Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from ‘The Irish Times’
Christmas Reading
For those who regard Christmas as an opportunity to catch up on some reading, there are several books with a Church of Ireland dimension which would merit attention.
Most obvious is Irish Anglicanism, 1969–2019 (Four Courts Press). Edited by Kenneth Milne and Paul Harron, this is a book of twenty essays reflecting many aspects of the life of the Church of Ireland over the last fifty years. In a similar vein, Protestant and Irish (Cork UP), edited by Ian d’Alton and Ida Milne, examines the minority’s search for a place in independent Ireland in fifteen essays preceded by an elegant introduction by Roy Foster. More locally, St Bartholomew’s: A History of a Dublin Parish (Hinds) by Kenneth Milne and Alastair Rowan, is a history and an architectural study of one of Dublin’s most distinctive Church of Ireland communities, with stunning photographs by Andrew Sheridan.
For those with a theological bent, Post Colonial Theology: Finding God and Each Other amidst the Hate (Cascade Books), by Robert Heaney, draws in part on his experiences of Northern Ireland. Ordained in the Church of Ireland, Dr Heaney now teaches in the Virginia Theological Seminary. Closer to home, The Jewel in the Mess (Columba Books) is a very personal reflection by the Bishop of Connor, the Rt Revd Alan Abernethy, while The Hermeneutics of Humour: A Serious Look at the Lighter Side of Faith (Church of Ireland Publishing), by the Revd Dr Ian Mills, Curate of Larne & Inver in the Diocese of Connor, is this year’s Braemor Studies booklet.
Today (Saturday) at 4pm there will be ‘Carols by Candlelight’ in St John’s church, Sandymount, Dublin, featuring traditional Christmas music and readings. Admission is free and there will be a voluntary collection for the Capuchin Day Centre. In the evening, at 8pm, the Mornington Singers will present their Christmas concert, ‘NOEL’, in Christ Church cathedral, Dublin.
A Service of Nine Lessons and Carols will take place tomorrow (Sunday) at 5pm at St George’s church, High Street, Belfast. In Dublin, there will be Festivals of Nine Lessons and Carols in St Patrick’s cathedral at 3.15pm and in Christ Church at 3.30pm. At 7pm there will be a Service of Reading and Carols in Sandford parish church, Ranelagh, with the Sandford & St Philip’s Choral Union and Choral Scholars, followed by refreshments.
On Christmas Eve, the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols in St Patrick’s cathedral, Dublin, begins at 4pm. Admission is by ticket only but the service will be broadcast live by RTE. In St Fin Barre’s cathedral, the Bishop of Cork, Dr Paul Colton, will preside at the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols.
On Christmas Day, the bishops, by tradition, preach in their diocesan cathedrals. In the National Cathedral of St Patrick’s, the Christmas preachment is reserved for the Dean and so Dr William Morton will be the Christmas Day preacher. In St Anne’s cathedral, Belfast, which is a cathedral for both the Diocese of Connor & the Diocese of Down and Dromore, the first Eucharist of Christmas, which begins at 11pm on Christmas Eve, will be celebrated by the Bishop of Connor, the Rt Revd Alan Abernethy, who will also preach. This will be Bishop Abernethy’s last service in the cathedral before his retirement from the stipendiary ministry. At 11.25am, a special Christmas service will be broadcast on RTE 1 television and Radio 1 extra with Sligo Grammar School, where the chaplain is Canon Patrick Bamber, Rector of Calry, and the headmaster is Michael Hall.
Published in the Friday edition of The Irish Times