God in The Garden

Prayer for June - at Pentecost

2011-06-19T12:49:00.000+01:00

The Holy Spirit came to inspire the apostles on the day of Pentecost, which we celebrate on the 12^th of June this year. So this month we shall pray together this prayer by Dr Olive Wyon, translator and theologian.

Prayer to the Spirit

Spirit of promise, Spirit of unity,

we thank you that you are also the Spirit of renewal.
Renew in the whole Church, we pray,

that passionate desire for the coming of the kingdom

that will unite all Christians in one mission to the world.
May we all grow up together into him, who is our head,

the Saviour of the world, and our only Lord and Master.

Amen.

Olive Wyon, 1881- 1966

Prayer for May - Rogation

2011-05-25T10:08:00.001+01:00

I'm rather late in posting the May parish prayer, but here it is at last!

Rogation Sunday, the 29^th May this year, and the 3 days following, are traditionally a time to ask God’s blessing on our fields and crops and livestock. So for May let us use the old BCP Rogation collect in modern language.

Almighty God, Lord of heaven and earth,

in whom we live, and move, and have our being;

who causes the sun to rise on the evil and on the good,

and sends rain to fall on both the just and the unjust;

We ask you to favour your faithful people,

and to bless us with a fruitful season;

that with hearts filled with your goodness,

we may always give thanks unto you;

through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen

The Book of Common Prayer, adapted

2011-04-24T11:12:00.001+01:00

Wishing You Every Blessing this Easter

Resurrection of Christ, with women at the Tomb,
by Fra Angelico (c. 1395 –1455), at St Marco, Florence

from Joc and Marty Sanders

Christ, the Lord, is risen today, Alleluia!

Sons of men and angels say, Alleluia!

Raise your joys and triumphs high, Alleluia!

Sing, ye heavens, and earth, reply, Alleluia!

(to listen to the hymn tune click here and minimise your media player)

Prayer for April - Anima Christi

2011-04-01T15:14:00.014Z

As we approach a joyful Easter-tide, let us recall all the blessings we have received through Christ’s passion and death, in this lovely, comforting C14th Latin prayer.

Soul of Christ, sanctify me
Body of Christ, save me
Blood of Christ, refresh me
Water from the side of Christ, wash me
Passion of Christ, strengthen me
O good Jesu, hear me
Within Thy wounds hide me
Suffer me not to be separated from Thee
From the malicious enemy defend me
In the hour of my death call me
And bid me come to Thee
That with thy saints I may praise Thee
For ever and ever. Amen.

Christ be with me

2011-03-02T18:36:00.003Z

Lent is upon us and St Patrick’s Day follows close behind. So what better prayer to use in March as we start to walk the road to Calvary with Christ, while days stretch and life burgeons all around us, than this verse from St Patrick’s Breastplate:

Christ be with me, Christ within me,
Christ behind me, Christ before me,
Christ beside me, Christ to win me,
Christ to comfort and restore me.
Christ beneath me, Christ above me,
Christ in quiet, Christ in danger,
Christ in heart of all that love me,
Christ in mouth of friend and stranger.

St Patrick's Breastplate is traditionally said to have been written in Old Irish by the saint in the 5th Century, though modern scholars suggest it may be a little later. Isaiah and St Paul both talk of the 'breastplate of righteousness' as being part of the armour of God. This verse is like a little comforting talisman, which we can pray whenever we are worried or frightened to remind ourself of Jesus's words, 'Remember, I will be with you till the end of the age'.

Stirring from hibernation

2011-02-28T15:48:00.006Z

Pussy Willow (Salix sp) against a blue sky

I'm starting to stir from my winter hibernation and get out into the garden as new life burgeons all around - how hard I find it to do so when days are short, windy, wet and dark! But I'm horrified to see I haven't blogged the garden since July...

The other morning frogs were croaking in the patio pond - lo and behold, there was the frogspawn heralding this years tadpoles.

The birds Susanna has been assiduously feeding all winter are developing their breeding plummage and becoming even more agressive around the feeding stations. It's sad to record that tit numbers were greatly reduced in the hard weather. A pair of Blue Tits and a couple of pairs of Great Tits remained all winter with us, but the Coal Tits disappeared altogether, though I'm glad to say I saw one again yesterday. In consolation however we have been overrun all winter long with Goldfinches feeding on Niger seed.

And one of our hares has returned, a doe I think - I hope it does less damage than a couple of years ago.

Here are some photos of Spring flowers in the garden today, blooming their little socks off - how it raises the spirits! The only dark cloud on the horizon is that I can't get the mower to start to clear up the last of the autumn leaves.

Primula vulgaris sibthorpii

Helleborus orientalis in the wilderness

A drift of yellow dutch crocuses in the meadow

Clump of yellow dutch crocuses

Blue and yellow dutch crocuses

Daffodils about to burst

Cream-coloured Crocus crysanthus

Catkins on Corylus contortus

Rebuilding Cologne

2011-02-13T17:18:00.005Z

This article appeared in the 'View from the Pew' column in the February 2011 edition of Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe.

The soaring pinnacles of Cologne Cathedral

The best way to arrive in Cologne is by train.
That is how my wife and I arrived last May, on the first leg of our continental holiday, which would take us on by train to Prague (see October’s column), Vienna and Bratislava. The main station is at the heart of the old city, close to the Rhine, and barely a stone’s throw from the soaring pinnacles of the immense and beautiful gothic cathedral. I’m so glad we broke the journey there, because I had never visited it before, and it is one of Europe’s great cities.

Cologne was already a great city in Roman times, named Colonia Agrippina after the wife of Emperor Claudius, an important trading centre, the capital of the province of Germania Inferior, and the seat of a bishop from just after 300AD. It must have been magnificent, judging by the remains displayed in the superb modern Roman-Germanic Museum.

The city and its Prince-Bishops, electors of the Holy Roman Empire, became immensely wealthy in the high middle ages, through trade as a member of the Hanseatic League, but also from pilgrimage. Pilgrims came from all over Europe to visit the reputed relics of the Three Kings, looted by crusaders from Constantinople and taken to Milan, from whence they were brought to Cologne in 1164. Their pious gifts financed the building of the magnificent cathedral started in 1248, with its wonderful stained-glass and amazing treasures, including a seven-foot-long gold and jewelled shrine made to house the bones of the Three Kings. The reformation put an end to the pilgrimage and money ran out to finish the cathedral. The nave and the two lofty spires were not completed until 1880 in a Germany newly united under the Prussian Kaisers.

The Shrine of the Three Kings in Cologne Cathedral

Cologne today is a vibrant, cosmopolitan city full of character.
Everyone we met was friendly and helpful. Our small hotel was spotless. We ate well in small restaurants and traditional beer halls. We enjoyed big band jazz in the spectacular concert hall. We strolled along bustling shopping streets. We crossed the Rhine on a ferry, lounged on a beach in a beautiful park beside the river, and returned on a cable-car.

The people clearly love their city, Köln in German, smiling proudly when you admire it. Kölsch is the name of their unique beer. Kölsch is what they call the laid-back atmosphere of the place. And Kölsch people relish local delicacies like ‘Himmel un Äd’ (Heaven and Earth in the Kölsch dialect - black pudding with mashed potatoes and apple sauce), as well as Turkish döner kebab and curry-wurst.

But dark shadows of WW2 lurk everywhere.
Cologne suffered the first allied 1000 bomber raid at the end of May 1942. By 1945, 90% of buildings had been destroyed, with untold numbers of citizens. With love and pride the people rebuilt their city. New buildings, many copies of the old, respect the medieval street-plan in the old city. Ancient Romanesque churches have been painstakingly restored. It is hard for tourists to see the horror of what happened here, almost in my lifetime. But the shadows remain.

In the cloister of the rebuilt basilica of St Gereon, beside a bright modern nursery school, lie scattered modest graves of civilians killed in the final allied assault on the city.

The interior of romanesque Great St Martin today

An Irishman called Arnold was once Abbot of Great St Martin, bare and peaceful inside, and graced with lovely modern stained glass. At first sight I thought the massive Romanesque columns and clover leaf choir had been miraculously preserved. A second glance revealed the seams between ancient and modern masonry. And then I saw this photograph taken in 1945.

Great St Martin church in 1945

Why do I bother to write about this?
Because we must never again allow a European city to be destroyed as Cologne was. Our nations share so much, including a common Christian heritage. The great vision of the European Union is to bind us so close together that such war and devastation becomes impossible. Yet I continually hear people run down the EU and talk as if they would like it to break up, particularly since our recent multi-billion Euro bailout. That is dangerous talk. It would be much better to embrace our European identity and work with our partners to strengthen the bonds which bind us together in peace and freedom.

We are all Europeans!

The Ephesian's Prayer

2011-02-02T10:43:00.003Z

During February we shall be taking a break from the standard lectionary readings to follow themes from the Letter to the Ephesians. So it seems very suitable to use as the parish prayer for February Paul’s prayers for the Ephesians, adapted into a prayer we can pray for ourselves.

Father of glory, God of our Lord Jesus Christ,
give us your Spirit of wisdom and revelation,
as we grow to know you more fully.
Enlighten the eyes of our heart,
that we may know the hope to which you call us,
the riches of your inheritance among the saints,
and the immeasurable greatness of your power.
May the breadth and length and depth and height
of Christ’s love, which is beyond all knowledge,
fill us to the brim with all your fullness.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.

after Paul the Apostle,
Ephesians 1:17-19 & 3:18-19

Evening of Prayer for Christian Unity in Nenagh

2011-01-29T11:16:00.005Z

Gathering to pray for Christian Unity

Nenagh Catholics hosted Christians from the Church of Ireland and other traditions at an evening of prayer for Christian unity in St Mary’s of the Rosary on Sunday 23rd January. The prayers were provided by Christians in Jerusalem, who chose the challenging theme ‘All things in common’. The organ was played by Roisín Ryan, and Antoinette Cleary led the singing.

Gathering. Fr Pat Malone PP welcomed the congregation, who joined in singing the Pilgrim Song, ‘Brother, sister, let me serve you’, as readers and representatives came forward to place candles, a Bible and a plain wooden cross on an altar table. Fr Pat then led prayers of intercession for Jerusalem and the world, during which incense was offered symbolising prayer rising to God.

Liturgy of the Word. We listened attentively to God’s word. Rae Croft read from Isaiah. We sang Psalm 96 in a Scottish metrical version to the tune of ‘Amazing Grace’. Mary O’Donnell read from Acts. Audrey Gordon read from Matthew’s Gospel. In a short address, Joc Sanders asked what our response would be to the challenge from Jerusalem: would we leave separately with just warm feelings, or would we leave together determined to act to bring closer a unity of love and purpose?

Response. John Cullen led prayers of penitence and declared the Peace, which all shared with handshakes. After singing ‘Christ be with me’, we joined in saying the Apostles’ Creed. Fr Pat introduced the prayer for Christian Unity, during which representatives from the different traditions came forward two by two to light a candle and offer petitions, to which we responded with the words, ‘May everything become new and make visible our unity’. Then we joined together in the Lord’s Prayer.

Sending out. Sr Patricia Greene led a closing prayer and Fr Pat gave a final blessing. Jane Coman read from Revelation, and before leaving we sang a closing hymn, ‘A new commandment I give unto you, that you love one another as I have loved you’.

Afterwards many of us shared light refreshments kindly laid on by ladies of the Catholic parish in the Pastoral Centre. It was generally agreed that the evening of prayer had been moving and well worth while, both a challenge to our separation and a lovely opportunity to come together – definitely something to be repeated.

Briefing participants beforehand

Enjoying refreshments in the Pastoral Centre

Letter to the Irish Times - Solving our water problems

2011-01-05T14:57:00.002Z

The following later from me was published in the Irish Times for 5th January 2011, in response to one from Professor Eugene O'Brien on 1st January.

Madam, – The bad weather has exacerbated the current water shortages, and perhaps exasperated Prof Eugene O’Brien (January 1st). While he is correct to say the weather is not the root cause, and to point out the need to invest consistently in water infrastructure, his letter may mislead your readers by suggesting that the proposed pipeline from the Shannon will solve such problems.

There is plenty of raw water in Dublin region reservoirs at present. The water shortages are due to years of under-investment in Dublin’s local water infrastructure. There is insufficient treatment capacity and buffer storage to handle weather shocks, and the mains network leaks like a sieve – 30 per cent of treated water is currently wasted year round, compared to best practice of 5-6 per cent in some European cities.

If ever built, the €450 million pipeline from the Shannon would likely be an expensive white elephant. The promoters try to justify it by saying Dublin will need half again as much water by 2040 as it used in 2010. But this is based on Celtic Tiger era projections for population and economic growth, which surely no one believes any more. With realistic growth projections, fixing leaks, and sensible demand management measures, like water metering and charging, and harvesting of rainwater and grey water for non-drinking purposes, Dublin will not need Shannon water for the foreseeable future.

The pipeline scheme should be shelved now, and available resources invested to bring Dublin’s local water infrastructure up to international standards.

– Yours, etc,
JOC SANDERS CEng, Dromineer, Nenagh, Co Tipperary.

A New Year Prayer for January 2011

2010-12-31T11:48:00.004Z

John Wesley, 1703-1791

During Epiphany we reflect on how God reveals his nature to us. A natural response is to pray that he may reveal himself to others in and through us. John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who remained a priest in the Church of England all his life, encouraged his flock to make this covenant with God to be his in all things. Methodists still use it at Covenant Services, traditionally held at the start of the New Year.

I am no longer my own, but yours.
Put me to what you will, rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing, put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you or laid aside for you,
exalted for you or brought low for you;
let me be full, let me be empty;
let me have all things, let me have nothing;
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things to your pleasure and disposal.
And now, glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine, and I am yours.
So be it.
And the covenant now made on earth,
let it be ratified in heaven.
Amen.

adapted from John Wesley's Covenant Prayer,
as used in the Methodist Covenant Service, 1974

Happy Christmas one and all!

2010-12-24T10:43:00.005Z

Wishing You
A Very Happy and Blessed Christmas

and all the very best for 2011
from Joc & Marty Sanders

I like this Madonna by Albin Egger-Lienz (1868-1926) because of the luminous warmth of the light, and also because the artist was born just outside the lovely town of Lienz in the Austrian East Tyrol, where we stayed last summer. On the first morning we were woken by the sound of marching bands leading Tyrolean sharp-shooters in traditional uniform. They were parading to an open-air Corpus Christi Day mass across the main square from our hotel. Dressing quickly, I joined the worshippers in the street and did my best to follow it in German - a marvellous experience!

150th Anniversary Celebration of St Mary’s Church of Ireland, Nenagh

2010-12-09T15:47:00.008Z

The Nenagh Union of parishes extend a very hearty invitation to all, to join with us in St Mary’s Church, Church Rd., Nenagh, on Sunday 19th December at 3 pm, for an Advent Eucharist to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of St Mary’s Church of Ireland, at which Archbishop of Armagh Alan Harper will preach and Bishop of Limerick & Killaloe Trevor Williams will preside. Refreshments will be served afterwards.

Archbishop of Armagh Alan Harper

Readers may be interested in the following historical details.

Planning
The vision to build the present St Mary’s came from the then Rector, Rev. James Hill Poe. It replaced a church of the same name which was unfit for purpose in Kenyon St, of which only the tower remains. The first planning meeting was held on May 6th 1855, and the new church was finally consecrated on 19th December 1860 – 150 years to the day before this year’s celebration.

The site was donated by Carroll Watson, Attorney, of Brookwatson. The Ecclesiastical Commissioners were informed that the parish would contribute £200 towards the cost, but replied that this was not enough. After various delays, plans were received, but they did not include a spire or gallery. Further negotiation was needed before permission was given for them.

Building
The Rev. James Hill Poe died in 1859, without seeing his plans fulfilled. Work finally began in September of that year. The church was designed in the Gothic style by Joseph Wellard, one of the Irish pupils of Edward Pugin, and the pictures show that his design was followed closely. The plans included a neat tower surmounted by a sword-like spire.

Original architect's drawing of St Mary's

The building-contractor was Mr Hunter of Bandon, but of course many local craftsmen were employed. It took over a year to complete the task.

A bell cast in the Sheffield foundry of Nalor & Vickers, presented by John Bennett, Churchwarden, was installed in the tower. The organ, built by Telford of Dublin, was especially designed to expose to view a pretty stained-glass rose window in the gable end.

Opening Ceremony, 1860
St. Mary's Church was consecrated and opened for worship on Wednesday, 19th December 1860, as recorded in the Nenagh Guardian of that day. The Bishop of Killaloe, Lord Riversdale, was present "though somewhat feeble of limb" and the congregation numbered about 700. The choir sang an anthem composed for the occasion by the newly appointed organist, Robert Atkinson, while the preacher was Archdeacon Roe, rector of Roscrea and one of the leading orators of the time.

150 Years of History
Since its erection, the church has undergone no structural change and the Nenagh Guardian’s description of 1860 still stands:
The building... consists of nave, aisle and chancel. A light gallery spans the West-end… The chancel is lighted by three lofty lancet opes (windows)… The flooring…..is laid with encaustic tiling pavement of very neat pattern.

The church has since witnessed the worship of generations of parishioners, as well as their baptisms, marriages and funerals. They have lovingly maintained it and beautified it with many memorial gifts. The church was entirely re-roofed in 2003-5 at a cost of €230,000, and this year it has been completely redecorated as part of the anniversary celebrations.

Do come to see all that has been achieved by the grace of God!

December prayer - A child's prayer at Christmas

2010-12-02T23:50:00.004Z

Singing “Vom Himmel Hoch” from a church tower at Christmas
by Ludwig Richter

Luther was no puritan – he loved music, he loved children, and he had a deep feeling for the festival of Christmas. What better, then, than this prayer he wrote as a carol for his own children, to pray together as we look forward expectantly through Advent for the birth of Jesus, our incarnate Lord, on Christmas day.

Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child,
Make thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Within my heart, that it may be
A quiet chamber kept for Thee.

My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep,
I too must sing, with joyful tongue,
That sweetest ancient cradle-song,

Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto man His Son hath given
While angels sing with pious mirth.
A glad new year to all the earth!

Martin Luther, 1483-1546
The last 3 verses of the carol
“Vom Himmel hoch da komm ich her”
which he wrote in 1531 for his children.
Translated by Catherine Winkworth, 1855

‘Events, dear boy, events!’

2010-11-30T20:03:00.005Z

This article appeared in the 'View from the Pew' column in the December 2010 / January 2011 edition of Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe.

… as Harold Macmillan is reputed to have said when asked ‘What do you fear most in politics?’

What an extraordinary week it has been for our country!
The dogs in the street knew ten days ago that talks had begun at official level that would lead inevitably to Ireland seeking a loan from the European Financial Stability Fund and the IMF. It was well signalled internationally by blogging economists (see the excellent irisheconomy.ie blog). But government ministers just kept on denying it. Either they were lying, or officials had simply bypassed them - charitably assuming the latter, clearly power had already slipped from their fingers.

Only after EU finance ministers met did the government admit that ‘technical discussions’ were taking place, but they still persisted in spreading confusion about the likely outcome. It finally fell to Central Bank Chairman Patrick Holohan to explain clearly what was happening. Three days later, on a Sunday, the Government announced that it had applied for a multi-billion euro loan facility. We will have to wait a little longer to know what the terms will be.

As I write, on Monday 22nd November, the government is visibly crumbling. The Taoiseach announced he would call a general election in the New Year, once the budget and the four year plan have been passed, after the Greens said they would pull out in January. But it is far from clear the government can last so long – we may well have an Advent general election. The pace of events is accelerating

The people have been badly served by successive Fianna Fáil led Governments, I feel.
Whatever the merits of the bank guarantee and NAMA, it is clear that the root of our financial problems is the mountain of debt taken on in the Celtic Tiger years. And we were landed with the debt by the golden circle of grasping bankers, megalomaniac developers and venal politicians, symbolised by the Fianna Fáil tent at Galway races. Brian Cowen encouraged the worst excesses when he was Minister of Finance. He is now Taoiseach. Fianna Fáil remains in office. It is almost past belief.

Since the beginning of the year the government must have seen the writing on the wall, as their popularity fell and their Dáil majority shrank. It would have been honourable and in the national interest if they had called a general election in the summer or autumn. A new government with a fresh mandate for five years could then have taken the difficult budget decisions now required, and negotiated the package of assistance we need with our European partners. Instead we have political instability coinciding with a massive financial crisis, which threatens the future not just of Ireland but of the Euro and the EU. By clinging to power this government have made serious problems much worse.

Why were elections not called earlier? Is it possible they have something more to hide? I pray not – but I recall that the Greek financial crisis was triggered by an incoming government discovering that the outgoing government had cooked the books and lied about it.

As we wait for the democratic process to take its course, we depend on the kindness of strangers.
Let us pray for the Irish and international negotiators seeking to resolve the present financial difficulties, that their decisions may be for the good of all. Let us pray for our country, that our people may recover the confidence required for economic recovery, and begin the task of creating a just and sustainable society for the future. And let us pray for all those who are impoverished by this great recession, that their lives may be made easier by the support of those less badly afflicted.

O Lord, guide and defend our rulers – and grant our government wisdom.

Journeying through the wilderness

2010-11-07T12:40:00.005Z

This article appeared in the 'View from the Pew' column in the November 2010 edition of Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe.

We are entering a wilderness
We feel a bit like the Children of Israel, I think, as Moses led them from Egypt into the Sinai desert, to wander for forty years before reaching the Promised Land.

