrated Life for the Universal Church which will be launched ahead of Advent. The Year of Consecrated Life coincides with the 50th anniversary of the promulgation of Lumen gentium (the Second Vatican Council’s constitution on the Church), which has a specific chapter dealing with consecrated life. The anniversary of the Council’s decree Perfectae caritatis will mark the close of the Year in November 2015. Bishops discussed the value of vocations to the life of the Church today and for her future. Bishops offered their blessings to the fifteen men ordained as transitional deacons in Maynooth on 1 June. They will exercise the diaconal ministry for approximately one year before being ordained to the priesthood. Bishops also prayed for the ministries of priests recently ordained in their dioceses, and for all priests.
· Towards Peace spiritual support service
Feedback from survivors has indicated that part of the profoundly negative impact that abuse has had on their lives includes its effect on faith and their relationship with God. Towards Peace spiritual support service is a whole Church response to this concern. It has been established and funded by the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference, Conference of Religious of Ireland and the Irish Missionary Union. There is no pre-determined road map and each person travels their own spiritual journey at a different pace. The service has been launched in Cork and Knock and will be rolled out across the country over the coming months. Towards Peace offers ‘spiritual companions’ to those who wish to avail of its service. The companions are women and men, lay, religious and priests, who live in various parts of the country and who are trained to offer spiritual support and guidance to people using the service. Sister Mary Whyte is the Coordinator for Towards Peace and can be contacted on 00 353 (1) 505 3028 and by email on [email protected]. Information on the spiritual support service can be found on www.towardspeace.ie
Towards Peace is one of three services that form the pastoral response to abuse by the Church in Ireland. The other two services are:
– Towards Healing, the free and confidential counselling referral service; and,
– The National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland.
· Liturgy on weekdays when the celebration of Mass is not possible
Bishops discussed and welcomed the conversations being conducted by the Council for Liturgy of the Bishops’ Conference on liturgy on weekdays when the celebration of Mass is not possible. Bishops reflected on the variety of situations that arise – some occasional, others frequent – and they look forward to recommendations for liturgical formation, guidelines and resources becoming available to assist dioceses and parishes to respond appropriately to this pastoral need.
· Presentation on behalf of the Commission of Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union
Father Patrick Daly, General Secretary of COMECE, the Commission of Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union, addressed the bishops concerning the Church’s engagement with society. Father Daly said, “The European project is seventy years on the road but as the recent May elections have shown the European Union is at a critical juncture in its history. Major questions are being raised about its future.”
Father Daly traced the history of the Catholic Church’s support for, and contribution to, the European Union and he highlighted a number of issues which are likely to find their place on the programme of any new European Commission (which is due to be formed over the coming weeks). Father Daly advised the bishops that COMECE is currently working on the following issues:
– Human dignity and quality of life issues from conception until natural death
– Human trafficking
– The aging of society
– Youth unemployment and decent work for Europe’s young people
– Work-free Sunday
– Climate change and ecological justice
– the TTIP (Trans-Atlantic Trade and Investment Partnership) i.e. free trade zone between the EU and the USA.
· Pope Francis meets members of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum
On 30 May Pope Francis met with members of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, the co-ordinating agency for the Church’s social action. The Pontifical Council was hosting a coordination meeting between the Catholic development organisations – including Trócaire, the overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland – operating in the context of the Syrian crisis. In his message to those gathered, Pope Francis said, “We must accept with great sorrow that the Syrian crisis has not been resolved, but instead continues, and there is the risk of growing accustomed to it: of forgetting the victims claimed on a daily basis, the unspeakable suffering, the thousands of refugees, which include the elderly and children, who suffer and at times die of hunger and of diseases caused by the conditions of war. This indifference is harmful. Once again we must repeat the name of this illness that does so much damage in today’s world: the globalisation of indifference.”
