Irish Times Notes14 Mar 20

Church of Ireland Notes from ‘The Irish Times’

St Patrick’s Tide Celebrations

Next week, while there may not be any of the usual St Patrick’s Day processions, the Church of Ireland will celebrate the national patronal festival with a variety of liturgical and cultural events.

Today (Saturday) at 5pm, you can bring your family to Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Dublin, to experience an unforgettable show.  Children will be captivated by St Patrick’s dramatic story brought to life by the talented actors from Play It By Ear.  This show is perfect for children and adults alike.  This event is free; however, booking is essential.

From tomorrow (Sunday) until 22 March in conjunction with Limerick City and County Council and the Limerick St Patrick’s Festival, ‘Earth’, an artwork by Luke Jerram, which is a stunning replica of our plant, will be on exhibition in St Mary’s cathedral.  The admission fee will be reduced to €1 for the duration of the exhibition and there will be no admission charge for school groups and children.  Bookings for school groups should be made at 01–310293.

On Monday 16th March, the Eve of St Patrick’s Day, an Irish Language Service of Holy Communion will be celebrated by the Revd Hazel Minion in St Luke’s church, Douglas, Cork, at 7.30pm.  Translation of the service will be available and a warm invitation is extended to all.  In the Diocese of Clogher, Bishop John McDowell will give a talk on the Disestablishment of the Church of Ireland to the Ardess Historical Society in Ardess Parish Centre, Kesh, Co. Fermanagh.

In St Patrick’s cathedral, Dublin, the national cathedral of the Church of Ireland, the Eucharist will be said in Irish at 9.15am in the Lady Chapel.  At 11.15am the Patronal Eucharist will be sung by the Cathedral Choir & Consort to the setting of Peeters’ Missa Festiva with Colin Mawby’s Motet Ave Verum Corpus.  The preacher will be the Revd MP Roemmele, Rector of Camus–Juxta–Bann in the Diocese of Derry.  At 6.00pm there will be the Dublin City Council of Churches Service – ‘St Patrick in His Own Words: An Ecumenical Celebration’.

Elsewhere in Dublin, St John’s, Sandymount, regrets that the annual bilingual service on St Patrick’s Day has been cancelled, due to the ongoing situation relating to Covid–19.

The Bishop of Cork will preside and preach at the Festival Eucharist and Civic Service of St Patrick’s Day in St Fin Barre’s cathedral, after which the Bishop and Mrs Colton host the Lord Mayor, City Council, members of the Oireachtas, civic representatives and voluntary groups at the Bishop’s Palace, Cork.

The new Bishop of Down & Dromore, the Rt Revd David McClay, has extended an invitation to join him for the celebration of St Patrick’s Day.  At 9.15am there will be a celebration of Holy Communion at St Patrick’s Memorial church, Saul, where the preacher will be the Ven Roderic West, Archdeacon of Dromore, followed by a Pilgrimage from Saul to Downpatrick.  At 11.45am the Festival Service will begin in Down Cathedral where the Rt Revd Andrew Forster, Bishop of Derry & Raphoe, will preach.  A wreath laying ceremony at the traditional site of St Patrick’s Grove will be followed by an Irish stew lunch in the marquee.

On the Fridays in Lent, Choral Compline will be sung in Sandford parish church, Ranelagh, at 7pm.  This beautiful meditative service provides a welcome respite from the busy Friday rush–hour.

The Annual General Meeting of the Church Education Society will be held on Thursday, 2 April, at 3.30pm in Church of Ireland House, Rathmines, Dublin.