The economy has crashed; the public finances are in crisis. In successive budgets we have already suffered painful cuts to jobs, pay and services, as well as higher taxes. And now we are told we face four more years of increasing pain to bring the public finances back into balance. We long for the Celtic Tiger boom days, as the Israelites longed for the fleshpots of Egypt.

We won’t return anytime soon, I believe.
Even if we reduce the deficit to 3% by 2014, to which all the major political parties are committed; even if we make the budget adjustment of €15 billion economists say is necessary. The problems we face are deeper than the perennial instability of capital markets.

It is dawning on us – too slowly - that our modern consumer lifestyle is unsustainable. It cannot continue. To feed it humans are over-exploiting the Earth’s resources of fossil energy, minerals, water and fertile land. This damages God’s planet which nurtures us. Humans will suffer with the rest of creation, unless we change. This lifestyle is also unjust. Everyone cannot enjoy high consumption in a finite world. If the rich take the lions’ share, the poor are deprived of their aspirations.

We cannot go back, we can only go forward. Our journey through the wilderness will likely last decades.

How did we get here?
The root cause is surely old fashioned greed, a sin to which humans have always been liable – greed for money, for possessions, for a lifestyle richer than our neighbours. We know we must repent and change our ways, but we do not yet see clearly what and how, so we are anxious, frightened. It is as if God is humbling and testing us, as he did the Israelites, while we journey through our own wilderness.

But as Christians we should take heart from their experience, and go forward confidently. God will look after us on our journey. He will make ‘water flow from flint rock’ and feed us ‘with manna that our ancestors did not know’ (Deut 8:15-16). He will continue to bless us with enough to meet our needs, if not our unreasonable wants. And God will eventually lead us into our Promised Land. With his help we can and will build a society which is sustainable and just, more like the kingdom of heaven than the one we know today, even if like Moses we will not enter it ourselves.

Budget 2011 will be tough
We should not complain about a tough budget. Our public finances must be balanced as soon as is reasonable, because it would be unjust to pass an undue burden of debt onto our children. But Christians must judge Budget 2011 by God’s standards – its justice - not our own selfish interests.

The balance between cuts and taxes will be critical. The least well off must be protected. Those with good incomes and large assets must pay more tax. The rich should rejoice to be able to pay a lot, but that will not be enough. Even families with quite modest incomes must accept paying a little more with as much grace as they can muster.

For me, as in previous years, the acid test will be whether the overseas aid budget is maintained, because that supports the very poorest of the poor.

November Prayer - For Holy Rest

2010-11-04T11:30:00.001Z

On the 1st of November we remembered all the faithful departed, including my mother, who died that day 10 years ago. Through the month the days grow short as we move into the darkness of winter. This prayer captures our longing for holy rest and God’s peace at the end. It is by Cardinal Newman, ordained a priest in the Church of England, a convert to Rome, who was recently beatified. In this parish we shall say it together each Sunday during November, and you might like to learn it by heart to use in your private prayers.

O Lord,
support us all the day long
until the shades lengthen,
and the evening comes,
and the busy world is hushed,
the fever of life is over,
and our work is done.
Then, Lord, in your mercy
grant us safe lodging,
a holy rest, and peace at the last;
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen

John Henry Newman, 1801-90
This adapted version is included in
The Book of Common Prayer, p494

A View from the Pew – Finding traces of Jan Hus in Prague

2010-10-10T12:55:00.003Z

Published in Newslink, the Diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe in October 2010

Jan Hus monument, Old Town Square, Prague

Jan Hus, early church reformer
This summer I visited Prague on holiday with my wife by rail – Eurostar from London, a few nights in Cologne, the overnight sleeper to Prague, on to Vienna, then Bratislava, and back home. Very civilised, a wonderful adventure - and we saved carbon emissions by not flying!

I had vaguely heard of a church reformer called Jan Hus, but in Prague I found traces of him around every corner – there is a gigantic statue of him in Old Town Square, erected during the Czech national revival in 1915 – so I decided to learn a bit more about him.

Jan Hus was a Bohemian priest and theologian at Charles University in Prague. He was influenced by John Wycliffe, the 14th Century English reformer who first translated the Bible into English. Like Wycliffe, he taught that the true church consists of all redeemed Christians; that Christ, not the Pope, is its head; and that the Bible alone provides the laws which should govern church life. He railed against the abuses of the medieval church, with its payments for indulgences, masses etc. Caught up in the maelstrom of church and international politics, Hus was convicted of heresy and burned at the stake in 1415 at the Council of Constance, where Wycliffe also was posthumously condemned.

After the death of Hus, his followers rose up in revolt. After a long and bloody crusade to suppress them, a peace treaty was signed in 1436 which permitted them to have their own independent Hussite Catholic Church, in which priests and bishops held no worldly possessions and laity were permitted to receive communion in both kinds. This lasted until 1620, when the Roman Catholic Hapsburgs finally suppressed it, forcing Hussites to go underground or leave Hapsburg territory. One group found refuge in Saxony, and as the Moravian Brethren inspired John Wesley.

The spirit of Jan Hus lives on
While in Prague, I also went to a chamber concert in beautiful baroque St Nicholas’ Church. To my surprise, I discovered that this now belongs to the Czechoslovak Hussite Church, which I had never heard of before. When I enquired further, I learned their story.

A modernizing movement of Czech Catholic priests asked the Vatican, after the foundation of the Czechoslovak state in 1918, to accept reforms, including the use of Czech in the liturgy and voluntary clerical celibacy. This was refused. But at Christmas 1919 masses were said in Czech in many churches anyway, and the next year the breakaway church was formed. It grew rapidly in the nationalist fervour of the times, and with around 180,000 members in 300 parishes and 6 dioceses it remains one of the largest Czech denominations today.

They describe themselves as ‘Christians who strive to combine contemporary moral striving and scientific knowledge with the Spirit of Christ as preserved in Scripture and the tradition of the Early Church, and in the reform movements of the Bohemian Reformation and subsequent reformation efforts.’ Like us in the Church of Ireland, they claim both Catholic and Protestant traditions, they combine Synodical with Episcopal governance, they ordain women, and are members of the World Council of Churches.

Creation Flourishing on St Francis' Day

2010-10-06T11:11:00.005Z

This report appeared in the Nenagh Guardian for 16 October 2010

Sharing refreshments after Creation Flourishing (photo Patrick Rowley-Brooke)

Creation Flourishing – a time for celebration and care
Monday 4th October was the feast day of St Francis of Assisi, who had a very special love for all God’s creation. So what better day could there be for a large congregation of nearly100 people from different churches and Christian groups in and around Nenagh to come together at 7.30 pm in St Mary’s Church of Ireland to celebrate the flourishing of God’s creation and to reflect on our duty to care for it.

The liturgy was developed by a team from Nenagh Churches Together, Eilish Cummins served as Master of Ceremonies, and the organ was played by Sylvia Crawford.

Gathering & Welcome
The liturgy began with everyone singing that great hymn How Great Thou Art, led by a joint choir from the CofI and Catholic parishes, as local church leaders Rev Marie Rowley Brooke (Church of Ireland), Fr Anthony McMahon (Catholic), Rev Brian Griffin (Methodist) and Philip O’Regan (Living Water, non-denominational prayer group) processed to their places in the front. Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke gave an address of welcome, commending the Nenagh Churches Together initiative.

Wonder
God’s creation is so amazing in the diversity of life it supports, in its complex and intricate inter-relationships, in its beauty. Our first response to it could only be wonder.

Children from the four Nenagh primary schools – the Gaelscoil, CBS, St Mary’s Convent and St Mary’s Church of Ireland – began by reading The Story of Creation, adapted from Genesis. Cantor Patrick Rowley-Brooke sang an extract from Psalm 104 with choral response, Bless the Lord O my soul. Sr Christine Quigley read a Prayer of Wonder. Suma and Priya from India then danced a graceful Dance of Wonder in Keralan costume to a traditional Malayalam song of praise – one of the high points of the evening.

Thanksgiving
As we contemplated the wonder of God’s creation, we realised how perfectly made it is to sustain us, and not just us but the whole web of life of which we are part. Our response could only be to give thanks for all that God has given us.

Philip O’Regan led intercessory prayers, written by Catherine Brennan SSL for Churches Together in Britain and Ireland. Guitarists Ken Mulcahy and Stephen Normayle then led the congregation in singing a thanksgiving hymn, Thank you Lord for food to eat.

Repentance
As we wondered at and gave thanks for creation, we recalled the damage we human beings do it by thoughtless and greedy actions. We were moved to repent and seek forgiveness.

Joc Sanders called the congregation to repentance and led them in a prayer of confession. After a period of reflection without words on human responsibility, all joined in a prayer for God’s grace to grant us the courage to change our ways.

Covenant of Care
Scripture assures us that God has graciously made a covenant to preserve and protect his creation, to which we responded with our own covenant to care for God’s creation.

John Armitage read a passage from Genesis, The rainbow is the symbol of God’s covenant with creation. Denis Holmes read St Francis’ lovely prayer, Make me an instrument of your peace. Rae Croft, Joseph Kelly and Nadzeya Piatrouskaya lit candles to symbolise our Covenant of Care and all joined in declaring it. Then the joint choir sang Timothy Dudley-Smith’s hymn, The God who set the stars in space.

Going out as God’s people
As the congregation prepared to go out together, united as God’s people, filled with wonder and thankfulness for God’s grace shown in creation, penitent for the human damage done to it, and determined to join in God’s covenant to care for it, all joined in saying The Lord’s Prayer together. The church leaders then led the people in saying a Community Blessing, and the service finished with all singing that stirring hymn, All creatures of our God and King.

Most then shared in delicious refreshments kindly provided by a team from the Church of Ireland parish, amidst a happy chatter of conversation between old friends and new. A common theme was how lovely and meaningful the evening liturgy had been.

Lough Derg water extraction - an appeal to North Tipp public representatives

2010-10-05T17:15:00.005Z

In response to the front page story in the Nenagh Guardian for 25th September 2010, ‘Dublin must pay cash for our water’, I wrote the following letter to the Editor, which was published in the 2nd October edition.

Sir,

I am dismayed at the reported comments of some County Councillors about taking water from Lough Derg for Dublin (front page, last week). Talk of making Dublin pay for our water will only encourage the powerful and unaccountable promoters of this bad scheme to press ahead*. Lough Derg is part of our heritage, and a valuable resource for recreation and tourism. It is not for sale!

If ever built, this €450 million scheme will likely be an expensive white elephant. The promoters try to justify it by saying Dublin will need half again as much water by 2040 as it uses in 2010. But this is based on Celtic Tiger era projections for population and economic growth in the Dublin Regional Planning Guidelines, which surely no one believes anymore. With realistic growth projections, fixing leaks, and sensible demand management measures, like rainwater harvesting and water metering and charging, Dublin will not need the water.

There is a risk that Lough Derg could be irreparably damaged by the scheme. No one yet knows enough about the hydrology and ecology of the lake to know what its impact will be. It would be extremely foolish to take decisions without a proper scientific understanding.

Rather than talk about money, I call on our public representatives to demand two things before any decisions are taken:

an independent review of the demand assumptions on which the scheme is based;
adequately funded independent scientific studies of Lough Derg, which should be paid for at arms length by the scheme’s promoters.

Joc Sanders,
Dromineer

*The editor, as is his right, saw fit to omit these words: ‘You’ve shown you’re a whore - now let’s haggle over the price’ - that is, I fear, how talk of payment for water will be seen by the scheme's promoters.

Make me an instrument of your peace

2010-10-03T13:22:00.006Z

Tomorow, Monday 3rd Oct, is the feast day of St Francis of Assisi, so what better prayer to use in our parish this month than this one of his! We shall say it together each Sunday, and you might want to learn it by heart to use in your own private prayers.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is discord, union;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy.
Grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive;
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned;
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

St. Francis of Assisi (1181-1226)

St Francis of Assisi, by Andrea Vanni 1332-c.1414, Lindenau-Museum, Altenburg

Why not join us next Monday, 4th October?

2010-09-28T14:58:00.006Z

Nenagh Churches Together
Invite you to an ecumenical celebration

Creation Flourishing

- a time for celebration and care

St Mary’s Church of Ireland, Church Rd., Nenagh
Monday, 4th October 2010, at 7.30 PM

September Prayer - A Grace by Bp Lancelot Andrewes

2010-09-09T13:07:00.006Z

Prayer is the living breath of Christians. Within our Anglican tradition we are blessed with wonderful resources to draw on, some harking back a millennium or more, which perhaps we do not always value as we should. So within the Nenagh Union of Parishes we will be selecting each month a spiritual jewel suitable to the season to pray together throughout the month. We are delighted to offer them for you to use too – you might choose to learn some by heart. A Grace suits September well, as a month of harvest thanksgiving. Here is one by Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, altered to put it in contemporary English.

Loving God,
you give food to all flesh,
you feed the young ravens that cry to you,
and you have nourished us from our youth up:
fill our hearts with good and gladness
and underpin our hearts with your grace.

Amen

Bishop Lancelot Andrewes, 1555 – 25 Sep1626.He supervised the translation of the King James Bible.

Engraved portrait of Bishop Lancelot Andrewes

from the frontispiece to a 17th century volume of sermons

Do we need a Green Charter?

2010-09-05T12:34:00.005Z

This piece appeared in the September 2010 View from the Pew column which I write for Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe.

What wonderful creatures honey-bees are!
One of the most popular stands at the Nenagh Show this year was the Beekeeping Association’s, where I watched bees at work through glass inside a sealed hive – what single-minded industry! We all love honey of course, and the finest candles are always made from beeswax, but even more important is the service bees give the rest of creation by pollinating flowers. I am concerned not to have seen a single honey-bee in my garden this year – not one - and I think their absence may account for the bad set on the broadbeans. I think I shall take a beekeeping course this winter, and set up a hive in the garden.

Wild bee colonies have been killed off, beekeepers tell us, by the Varroa mite, an alien species inadvertently introduced by human beings from overseas. This is just one of many ways in which human actions are damaging biodiversity – in other words, unravelling the wonderful web of life which God has created on this planet. God chooses to continuously create new life through the mechanism of evolution. Bees have evolved in an intricate three cornered dance of life with flowering plants and animals including ourselves. In this dance, plants provide pollen and nectar to sustain bees; bees in return pollinate the flowers so that they can produce fruit and seeds; these in turn sustain animals, which in wonderfully ingenious ways distribute seeds to start new generations of plants.

We thwart God’s purposes at our peril
God’s purpose in creating bees, I think, is that they should be good bees, playing their part in the dance to sustain the web of life, alongside all the other creatures he has created. In much the same way God created us to be good human beings. We are not bees, of course - we are made in God’s image, as souls with consciences. We are able to reflect on what is right and wrong, to plan for the future, in a sense to be co-creators of it with God. But with this privilege also comes our human susceptibility to those spiritual diseases which we call sin - spiritual diseases like greed and selfishness - which all too often lead us to damage God’s creation in a way other species do not, as well as hurting our fellow human beings. Jesus tells us that the path to eternal life is to love God and our neighbour too – how can we possibly love God if we do not also cherish and protect His creation?

The scarcity of honey-bees should shock us out of complacency. We thwart God’s purpose if we do not cherish and protect not only bees but all of God’s creation. Yet that is what we are doing, through our greedy over-exploitation of the worlds resources – particularly those of us in the rich industrialised world. Human beings cannot flourish while disrupting the web of life.

Our Christian obligation is surely to live as good human beings should, showing our love for God’s creation by caring for it, at the same time as we show love for our neighbours by seeking justice.

Towards a Green Charter
Because I feel this so strongly, I was delighted to see Les Bertram’s report elsewhere on a presentation given by Rev Elaine Murray to our Diocesan Synod about Cashel & Ossory’s ‘Green Charter’. Their prophetic work in this area inspired General Synod this year to ask the Church in Society Committee to propose a ‘Code of Environmental Good Practice’ to General Synod in 2011. All too often the business of synods is tedious and boring, and does not register with ordinary parishioners in the pews. But this is different – it reaches to the heart of our Christian calling, I think.

I feel it is important for people in this diocese to have a way to make their views known to inform the deliberations in General Synod. If you want to do so, email them to me at joc_sanders@iol.ie, and I will undertake to forward combined comments to the Committee for their consideration.

Acting in parishes now
But we need not and should not wait for the long drawn out formal synod process before taking action at parish level. Here are a few ideas:

Prayer is at the heart of our parish life. We might make a point of always including prayers for creation in formal intercessions, if we don’t already do so.
The Select Vestry might commission a group to carry out an audit of the parish’s carbon footprint and seek ways to reduce it. You will probably find that as well as reducing emissions you can save money on energy too, which should please the Treasurer!
Rural churches and graveyards are often a haven for wildlife - you might look for ways to protect and encourage this diversity of life. How about leaving part of the grass long to allow wildflowers to bloom, and asking a local beekeeper to place a hive there?
The Church of Ireland is a member of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, which every year produces resources for use in ‘Creation Time’ (1st September to 4th October). This year the theme is ‘Creation flourishing, a time for celebration and care’ and you can download the materials from http://www.ctbi.co.uk/. You might weave these resources into your services, or join with other local churches in an ecumenical celebration.
You might consider finding a facilitator to run a short parish course on climate change or environmental awareness. I led the Omega Climate Change course over 6 nights as a successful Lenten programme last year, and could be persuaded to do so again.

Diocese of Cashel & Ossory Green Charter

2010-09-05T12:24:00.003Z

This Green Charter has been adopted by the Diocese of Cashel & Ossory. It has been proposed as a model Code of Environmental Good Practice which General Synod has asked the Church in Society Committee to propose in 2011.

As Christians and members of the Anglican Communion, we have an obligation to protect God's creation, not only nationally but globally. The Diocese of Cashel & Ossory affirms its commitment to Environmental Awareness and Protection by:

Identifying areas of waste and excess.
Encouraging environmental consciousness in every parish.
Promoting environmental responsibility in the broader community.
Spiritually and financially supporting third world development, supporting fair trade and addressing the effects of climate change.
Advocating policy change at local and national level that is environmentally beneficial.

Identifying Waste and Excess

Turn off unnecessary lighting.
Use heating only when essential.
Draught proof windows and doors.
Provide Recycling facilities in all churches.
Identify and deal with inefficient equipment

Encourage environmental consciousness

Infuse the Churches worship with references to God's creation.
Avail of alternative energies or fuel efficient systems.
Impress upon Select Vestries the environmental consequences of their decisions.
Include environmental issues in the Churches education programmes at every level.
Maintain Church environs sympathetically and cherish trees and wildlife.

Promote Environmental responsibility

Lead by courageous and articulate example
Cooperate with other people of faith who share these aims.
Educate members of the public to the moral and economic consequences of inaction.
Dialogue creatively on these issues with members of the agricultural community.
Encourage cleaner and more environmentally responsible urban living.

Support Third World Development

Raise awareness of the effect of climate change on the developing world.
Support projects that assist those who suffer most from Climate Change.
Campaign alongside Bishops' Appeal and similar agencies who work for change.
Think seriously about how our lifestyle and carbon footprint affect the poor.
Break the bread in solidarity with those whose future is crushed by our lifestyles.

Policy Change in Church and State

Use the Churches councils and synods as places of environmental debate and agents of change.
Raise expectations concerning environmental protection facilities provided by Local Authorities.
Demonstrate to public representatives that their environmental policies matter by how we vote, lobby and act.
Draw inspiration from the achievements and experiences of other nations and churches within the European family and seek to contribute ourselves.
Offer informed and understanding prayers for those who carry great responsibilities in these matters.

Cashel & Ossory Green Charter – Presentation to Diocesan Synod

2010-09-05T11:43:00.005Z

Les Bertram from Banagher wrote this report on a presentation given at the Limerick & Killaloe Diocesan Synod at Killorglin this year. It was published in the September 2010 edition of Newslink, the Limerick & Killaloe Diocesan magazine.

At the General Synod earlier this year at Dublin the Diocese of Cashel & Ossory brought a motion that recommended that their green charter be adopted by the whole Church of Ireland as a way forward in environmental good practice. This was unanimously adopted by the General Synod.

At our Synod at Killorglin we had the great pleasure of welcoming Revd Elaine Murray of the Kilkenny Group, who spoke to us about the Diocese of Cashel and Ossory green charter.

Elaine opened by telling us that climate change is changing our lives, and that we know instinctively that our present day church needs to get its house in order, that at heart of the covenant of God with his people is a call to ‘Do Justice’. Climate change is a matter of justice.

Their diocesan charter was adopted in 2008 and has been rolled out to every parish in their diocese. We were told that their charter was a guide to living generously, committing them to the following points.

To identify areas of waste and excess

To encourage environmental responsibility in the wider broader community

To support third world development both spiritually and financially by supporting fair trade and addressing the effects of climate change

To advocate policy change that environmentally beneficial at both local and national level

We were all given a copy of this green charter.

Elaine told that each Parish Vestry was given a copy of the ‘Green Pages’ which is an eco friendly version of the Yellow Pages, never heard of it myself but sounds like a great idea and I must get a copy. They also launched a diocesan Environment Awareness Competition which is now in its second year. Winners include installation of solar panel heating of a church at Freshford, Co Kilkenny. In Stradbally ageing trees in an 13th century graveyard were replaced by 14 new trees which included holly, copper beech, lime and hawthorn, sponsored by parishioners. While young people as part of their confirmation classes learned all about the reproduction system of trees while successfully avoiding free range saddleback pigs in a forest at Johnstown house in Carlow! Sounds like environment issues can be fun. There was much more and the message was that things can change if the effort is made.