· Trócaire
Bishops welcomed the report from Trócaire which showed that during 2013 the aid agency impacted positively on the lives of 3.4 million people in some of the poorest countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Bishops also acknowledged the generosity of the lay faithful, priests and religious across Ireland in supporting Trócaire’s work throughout the year whether through the annual Lenten campaign (which supported communities in India in 2013 and in Malawi in 2014) or through the November 2013 emergency shared Church appeal which raised over €5 million for Trócaire’s work with those forced to flee their homes in Syria and communities affected by Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
· Supporting Marriage and Family
Bishops discussed the forthcoming Extraordinary Synod of Bishops which Pope Francis will be hosting this October on the subject of the ‘Pastoral Challenges to the Family in the Context of Evangelization’. To highlight this theme the Bishops’ Council for Marriage will hold a conference this Saturday in Holy Cross Diocesan Centre, Clonliffe College, Dublin, on the theme: ‘Marriage and Family at the Heart of the Parish’. This conference is offered to leaders in parishes and dioceses and others exercising faith and pastoral leadership, including parents, grandparents, teachers, members of Parish Pastoral Councils as well as other groups and organisations serving the Church’s mission. The conference’s keynote speaker will be Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, Vice-President of the Irish Bishops’ Conference; and it will be addressed by Bishop Liam MacDaid, Chair of the Bishops’ Council for Marriage and the Family; Dr Tony Fahey, Professor of Social Policy, School of Applied Science at UCD; and Ms Colette Furlong from the Sligo Parishes Cluster. Commenting ahead of the Saturday’s gathering Bishop Liam MacDaid said, “The vocation of marriage and family life enriches the whole community and our conference will be another opportunity to explore and deepen our sense of marriage and family which is at the heart of the parish and society. It is vitally important to explore together how parishes can continue to support families in their calling to live, pass on and share their faith, given the pastoral challenges that affect families today.”
· 45th Irish Church Music Association Summer School
Bishops expressed their good wishes to the Irish Church Music Association (ICMA) on the hosting of its 45th annual Summer School in Maynooth from 3 – 6 July. The 2014 theme is: ‘The Joy of the Gospel’ is based on the Apostolic Exhortation of Pope Francis which was published last November. The guest director will be David Saint, Director of Music and Organist at Saint Chad’s Cathedral, Birmingham. About 200 lay women, men, clergy and religious will come to Maynooth and participate in workshops on various themes including: parish repertoire, the psalm in the liturgy, choral skills and organ tuition.in singing, praying and developing their repertoire of music. A new addition to the ICMA summer school this year will be the New Generation Youth Choir – a space for younger participants and younger voices to develop a special liturgy at the summer school. Bishop Denis Nulty, Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin, will preside at the Friday evening liturgy and Bishop Patricia Storey, Church of Ireland Bishop of Meath and Kildare, will speak at Solemn Vespers on the Saturday. RTÉ television’s Nationwide will cover this year’s event. For further details see www.catholicbishops.ie and/or www.irishchurchmusicassociation.com.
· Campaign to support young Irish emigrants
Bishops asked its Council for Prisoners Overseas (ICPO) to prepare an information campaign encouraging young Irish emigrants to take care of themselves while travelling and living overseas. This request is in response to the current wave of emigration and an increase in the number of Irish prisoners in certain jurisdictions. Bishop John Kirby, chair of the Bishops’ Council for Emigrants, said, “Traditionally the majority of Irish prisoners overseas have been detained in the UK, but it is likely that the recent wave of emigration will result in an increase in the number of Irish prisoners in other parts of the world. In the last two years, for example, the ICPO has seen an increase in the number of young emigrants committing an offence and spending a period of time in prison in Australia.” The campaign, which will be launched over the summer, will emphasise the importance of being aware of cultural differences and of adhering to local laws and customs, while it will also seek to raise awareness of the services offered by the Irish Council for Prisoner Overseas so that emigrants in difficulty may be better informed regarding available support.
