CHURCH OF IRELAND NOTES
For Saturday 28th July 2001
From: The RCB Library
Email: RCB Library
New Principal for Theological College
The news that Canon Adrian Empey is to be the next Principal of the
Church of Ireland Theological College promises to usher in a new era for
theological education: certainly in the past each Principal has left the
mark of his own personality, interests and abilities on the the College and,
before it, the Divinity Hostel.
Michael Ferrar, Raymond Jenkins, John Brown, Jim Hartin and John Bartlett
had superficially much in common: they were all men, they were all in holy
orders and they all evinced a clear and unambiguous dedication to their
responsibilities to the ordinands in their care. Inevitably, however, they
expressed their dedication in differing ways but in total they brought to
the Church of Ireland an admirable range of virtues: scholarship,
spirituality, discipline, pastoral care and astuteness among others.
Dr Empey will bring to Braemor Park his particular qualities. He is a
scholar, an eminent medieval historian and a member of the Royal Irish
Academy, but one whose scholarly life has been tempered by considerable
pastoral experience. Incumbencies in parishes in the dioceses Ossory,
Kildare, and Dublin, membership of the chapter of St Patrick's Cathedral,
chaplaincies to the Missions to Seamen and the Rotunda Hospital have
introduced him to all sorts and conditions of men and women. A lively
personality, good sense of humour and an abiding intellectual curiosity have
helped him cope with and, as far as it is possible, make sense of that
panorama of church life.
This experience of the Church of Ireland in all its diversity will serve
the new Principal well for the College, as the only theological college of
the Church of Ireland, is inevitably a diverse body of men and women just as
the bishops, to whom the Principal is responsible, are a diverse body of
men.
Today (Saturday) an informal study weekend begins in Mohill, Co. Leitrim,
on the eminent beekeeper, the Revd J.R.G. Digges who, as private chaplain to
the Clements family from 1885, had ample time to indulge this interest. He
was the author of The Practical Bee Guide which was published in 1904
and ran to sixteen editions and 76,000 copies. In Farnaght Church, Mohill,
where Digges served for nearly fifty years, there will be a service at 9.30
am tomorrow (Sunday). The church is notable for a memorial stained glass
window by Ethel Rhind depicting St McDomoc bringing the bees to Ireland.
Today, Saturday, in Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Evensong will be sung
by the choir of Grace Church on the Hill, Toronto, who will sing the
services tomorrow (Sunday).
Tomorrow (Sunday) the services in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, will be
sung by the Close Chorale. In the Church of St John the Evangelist, Belfast,
the preacher will be the former Bishop of Connor, Dr Samuel Poyntz while in
Dalkey, Co. Dublin, the Revd Dr Norman Gamble will preach on behalf of SPCK.
At 4.00 pm the Annual Open Air Service will begin at Clonmacnoise. The
preacher will be the Bishop of Meath and Kildare, Dr Richard Clarke, and the
music will be provided by the St James Brass and Reed Band from Dublin and
the Athlone Parish Music Group.
On Thursday the fourth recital in the Festival of Classical Music in St
Barrahane's Church, Castletownshend, Co. Cork, will be given by Carmen Lasok
(soprano), Robert Aldwinckle (piano), Bridget Knowles (mezzo soprano) and
Ciara Moroney (piano). In St Ann's Church, Dublin, there will be a lunchtime
recital by the organist of St Ann's, Dr Stanley Monkhouse and admission is
free
Church of Ireland Notes appear in the Irish
Times whose web site may be found at
http://www.ireland.com/ |