Eco Seminars have been organized over the last two years, topics range from ‘Our Christian Responsibility to the Global Effects of Climate Change’, to ‘Practical changes and understanding Government Regulations and Grants’. ‘Understanding Alternative Energy systems and cost effectiveness’ and ‘Wildlife & Fauna Awareness in our Church Environs’.

Cashel & Ossory diocesan environmental committee consists of just four people which keep green matter uppermost in people’s minds by regular updates in the diocesan magazine and updates each vestry by post, strongly recommending that ‘Green Matters ‘ appear on the agenda of each Vestry meeting. Promoting websites like ‘Living Generously’, www.livinggenerously.com an online Christian Community who promote ideas for living in an eco-friendly way, and ‘EcoCongregation’ www.ecocongregationireland.org who can help us think about the link between our Christian faith and care of the planet.

Elaine concluded her address by suggesting the Irish campaign, ‘Power of One’ had been fairly successful but that many people still feel overwhelmed or swamped and helpless when faced with problems of such magnitude, but reminded us that the people in the third world have, and will bear the brunt of the problems caused by climate change and we must do more to help them. Finally saying ‘I hope and pray that the Church of Ireland, in adopting the green charter route can lead the way for church communities everywhere to really show that we have taken our gospel values to heart in the area of environmental good practices ‘.

It was a very good address and it would be of interest to know what green ideas have already been put into practice already in our own diocese. I think its now time to own up.

Les Bertram

Glorious variety of Day Lilies

2010-07-22T10:42:00.009+01:00

I am ashamed at how long it is since I last blogged the garden. In it I am unfailingly brought to wonder at my Creator's handywork for which I can only glorify His name.

This has been an extraordinary year. The soft fruit has been magnificent, and for once the birds have largely left it alone. We have feasted on strawberries, redcurrants, raspberries, tayberries, and the blackcurrant bushes are laden with huge berries waiting to be picked. Susanna has tried her hand at making redcurrant jelly, a must for lamb, and raspberry vinegar, such a refreshing summer drink. Though the birds did strip the morello cherry last weekend when we were away in Louth with the Irish Tree Society. I would like to think that the birds are learning to share, though I fear it may have more to do with so many dying in the last hard winter.

We are eating our own peas and beans, with more coming on in succession, and I am very pleased with the new potatoes - Duke of York now, with Charlotte and Pink Fir Apple to follow on. Courgettes threaten to become a glut. Only the tomotoes and cucumbers in the poly-tunnel are a disappointment - probably because the plastic is losing its transparency.

The roses have also been very good this year, no doubt because the frost reduced the numbers of pests and the dry June held back the mildew.

But the stars of the season are the day lilies. Susanna bought an extensive collection from the specialist Apple Court Nursery in England some years ago, which have been moved to her Labyrinth garden in front of the house, where they have really taken off. The sheer variety of form and colour is quite extraordinary. All this has been achieved by nursery men, largely in the USA - but it is the hand of God which has made the variation in the wild species without which they could have done nothing!

Below you will find portraits of most of the cultivars, varying in colour from lemon yellow through peach and pink to strong reds, and varying in form from delicate elongated to full and plump. Unfortunately the labels got lost when they were transplanted, and we can no longer identify which is which.

And here are some general views of the Labyrinth with the day lilies in situ.

And lastly a view of the end of the Drive Border, a very happy if unplanned juxtaposition of purple Cotinus 'Royal Purple' and Berberis with lime green spurge.

Shannon water for Dublin?

2010-07-21T11:15:00.008+01:00

Tomorrow, Thursday, RPS consultants will present a report to the Environment & Engineering Strategic Policy Committee of Dublin City Council, recommending that 350 million litres of water a day should be pumped from Slevoir Bay on Lough Derg to a storage reservoir at Bord na Mona's Garryhinch Bog in Co Offaly, for treatment and distribution as drinking water to the Greater Dublin area and surrounding counties.

Last night Gerry Geoghegan of RPS, accompanied by Colm O Gogain and Pat Fitzgerald of Bord na Mona, gave a preview of their recommendations to a meeting of the Lough Derg branch of the Shannon Protection Alliance in Dromineer, which I attended. They were given quite a hard time. Questions and comments from the floor showed the extent of local opposition to this project. It is clear that there is a vast lack of trust in the water engineers and planners in Dublin and Bord na Mona not to ruin the wonderful natural resource of Lough Derg, which I can see out of my window as I write. The diagrams here are taken from the presentation.

This story will run and run - shades of Shell to Sea.

My own first thoughts on the issue, for what they are worth (probably rather little!) are these:

First, I question the need for a new water supply for Dublin.

The origins of the project lie in the crazy Celtic Tiger years. Demand was forecast to grow from 540Ml/d in 2010 to 800Ml/d in 2031, driven by a growing population and economy. But the economy is now contracting and population is falling, and neither is ever likely to return to the Celtic tiger rates. In future water is likely to be metered and charged for, reducing demand further. And sustainable future growth should be balanced across the State and not just in the Dublin region. As a citizen I do not want to see public money wasted on an unnecessary project. I suspect that those who have spent so many years promoting and planning for the project are not facing up to the chnaged world.

Before the project is allowed to proceed it is essential that the assumptions on which it is based are subjected to independent review, in the light of current data.

Second, (assuming the need for a new water supply for Dublin is confirmed) the proposed option appears to address many of the possible objections, and is difficult to argue against:

The 4m3/s average extraction is less than 2½ % of the 176m3/s average flow through Lough Derg. The Garryhinch Bog storage will be a buffer to prevent excessive extraction during periods of low flow if it is properly sized. Water flow can be controlled by the ESB at Parteen & Ardnacrusha to maintain water levels in Lough Derg within the current statutory limits.
Alternatives such as desalination and tapping groundwater are unsustainable: desalination is energy intensive and likely to increase CO2 emissions; groundwater is an unrenewable resource.

Lastly, if the project goes ahead, it will be vital to ensure that it will not damage the Lough Derg environment in any significant ways.

In my view we should concentrate our efforts on this, rather than take a position of blanket opposition.

In particular we need to focus on:

Improving the currently inadequate scientific understanding of the Lough Derg ecosystem before decisions are made, which must be funded by the project sponsors.
Monitoring plans for the extraction point in Terryglass bay and the pipeline through the Shannon catchment to ensure they are environmentally and socially acceptable.
Working jointly with similar groups monitoring plans for the Garryhinch Bog storage and onward pipeline.
Ensuring that extraction protocols are developed, based on sound science and legally enforceable, to ensure the Lough Derg environment is adequately protected.

We should also seek a ‘planning gain’ from the project, with money made available for continuing scientific studies and projects to improve water quality and biodiversity of the entire catchment, and sustainable development of local communities.
We should campaign for integrated environmental management of the South Shannon Corridor through application of the IUCN Category V Protected Landscape approach. Several thousand acres of riparian land are already in public ownership, through ESB and Coillte, and a first step would be to develop an Integrated Management Plan for this public land.

Playing catch-up after holidays

2010-06-30T19:17:00.005+01:00

I'm still playing catch-up after being on holiday for the best part of 6 weeks - which explains why I've been offline for so long!

I feel so very blessed in these times of economic depression to be able to go away at all, unlike so many - but that is a big plus of being retired. Susanna and I didn't have a proper holiday last year, in part because of her hip surgery. So this year we planned a big one, travelling by train to Central Europe, saving airplane carbon emissions and exploring echoes of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. So many new places - so many new experiences. It will take months to process and reflect on them - meat for many posts here in future. But for now I can only summarise.

We took the car on the ferry to Wales and England on a royal progress to visit children and grandchildren - how I wish they lived closer!

We left the car in London and took the train through the Channel tunnel to Cologne for a few days, a lovely city despite the awful destruction wrought in the final days of the war by allied bombardment, with a side trip to Charlemagne's capital of Aachen.

Then the night sleeper to Prague, quite undamaged by the war, where we stayed in a hotel beside St Mary Tyn church on Old Town Square, and I was fascinated to discover the refounded Czechoslovak Hussite Church.

From their to Vienna for a few days where we met up with friends from Florida with whom we hired a car and toured Austria in a counter-clockwise direction: Melk, Linz, Salzburg, Lienz in East Tyrol (perhaps my favourite place), Baden and back to Vienna.

Then leaving our friends, on to Bratislava by train since the Danube was in flood and the hydrofoil was cancelled, another lovely ancient city in the process of being restored after years of neglect. There I had my wallet stolen and a heavy cold turned into bronchitis, prompting me to investigate the Slovak health system - very good and cheap. It was as hot as hell, but we had an air-conditioned hotel room, so we decided to stay on and skip the planned visit to Budapest.

Finally, back home: train to Vienna, on to Munich, the night sleeper to Paris, and back to London by Eurostar, taking just under 24 hours. Drive to South Wales, overnight in Loughor, the Fishguard ferry and back home. Where after three days largely spent trying to get new plastic cards, driving licence etc we took a lovely long weekend in Donegal with the Irish Tree Society.

Christians learning together

2010-05-06T09:17:00.003+01:00

Young flag-carriers at Celebrating Our Nations
(photo Padraig O Flannabhra)

Nenagh Churches Together
Nenagh Churches Together is the name chosen by a group of lay Christians from different denominations in and around Nenagh, who come together to work on common projects. Last year we organised two events involving Roman Catholic, Methodist, Baptist and Church of Ireland people: a Day of Prayer for Climate Change in October; and a Prayer Vigil for Copenhagen in December, using and adapting materials prepared by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI). Both were lovely, well-attended, prayerful events, and gave a powerful witness to the faith we all share. I also enjoyed meeting and getting to know the organisers from the other churches - it was a real learning experience for all of us, working together, developing trust, discovering each others gifts – and it was fun!

This year lay members of the Nenagh Roman Catholic Pastoral Council invited Nenagh Churches Together to help organise an ecumenical service to celebrate the diversity of our Nenagh community and to welcome newcomers from so many different countries and church traditions to the town. Once again we shared the pleasure of working with and learning from each other, and making new friends in an even larger and more diverse group.

A Celebration of Our Nations
The service, entitled ‘A Celebration of Our Nations’, was held in St Mary’s of the Rosary Catholic church on 29th April. It was attended by close to 350 people, both native Irish and many foreign nationals, and all agreed it was a great success – a truly worthy celebration of God-given diversity.

Flags of many nations at Celebrating Our Nations
(photo Padraig O Flannabhra)

We began with a colourful procession of 22 foreign flags, most carried by natives of the country concerned, followed by our own Irish flag, and lastly the UN flag, carried by Nenagh Town Mayor Hughie McGrath, representing the Civic sphere. Nenagh Catholic priest Fr Tom Whelan then welcomed everyone to his church, including Nenagh Rector Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke – Methodist, Baptist and Romanian Orthodox ministers were unable to attend, but sent their apologies.

There followed five themed sections, each with a scripture reading, a prayer and music: congregational hymns, solos - even a colourful liturgical dance! The themes were:

All Christian Churches: We celebrated the glorious diversity of our Christian churches and traditions – yet diverse as we are, we are united as followers of Jesus Christ.
The Nations of the World: We celebrated our many homelands, and our diverse races, languages and cultures – yet for all our diversity, we are all united in our common humanity.
God’s Creation: We gave thanks for the diverse universe God has made, and for the miracle of our living world, which provides so bountifully for all our needs – yet underlying this diversity, science reveals a deep unity in creation.
Our Community: We reflected on how our lives in our communities of Nenagh and North Tipperary are so enriched by those amongst whom we live and work, whether native Irish or from other countries.
Those in Need: We prayed for all those in need, both locally and around the world, and we prayed that we might ourselves become agents of God’s transforming love, working to relieve the suffering of others.

Among the marvellous variety of readers and musicians involved were: students from the town’s primary and secondary schools; people from England, Russia, India, Poland, South Africa, Romania and Ireland; members of the Church of Ireland, Roman Catholic, Methodist and Romanian Orthodox churches, and the Living Water non-denominational prayer group; a harpist, a soloist with guitar accompaniment, a creative dance troupe, and the joint choirs of the Catholic and Church of Ireland parishes.

At the end, as we prepared to go out together as God’s people, we joined in the Lord’s Prayer, each in our own language - a powerful symbol of shared faith, reflecting the experience of the first Pentecost in Jerusalem. The clergy present then pronounced blessings and led the people in saying a Community Blessing together:

Blessed are we when we sing God’s praises
and walk together faithfully on God’s earth.
Blessed are we when we proclaim God’s justice
and enjoy together the fruits of creation.
Blessed are we when we are guided by God’s wisdom
and live in harmony with God’s world.

Finally we were all invited to join in refreshments prepared by the ladies of the Catholic parish. The hall was packed, we met old friends and new, the craic was mighty, and the refreshments were delicious – I can confirm there is no truth in the old adage that protestant cakes taste better!

The Future of Churches Together
Those of us involved in Nenagh Churches Together certainly hope to continue working together on future projects. It would be wonderful if our work on ecumenical events were to lead on to joint outreach in our community, bringing the love of Christ to the poor, the sick, and the disadvantaged.

There are many ways in which people are already involved ecumenically. Clergy organise ecumenical services during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. There are ecumenical Bible Study groups in many places. And there is the marvellous Oak House inter-church fellowship which has been meeting for many years in East Galway. With no desire to diminish these, but to complement them, I suggest you might consider forming a local ‘Churches Together’ group in your own town.

The ‘Churches Together’ model of local, lay-led, practical ecumenical action is working well for us, and would be a good model for others too, I think:

It unlocks the energies and gifts of a host of committed lay Christians, largely because it is lay led with clergy support.
It strengthens Christian mission to the wider community by the joint witness of different denominations. We are stronger together – as Paul puts it, the body of Christ needs all its parts.
It encourages people from different denominations to learn from each other as they work together. They grow as disciples – they grow together in love - and they enjoy doing so.
Most denominations are members of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI), which provides a host of useful approved materials, and gives legitimacy to the name.
All you need to make a start are one or two enthusiastic lay people, with tacit clergy support, who will work to organise an ecumenical event with similarly enthusiastic lay people in one or two other churches, while reaching out to others – see http://www.ctbi.org.uk/ for ideas.

A View from the Pew – Will you take the 10:10 Challenge?

2010-05-02T12:34:00.004+01:00

This article appeared in the May 2010 edition of Newslink, the diocesan magazine of the diocese of Limerick & Killaloe.

As I noted last month, the greenhouse gas emissions that cause global warming are a consequence of the personal choices and decisions of countless individuals around the world – particularly those of us in rich countries. Perhaps it is because world leaders doubt they can get their peoples to change those choices and decisions that they failed so dismally to agree in Copenhagen last December what to do about it. Let’s hope and pray they do agree effective and just action soon, before it is too late. We now know for certain that unless we act quickly to reduce our emissions of greenhouse gases, our descendents will face terrible problems in years to come.

But their failure to agree shows it’s now time for ordinary people to step in to defend our children’s futures. And as Christians we have a particular responsibility to take the lead. As the bishops of our Anglican Communion reflected at the last Lambeth Conference:

‘If we say that “The earth is the Lord’s…”, we must be prepared to live as if that is true! We can not misuse a gift from the Lord. If we are to call ourselves disciples of Jesus Christ, we must be prepared for radical discipleship by “living simply, so that others may simply live.” Safeguarding creation is a spiritual issue.’

The first step is for each one of us to take personal responsibility – if we don’t, no one else will. Just suppose each one of us made a pledge to cut 10% of our greenhouse gas emissions in 2010? What if we got everyone we know to do the same? And what if all this made governments sit up and take notice? That could be the first step towards a brighter future for us all.

Cutting 10% in one year is a bold target, but for most of us it’s achievable – and would save us money too! Here are some ideas for what you and your family can do.

1 Save on heating – and bills Turn down your thermostat - 1°C less can save 10% by itself! Turn off radiators in hallways and rooms you don’t use. If you need them, more jumpers and warm underwear all round. Fix those draughts. Then apply for a grant to insulate your loft and walls. You’ll be warm & cosy!

2 Drive less – be healthier Think before you make that short drive. Walk, cycle or take public transport when you can. Leave your car at home one day a week. Share the school run and car-pool with a colleague or two to get to work. Eco-driving guidelines can save 5-15% of fuel: drive smoothly, control your speed and stick to the limits (driving at 70 uses 15% more fuel than driving at 50, and cruising at 80 uses 25% more than at 70), change gear up as early as you can, and turn off heated rear windscreens, demister blowers and headlights when you don’t need them.

3 Save on electricity – be bright Change over to low-wattage light bulbs. Turn off unnecessary lights, and turn off TVs, computers, battery chargers etc when not in use. Consider replacing old inefficient fridges and freezers, and always buy appliances with a good energy rating.

4 Fly less - holiday more Swap the plane for boat and train, when you can. Holiday nearer to home and take fewer but longer trips – same tanning time, dramatically less carbon emissions.

5 Eat better In-season fruit & veg produce the least emissions – and the less processed the better. Buy locally produced food when you can, to support your neighbour and save food miles. Grow your own – nothing tastes like it!

6 Buy good stuff Less stuff made = less emissions = less climate change. So buy high-quality things that last, repair if possible rather than chucking, buy and sell second hand. Ignore pointless changes in fashion. And borrow your neighbour’s mower!

7 Dump less Avoid excess packaging and buying pointless stuff that goes straight in the bin. Recycle everything possible. Compost your scraps – the garden will love you!

8 Don’t waste food… The average Irish family throws away loads of food every month. So don’t buy or cook more than you need. And eat up those tasty leftovers with a smile on your face!

9 …or water Your tap water uses lots of energy – and heating it uses loads more – so take showers rather than baths, be careful watering plants and only run full dishwashers & washing machines.

10 Pass on the word! Monitor your carbon footprint (Google ‘Power of One’ to find a calculator). Persuade family and friends to join you in saving 10% in 2010. Take the 10:10 pledge. And get your parish to do the same!

For more information and to take the 10:10 pledge see http://www.1010.ie/.

Here in Nenagh, the group that followed an ecumenical Lent course on climate change last year has formed Nenagh Carbon Watchers (see http://www.nenaghcarbonwatchers.blogspot.com/). We aim both to support each other in our personal efforts to reduce emissions, and to promote transition to a sustainable life style in our local communities. As part of this, I have been monitoring my own household’s carbon emissions, and after 11 months I am confident that we will have saved around 25% of emissions with insignificant capital expenditure (that excludes the flights we have not taken).

After a false start last year, I am determined this year to invest in better home insulation and heating controls. This will not only reduce our emissions further, but by reducing heating bills provide a much better return on my money than I could get in any bank, as well as give employment to local tradespeople. And for 2011 I have my eye on one of those electric cars we are hearing about… I’ll keep you posted on how we get on!

A Celebration of our Nations

2010-04-20T15:19:00.003Z

At the initiative of the Nenagh Catholic parish, Nenagh Churches Together are organising a service to celebrate the cultural diversity of our Nenagh community and its varied churches. It will include a procession of the flags of many nations, hymns, music and dance, and readings and prayers - all offered to the glory of God by people drawn from many nations and faith traditions.

The service will take place at 7.30 pm on Thursday 29th April in St Mary's of the Rosary, Church Rd, Nenagh Co Tipperary. It will be followed by refreshments in the Pastoral Centre.

All will be very welcome, from whatever nation, including Ireland!

If you are in the vicinity why not come and join us?

Wishing You Every Blessing for Easter

2010-04-03T21:19:00.005Z

Going to Emmaus, Robert Zünd, 1877, Kunstmuseum St. Gallen

They said to each other, “Were not our hearts burning within us,
while he was talking to us on the road,
while he was opening the scriptures to us?” Luke 24:32

The long road to the kingdom

2010-04-03T10:14:00.005Z

This article appeared in the April 2010 edition of Newslink, the diocesan magazine of the diocese of Limerick & Killaloe

The Penitents (Los Penitentes)

Ice melting at the foot of a glacier near the south wall of Aconcagua in the Argentine Andes, the highest mountain in the Americas - the Aconcagua glaciers have reduced in area by 20% since 1955 as a result of global warming. Photo by Lucas Hirschegger.

Bravo, Paddy Anglican!

Canon Stephen Neil hit the nail on the head in his article last month when he wrote, ‘The task we face is how to reintegrate (politics, economics, religion and environmental stewardship) and create a sustainable and healthy society for all Creation’. That is a vision of the kingdom of heaven. It’s a big ask, isn’t it? But Christ announces the kingdom is coming and calls us, his followers, to build it.

The four-fold crisis we are living through – political, economic, religious and environmental – is very deep. Building the kingdom will be neither quick nor easy. We the people are confused, demoralised and angry at what has happened to us. Our leaders remain for the most part deep in denial about their responsibility for landing us in the mess. I don’t think much will change until they move beyond denial. For recovery to take place, they will surely have to make way for fresh faces that are not compromised by past misdeeds and errors and can command the respect of the people. But we the people will have to change too, because all of us bear some responsibility.

The psychology is important, I think. Human beings must pass through distinct psychological stages in order to process guilt: initial denial is followed by shame, then penitence in which hearts change, before recovery is possible. How far down this road have we travelled so far?

The Golden Circle
The tent at the Galway races is long gone, but lives on in memory as the enduring symbol of the golden circle of venal politicians, megalomaniac developers and grasping bankers. Bankers anticipating bonuses borrowed short on international markets and lent long to fund developers’ ever more grandiose projects. Both greased the palms of politicians, who in turn obliged with light touch regulation and rezoning, and bought our votes with goodies paid for from windfall stamp duties. The greed of all three worked together to inflate an asset price bubble which was bound to burst. Similar cycles of greed were at work in other countries, but few were as intense as ours. As the rest of the world begins a faltering recovery after the global crash, Ireland remains stuck in recession. Incomes continue to fall, services are being cut further, young families struggle to pay the mortgage on homes worth a fraction of what they paid, youth unemployment balloons and another lost generation emigrates. As I see it, the golden circle is the main cause of our economic woes, though most of us colluded in it.