· Call for prayer to mark the opening of the Synod on the Family in October
Irish born Father Patrick Peyton led the first ‘Rosary Crusade’ in Canada in 1948 and he brought the crusade to Ireland during the Marian Year of 1954 (see below). To mark the sixtieth anniversary of this prayerful initiative, and to encourage the practice of this special and much loved family prayer, bishops have designated 5 October next as Rosary Sunday. In this context, as 5 October is also the Church’s annual Day for Life, bishops asked that the intentions of the Rosary be offered for the theme of Day for Life, which this year focuses on the theme of protecting and cherishing life. Bishops also asked for prayers to guide October’s Extraordinary Synod of Bishops on the Family.
· Prayers for those suffering due to civil unrest in Iraq and Ukraine
Bishops offered prayers for the people of Iraq who are facing a humanitarian crisis due to extensive violence in the north of the country particularly in recent days. Up to half a million refugees are facing displacement as a consequence of this fresh and intense conflict.
Bishops received correspondence from Archbishop Sviatoslav, the Major Archbishop of Kyiv-Halych in Ukraine. Archbishop Sviatoslav thanked the faithful of Ireland for their “abiding prayer and various works of charity … [which] has supported with prayer and exhortation the yearning for peace and justice in Ukraine.” Bishops prayed for peace in Ukraine and its people who have suffered greatly over the last six months due to civil unrest in their country. Iraqis and Ukrainians living in Ireland, north and south, were also remembered at this time.
· Tributes to Bishop Christopher Jones and Bishop-elect Kevin Doran
Bishops paid warm tribute to Bishop Christopher Jones for his compassionate, inspirational and dedicated Christian leadership since his appointment as Bishop of Elphin in 1994. Bishops thanked Bishop Jones for all his generous service to, and work on behalf of, the Irish Bishops’ Conference over the last twenty years in many pastoral areas and in particular as President of Accord, the Catholic Marriage Care Service; on pro-life issues; and concerning the restoration of the permanent diaconate. Bishops wished Bishop Jones a long, happy and healthy retirement.
Bishops extended good wishes to Bishop-elect Kevin Doran as he prepares to succeed Bishop Jones as the new Bishop of Elphin on 13 July next.
· New Moderator of the Presbyterian Church and new President of the Methodist Church
Bishops offered their prayerful good wishes to the new Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland Dr Michael Barry, who was installed on 2 June last, and to Rev Peter Murray, the new President of the Methodist Church in Ireland, who will take up office later this week.
· Father Joseph Dargan SJ RIP
Bishops prayed for the repose of the soul of the late Father Joseph Dargan SJ who died recently at the age of 81. Bishops paid tribute to Father Dargan who held many positions of responsibility in the Society of Jesus, and made a significant contribution to Catholic education in Ireland, as a teacher, rector of Clongowes Wood College, Belvedere College and in Gonzaga College. One of the significant developments during his time as Provincial of the Jesuits was the opening of two Jesuit communities in Northern Ireland, and the expansion of the Centre for Faith and Justice. Father Dargan also played a valuable role as a consultant to the Bishops’ Conference from 1993-1998 on pastoral development matters.
ENDS
Notes for Editors
· Irish born Father Patrick Peyton led the first ‘Rosary Crusade’ in Canada in 1948. This was followed annually by crusades in different parts of the world. Father Peyton left his native Attymass in Ballina at the age of nineteen. He contacted tuberculosis while studying for the priesthood two years before his ordination. He started his Rosary Crusade in thanksgiving to Our Lady for his recovery from that illness. Father Peyton brought the crusade to Ireland during the Marian Year of 1954 and from April to August he visited the dioceses of Tuam, Galway, Clonfert, Achonry, Elphin, Killala, Down and Connor, Meath, Waterford & Lismore, and Ferns. Thousands of people attended these family rosary gatherings. The twenty first and final rally was held on Our Lady’s Island, fourteen miles from Wexford town, and it was attended by forty thousand people.
For media contact: Catholic Communications Office Maynooth: Martin Long 00353 (0) 86 172 7678