Many developers have gone bust and lost personal fortunes. Most senior bankers have been forced to resign and one has been questioned by the Gardai. I confess to a certain guilty pleasure, what the Germans call schadenfreude. Some show signs of shame, but most not – and certainly no penitence. They scrabble to keep as much as they can of the personal fortunes they made during the bubble they engineered, even as they look to the rest of us to recapitalise their banks and buy their bad debts through NAMA.

And what of the politicians? Fianna Fáil has led coalition governments since 1997. Brian Cowan was Minister of Finance from 2004 until he became Taoiseach in 2008, presiding over the golden circle at its most manic. He and his party must bear the lion’s share of political responsibility for what has happened. Yet they are in complete denial and shamelessly cling to office – I am lost for words! But let’s not forget who voted them there – we the people did. And they cling on in hope that we will do so again.

Time for a ‘Velvet Reformation’?
As we all know, the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland has been in ever deepening crisis since the Murphy report was published last year. It was bad enough to learn over many years how some priests and religious abused children both sexually and physically. But the Murphy report revealed that this evil was compounded by a culture of secrecy and cover up at the highest level, which allowed the perpetrators to continue their abuse. Bishops criticised in the report tried at first to deny they had done anything wrong, though four have since resigned. In March it was revealed that Cardinal Sean Brady himself swore two abused children to secrecy 35 years ago.

Faithful Roman Catholic laity and priests are as shocked as the rest of us. They feel angry and betrayed by their leadership. Perhaps part of their anger is with themselves, because very many in their heart of hearts must know that they colluded in the evil by not shouting stop. Fr Enda McDonagh, former professor of Moral Theology at Maynooth, has proposed a 12-step recovery programme, involving laity in the process of healing the church. Pope Benedict has just issued his long awaited pastoral letter - in it he points to grave errors of judgment and failures of leadership by his brother bishops. Garry O’Sullivan the editor of the Irish Catholic newspaper has called for a ‘Velvet Reformation’ in which the entire hierarchy is replaced.

It is too early to know how all this will play out, but it does appear that the outrage of laity and lower clergy is forcing the hierarchy out of denial to admit shame for the damaging culture they presided over. It is a good sign, but time will tell whether they can move on to true penitence, a prerequisite for renewal, which will probably require wholesale changes in personnel and a shift of power from clergy to laity.

We Anglicans may feel tempted to thank God that we are not like them. But that would be to behave like the Pharisee who thanked God publicly that he was not like other men – Jesus you will remember preferred the private contrition of the humble publican. We should remember that there are skeletons in our cupboard too, and that many of us used the excuse that it was none of our business to keep silence when we heard rumours of what was happening. Rather we should show solidarity and come to the aid of faithful Roman Catholics in ecumenical prayer as they struggle to reform their church.

Who is responsible for Global Warming?
The fourth part of the crisis is the failure of environmental stewardship. Its most dangerous symptom is global warming, largely caused by increasing emissions of green house gases from burning fossil fuels, destroying forests, and intensifying farming. To reverse it will require coordinated action by people in every country.

Global leaders meeting in Copenhagen last December disappointingly failed to reach the international agreements that are necessary. Despite its fine words our government has also failed to hold back Irish emissions as it promised, among the highest in the world per capita.

Perhaps the main reason for these failures is that responsibility for emissions does not lie so much with governments as with the personal choices and decisions of countless individuals around the world, particularly those in rich countries – people like you and me. Very many of us remain in obstinate denial that there is a problem at all. Even those of us who admit that there is a problem do not yet feel real shame for our bad choices and decisions. Until we do we will be denied the gift of penitence, ‘to live simply that others may simply live’.

The road to the Kingdom will be long and we have barely started down it.

Spring watch - frog spawn

2010-03-18T11:00:00.009Z

Common frog (Rana temporaria) with spawn

Yesterday, St Patrick's day, the sun smiled on Susannah and me, as we proudly wore shamrock to church, and later were feasted by a kind friend Mary in honour of Clodagh's birthday! So many people around the world slap shamrock on everything in sight before celebrating Irishness in a wild binge to 'drown' it. It's quite extraordinary really - but I wonder how many recall the significance of that small trefoil leaf: used by Patrick as a metaphor for the Trinity - three leaflets in one leaf symbolising three persons in one God.

I searched the wild flower meadow for wild shamrock, but could find none due to the exceptionally cold and late season. However Susannah brought some from the greengrocer in a small pot - at least it was Irish grown, no doubt in some poly-tunnel, not imported from the Netherlands as it so often is. The cold, late season also means it is far too early to plant the potatoes which are chitting in the greenhouse - 1st early Duke of York, 2nd early Charlotte and main-crop Pink Fir Apple.

However, at long last the daffodils in the Labyrinth are pushing up their flowering heads -they came as volunteers with topsoil when the extension was built, so are scattered in pleasing natural clumps.

And yesterday the first frog-spawn appeared in the pond on the patio - now that's a real sign of Spring! I neglected the pond last year, so it was frightfully overgrown. But the sight of the spawn galvinised me into action to clear out the surplus pond weeds. I carefully left the spawn on one side and put it back afterwards - I trust I have not damaged it - and this morning another mass had appeared.

A View from the Pew – Life is stirring

2010-03-14T22:12:00.003Z

View from the Pew is a column I write for Newslink, the diocesan magazine for Limerick & Killaloe - this peice appeared in the March 2010 edition.

Pussy willow bravely blooming

What a hard winter we’ve had of it!
First the floods in November, then the snow around Christmas, followed by the hardest frosts for many years.

The Shannon froze. It brought to mind my mother’s story of how as a teenager in the early 1930s, she and her friends walked across Lough Derg on the ice from the Tipperary to the Galway shore, dragging a small boat in case the ice cracked. Mistakenly I had thought I would never see such a thing myself because of global warming – but that confuses weather with climate. Weather is naturally variable, and even as the planet warms we can expect occasional cold snaps, though they may be rarer. Climate is about long timescales and wide areas. As we froze in Ireland, temperatures in the arctic were up to 7°C above normal this winter. Don’t be misled by the cold winter – climate change is continuing and real.

It was heartening to see how people rallied round to help their neighbours devastated by the floods and struggling in the cold. I was impressed how the IFA organised distribution of fodder donated by farmers with a surplus to those who had lost theirs. And we should all feel inspired by the generosity and enterprise of the children of St Michael’s National School, Limerick, who raised over €500 to give toys at Christmas to children who had lost theirs when they were flooded out of their homes, as reported in Newslink last month.

In the garden the frost has killed many tender plants, and I fear for a lot of others. The Chilean Puyas which survived several winters outside are all gone, as is a Cordyline. Two Olearias are looking very sick. And I have attended far too many funerals of old friends recently. Most were occasions to celebrate long lives well lived, but the death of a contemporary reminds me of my own mortality.

New life is stirring.
But now life is stirring again as the days lengthen and winter gives way to another spring. The flowering willow is covered with silver pussies, snowdrops are blooming their socks off, the first crocuses are struggling through over-long grass, and the hellebores are about to burst. The buds on Forsythia and winter cherry are swelling, and the catkins are lengthening on the cobnuts. The birds too are starting to think about making babies – I have just been watching from my window two hen blackbirds trying to chase each other away from a rather bemused looking cock. And a farming neighbour who looked ready to drop in the pew confided that he had barely slept for a week because he was up all night calving!

Is it just me who detects new life stirring in our diocese too? I hope not. These are just some of the things that I have noticed recently:

The buoyant mood of the hundreds of people who made the pilgrimage from all corners of the diocese to Limerick for Celebrate Together in November. Something new happens when we move out of our own small parishes to come together.

The mixture of fun and serious purpose in the largely lay group that Vicki Lynch brought together to attend the NOSTRA public lectures at Mary I. It was eye-opening to meet so many others who also yearn to talk about their faith and its implication for mission, to discover we are not alone.

The new training programmes designed to equip lay people for ministry, as parish and diocesan readers and in pastoral and youth work, and the moves toward a ‘fellowship of vocation’. They promise to release the gifts of those who take them up for Christian service.

There are stirrings too in other churches. For all the disillusionment over clerical abuse, increasing numbers of Roman Catholic lay men and women are seeking pastoral and theological training – and they are pressing for a greater lay involvement in their parishes. New churches and worship communities are springing up as well. In my parish, for instance, there is the Nenagh Baptist Group, a new church plant which particularly welcomes the unchurched and young families, and Living Water, an interdenominational charismatic group, holding joyous monthly meetings of worship and prayer in a local hotel, both well worth a visit.

Where are the stirrings leading?
We know where the stirrings in the garden will lead – to burgeoning life, beautiful flowers and a bountiful future harvest.

It is less clear where the stirrings in the church are leading, but I feel sure the Holy Spirit is doing a new thing. Perhaps this Lent we should all ponder where the Spirit is leading us, both as the church and individually, and listen prayerfully for the Spirit to guide our responses.

Here are my own tentative first thoughts:

We should not be afraid of new life stirring, but rather seek to nourish it. It springs from within our tradition, like a shoot sprouting from a rootstock, drawing strength from the faithful witness and unsung service of so many Church of Ireland people over the years. Let us see it as a harbinger of exciting renewal, not frightening change.

Similar stirrings are at work in other churches, as I found when I sought out and talked to Christians of other traditions. Most long to share Christian witness, prayer and service with others, just as we do. This suggests to me that the Spirit is leading our different denominations to walk together, recognising each other as fellow disciples of Jesus, who unites us in our diversity. Let us cultivate ecumenical activity - perhaps through a ‘Churches Together’ group in our own locality.

In all our churches, ordinary lay men and women both feel a call to play a more active role and are responding to it. The old model of full-time professional clergy dispensing ministry to laity who passively consume it can no longer be sustained. With fewer vocations, limited finances and ever larger parish unions, clergy are overworked and risk burnout. In an age of mass higher education and democracy lay people recognise that they also are gifted for ministry and seek to exercise their gifts. It is now generally recognised that all Christians are called to serve in a multitude of different ways – the clergy’s role is to equip them to do so. Let us make a reality of passionate all-member ministry.

We are most likely to discern where the Spirit is leading by sharing our own thoughts with others and testing them in discussion. Let us unleash the power of the Spirit by contributing to the debate.

What do you think? If you agree or disagree, or feel moved to contribute to the debate, why not share your thoughts in a letter to Madam Editor?

Hardress Jocelyn de Warrenne Waller, 5th May 1917 - 6th March 2010

2010-03-13T18:57:00.009Z

Hardress Waller, by Vijay Bhushan, Hyderabad 1982

Late addition - see also his obituary in the Irish Times for Saturday 17th April 2010.

My friend and cousin Hardress Jocelyn de Warrenne Waller of Rynskaheen, Nenagh, Co Tipperary, died aged 92 after a short illness on 6th March 2010. He is survived by his widow Lygia (née Banasinska), son Jocelyn, grandson Thomas and great-grandchildren Alexander and William. A second grandson Edward was killed by a terrorist bomb in Bali in 2002.

At his funeral service in St Mary's Church of Ireland, Nenagh, on 10th March 2010, a large congregation joined together to give thanks for and celebrate his long life, well lived, and to recall his gifts of character, integrity and leadership, his sense of humour and zest for life, and all the ways in which he touched the hearts of his family, friends, neighbours and the wider community. After the service he was buried beside his parents Edgar and Dorothy in the family graveyard at Clough Prior, followed by refreshments at Lough Derg Yacht Club, of which he was a past Commodore.

He had a distinguished army career, serving in the Horse Artillery and Royal Horse Artillery where he was known by the nick-name Sam. After fighting in Burma during the Second World War, where he was awarded the Military Cross, he served in many places around the world, was received an MBE in 1956, and retired in 1965 with the rank of Brigadier. In a second career in horseracing, he was Secretary to the Horserace Betting Levy Board 1965-68, Director General of the Racecourse Association 1968-1975, and Senior Steward of the Irish Turf Club 1991-93. He was educated at Rossal and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich.

He was also an accomplished polo player, a highly competitive and successful sailor of Shannon One Design dinghys, a military historian, a family genealogist, and with his wife Lygia a restorer of oil paintings.

I will miss him greatly.

The Waller family crest

I used this prayer of William Penn over his coffin the night before his funeral:

We give you back, O God, those whom you have given us
You did not lose them when you gave them to us,
and we do not lose them by their return to you.
Your Son has taught us that life is eternal and love cannot die.
So death is only an horizon, and an horizon is only the limit of our sight.
Open our eyes to see more clearly, and draw us closer to you,
so that we may know we are nearer to our loved ones,
who are with you.

View from the Pew - Love one another!

2010-02-07T12:41:00.004Z

View from the Pew is a regular column in Newslink, the Limerick & Killaloe diocesan magazine. This piece appeared in the February 2010 edition.

Praying for Christian Unity
For many years churches around the world have designated 18th - 25th January as a Week of Prayer for Christian Unity. Each year the global organisers, the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity and the World Council of Churches, ask the churches of one country to prepare materials for use by all. This year the job was given to Scotland, to mark the centenary of the first world mission conference held in Edinburgh in 1910, which is often seen as the beginning of the modern ecumenical movement.

All of us, I’m sure, will have prayed in our parishes for Christian unity during that week. Many will have taken part in ecumenical services. In the Nenagh Union, for the 2nd year running, we hosted an alternative evening of ecumenical singing under the title ‘Come teach us your songs’. It was delightful, with enthusiastic choirs from the Church of Ireland, the Roman Catholics and the Nenagh Baptist Group joining in songs precious to each of our traditions, though we missed the Methodists and Living Waters who could not be with us this year, due to a prior engagement and illness. At the end we shared refreshments in a happy buzz of conversation, echoing Jesus’s constant table fellowship recorded in the Gospels.

Such ecumenical get-togethers give us a warm feeling, don’t they? I detect a great yearning for fellowship among lay Christians I meet of all denominations. Jesus prayed to his Father in heaven for his disciples, ‘that they may be one, as we are one’ (John 17:22). The Spirit is surely calling his people together today, just as Jesus did two thousand years ago.

Unity in Diversity
But I don’t think that means the Spirit calls all Christians to be identical – to worship in the same way, or to believe the same things. Our Father in heaven delights in diversity, judging from the wonderful variety of life that he has called into being on this planet. In the same way, surely, he calls his churches to be diverse in the glorious variety of their traditions and beliefs. Just as there is a unity in the diversity of life based on shared inheritance through DNA, so there is a unity in the diversity of our churches based on our shared inheritance of the love of God through Jesus.

We can learn so much about the love of God from our brothers and sisters in different denominations. Their different insights and spiritualities can only enrich our own if we engage with them – we don’t have to agree with them in all things, nor copy them, just engage with them lovingly and respectfully. The body of Christ contains us all, and is diminished by any that are missing.

There is a darker side, however. All denominations, surely, also have things to be ashamed of, things to be repented of, things others should take as awful warnings. But let us take the beam from our own eye before we look for specks in our neighbour’s. We Anglicans behave like hypocrites when we talk to others about Christian unity yet are incapable of maintaining it within our own Anglican Communion.

Schism is an ugly word
But that seems to be what the Anglican Communion faces in the near future, unless the Holy Spirit brings about a change of heart. For generations Anglicans have prided themselves on being a broad church, able to hold together in reasonable amity a wide variety of views, from low-church Evangelicals to high-church Anglo-Catholics and everything in between. But all this has changed in recent years. Now many Anglicans are unable to abide together in love. Though the focus of conflict is elsewhere, we in the Church of Ireland are not immune from the schismatic forces, which are already opening up old North-South fault lines.

The main presenting issue is whether homosexual practice is compatible with Christian discipleship, though there are others, like the ordination of women. Some people identify the root cause as deep underlying differences about the authority of scripture. But I think less seemly forces are also at work, involving power and politics in the church and funding from outside it. Parties have formed:

One side call themselves ‘orthodox’. They see themselves as maintaining traditional biblical values. They abhor homosexuality as sinful, and some, though not all, oppose the ordination of women.
The other is called ‘liberal’, at least by their opponents. They call for the church to be ‘inclusive’ of women and minorities, including partnered homosexuals. They support their ordination as priests and bishops, and hold services of blessing for those in civil partnerships and same sex relationships.

Most ordinary folk in the pews hear little of the disputes. The protagonists are for the most part clergy, arguing with other clergy; many if not most of them seek to steer a middle path and try not to disturb the faith of their flocks. But the contending voices have become shockingly shrill and bitter, as can be seen from the blogs and web sites where much of the argument is conducted (for a taste of it - but not for sensitive souls - try googling ‘Anglican Mainstream’, ‘Inclusive Church’, and ‘Virtue Online’). Both factions accuse their opponents of not being true Christians, seek to drive them out of ‘their’ church, and try to recruit the rest of us to their cause.

I would be less than honest if I did not admit that my own sympathies lie with the liberal, inclusive side – the Jesus I encounter in the Gospels never rejects those who come to him, and is infuriated by those who place the letter of the law above its spirit. But I am deeply disturbed by the sheer hatred displayed by some on both sides. It is as if an evil spirit has possessed otherwise decent, Christian men and women, who share much more than divides them.

Love one another
I think this evil spirit of faction can only be opposed with love. Recall that Jesus said to his disciples, ‘I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another’ (John 13:34).

St Paul, who knew a thing or two about faction fighting, has some good advice. He urged the Ephesians to ‘speak the truth in love’ and warned the Corinthians not to let their liberty become ‘a stumbling block’ to others. Let us love one another. Let us respect each other’s integrity and be honest with one another. Let us walk the extra mile with those with whom we disagree. And if at last some decide to walk apart, let us be generous to them, wish them God speed and give them something for the journey.

And let us pray together, for unity in our diversity, and for the grace to hear where God’s Holy Spirit is leading us.

The Shannon is frozen

2010-01-10T12:21:00.006Z

Whooper Swan (Cygnus cygnus)

photo Andreas Trepte, www.photo-natur.de

Yesterday I watched the Whooper swans leave Dromineer: three straggling Vs, honking as they went, almost yellow against the grey snowy sky. They know what they are about, these great migratory birds which come to us from Iceland every winter. No doubt the last patch of water they were keeping open was begining to freeze, so they decided to head on further South, to the Wexford slobs perhaps.

I went down to the beach at Dromineer in the late afternoon, and the lake looked to be frozen as far as the eye could see, at least as far as the Corrikeen Islands. Families with chidren and dogs were gathering in a magical light to venture out onto the ice, marvelling at the once-in-a-generation sight. I feel sure they were quite safe within a few yards of the shore, but a few foolhardy souls had ventured out as far as a hundred yards. I could see the ice was barely 2 inches thick - far to thin to be safe away from the shore - so I yelled at them to come back, which to give them their due they did - lads from the Nenagh Canoe Club, who quite understood the point of my officious behaviour.

I remember as a child in East Anglia learning to skate on the frozen Towny in Landbeach with cushions tied on fron and back to soften my falls. I also remember being taken to the Fen Championships, which are only held in years when the ice is thick enough, where hundreds of spectators watch the competitors skate at staggering speeds round a course marked on the ice. I see that they are being held this year today, 10th January 2010, on Whittlesey Wash.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kPzX-9v_M5c

And my mother, God bless her, had a story about how, when the Shannon froze in the early 1930s, with some friends she walked from Luska over to the Galway shore pushing a small boat in front of them for safety. With global warming I never thought I would see the lake frozen myself, but of course a freeze like this is weather, not climate. We may be freezing here, but it has nothing to do with climate change: according to Dr Walter Meier of the US National Snow and Ice Data Centre in Boulder, Colorado, this winter “pretty much all of the Arctic is above normal” - by as much as 15 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas.

I was due to take services in Templederry and Puckane today, but I cancelled them after talking to the Church Wardens. The sermon I had planned will fly another day. A good decision. As I write this now, from my study window I can see the snow falling gently. The drive and road are pure white. A day to stay put and thank God for the beauty of snow, a warm house and water that still runs.

Drive and Labyrinth in the snow

Raised beds & Lime alley in the snow

Christmas Greetings

2009-12-24T14:10:00.006Z

Wishing you

A Very Happy & Blessed Christmas

and all the very best for 2010

The Petrograd Madonna painted in 1918 by Kuzma Sergeyevich Petrov-Vodkin (1878-1939). This painting has an icon-like quality, reflecting the artist’s teenage work with icon painters at Khvalynsk on the Volga, where he was born. For me it is a reminder that the Christ-child comes to us in every age, even in the midst of turmoil and strife.

Earth stood hard as iron, water like a stone

2009-12-23T11:00:00.007Z

Winter Wonderland

The countryside around, like the rest of Ireland, is a winter wonderland, dusted with a light snowfall two days ago and frosted hard ever since, with hoar-frost glistening on every twig the pale morning light has not reached.

Frosted pink Hebe

It is very beautiful, but dangerously slippy on roads like ours that have not been salted. Susanna and I celebrated our 15th wedding anniversary two days ago and booked ourselves for a dinner at the Whiskey Still in the village. But when we came to drive there, the car's wheels spun on the compacted ice just outside our drive entrance and we slipped back. Eventually, I let the car slide into the rough margin of the road where rough grit gave enough traction to breast the hill. And we enjoyed an excellent dinner, reminiscing about our Florida wedding and Sarasota honeymoon, spent in shorts sunbathing by the side of a pool, observed by a green-masked heron!

It is a hard time for the birds, which Susanna is assiduously providing with food and fresh water. The familiar common birds visit the birdtable and hanging feeders in a constant stream, including Chaffinches, Greenfinches, occasional Goldfinches, Sparrows, Dunnocks, Robins, Great Tits, Blue Tits, Coal Tit's, a single hen Blackcap Warbler and a juvenile cock Blackbird. I can see them through the bedroom window, and observe their pecking order. The Blackbird rules the roost and the others stay away when he is feeding. Next in order are the Greenfinches, but they tolerate others feeding beside them so long as they are not too close. Then comes the Blackcap hen, who is faced off by Greenfinches, but agressively chases away all the smaller birds, like a garden fascist as I previously described it. The Tits and Chaffinches just muck in together.

Elsewhere in the garden, blackbirds maintain their territories despite the weather. I have just seen a Pied Wagtail exploring the gutter for insects outside my upstairs study window. Yesterday there was a Robin on the ground outside the greenhouse which was unable to fly, and later I found it dead and threw its little body into the hedge, where no doubt it will provide a meal for some other creature.

Nenagh bells rang out – and the people came

2009-12-12T21:42:00.004Z

The Nenagh Churches Together team

l-r: James Armitage, John Armitage, Joc Sanders, Sr Patricia Greene,

Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke, Rev AnnaGretta Hagen (visiting from Norway)

photo by Padraig O Flannabhra

The bells rang out on Sunday 6th December to announce the Nenagh Churches Together prayer vigil for the Copenhagen climate talks, held in St Mary’s Church of Ireland from 4.30 to 6.30 pm. And the people came, from many different church traditions including Catholic, Methodist, Church of Ireland, and Lutheran. Some came for just a few minutes, others for the entire two hours, but between 20 and 30 were present at any one time, substantially more than attended the Day of Prayer for climate change in Teach an Leinn in October, according to the organisers.

The focus of the vigil was a table covered with a green cloth symbolising creation, on which were placed symbols of the faith shared by all Christians, a cross, a bible and a candle, together with a globe symbolising the beautiful God-given planet earth, now threatened by global warming.

In a calm, contemplative atmosphere, those present listened to readings and music, reflected in silence, and prayed for the success of the Copenhagen talks. They prayed too for the world leaders gathered there including our own – it is not nations that make decisions, but individual human beings, who must feel the heavy burden of their responsibility. And they also prayed for an end to the human greed which is damaging our God-given planet. Young people played a big part, among them: Thomas and Ellen Langley from Templederry who read prayers; and Leaving Cert student Maggie Starr who read her poem ‘It’s a sprint to the line’.

It is pleasing to note local TD Máire Hoctor was there - she will no doubt convey the message of the vigil to An Taoiseach Brian Cowan and Minister of the Environment John Gormley, who lead the Irish delegation at Copenhagen.

Afterwards people shared refreshments of tea, coffee and delicious home-made cakes, and chatted. Among comments overheard were these:

“Let’s hope that the governments can wake up and see what the average everyday people are seeing over the world”;
“The poor earth needs all the prayers we can manage”;
“It was moving and meaningful, and especially so because it was a shared witness with Christian traditions working together”.

The Nenagh Churches Together team look forward to working together on many such shared events in future.

It's a Sprint to the line, Or a race against time.
By Maggie Starr

In the dying sunlight of my evening,
My thoughts smell of burning fear.
I've over-dosed on my anger,
And the antidote has yet to be conceived.

We've blinded our views of previous failings,
Unwilling to comprehend their probable conclusion.
We've smoked this animal from his caving,
Our deafness anaesthetizes our guilt.

Our knowledge-seeking conscience have tasted the antidote,
Some have touched the formula in moral experimentations.
Our selfish race have evaporated the referee,
Our league must now trust in our own resourcefulness.

A great poet once said;
*"I had a dream, which was not all a dream,
The bright Sun was extinguish'd, and the stars
Did wander."

This problem is the religion of our age,
Self-righteous, intolerant based on dissent.
But, the best time to do something worthwhile,
Is between yesterday and tomorrow.

It's a sprint to the line,
Or a race against time.

*Lord Byron

Unseasonable flowers

2009-12-11T17:26:00.006Z

At last a fine sunny day after weeks of rain and dismal gloom! I went out to look around the very sodden garden, which is a mess because I have not been out to mow or tidy. I was surprised to find so many flowers unseasonably blooming and picked this bunch.

Here we see penstemon, primrose, tobacco, rambling rose Dorothy Perkins, lavatera, dog daisy, erigeron, hebe

And here we also see fuchsia, a David Austin rose and a South African diasy whose name for the present escapes me.

And if I had taken the long-arm with me I could have had Spanish broom and other rambling roses Veilchen blau, American Pillar and an unidentified giant shrub rose with tiny pink flowers.

We have survived the floods here, being on good high ground, though the road has been wrecked by the torrents of water that ran down them. Susanna drove into a pothole and her tyre went flat. The Shannon has risen far higher than ever known before. In this picture you can see the Lough Derg Yacht Club clubhouse with water lapping at its feet. The boathouses and jetties are all flooded, and you can see the angle made by the floating jetties in the background, beside the RNLI inshore lifeboat.

We have had it so much better than other poor souls in Cork, Galway, Clare and Kildare. It is heartening how the Irish people and agencies like St Vincent de Paul and the Irish Red Cross have rallied round to help their neighbours whose homes, farms and businesses have been wrecked, though the Government was rather slower, distracted no doubt by framing a swingeing budget.

People are wondering whether this is a sign of climate change. I don't think anyone can say so for certain, because climate change is a statistical thing. But climate scientists are saying we can expect higher winter rainfall in the West of Ireland, and more extreme weather events. I think it would be wise to take these floods as a wake-up call to start responding to climate change, by reducing our greenhouse gas emissions, as well as adapting to the difficult future we all face.

Budget blues

2009-12-04T14:58:00.005Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the magazine for the Diocese of Limerick and Killaloe - this article appeared in the December/January 2009/10 issue.

Minister of Finance Brian Lenihan

Can you visualize €1,000,000,000?
Ireland is in an economic mess – commentators, politicians and interest groups all keep telling us so. The Government promises us a harsh budget, and says that if we take the nasty medicine now we will all be better for it. Figures of billions of Euro in budget cuts and/or higher taxes are bandied about – on top of billions to recapitalise the banks, and yet more billions for NAMA. It is all quite bemusing, isn’t it?

€1 billion = €1,000,000,000

One billion 1 Euro coins placed end to end stretch 23,250 km

That’s more than 100 times the distance from Limerick to Dublin

€4 billion would fill one carriageway of the Limerick to Dublin motorway with 1 Euro coins

The hole we are in
As a citizen of this Republic, I feel I should try to understand our situation. So I have just been reading the November 2009 Pre-budget Outlook published by the Department of Finance – you can download it free from http://www.finance.gov.ie/viewdoc.asp?DocID=6087. It summarises the context in which Minister of Finance Brian Lenihan will frame his budget for 2010. To my surprise it is quite easy to read, and at just 30 pages a good way to get an overview of our economic woes, even if it is rather depressing. For me, the key facts are these:

National output (GDP) has fallen by around 7.5% this year and is expected to fall by another 1.5% in 2010. Unemployment has soared; pay rates have fallen (in the public if not the private sector); prices are falling; consumption is falling; savings are up; investment is minimal.

The government deficit – the difference between what is raised in taxes and what is spent – has ballooned to around €20 billion in 2009, largely because tax revenues have collapsed and social welfare payments to the unemployed have surged.

We are faced with a classic deflationary spiral, like the great depression in the 1930s. Keynes’ remedy then was increased public borrowing and spending, to put people back to work and stimulate demand, leading to renewed confidence and a return to investment and growth. This is what other countries are doing now with stimulus packages, and it is what our government has been doing too, by increasing the government deficit.

But the Government says this can’t go on, because even if financial markets would keep lending to us, paying them back would cost too much. Last April they declared they would reduce borrowing by €4 billion in 2010 and another €4 billion in 2011, in order to get borrowing down to 3% of GDP by 2013. Most economists and politicians seem to agree that this scale of adjustment is necessary, though the trades unions argue that the adjustment should be over a longer period. I for one am persuaded a €4 billion adjustment in 2010 is appropriate.

How to reduce borrowing by €4 billion?
But the big question is how to do it. I believe our Christian faith demands social justice – a ‘preferential option for the poor’, in the phrase used by liberation theologians. Can there be any doubt that Jesus calls us in solidarity to protect the poor and the vulnerable?

I am therefore dismayed by the media chorus, on the one hand urging cuts in social welfare for the poor and vulnerable because consumer prices are falling, while on the other asserting that the well off cannot afford to pay more in taxes. Both arguments are nonsense, I think.

First, basic living costs for those on social welfare have not dropped as they have for other groups. Most of the fall in the price index is due to lower mortgage interest rates, but few on social welfare have mortgages, so cuts in line with the index would cause real hardship for those already struggling. St Vincent de Paul points out that the planned removal of the Christmas bonus already represents a 2% cut, at a time of year when poor families need to spend more on basics such as heat, light, food and clothing. A new carbon tax is expected in the budget. This will promote the transition to a low carbon society which we must make to avoid climate change catastrophe, and I am in favour of it. But the poor spend more of their income proportionately on high carbon fuels. Without compensating measures a carbon tax will increase fuel poverty. Social justice requires benefits to be raised, not cut.

Second, those who are well off are well able to pay more in taxes to help out their less fortunate fellow citizens struggling to live on social welfare. Most of those who profited from the bubble economy remain very rich. Sean Quinn, for example, has been able to pass €200 million to his four children this year, despite his losses in the collapse of Anglo Irish Bank. Salaries for Irish professionals, such as doctors, lawyers, business managers and government ministers, remain very high by international norms. Such people will suffer no hardship if asked to pay more. Those who suggest they would skip the country to avoid tax are arguing that we should give in to blackmail, as well as impugning their patriotism.

But more than this, income tax rates for those of us lucky enough to still have good incomes are very low by international standards, as Garrett Fitzgerald has been arguing. Most Irish taxpayers pay tax on income at rates between a quarter and a half of the rates in other western European countries and the USA. Even at higher income levels our rates are still a quarter lower than these other countries. These low rates of tax on incomes are a result of grossly irresponsible government decisions during the boom to fund cuts in income tax from stamp duties and capital gains tax arising from the housing bubble. If we want to enjoy decent health and education services and an acceptable social welfare safety net, we must all be prepared to pay more in tax. And ways must be found to relieve the interest burden on ordinary families who were persuaded to take out mortgages to pay absurd stamp duty on over-priced homes.

Back in April Brian Lenihan appeared to accept this, saying he would raise €2.5 billion in increased taxes in 2010, with a more manageable €1.5 billion in expenditure cuts. More recently he has been saying the whole €4 billion must come in cuts. Is he really preparing to throw social justice to the winds in budget 2010?

And what about overseas aid?
Social justice must not end at home. It should also apply to the poorest of the poor in the developing world. My own key test of Budget 2010, as it was last year, is what happens to development aid.

Ireland has a proud record for overseas development aid. Like all rich countries we promised to increase development aid to 0.7% of GNP to achieve the UN’s Millennium Goals, which include eradicating extreme poverty and hunger. By 2008 we were the sixth highest per capita donor, giving 0.58% of GNP, on track to meet our commitment to achieve 0.7% by 2012. I awarded Brian Lenihan a cheer in October 2008 for protecting the overseas development budget for 2009.

But what has happened since then? The overseas aid budget has been cut by 24% since February - three times higher than the fall in GNP. This year, for the first time, 1 billion people are going hungry. This shames us all – our government has shamed us! To their credit, 30 TDs and Senators from all parties wrote to the editor of the Irish Times on 14th November earnestly calling on the Government not to cut overseas aid any further. I pray that Brian Lenihan will listen to them, and even restore this year’s cuts.

Nenagh church bells to ring for climate change prayer vigil

2009-11-27T23:56:00.005Z

Churches Together in Nenagh will mark the eve of the UN climate change summit in Copenhagen with a prayer vigil on Sunday 6th December in St Mary’s Church of Ireland, Church Rd, Nenagh, between 4.30 pm and 6.30 pm. All are invited to join the vigil for a few minutes or longer, whatever their faith or denomination.

The Copenhagen summit will be a critical test for world leaders. Two years ago in Bali they agreed to negotiate a comprehensive legally binding treaty this year to avert the catastrophe of run away global warming. Recent reports suggest that a political agreement is more likely at Copenhagen, paving the way for a treaty next year. But substantial delay would be disastrous for people everywhere, our children, and the planet - the recent floods are a wake-up call. Firm commitments are needed now to take action which is both effective and just.

The cross-denomination organising team explain why they believe the vigil is important. ‘World leaders know the eyes of the world are on them and they surely feel the weight of responsibility they bear’, says Sr Patricia Greene of Nenagh Catholic parish. ‘They need our prayers.’ Church of Ireland lay reader Joc Sanders says, ‘Care for God’s planet is a Christian duty. Our prayers should encourage the Irish delegation including Environment Minister John Gormley and Taoiseach Brian Cowen to step up to the mark in Copenhagen’. Cloughjordan Methodist James Armitage adds, ‘We in Nenagh will pray alongside millions of others around the world. God is faithful and we can be sure that He will respond in the way that is best for all creation’.

The team are arranging for the bells of all the churches in Nenagh to be rung from 4 pm. Catholic lay woman Liz Callery urges, ‘Listen for the bells. When you hear them, please make time to stop, reflect and pray for a good result in Copenhagen, even if you cannot join us.’

Nnenagh Churches Together Prayer Vigil - 6th December

2009-11-14T15:33:00.003Z

If you are anywhere near Nenagh on Sunday 6th December, the Eve of the UN Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen, why not come to join us?

Or perhaps you might like to organise something similar in your own community!

Rain and birds

2009-11-13T14:23:00.003Z

Strawberry-like fruit of Cornus capitata

What amazing rain we've had over the last 10 days or so - and more is promised for the weekend! On Tuesday I emptied nearly a foot out of the wheelbarrow, which I wanted to use to pick up clippings from the Evergreen Oak hedge. And today there is another 2 or 3 inches. Of course the mouth of the barrow is bigger than its base, but that is still a lot of water.

Susanna has started to feed the birds again: the birdtable is out by the kitchen window, and the peanot holders are on the espalier wires. The tits found them straight away, as if they had just been waiting, just like the rats, who have been climbing up to the table. There are few finches as yet, although I see the usual winter gangs in the hedges - I suppose there are still plenty of berries for them. Blackbirds and thrushes have been testing the cotneaster berries I can see from my study, but they are not yet ripe enough I think, or they would have been stripped in 10 minutes. Somebody has been at the large strawberry-like fruit of Cornus capitata, but I haven't detected who yet - probably the thrushes. We have half a dozen of them, grown from seed by Susanna, all now flowering and fruiting.

A bird has nibbled the Cornus capitata fruit

The Cryptomeria japonica given us by Grania has really taken off this year. It is a form that retains its juvenile foliage, which turns copper in winter- you would almost think it has died, but it will come back to life again in the Spring.

Grania's Cryptomeria japonica

View from the pew - The mustard seed in Leipzig

2009-11-01T13:06:00.007Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the magazine for the Diocese of Limerick and Killaloe - this article appeared in the November 2009 issue.

Leipzig
Last year my wife Marty and I visited Leipzig, not far from our companion Lutheran diocese of Anhalt. Within the inner ring road, built over the medieval city walls, the compact historic centre is being lovingly restored after decades of neglect in the former East Germany. One of its jewels is the Nikolaikirche – St Nicholas’ Church - where Johann Sebastian Bach’s Johannes Passion was first performed on Good Friday of 1724. There we first learned of the amazing role this beautiful 12th century church played in the events of 20 years ago, leading up to the fall of the Berlin Wall. Derek Scally wrote a fine article about it in the Irish Times on 7th October (you can find it by googling ‘Derek Scally Leipzig’).

Pastor Christian Führer

Pastor Christian Führer, now retired

The long road to 1989 began in 1981 with peace prayer evenings organised by Nikolaikirche’s pastor Christian Führer in 1981 in response to the Cold War arms race. Five years on, the Monday night gatherings were attracting just four people. Pastor Christian recalls, “I was ready to give up but one of the people attending said, ‘If we give up, then there is no hope any more’. Then I remembered the parable of the mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds that can still grow to provide shelter for many.” He carried on with the prayer evenings.

By 1988 the era of perestroika had come to the Soviet Union, and in East Berlin, the elderly Politburo was in denial about the need for reforms. In Leipzig, Pastor Christian could sense the longing for change. “The people had been silenced, by fear and the secret police, we provided a space for them to discuss taboo topics,” he says. Attendance at his Monday prayer meetings grew – from eight to 80, and then 100. On September 4th a group of young people emerged from the Monday meeting to hold up a banner reading: “For an open life with free people.” A Stasi agent ran forward to snatch the banner, filmed by a West German TV crew, with the footage seen in East as well as West Germany. A week later, the Nikolaikirche was full. Pastor Christian was jubilant but nervous: would the meetings remain calm as the pressure continued to build? “I reminded people of the Sermon on the Mount – love your enemy – and hoped they would take this message of non-violence with them from the church.”

The critical turning point came in October 1989. As East Germany approached its fortieth anniversary on October 6th, the regime was becoming more and more anxious to calm a situation which was out of control. Thousands of its citizens were escaping across the Czech border to Hungary, which had opened its borders to the West, and attempts to stop this resulted in more angry protests and police using water cannons and batons to drive back the crowds.

9th October 1989
The mood in Leipzig before the next Monday prayers on 9th October was increasingly tense. Pastor Christian urged three other inner-city churches to open their doors for prayers, so that as many people as possible would be inside, protected from the police. Local dignitaries, including the director of the Leipzig Philharmonic Orchestra and the area bishop, appealed for non-violence. Thousands of ordinary people left their homes, said goodbye to children and partners, and converged upon the city centre. Eye-witnesses tell of the turmoil of emotions they felt: terror, as they wondered if they would return home, mixed with determination, arising out of the despair of knowing that if they stayed at home nothing would ever change. The church was filled, with many Stasi agents as well as protestors.

Pastor Christian describes what happened as the service ended, “More than 2,000 people leaving the church were welcomed by tens of thousands waiting outside with candles in their hands. I will never forget this moment. A person needs two hands to carry a candle: one to hold it and the other to protect the flame – so you can’t carry sticks or stones at the same time. The miracle happened. Jesus’ spirit of non-violence seized the masses and transformed them into a real and peaceful, powerful presence. Troops and police officers were drawn in and became engaged in conversations. The crowds chanted ‘Keine Gewalt!’ – ‘No violence!’ - and the police withdrew.”

Monday Demonstration in Leipzig

With an extraordinary 70,000 people behind him, the nervous pastor led the march around the Leipzig inner ring road to the chant, ‘Wir sind das Volk!’ – ‘We are the people!’. To their amazement, they completed a circuit and returned, unhindered, to the Nikolaikirche. The next week, on 16 October 1989, 120,000 demonstrated in Leipzig after the Monday prayers, and the following week the number more than doubled to 320,000. The Monday demonstrations spread throughout East Germany, including Anhalt, proving that the majority of the population opposed the regime. This pressure led to the fall of the Berlin Wall on 9 November 1989, and the collapse of the East German regime, without a shot being fired.

In giving me permission to quote from his article, Derek Scally has this to say, “It was a huge honour to talk to the people from the Nikolaikirche. Many of them told me they still remembered clearly their anxiety from the evening, that they were walking into a second Tiananmen Square. Too little is known of the key role of the religious in the 1989 events.”

Prayer is action
This is a remarkable story that can truly inspire us. It shows that prayer can be powerful action. Out of a tiny mustard seed of prayer, a peaceful revolution was born. Some were in Nikolaikirche to spy, some half-listening, some cynical, some committed, some believers, many unsure. But prayer and action became one as they came together. Prayer is like a pebble in the pond, sending ripples far and wide – or like the steady drip which gradually wears away the stone. We too can plant a mustard seed!

The mission is a bucket of well-rotted compost!

2009-10-31T11:15:00.006Z

What a strange season we are having. Today is Halloween, and we have not had a frost yet. I am still harvesting green climbing beans and romanesco broccoli, the Salvias and Dahlias continue in flower, many of the roses are having another go, and mauve Primula vulgaris sibthorpii, which normally flowers in Spring, is blooming its socks off.

Yesterday was rather wet and gloomy until late afternoon, when the cloud cleared to the North East and the sun broke through. As the last drops fell from the trailing edge of the cloud, a full double rainbow burst forth against the slate grey retreating cloud. A simply amazing spectacle, a reminder of God's promise after the Flood. If I had had my wits about me, like Daniel Owen I should have rushed for my camera. Instead I went out to pick the last of the tomatoes in the poly-tunnel, which need to be cleared out to make room for the tender Salvias and Dahlias. Susanna has taken the green tomatoes to cousin Lygia, who will make them into her renowned chutney, made to a recipe from her Indian childhood.

The Bishop has bidden everyone from all the parishes in the Diocese to come to St Mary's Cathedral in Limerick on Mission Sunday, November 15th, for a great celebration of mission. We are to choose and bring with us a symbol of mission from each parish. People in ours have been writing suggestions on a flip-chart in Church, such as Salt, or Bread. But the symbol I should like to see is a bucket of well-rotted compost! Surely as Christians our mission is to maintain the fertility of this beautiful garden of Eden on which God has been pleased to place human kind and so many other creatures, and to improve the texture of the soil in which God's kingdom is continuously taking root.

Autumn assaulting the senses

2009-10-18T09:26:00.011Z

Tall lemon-yellow sunflowers reach for the sun

My self-indulgent morning routine is to check the email, catch up on the blogs I follow, spend a little time in quiet reflection, and take a leisurely stroll in the garden in my dressingown. Only then is it time for the business of the day. A couple of times a week this is punctuated by a breakfast shared with Suzanna - this morning it was apple pancakes with butter and gooseberry jam: no wonder I am overweight!

Out in the garden, Autumn assaults the senses in these golden October days, brought by a stationary anticyclone centred over Ireland. The Autumn colours startle the eyes: wine-red Cornus sibirica, Euonymus and Prunus 'Kojo-no-mai', the orange berries of Cotoneaster, and the yellows and russets of the hedgerow ash and the trees of Kilteelagh.

Wine-red Cornus sibirica

Spindle (Euonymus sp.) in the Drive Border

Kilteelagh trees from the front gate

We have had no significant frosts yet, and the tender autumn flowers sparkle in the sunshine: bright hoors of Dahlias, pink and white Nicotiana, and sky blue Salvia uliginosa - the latter reputed to be tender, but it has survived the last two winters outdoors here.

Bright hoors of Dahlias

Salvia uliginosa

Scuffing fallen leaves in the Lime Alley reminds me of childhood. A leaf falls vertically in the still air and I catch it for luck. From the corner of my eye I catch a flicker of white as a Cole Tit races to the sunflowers. The first heads have ripened - I do not cut them down until all have been stripped, and I hope to get some volunteers next year, as I did this.

As I pass the soft-fruit bed I spot a few late Autumn raspberries. Too few for a dish for two with cream, I say guiltily to myself, so I might as well eat them! They are very ripe, almost black in colour, but oh, the flavour! Sweet and acid at the same time, delicious. But the pips stick in the gaps of my teeth and red juice stains my fingers.

A strange rhythmic noise claims my attention. I look up to see a skein of geese, two dozen or so, flying in a classic 'V' south east, honking as they go. Where have they come from, and where are they going to? Perhaps they are Greenland White-fronted geese (Anser albifrons flavirostris), an exciting thought. Ten thousand of them, one third of the world's total, fly each autumn from far-away Greenland to spend the winter on the Wexford Slobs. But I'm not up to identifying them in flight.

From my study window, I see two Magpies chasing each other, one with something red in its beak. I go out to investigate and find a dead rat, half eaten, in the Labyrinth bed. Magpies are scavengers, doing the job of cleaning up which Nature has designed them for. But I can't imagine that they killed the rat, but perhaps a visiting cat did. Should I put out bait for the rats and risk poisoning the Magpies?

I've been trimming the hedge of Eleageanus ebbingeii at the back of the drive border, a big job. I want to keep it at about 7 foot, and like it to have a flat top to show off the shrubs and trees behind It is now in full bloom with rather insignificant white flowers, but their scent is magnificent. Close up it is almost overpowering and has been making me sneeze. It is a good hedging plant with grey-green laurel-like leaves, but can make several feet in a season. I had thought it thornless, but discovered to my cost that some plants have a few sharp little prickles, which drew blood painfully.

So I have been assaulted in my garden by all five senses!

Nenagh Day of Prayer for Climate Change

2009-10-05T15:13:00.007Z

The joint day of prayer for climate change held in Nenagh on Saturday 3rd October, St Francis’ Eve, was a great success, I think. As people came and went over the four hours, an average of a dozen or so were present at any one time to pray together, to listen to music, readings and reflections, and to share time in silence. On arrival all were welcomed and given a sheet to introduce the day of prayer, with background information about climate change and ideas for how individuals may respond, echoed by posters on the walls.

The focus of the prayer room was a simple table with a green cloth, symbolising God’s creation, upon which were placed symbols of the faith we share: a plain wooden cross, a lighted candle, and a Bible on a stand.

Prayers were led by Dean Langley of the Nenagh Baptist Group, Rev Brian Griffin and James Armitage of the Methodist circuit, Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke and Joc Sanders of the Church of Ireland, and from the Catholic parish, Sr Patricia Greene and Sr Rita Corry with a host of laity of all ages. It was wonderful to experience and share in the variety of voices and styles of witness coming from our separate traditions, joined together in common purpose to pray for the future of God’s planet.

Christian Hope is a gift we bring to others
For many people the enormity of the climate change crisis is so great that they feel hopeless. Like rabbits caught in the headlights of a car, they feel unable to do anything about it - even unable to think about it. But we Christians are not like that – we root our lives in Christian hope. Christian hope is a great gift that we have to offer our brothers and sisters of other faiths and none, to inspire them to take action. In that light, these were our closing prayers and readings.

Words from a letter from Taizé written in 2003:

Christian hope does not mean living in the clouds, dreaming of a better life. It is not merely a projection of what we would like to be or do. It leads us to discover seeds of a new world already present today, because of the identity of our God, because of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. This hope is, in addition, a source of energy to live differently, not according to the values of a society based on the thirst for possession and competition.
In the Bible, the divine promise does not ask us to sit down and wait passively for it to come about, as if by magic. Before speaking to Abraham about the fullness of life offered to him, God says, "Leave your country and your home for the land I will show you" (Genesis 12:1). To enter into God’s promise, Abraham is called to make of his life a pilgrimage, to undergo a new beginning.
Similarly, the good news of the resurrection is not a way of taking our minds off the tasks of life here and now, but a call to set out on the road. "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? … Go into the entire world and proclaim the good news to the whole creation… You will be my witnesses…to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:11; Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8).
Impelled by the Spirit of Christ, believers live in deep solidarity with humanity cut off from its roots in God. Writing to the Christians of Rome, Saint Paul speaks of the longing of creation and compares this suffering to the pangs of childbirth. Then he continues, "We ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly" (Romans 8:18-23). Our faith is not a privilege that takes us out of the world; we "groan" with the world, sharing its pain, but we live this situation in hope, knowing that, in Christ, "the darkness is passing away and the true light is already shining" (1 John 2:8).
Hoping, then, means first of all discovering in the depths of the present a Life that leads forward and that nothing is able to stop. It also means welcoming this Life by a yes spoken by our whole being. As we embark on this Life, we are led to create signs of a different future here and now, in the midst of the difficulties of the world, seeds of renewal that will bear fruit when the time comes.

A prayer from Put People First
Lord, you make all things new- you are the God of the exiled - in times of darkness, uncertainty and fear we can only cling to you. Though we may walk through the valley of shadows, we will fear no evil for you are with us.

Lord, you are the God of the resurrection. In you lies our hope for transformation. You have shown us a glimpse of the mountain top, and we will keep walking that path with you. Give us the vision to see how things can be, and help us work together to achieve this.

Clothe our leaders with humility and grace to put actions before words, and bring greater justice and sustainability in this world.

A reading from Isaiah 55:6-13
"Turn to the LORD and pray to him, now that he is near. Let the wicked leave their way of life and change their way of thinking. Let them turn to the LORD, our God; he is merciful
and quick to forgive. "My thoughts," says the LORD, "are not like yours, and my ways are different from yours. As high as the heavens are above the earth, so high are my ways and
thoughts above yours.

"My word is like the snow and the rain that come down from the sky to water the earth. They make the crops grow and provide seed for planting and food to eat. So also will be the word that I speak — it will not fail to do what I plan for it; it will do everything I send it to do.

"You will leave Babylon with joy; you will be led out of the city in peace. The mountains and hills will burst into singing, and the trees will shout for joy. Cypress trees will grow where now there are briars; myrtle trees will come up in place of thorns. This will be a sign that will last forever, a reminder of what I, the LORD, have done."

Alastair McIntosh, Professor of Human Ecology at the University of Strathclyde, and a Quaker, has this to say about climate change:
"Technical fixes are certainly part of the solution. But I’d put it to you that the deep work must be this:
to learn to live more abundantly with less, to rekindle community, and to serve fundamental human need instead of worshiping at the altars of greed.
The crisis of these times is therefore spiritual. It calls for reconnecting our inner lives with the outer world - an expansion of consciousness.”

A prayer of St Teresa of Avila
Christ has no body on earth but yours,
no hands but yours, no feet but yours;
yours are the eyes through which to look with Christ’s compassion on the world,
yours are the feet with which he is to go about doing good,
and yours are his hands with which to bless us now.

A prayer from the Community of Longchamp
Come light, light of God, give light to creation, enlighten our hearts and remain with your world.
We beseech you, bless every effort and every search,
Every struggle and every pain that seek to restore the harmony and beauty of your Creation.
Renew the face of the earth, so that every human being may live in peace and justice, fruits of your Spirit of love.
Blow your Spirit of life on your creation and all humanity.
Come light, light of God, give light to creation, enlighten our hearts and remain with your world.
We beseech you, Lord, bless the fruits of the earth and the work of our hands and teach us to share the abundance of your goods.
Send rain to the dry soil, sun and fair weather where harvest is endangered by storms.
Blow your Spirit of life on your creation and all humanity.
Come light, light of God, give light to creation, enlighten our hearts and remain with your world.

We finished by saying together this Franciscan prayer
May God bless us with discomfort
At easy answers, half truths, and indifferent relationships,
So that we may live deep within our hearts.

May God bless us with anger
At injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people,
So that we may work for justice, freedom and peace.

May God bless us with tears
For those who face pain, hunger and war,
So that we may reach out our hands to comfort them and to change their pain into joy.

May God bless us with enough foolishness
To believe that we can make a difference in the world,
So that we can do what others claim cannot be done.

View from the pew - The glass is more than half full!

2009-10-03T17:15:00.007Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the magazine for the Diocese of Limerick and Killaloe - this article appeared in the October 2009 issue.

NAMA, Lisbon, the Budget – and Copenhagen

“NAMA, Lisbon, and the Budget – these are the three immense and immediate challenges facing Ireland”– so said An Taoiseach Brian Cowen to the business luminaries of the Irish diaspora assembled at Farmleigh for the Global Irish Economic Forum.

Brian Cowan addresses the Global Economic Irish Forum

These are important issues, as we all know. Political and media attention is constant and shrill - and focussed on these three almost to the exclusion of everything else. The decisions to be taken are important – they will shape our country for many years to come - so let us pray that they will be the right ones.

But in all the hubbub, could there be a danger that we lose sight of other things? Climate change is by far the biggest challenge we all face in the 21st Century (for the facts see Two Degrees, One Chance). Within a very few years, every single one of us - in every country - must change the way we live and work, in order to protect our fragile planet for our children and grandchildren and the rest of creation. World governments have promised to agree workable and comprehensive action at the UN Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen this December. It may be the last chance to do so before the planet passes a point of no return and suffers catastrophic run-away heating. So let us also pray for an effective and just agreement in Copenhagen.

This is what Nenagh Union will be doing on Saturday 3rd October in Teach an Leinn in the centre of Nenagh from 11am to 3pm, together with our brothers and sisters in Christ from local Roman Catholic, Methodist and (we hope) other independent congregations, in a joint day of prayer for climate change. Passers-by of all faiths and none will be invited to drop in for as long or short as they wish, to hear prayers and readings, share quiet time in reflection, and find out more about climate change.

So many crises, so many important and difficult decisions to be made! I would be spoilt for choice if I wanted to write about such grave matters – and looking back over the archive perhaps I do so too often. Are we in danger of losing sight of joyful things too? Forget all the dismal crisis talk – let’s be cheerful, it is a Christian virtue! Let’s think instead of how much we have to be thankful for – our faithful God has blessed us with so much.

Harvest Time
We have been blessed by September’s Indian Summer, haven’t we? It’s amazing how the spirits rise with a bit of dry, sunny weather - mine certainly do. Last Saturday I spent a glorious day in Cloughjordan at the Eco-Village open day and energy fair. I was much too hot in my tweed jacket and woolly jumper – I had to strip them off. In the balmy weather it was hard to remember that creation is in crisis!

2009 has been difficult for those who are farmers, the third bad summer in a row. Many will be disappointed with the return they have got from all their planning and hard work. But the settled September has allowed tillage farmers to salvage something from the difficult season. Yields may be down here in Ireland, but elsewhere in Europe they have been higher than expected, and the total world crop looks set to be a record. Prices will likely be low, but this will be a boon to those short of fodder because of the weather - Teagasc advises not to buy in expensive silage this winter, but to feed cereals.

Many more of us will be anxious about the economic recession and market collapse. Worries bubble up: Is my job safe? What about my savings and my pension? How can I stretch my income to pay the bills?

But let us see the glass as half full, not half empty! Just reflect for a moment on the breadth and variety of our harvest. We have the staples: we have wheat for bread and butter to spread on it, oats for porridge and milk to pour over it, barley for beer, hay, silage and meal for cattle. But there is so much more than staples for us to enjoy, isn’t there! There’s meat and eggs, cheese and yoghurt, fruit and nuts, vegetables and mushrooms, and gardens full of flowers! Many of us keep animals, and there are this year’s foals, and calves and lambs and chicks. But there’s also the fruit of our own bodies - our children and grandchildren born this year - thank God for them too!

Cause for celebration

Some of the produce from Joakim's Garden

My own harvest is as a gardener. In the picture you can see some of what my wife and I are enjoying at the moment: runner beans, beetroot, carrots, onions, potatoes, parsley, garlic, French beans, spinach beet, tomatoes, autumn raspberries, apples, pears, and wildlings from the hedgerow, blackberries and damsons or bullaces, as my mother used to call them. I forgot to include the frisé lettuce (plants a gift from a neighbour) and courgettes. And coming on there are romanesco broccoli, brussels sprouts, leeks and purple sprouting broccoli for the spring. We are freezing pounds of beans to enjoy over winter. Nothing tastes so good as what you have grown or picked yourself. And it is just as enjoyable to be able to give away the surplus. If this sounds like boasting, I can’t help it - God has been very good to us this year!

Above all perhaps we should thank God for our health and strength, and also for our intellects, our God-given cleverness. As every farmer knows, this bountiful harvest does not appear from heaven as if by magic: it takes hard graft and intelligent planning!

In this rich corner of the world today, we will not starve, as our forefathers so often did after a bad harvest. With the gift of cleverness we have invented ways to store food and to transport it, and economic and social systems to distribute it to where it is needed. If we consume a little less, it will probably be good for our health; and perhaps the whole planet will benefit. So let us be cheerful and follow the good advice of Deuteronomy: ‘You shall set the first of the fruit of the ground down before the Lord your God … Then you shall celebrate with all the bounty that the Lord your God has given to you.’

Let us all celebrate and enjoy our harvest!

Nenagh churches day of prayer for climate change

2009-09-23T11:59:00.009Z

If you are anywhere near Nenagh, Co Tipperary, on Saturday 3rd October, why don't you pop in to join us? You can also take in the Farmers' Market, and Nenagh's excellent shops and cafes!

A joint Day of Prayer
Nenagh Christians, including Catholic, Methodist and Church of Ireland, will join together on Saturday 3rd October in a day of prayer for climate change, to be held 11am – 3pm in Teach an Leinn, Kenyon St, Nenagh. They are inviting passers-by of all faiths and none to pop in for a few minutes, as long or short as they please, to hear prayers and readings, to share quiet time in reflection and meditation, and to find out more about the climate change crisis.

An unholy mess…
Church of Ireland lay reader Joc Sanders explains the background. "We are making an unholy mess of our planet, which we share with so many others of God’s creatures. The facts of global warming are clear and human beings are the main culprits. People have been putting excess greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, largely by burning coal, oil and gas, but also by cutting down forests and intensifying agriculture. Global temperatures are rising inexorably. As a result, sea levels are rising, extreme weather – storms, floods and droughts – are becoming more frequent, eco-systems world wide are being disrupted, and species extinction is accelerating.

"The poorest of the poor in the 3rd World are worst affected for now, but we will all suffer if global warming is not halted. People all around the world must urgently change the way they live and work to protect our fragile planet for our children and grandchildren. World governments have promised to agree to implement a workable and comprehensive package of measures at the UN Climate Change Summit in Copenhagen this December. This may be the last chance to do so before the planet passes a point of no return and suffers run-away heating.

"News headlines may be dominated by financial meltdown and economic crash, but we must not lose sight of climate change as the most complex and serious problem we face in the 21st century. We are responding to a call by Churches Together in Britain and Ireland to pray that God’s will be done at this critical time for the planet. For churches to come together is a prayer in itself, and what better day for it than St Francis’ Eve?"

What the churches will pray for
So just what exactly will the Churches be praying for together on 3rd October?

Church of Ireland Rector Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke says, "We will pray that God’s Holy Spirit will lead the Governments of the world to agree at Copenhagen to take action on climate change which is both effective and just."
Cloughjordan Methodist lay minister John Armitage adds, "We will pray too for Awareness and Awakening – all of us need to become more aware of our carbon footprint and our personal responsibility in this gathering crisis, and each one of us must wake up and start to walk more lightly on God’s good earth."
Agreeing with them, Sister Patricia Green of the Sisters of Mercy says, "We will also pray for God to forgive our human greed and selfishness that is driving global warming, and for God’s mercy on those who are suffering already."

Day of prayer team, left to right: John Armitage, Sr Patricia Greene,

Joc Sanders, Rev Marie Rowley-Brooke and James Armitage

View from the Pew - Swine Flu is not the end of the world!

2009-09-06T21:32:00.005Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the diocesan magazine for the Diocese of Limerick and Killaloe. This article was published in the September 2009 edition.

We are in the early stages of an influenza pandemic, the first of the 21st century. Health professionals call it Pandemic (H1N1) 2009, but the rest of us call it Swine Flu. It is timely to review the situation and what we should do about it.

The science
The flu virus is very cunning. No more than a tiny bit of DNA hidden inside a protein coat, when it infects a cell in our nose, throat or lungs, it takes over the cell’s machinery and reproduces countless copies of itself. These infect other cells, making us seriously ill, until we develop immunity. And by making us cough and sneeze, the flu spreads itself from person to person in tiny liquid droplets in the air or on surfaces.

Our bodies are also cunning – our immune system has evolved to protect us from viruses, so that once we recover we can’t catch the same virus again – we become immune. But the flu virus is tricky – from time to time it changes its coat proteins so that our immune defences cannot recognise and eliminate it before it makes us ill.

In this pandemic, scientists believe, the new virus picked up some DNA from a form of pig flu – which is why we call it Swine Flu. Most people in the world have no immunity to it, so Swine Flu has spread rapidly world wide since first detected in Mexico in April – this is what is meant by a ‘pandemic’. Hundreds of thousands have already caught it in North and South America, the Far East, and in parts of Europe, particularly Britain. Now it is spreading in Ireland, with our rate of infection being about four weeks behind that in Britain.

We have had flu pandemics before - there were three in the 20th century: Spanish Flu in 1918, Asian Flu in 1957 and Hong Kong Flu in 1968. Flu is always a serious disease, but some kinds are much more severe than others. Asian Flu and Hong Kong Flu were quite mild, but Spanish Flu probably killed more people than the 1st World War.

Thank God, it seems that Swine Flu is a mild one - at least for the present: some are concerned that the virus could change again to become more lethal later on, as seems to have happened with the Spanish Flu. Most people recover fully at home in a week or so with no special treatment. 1 or 2 percent may develop complications needing hospital care, and a few die. The very old, the very young and those with certain pre-existing conditions are most at risk. As of late August, we have had just three deaths in the island of Ireland. Around three-quarters of Swine Flu cases are in children and young adults under 30 – older age groups who have had flu in previous pandemics may have some immunity.

Unlike previous pandemics, doctors can now treat patients with anti-viral drugs such as Tamiflu and Relenza, but they are ineffective unless given within a couple of days of symptoms appearing. Anti-virals are not a cure but they help recovery by relieving symptoms, they reduce the length of illness by around one day, and they reduce incidence of serious complications such as pneumonia. If used too widely the virus may become resistant to them. Bio-technologists are also working to make Swine Flu vaccines to give recipients immunity. The first supplies may be ready in October and Ireland has ordered enough for the whole population.

Once children go back to school and we spend more time indoors in the colder weather, we will see a big increase in infections. The Department of Health has warned that 1 million people – a quarter of us – are likely to get Swine Flu this year, but I suspect this is no more than a guess and nobody really knows.

How should we respond?
Whatever we do we should keep a sense of proportion – for most people Swine Flu, however nasty, will not be life-threatening. The real issue for all of us is what we ought to do to reduce the impact on those at most risk.

Those of us who have had flu before, as I have, will know the symptoms: fever over 38°C and a cough, often with sore throat, muscle or joint pain, headache, chills, fatigue and runny nose. They come on quite suddenly and are much more severe than the heavy cold which we sometimes colloquially call the flu.

If you think you have Swine Flu, you should do everything you can to avoid passing it to others. If the rate of transmission can be slowed, there will be less strain on health services and fewer people in high risk groups will catch it before they can be protected by the vaccine. Vaccines will be offered first to those at most risk as well as health care and other essential workers, which is as it should be – it would be unchristian to try to jump the queue.

The HSE web site (http://www.hse.ie/eng/swineflu) and information line (1800 94 11 00) provide good advice. In summary, if you contract it:

Phone your GP – do not visit the surgery or A&E, where you may infect others. Your doctor will advise whether you need any additional treatment or monitoring.

If your symptoms are severe or if you or household members are in a higher risk group, your doctor may prescribe anti-viral drugs, which are available free of charge. Ireland has stockpiled enough anti-virals to treat 55% of the population. It would be unchristian to demand anti-virals if you don’t need them.

Stay at home for up to seven days or until well again, take paracetamol or ibuprofen to reduce the symptoms, take plenty of liquids, and discourage visitors.

Women who are pregnant can take anti-virals safely, and paracetamol, but not ibuprofen.

Contact your doctor again if you begin to have difficulty breathing or other unexpected symptoms, or you start to relapse after improving – you may need emergency care.

The HSE also advise that whether sick or not we should all follow hygiene and cough etiquette guidelines (see separate box). Face masks may do more harm than good except for health professionals.

Implications for parishes
It is good to see that the house of Bishops have issued interim advice about Swine Flu on the Church of Ireland website, but most parishioners will not see this. I feel clergy should also give clear advice to their congregations.

First, as a matter of common sense, people who feel unwell and may be developing Swine Flu should be discouraged from coming to church until they are better.

Second, there are liturgical implications. The Bishops advise that we can continue to shake hands at the Peace provided hands have been washed, since Swine Flu is transmitted primarily by droplets in the air. The Bishops also suggest that if infection levels rise it may be advisable for communicants to receive the bread only and not the common cup. They discourage intinction except for sick communions, as it is no safer than sharing the cup. And it is always open to those particularly concerned to share the peace with a smile and a wave and to take communion in one kind only.

Third, it is likely that ministers will fall sick at short notice. Parishes should review the availability of lay people to lead services should the need arise, and neighbouring clergy should perhaps discuss arrangements to cover for one another.

Lastly, the Swine Flu pandemic has created a great deal of fear as well as significant sickness among the community, and at this time it is our duty as Christians to remember those who are affected in our prayers.

Poetry

2009-09-01T14:25:00.019Z

I've just been devouring Top of the Pile, an anthology of stories and poems written by members of the Nenagh Writers Group. I heartily recommend it (see here for details). My favourite piece is the very first, a short poem by my good friend and neighbour Duncan Bain, who has gone before us into the presence of his maker, to the great sadness of all his family and friends and his widow, Aggie. Here it is:

Communion

© Duncan Bain

The verdant woodland is my church serene

Where hymns the sighing zephyr in the trees;

I worship where the leaves are broadly green,

And list the droning prayers of humble bees.

Fragrance, as a fir-cone censer spills

Incense from a lofty soaring pine.

The tintinnabulating streamlet rills,

Thought, Prayer and Harmony are mine.

Soft Doves are Angels in the air,

Deep, warm, my hassock is the sod,

Here, with no other soul to share,

Sounds clear the voice of God.

The voice of this sensitive man with a deep love of nature speaks still through these beautiful words. Thank you, Aggie, for permission to share them here.

And my distant cousin Jocelyn Mertens has just sent me this lovely tribute to her own fellow gardener:

Mr. Eastlake In Late Summer

That sound

As the moon glides up

That pause in the night

Between bird and bat

That vibration of

An opening bloom

That is the peace you give me.

This too speaks to me. I love to take a glass of wine out into the garden as dusk falls, to wait in the Lime Alley during that pause between the swallows and the bats.

An empty garden

2009-08-27T15:58:00.010Z

Joakim’s garden feels empty again – the four grandsons and three daughters have all gone back to their own homes, variously in Kilkenny, Wales and England, leaving behind them very happy memories, many photos, and a large pale patch in the lawn where the tent was pitched. The big boys – Cal, Finn and Gabe - came for a week’s sailing tuition on Lough Derg (with Shannon Sailing - I can heartily recommend them). They had a super time I think, and certainly plenty of wind! Little Jonah came with his parents to be shown off and run charmingly around the garden. I felt sad to see them go, reminded of so many goodbyes said, but very grateful indeed that they should have come so far to visit Dad or Grandfather/Grandpa/Oompapa on his own turf. The jury is still out on what Jonah will call me: I prefer Grandfather, because that was what I called my mother’s father and I value the sense of continuity, but there are those who feel that sounds too Victorian and cold – I can’t think why, because though older than I am now, my Grandfather certainly wasn’t.

Flower-fairies - Jonah and Grandfather in Susanna's Labyrinth

Happy Jonah!

Boys make a sandwich (t-b Cal, Gabe, Finn)

The Tent

I've not been good at blogging the garden this month (mea culpa!), but here are some pictures of the garden in August:

Susanna is the sweet-pea queen of North Tipp!

Day-lilies and white Agapanthus

Blue Agapanthus

Coppery Sunflower

Salvia patens - a gorgeous gentian blue!

Salvia cacalifolia - I have a bit of a thing about Salvias!

I have managed the vegetable garden better this year - here we have leeks, brassicas (Brussels Sprouts and Purple Sprouting) with asparagus, potatoes, climbing beans and artichokes behind. Susanna's peas were most disappointing, but we are now dining on our own potatoes, French beans and spinach-beet, and freezing for the winter.

A shaft of light before nightfall

2009-07-31T22:07:00.007+01:00

The last day of July, and what a day we've had of it - rain from dawn until just before 9pm! Not exceptionally hard, often not more than a light drizzle, but unremitting. Even before today's rain, reports suggest this will be the wettest July since recording began in some places in Ireland. The third wet summer in a row.

Susanna continues to do well, and has today moved back to her own side of the bed, but I am still on cooking duty. A warming supper was what we needed: tagliatelli with meat balls in a tomato sauce. I ventured out for sage and a couple of bayleaves and came back dripping. A good flavour, though I say it myself, but most of the meatballs disintegrated into the sauce - another dish I haven't cracked yet, another challenge for the future!

Then as we ate, the clouds began to clear, bringing a shaft of sunshine from the West straight into my eyes. Knowing my shoes will be drenched in the wet grass, I am drawn out into the garden for the first time today.

I am reproached by the sodden piles of clippings from the Beech and Eleaganus hedges which I failed to collect yesterday before the rain began - please God tomorrow will bring a window to finish the task. I skimped on the Eleaganus this spring, and to get it straight I had to cut part of it back to bare wood, which I believe, fingers crossed, will sprout again. And once that's done, the evergreen oak (Quercus ilex) hedge by the road needs its annual trim - it is gradually creeping out and constricting the path.

The air is filled with flights of swallows, swooping low - several dozen over the garden, perhaps a hundred. On a dry day their cries fill the air, but this evening they are almost silent. I suppose the rain has prevented their feeding, and they are too hungry to waste energy on singing. They need to stuff themselves with insects to build up the energy reserves they need to return safely to sub-saharan Africa in a few short weeks. This wet weather must be a real threat to their lives.

I suppose the wet is good for my vegetables. I have never had such good brassicas - Brussels sprouts, Purple-sprouting broccoli and green Romanesco - though perhaps the barrow-loads of compost rotivated into their bed has something to do with it. And the climbing beans - Scarlet runners and three kinds of French beans, planted rather late - are close to the top of their poles. No trouble from the hares this year. We will be eating them in 10 days, but Susanna's dwarf beans started in pots in the conservatory have been cropping since early July. The rain has also suppressed bolting of the spinach beet, which we have been eating and giving away, and threatens to get away from us. Susanna's peas in the raised bed are a disappointment - I'm not sure why, but suspect they may be getting too little sun. And the potatoes are poor and showing the early signs of blight - I must dig them while I can, and perhaps I can get a late crop of peas from the ground too.

The wet must be good for the flowers too. Susanna's sweet peas continue to bloom their socks off - she has been able to get out to cut the seed pods, even though crutches prevent her from cutting bunches for the house. The Lobelia cardinalis, spared by the slugs this year, is about to burst. And the blue Agapanthus from South Africa is following on from the day-lilies and better than ever. The wonderful blue of Salvia patens has been joined by the slightly deeper blue of S. cacalifolia and day-glow pink Zinnias at the front of the croquet-lawn border, the first sunflowers at the back have opened butter yellow and copper, and the Dahlias are about to begin. S. uliginosa and S involucrata 'Bethelii' both survived last winter outdoors and promise to perform later on.

I made the mistake of reading the blogs commenting on the US Episcopal Church's recent General Convention and Archbishop Rowan Williams' reflection on it. The hatred and bile displayed by so many commentators is disgusting. Our Lord said (John 13:34-35), "I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, you also should love one another, By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." If love is the test of discipleship, where may we find disciples today?

Imagining a Future of Abundance

2009-07-12T17:32:00.014+01:00

View from the Pew is a monthly column I write for Newslink, the magazine of the Diocese of Limerick. This piece appeared in the issue for July/August 2009.

It cannot go on.
I think in our heart of hearts most of us realise that we cannot continue to live the way we are living now. The global civilisation we have built over the last 50 years – within my lifetime - is starting to falter. We are moving into a time of crisis. In the modern jargon, our way of life is unsustainable.

We are using up finite resources at an ever faster rate. The most obvious is fossil energy – oil, gas and coal – but there are others, including water and fertile soil. Already we have used up about half the oil on the planet; gas is following fast behind, and coal will inevitably follow, if rather later. The era of cheap energy is over.

Our agriculture and industries are damaging and poisoning the planet on which we live. The carbon dioxide we emit by burning fossil fuels and cutting down forests is causing global warming, about which I have written before. Scientists advise us that at best this will be very costly, and at worse catastrophic, both for us and for all the species we share the planet with.

Growth and consumption drive this crisis.
The global economy is focussed solely on them – when they stop for any reason we have a recession such as we are experiencing now. So governments try to stimulate investment to produce more stuff, so they can levy taxes to pay for the services we all want; and corporations try to boost sales to get rid of the stuff they make, so they can sell more and make bigger profits. Advertising encourages people to desire more. Fashion encourages them to throw away the old to buy the new. People are thus encouraged to work ever harder to earn the money to keep consuming and throwing away. But all too often this is at the expense of their relationships, their communities, and even their own health, as well as the planet. Children see less and less of their parents; volunteering and community spirit dwindle; unhealthy lifestyles make more people dangerously obese. And for all the increased consumption of stuff, people are no happier than they were - even in important respects less happy, studies show.

We have no option but to change. If we do so sensibly we can preserve this wonderful planet, so that our children and our children’s children can continue to enjoy our bountiful inheritance. But if we don’t, change will be forced on us by chaos and catastrophe. If you are one of those who doubt this, you owe it to yourself and your children to investigate the issues. A good starting point would be to watch Al Gore’s movie An Inconvenient Truth (on DVD from Amazon, price £4.98) and Annie Leonard’s The Story of Stuff (20 min to view free at http://www.storyofstuff.com/).

The crisis is spiritual
Many people look for technology to fix the crisis of our time, and I’m sure that will be part of the solution. But I am convinced we need more than that. In the wise words of Alastair McIntosh, a Quaker and Professor of Human Ecology at the University of Strathclyde,

The deep work must be this: to learn to live more abundantly with less, to rekindle community, and to serve fundamental human need instead of worshipping at the altars of greed.

Greed drives you and me to grasp more and more, to keep up with the Jones’s, as we ignore the damage caused to neighbours, the poor and the planet. Greed is at the root of the crisis. And greed is an old fashioned sin to which all human beings have been liable since the dawn of time. Our Christian faith has a lot to teach us about sin and how to overcome it. Jesus calls us to repent and believe in the good news, as the kingdom of God has come near. But how exactly should we respond to Jesus’s call in the face of this crisis?

I think we must all prayerfully seek answers to this question. Just as God loves variety, there will no doubt be a great variety of answers. But I believe that people in every parish should do so, and by God’s grace they are already finding their own answers. Here is a story about what a group of us in the Nenagh Union have been doing. Please let us know your stories!

Nenagh Carbon Watchers
For our Lent course this year a small multi-denominational group followed the Omega Climate Change course (see http://omegaclimate.wordpress.com/). It is stimulating, focussed on the scientific facts complemented by a little theology, and I heartily recommend it - if other parishes are interested in running it I would be glad to share our experience. We looked at why it is urgent to act now; how big our individual carbon footprints are and how to reduce them; global justice issues; how quality of life can be good in a low-carbon society; and how we might take action.

At the end we were so convinced of the need to act now that we decided to continue meeting as the Nenagh Carbon Watchers group. Our first aim is to support each other in our efforts to reduce our household carbon emissions – repentance must be personal, and each one must confront his or her own lifestyle. It should save us money as well as helping the planet. And we also aim to promote in our community the changes in lifestyle needed to flourish in the inevitable low-carbon, sustainable future.

We took the initiative to ask the election candidates standing in the Nenagh area to outline their positions and tell us what they would do if elected. We published their responses on our website (http://nenaghcarbonwatchers.blogspot.ie/), and local newspapers also printed the questions and a report on the responses. We were pleased to note that all who responded were positive – the need for change seems to be so widely agreed now that all are in favour of it, like motherhood!

A Future of Abundance
It is difficult to imagine what a low-carbon, sustainable future will be like, except in terms of what we must give up. It is easy to see such a future as poorer, greyer and less exciting than the present. It is tempting to fall into the trap of denial, to do nothing in the hope that the prospect will go away. But if we do we will be unable to make the sensible choices and we will be forced to suffer chaotic change.

I think we need urgently to re-imagine a future of abundance, and to do so as communities, so that we can begin to create it together in common purpose. Because the future can be one of abundance, and more fulfilling than today. What we need is a vision of the kingdom of God for the 21st century.

The Transition movement is one promising approach. This aims to stimulate groups within a local community to come together to envisage what must happen for the community to flourish in a sustainable future, to begin to plan for it, and to encourage stakeholders including local councils to buy into the vision. Started in Kinsale and piloted in Totnes in England, this model is rapidly being adopted in hundreds of communities in Britain and Ireland. You can read about in The Transition Handbook written by its founder Rob Hopkins (Amazon, price £8.28). The Carbon Watchers are actively mulling over whether and how to start a Transition Town initiative in Nenagh.

And I feel sure we can learn from the Eco Village in Cloughjordan, where construction started early this year (see http://www.thevillage.ie/).

The most beautiful flower in the garden

2009-07-02T10:08:00.003+01:00

It is raining gently as I write this, looking out over Susanna's labyrinth garden, so full of colour and variety of form. The sweet peas for which she is famous, grown this year up a half circle of canes around the famine pot, have not been picked for five days and are a riot of colour - I must pick them this morning, to keep them blooming. The tree-mallow which I cut down to the ground in the spring has bounced back and is now a blaze of shocking pink. The day-lilies she got from a specialist nursery in Britain are in full blow, varying in colour from lemon yellow, through orange, to salmon pink and a rich, deep red. And the flower-buds of the blue and whit agapanthus are just begining to burst.

But the most beautiful flower is not in her garden today - Susanna is in the Galway Clinic. She had hip-replacement surgery last Monday afternoon. It has gone well, thank God, the surgeon is pleased and she is cheerful. Although the wound is sore, she says the pain is much less than with her previous knee-replacements, and the pain she has been feeling in her knee has gone away, proving that it was referred from the hip, great relief to her. On Tuesday she was got out of bed to walk on a zimmer frame to the loo, yesterday she was able to swing her own leg out of the bed and sit in a chair and walk more, and today I think the physio will start her on crutches. Her main complaint is that they will not let her shower until Friday when they change the dressing!

In a little while I will drive back to Galway to be with her, and I shall be able to bring her a bunch of her own sweet peas and a punnet of her own strawberries, though I expect I shall be soaked if the rain doesn't stop!

Thomas Berry - requiescat in pace

2009-06-08T11:29:00.005+01:00

Thomas Berry, priest, cultural historian and eco-theologist, has died aged 94. I feel compelled to mark the passing of this modern prophet, who often referred to himself as a geologian - an Earth scholar.

He drew inspiration from a profound experience in childhood of a meadow filled with lilies, abounding with life. In later years he came to see this meadow as a deceptively simple test of goodness, writing in his essay The Meadow across the Creek:

Whatever preserves and enhances this meadow in the natural cycles of its transformation is good; what is opposed to this meadow or negates it is not good.

He saw the work of God in the continuing revelation of the world around him, and drew hopeful conclusions for the future of humankind and our planet, writing in his book The Dream of the Earth:

If the dynamics of the Universe from the beginning shaped the course of the heavens, lighted the sun, and formed the Earth, if this same dynamism brought forth the continents and the seas and atmosphere, if it awakened life in the primordial cell and then brought into being the unnumbered variety of living beings, and finally brought us into being and guided us safely through the turbulent centuries, there is reason to believe that this same guiding process is precisely what has awakened in us our present understanding of ourselves and our relation to this stupendous process. Sensitized to such guidance from the very structure and functioning of the Universe, we can have confidence in the future that awaits the human venture.

His prophetic insights can guide us all, I think, as we struggle to deal with climate change, and as our global industrial civilisation teeters on the brink.

A View from the Pew – Is there a future for Religious Communities?

2009-06-07T14:19:00.010+01:00

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the Limerick & Killaloe Diocesan Magazine. This article appears in the June 2009 issue.

I recently stood in the rain on the beach at Juan les Pins on the French Riviera in the company of Brother Anthony Keane, the forester from Glenstal Abbey. He pointed out to me on the horizon the island of Lérins, with its famous monastery founded in 410 AD, where St Patrick is said to have studied. The monks now share the island, so he told me, with a nudist colony, which must make for some interesting encounters!

Waves of Community
For two millennia the worldwide Church has seen successive waves of enthusiasm for life in religious communities. Passionate Christians have felt drawn to live their faith in community with like-minded people, sharing everything in a common life of worship and service. Their communities are traditionally governed by a Rule – a sort of constitution, and each individual takes a vow - typically of poverty, chastity and obedience.

The first great wave began in the 4th Century, when Christians increasingly chose to withdraw from the world into enclosed monasteries. In part they sought stability: the times were turbulent, as Christians took over the institutions of the Roman Empire, and classical civilisation began its long descent into the dark ages. In Ireland, St Patrick’s successors were so inspired by monasteries like Lérins that the Irish Church came to be dominated by them. Irish monks like Columba, Aidan, Columbanus and Gall travelled across Western Europe in the 6th century founding new monasteries on the Irish model, in which learning was preserved through the dark ages.

By the 13th Century, the old enclosed monasteries had become rich and ceased to attract passionate newcomers. People like St Francis were inspired to found a second wave of communities, unenclosed and focussed on preaching and service to the poor. These orders of friars included Franciscans, Carmelites, Dominicans and Augustinians. Soon every town of any size in Western Europe, including Ireland, had one or more friaries.

By the 16th Century most agreed these communities in turn needed reform. When the Western Church split at the Reformation, the protestant reforming party suppressed both monasteries and friaries where they could, which included Ireland. But where the catholic party gained the upper hand, a whole new wave of communities, notably the Jesuits, formed and flourished alongside the older ones in their own Counter-Reformation.

The 19th Century saw yet another wave. New RC communities began to work in education, health care and the relief of poverty – for example, the Christian Brothers. And in the Church of England, under the influence of the Oxford Movement, the first Anglican religious communities were founded in the mid-Century, and later spread widely through the Anglican Communion.

We don’t do monks and nuns in the Church of Ireland. Or do we?
For whatever reason – I suspect sectarian prejudice - religious communities did not catch on in the Church of Ireland. Perhaps those who wished to devote their life to God were attracted instead to the foreign missions, to which the Church of Ireland has made such a great contribution. Yet many Church of Ireland men and women did feel called to live in community - they had to move to England to do so.

Among them was Ada Waller, a distant cousin on my mother’s side, the eldest daughter of Sir Edmund Waller of Newport, Co Tipperary. In 1859 aged 22 she joined the Community of the Holy Cross started by Elizabeth Neale, the sister of the hymn-writer J M Neale. As Sister Adelaide, she was clothed as a novice in 1860 (in this photo), professed in 1862, and remained in the Community until her death in 1923. She undertook mission work in London Docks from St George’s Mission House. What a change of life it must have been for this Tipperary girl, coming from such a privileged background, to serve the poorest of the London poor. The Community still exists, though it has moved to the East Midlands and is now Benedictine and contemplative. As part of their 150th anniversary celebrations one of the Sisters contacted me for details of Ada’s birth family and I was able to supply photographs. It is lovely to think that so long after her death she is still remembered by her Community, who in a very real sense became her true family.

And we do indeed have nuns in the Church of Ireland, as I discovered on the web. The Community of St John the Evangelist is a group of Sisters formed in 1912 to live a hidden life of prayer and service. Never officially recognised by the Church of Ireland, they still run a Nursing Home in Ballsbridge, Dublin.

What of the future?
Here in Ireland we have been shocked by reports of child abuse in Industrial Schools run by a few religious communities, and their superiors’ complicity in hiding it, just confirmed by a Commission of Enquiry. Numbers choosing to join traditional religious communities have collapsed dramatically over the last 50 years across the western world, including Ireland (though not in the 3rd world). We constantly read of communities withdrawing from their work and selling their houses, as their members dwindle and age. It must be so very sad for dedicated brothers and sisters to see their life’s work besmirched by the sins of a few, and their religious families petering out.

So is this the end of the 1500 year ideal of Christian religious community?

Perhaps – but I for one very much doubt it!

We are becoming familiar with new kinds of communities, such as the Taizé Community in France, the Iona Community in Scotland, and the Corrymeela Community in Northern Ireland, from which Bishop Trevor came to us. All these are ecumenical, with strong emphases on working with youth, on peace and justice, and on protecting our planet. From a small base of committed members they reach outward to the world, involving lay people, and creating a global presence through new communication technologies.

Brother Roger, founder of the Taizé Community

Some of the older RC communities, too, are reaching out. In our own diocese Glenstal Abbey does so through its recordings and annual ecumenical conferences – this June the topic is ‘A Change of Climate – breaking bread on a fragile earth’.

In the last few years a bewildering variety of new non-denominational communities have formed under the banner of ‘The New Monasticism’. Many come from evangelical protestant backgrounds, some are dispersed but linked by new technologies, and some include both men and women, and married couples. They take inspiration from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s words written in 1935:

“…the restoration of the church will surely come only from a new type of monasticism which has nothing in common with the old but a complete lack of compromise in a life lived in accordance with the Sermon on the Mount in the discipleship of Christ. I think it is time to gather people together to do this…”

These are surely signs not of the death of religious community, but of the birth of yet another new wave!

As our global industrial civilisation begins to reach its limits and falter, we should not be surprised if more and more Christians choose to find stability in these new communities, as their predecessors did in the 4th Century. Those the Lord prospers will grow and flourish, probably alongside continuing traditional communities. We should see them as spiritual resources to draw on, as beacons to help us navigate our own turbulent times.

Painted Ladies for Pentecost

2009-06-01T21:18:00.005+01:00

The Painted Ladies (Cynthia cardui) have arrived, just in time for Pentecost! The East wind and the fine weather have brought them from the Continent in extraordinary numbers, arriving last Saturday - there must be several dozen in the garden, lighting it up like little tongues of flame, tiny creatures of the Holy Spirit, the great creator.

Painted Lady on Borage

Another visitor brought by the East wind is the Hummingbird Hawk Moth (Macroglossum stellatarum). Like the Painted Lady it erupts from Europe, but not quite so frequently - I suppose I see it every 2-3 years. I remember when I first saw it, aged about 11 and a passionate collector of butterflies and moths, in my Grandmother's garden about 5 miles from here, during the family August holidays. I suppose that must have been a second brood, born in Ireland. What excitement! A fast and difficult prize, I eventually captured one in my net, which I killed with chloroform and set carefully to add to my collection. Now I regret it, becaue my collection has been lost over the years, and the memory of my first sight of it is a much finer treasure.

It promises to be a good year for foreign visitors, and I await another, the Clouded Yellow.

Today, Whit Monday, I have been labouring in the garden. The last vegetable bed has been rotovated. The climbing beans have been planted amid a strange tapering row of bamboo canes of different sizes - 4 different varities, but two left over from last year, Runner bean Polestar and French bean Blue Lake, may disappoint. A last row of Charlotte potatoes has also been interred - much too late, but we will see if anything comes of it. And 2 dozen young leeks. This is not an organic garden, and I have resorted to blue slug pellets in an attempt to banish the slugs, which are as ravenous as ever this year. I have also reseeded one of the Us of Yew with grass, and added more seed to some others which were patchy.

Bearded Irises, brought back from France

Susaana's Labyrinth garden is looking gorgeous too, with lovely bearded Iris, Russel Lupins, Oriental Poppies and Roses. And the first flowers are showing on her famous sweet peas.

Roses, Lupins and Poppies

Japanese Irises in the Patio Pond, with Cistus behind

Summer has arrived!

2009-05-26T10:43:00.005Z

Oh, what a gorgeous weekend we have just had! I think we can finally declare Summer has arrived at last, after the wettest May I think I ever remember. And that is as it should be. Last Thursday was Ascension Day, which I always think of as the first day of summer, perhaps because it was a school holiday and we were allowed out by ourselves to explore. I must have been just 13 when I went with a friend the same age on the train to Arundel. We boated on the River Arun in front of the Castle, and ate chinese goosberries - now called Kiwi fruit, but then a rarity - with our picnic.

Beautiful Borrisnafarney Church

After lashing with rain until noon on Saturday, the skies cleared and we went to beautiful Borrisnafarney Church to celebrate the wedding of my good friends' daughter Kirsten to Christian, followed by the christening of their baby daughter Zoe. The tiny church was full of children, and Paddy Anglican really needed his stentorian voice to make himself heard. I was fascinated by the fashionable, skimpy, feathery hats the ladies wore. Afterwards we were royally feasted at the Yacht Club by the bride's father Jack. And to cap it all, Leinster won the Heiniken cup!

Kirsten & Christian celebrate in the Roller

Zoe, Kirsten & Christian

Sunday broke with clear skies and news that the Volvo yachts had arrived in Galway in the early hours, with Green Dragon in 3rd place. I had a beautiful drive with Susanna to Shinrone and Aghancon to lead Matins - you can find the address on child abuse and John's kosmos-world here. This was the last of my regular jaunts to the Shinrone Union, because their new Rector will arrive in June. Afterwards Jean Talbot treated us to a superb Sunday roast lunch. On our return I should settled down to course work, but in the lovely sunshine I decided I just had to get to grips with the Drive Border, cutting back an overgrown Spanish broom, pulling nettles and giving Penstemon Ruby Garnet a hair cut.

The Drive Border

The Nenagh Carbon Watchers is a group of individuals concerned about global warming who decided to continue meeting after last Lent's Omega Climate Change course. We wrote to the local and European election candidates with questions about their views on transition to a low carbon society. On Monday I pulled together the responses we received - I would have hoped for more - to write an article for the local newspapers. The candidates all support reducing carbon emissions and taking initiatives to help our communities flourish in a low-carbon future. It is good to know that the need for action is now so widely agreed that all are in favour of motherhood! I also put the responses up on a website - http://nenaghcarbonwatchers.blogspot.com/ - so that they are now a matter of public record.

New Growth

2009-05-17T12:32:00.005Z

I'm so pressed with course assignments, a sermon and a View from the Pew for Newslink, that I really don't have time to blog my own garden, but here are a few photos for Rogation Sunday!

Now it's May, the garden is burgeoning with fresh foliage:

New leaves on a young walnut in the wild-flower meadow

The Lime alley with daisies

Bursting shoots on a Korean fir, with the first young cones

New shoots on the Quercus ilex hedge, showing colour variation

The herb garden, l-r: Lovage, Purple Fennel, Lemon Balm, Sage

low Box hedge in front

Artichokes, promising a fine harvest

The summer flowers are starting too:

Lupins just begining, in Susanna's Labyrinth garden

Cowslips spreading in the side lawn

Meadow Rue and Paeony buds in the Drive border

Wisteria blooming as standards in the Labyrinth

O all ye works of the Lord, bless ye the Lord

Praise Him and magnify Him for ever!

Vertical Gardens

2009-05-15T10:12:00.005Z

Susanna and I recently returned from a week's holiday with the Irish Tree Society on the Riviera, staying at Menton, just a few miles from the Italian border. We saw some beautiful gardens, but almost all of them were vertical, as you can see from these photos. Where the Alps run down to the Mediterranean, that is the only practical way to make a garden, building on existing olive terraces. They are beautiful, but difficult for those who do not walk well, including Susanna, when to see it properly you must go down 200 steps knowing that you must climb 200 steps back up again!

This photo shows one of the olive terraces at the Villa Noailles at Grasse which has not been planted with exotics. The flowering meadow underneath the ancient trees was very beautiful, full of wild flowers including Green-winged orchid and a variety of Bee orchid.

And this photo shows the view of the sea from the terraces of Boccanegra at Vintimiglia, punctuated with cyprus trees.For me the most exciting plants to see were the exotic conifers which we cannot grow in Ireland, including several species from Australasia, including Araucaria bidwillii, A. cunninghamii, A. heterophylla (Norfolk Island pine), and Agathis australis (the mighty kauri of New Zealand).

The weather was mixed - 2 fine days, 2 days of rain which I choose to ignore, and 2 fine days to finish.

Susanna and I took one day off visiting gardens, because her legs were giving her such problems, and I climbed up the hill in Menton to the old cemetry, which is stuffed with foreigners with English, German and Russian names. The inventor of Rugby football William Ellis is buried there, as is Aubrey Beardsley the strange English illustrator. But what fascinated me most was to discover an Irish relative of mine, one Caroline Laetitia Otway, daughter of one Admiral Robert Waller Otway of Castle Otway in Templederry, where I regularly lead Matins!

On our return I took Susanna over to see her orthopaedic surgeon in Galway, to see whether he could do anything to ease the pain she gets in her knee. The result - the problem is not with the knee, but with the hip. My poor dove must prepare herself for yet more surgery. It seems most unfair.

View from the Pew - Tilling and Keeping

2009-05-03T13:54:00.007Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the Limerick & Killaloe Diocesan Magazine. This article appears in the May issue.

What a wonderful, blessed place the Burren is!

I jumped at the chance of a day trip to introduce my wife’s Finnish colleague Paula and her friend Anu to this unique landscape. I suppose we each have our personal dream landscapes on which our spirits feed. This is one of mine. I’ve spent many long days walking its green roads in all weathers, climbing its bare hills, and visiting its monuments, by myself and with those I love.

We were blessed with the weather - glorious early April sunshine, an invigorating breeze, and just enough cloud to give depth to the sky. We had a magical time. I feel sure the magic will draw Paula back when she moves to Limerick in the autumn. Here are some highlights:

At Kilmacduagh, beside the ruined cathedral and leaning round tower, a lady lovingly tending a grave regaled us with legends. The founder, St Colman, begged a site for a monastery from King Guaire, of Dunguaire near Kinvara. The King agreed, but told Colman he must walk away from Dunguaire until his belt fell to the ground. At Kilmacduagh Colman’s belt finally broke, and there he set up his monastery. Guaire was wise to send Colman as far away as possible, I think, since the holy man could be an awkward neighbour. St Colman was celebrating mass on Easter day after his Lenten retreat in a Burren cave. Hungry, with no food, he prayed for a good dinner to break his fast. Immediately a band of angels descended on Dunguaire and carried off the King’s own banquet for Colman to feast on!
We walked the green road from Corker Pass around Abbey Hill, past Patrick’s Holy Well with its votive offerings, to Burren RC Church. What a walk: blackthorn sparking silver in the shelter of the flanking walls; on one side a patchwork of green and brown fields stretching down and away to the waters of Galway bay; on the other rising terraces of grey rock, and arching overall the blue sky.
Hungry from walking, we lunched at Linnane’s of New Quay on a feast of native oysters, prawn cocktail and crab sandwiches, with wholemeal bread. Afterwards, at nearby peaceful Corcomroe Abbey, beautifully dedicated by its Cistercian builders to Sancta Maria de Petra Fertilis - St Mary of the Fertile Rock - we admired harebells carved on the capitals of the chancel arch.
We scrambled up the craggy limestone hill at Black Head, across the old green road, searching for the dry stone walls of the fort, Cathair Dhúin Irghuis. It’s always higher than I remember, over 600 feet: constantly expecting to see it over the next brow, I start to worry I’m lost when I don’t. But suddenly there it is, perched below the hilltop on a wide platform from which its stones were levered, walls still standing in places to nearly 20 feet. Built sometime between 400 and 1200 AD, no one knows just when, it was surely meant for a look out, since it commands a gigantic view: west over the Aran Islands to the vast Atlantic; north to Connemara and the Twelve Pins; and south to the cliffs of Moher.

Though too early for the famous Burren wild flowers, of which the Spring Gentian is the emblem, I found Early Purple orchids, so much smaller than those which grow in inland woods, gleaming alongside primroses and violets in sheltered hollows.

The Burren landscape is not wild at all – it is hand made.
For millennia human beings lived here, working in sympathy with nature, not against it. They tilled and kept this land, as Genesis tells us God put Adam in the Garden of Eden to do. They have left us traces of their presence, often signs of their faith, but in forming the landscape they did not ravish it, wisely preserving the fragile ecosystem which they lived in and were part of.

We are not so wise today. On the hill above Black Head I found cans and beer bottles thoughtlessly discarded, ugly and a danger to stock. Fanore beach is littered with plastic trash washed in on the tide. Mass tourism degrades what visitors come to experience: the Poul na Brone dolmen has been roped off by the OPW, walls keep people away from the Cliffs of Moher, and steer them to the expensive visitor centre.

Wherever there is enough soil, farmers have grubbed up the species-rich rough grazing their ancestors formed, to make rye-grass swards which glow emerald with nitrogen from bags. I mourn the loss of the bio-diversity, but I hope those who have borrowed and invested so much will make a sustainable living from their fields. I fear they may not, when fertiliser and energy become scarce and dear in future. If farmers no longer till and keep this place, what will become of it? It is only their patient work with crops and animals that maintain its integrity and beauty. Already large areas lie abandoned, degrading to hazel scrub.

Sustainable Living
Sustainable is the fad word of the moment – I even heard a Minister talk about a sustainable budget the other day! Though the word may be ugly, the idea it signifies is beautiful – sustainable living is living in balance with the world and all it contains, so that our children will be as bountifully endowed as we are. We have not been doing that for a generation or more.

The gathering crisis of climate change means this must change, and change urgently. If you are interested in an explicitly Christian view, you can do much worse than read an excellent new book, Christianity, Climate Change and Sustainable Living, by Nick Spencer & Robert White (£6.99 from Amazon.). Drawing from science, sociology, economics and theology, the authors make the case that Christians must respond and can make a distinctive contribution, and they propose practical actions at the personal, community, national and international levels.

As an example of practical action, a multi-denominational group of around a dozen of us followed the Omega Climate Change Course in Nenagh during Lent (for more details email me at joc_sanders@iol.ie, or see http://omegaclimate.wordpress.com/). What we learned made us want to continue meeting together as the Nenagh Carbon Watchers. As a group we plan 1st to support each other as we monitor and reduce our personal carbon emissions (both helping the planet and saving ourselves money!), 2nd to use the European and local elections to raise awareness of the issues, and 3rd to explore the potential for our communities of the Transition Towns initiative.

But sustainable living is about more than just climate change. It is about creating vibrant relationships of love and respect: with our fellow human beings, with the world we inhabit and its web of life, and ultimately with God, who has given everything to us. And it is about protecting and handing on our dream landscapes like the Burren too.

Low Sunday - Praises to the Saviour!

2009-04-19T18:11:00.004Z

It has been a perfect April day: may the Lord be praised!

Our Rector is taking a short break after the pressure of Lent and Easter, boating on the Shannon I believe. I'm delighted that she and her husband are having some lovely weather for it, and pray she will return refreshed. I led Morning Prayer for Low Sunday in Templederry and Nenagh in her absence - so named, I discovered on Wikipedia, not because it's a low point after the excitement of Easter, but because the ancient Latin canticle once set for the day began Laudes Salvatori: praises to the Saviour.

The drive over to Templederry was gorgeous, primroses in every ditch, a rabbit scampering across the road in front of me, and the first swallows I've seen this year whirling like dervishes in front of the church - they were flying in and out of the barn opposite, where they must be nest-building. If you're interested in the sermon (which you're probably not, but I put all of them on the web just in case someone is), you can find it here.

When I got home, after a bite of lunch and a beer, it was out into the garden, trying to ignore the looming deadline for the course I'm taking.

I dug compost into Susanna's raised beds and raked them, ready for her to plant up, and dug up a couple of dozen strawberry runners from under the bush-fruit for her to make a new strawberry bed. She has planted them in holes cut in black weed-supressant fabric, which she plans to cover with bark mulch. I queried this, because I think it will be difficult to cultivate in future years. I should have held my tongue - they are after all her raised beds, and as she explained she has much more experience growing strawberries in New England than I have!

I also pruned some of the nurse-trees in the wilderness shelter-belt, to give the special pets room to develop. As I did so, the first Orange Tip butterfly of the season flew purposively up the path, had a little set-to with the first Speckled Wood, and retreated.

Now I've come back in, from my window I can see my neighbour's field of spring barley, so recently planted, shading green as the seeds sprout. And a pair of wood-pigeons on an ash branch are billing and cooing, like newly-weds on honeymoon.

Summer is on the way - Praises to the Saviour!

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T17:50:00.003Z

Wishing You a Very Happy
and Blessed Easter

Mary Magdalen announcing the resurrection to the apostles,
illumination from the St. Albans Psalter, English, 12th Century
“I have seen the Lord!”

Good Friday Stations

2009-04-10T13:03:00.013Z

Christ Crucified, by the Westphalian Master,

in the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin

A friend sent this message to me in Facebook today:

The past and the future are born in the imagination. Only the present which is awareness is real and eternal. It is. Action in the present becomes fertile ground for creation of the future.

An apt thought for the day that's in it, as with so many others I contemplate how self-sacrificing love makes a new heaven and a new earth possible: the records left us of the ministry imagined by Jesus so long ago inspire us to imagine a future he dares us to create through action today! God bless you, Trish!

The theme of the three-hour vigil today was the Stations of the Cross, using a beautiful set of images created by the Benedictine Sisters of Turvey Abbey in Bedfordshire, England. Here is the first of the images:

Jesus is condemned to death

I like the discipline of the vigil, largely spent sitting still in silence contemplating the pictures, though we also heard readings and sang hymns. I am still and silent so rarely, but it stimulates the imagination wonderfully. After an hour or so, my joints and back started to ache in the hard pew, no matter how I tried to settle myself. I could begin to imagine the pain of the cross! Eventually I knelt in prayer, which was better, but I left after Jesus fell for the 2nd time.

In the afternoon I went out in the garden to dig the bed for the potatoes. The ground made an ugly slurp as the spade went in - far too wet still to dig or to cultivate. The soil is heavy clay and needs much more compost to make the friable, free-draining bed I crave. If only I had tilled it in the autumn as I should! The potatoes chitting in the green house will have to wait a while yet. Instead of cultivating I used the time to dig up some young trees as an Easter present, a rooted cutting of a good cultivar of pussy willow with red twigs, a young sloe which I have been shaping, and a brace of bullace - the wild damson which grows in the hedge and seeds about. I've been meaning to do this for months, and now is not the ideal time, but I hope they won't turn out to be a present of a job of work for the recipients without good reward!

I am writing this after returning from the highlight of the day - the ecumenical Good Friday walk. Now in its third year and set to become a tradition, it starts at Templederry Church of Ireland and wends its way through the country lanes to the Roman Catholic Church in the village. After a brief welcoming ceremony with a hymn and prayer at the Church of Ireland, folk from both churches take turns to shoulder a large cross, and walk together while children scamper about, stopping for readings and prayers at the stations, which for the second time in the day were those from Turvey Abbey. Arriving at the Roman Catholic church at dusk, the united congregations place lighted candles on the cross placed in front of the altar, with small stones carried in pilgrimage, and share a brief service of prayer and meditation. Once again the community was blessed with dry weather and sunshine. Once again the community was blessed to witness together to love of God and love of neighbour. May Jesus's spirit of loving self-sacrifice continue to bless the whole community of Templederry!

A View from the Pew – A New Creation is on the Way!

2009-04-03T13:59:00.004Z

View from the Pew is a regular column I write for Newslink, the Limerick & Killaloe Diocesan Magazine. This article appears in the April issue.

By the time you read this, it will almost be Easter!
During Lent we Christians have been walking the path to Jerusalem with Jesus and his disciples. It is the path that leads him to an excruciating death on the cross on Good Friday. But we know the path doesn’t end there, for it continues on to the resurrection, the ascension, and the promised gift of the Spirit on the day of Pentecost.

Lent is traditionally a penitential season, a time of sackcloth and ashes, a time when we prepare to greet the risen Christ. Many of us have been marking it with prayer, almsgiving, or self-denial. I’ve given up wine myself – it’s good to prove to myself that I still can! - except for Sundays which I treat as a festival. And the money I save will go to good causes. But soon we shall put away the sackcloth and ashes to properly celebrate the empty tomb. He will rise again!

This path of faith echoes the movement of the seasons.
Winter is behind us now, spring is accelerating, and summer will come in its own good time. I count myself so very blessed to live in the country in a land with seasons, where every spring day brings something miraculously new. Already the first green shoots are showing on elder and whitethorn in the hedgerows and golden celandines glisten in shady places, a foretaste of summer abundance. Birdsong surrounds me on my morning walk, and nesting has begun - today I saw a chaffinch fly off with a feather for her nest. And as I write I can see my neighbour’s mare with her foal cantering around her.

White stars in the garden - Magnolia stellata

Another sign of spring is that I suddenly want to be out working in the garden again. I find it very difficult to work up enthusiasm to do so in winter, when so many jobs should have been done. The grass has already had its first trim and manners have been put on the rambling roses. But now there is soil to be dug, overgrown beds to be cleared and hedges to be trimmed. Will I ever catch up? Signs of spring’s advance are everywhere. The snowdrops and crocuses have been succeeded by daffodils; the snakes-head fritillaries are not far behind; the tulips are poking their snouts up. The early cherries and forsythia are in full bloom; the first white stars have opened on Magnolia stellata; the buds are bursting on the espalier pears. And we have eaten the first spears of asparagus from the polytunnel – just enough to garnish poached eggs!

A new creation is on the way. But we must not get ahead of ourselves: we still have two months to wait and prepare for summer – tender shoots can be killed by frost as late as mid May. And before we can celebrate Easter we must first experience the pain and desolation of Good Friday.

Pain and desolation.
Most of us are anxious and fearful at the moment. We have brought twin crises on ourselves, collectively if not individually, by our hubris and greed - old-fashioned sins to which humanity has been liable since the dawn of time. We live in anticipation of pain and desolation, full of resentment for a cross we do not wish to bear.

Pain and desolation – Rodin’s The Thinker

First there is the global economic crisis. IMF head Dominique Strauss-Kahn has dubbed it The Great Recession - is this what future history books will call it? The bursting of the asset price bubble has caused growing unemployment, misery and hardship worldwide, and for billions of people things will get worse before they get better. Our Irish economy is particularly badly hit, as we all know. On April 7th, Tuesday of Holy Week, Brian Lenihan will stand up in the Dáil to tell us how he proposes to reduce the public funding deficit by another €5 billion or so by raising taxes and cutting services – that’s more than €1000 for every man, woman and child in the country!

Second there is the gathering crisis of climate change. Reports from a recent climate science conference suggest that past emissions of greenhouse gases will cause a rise in sea-level of between 1 and 2 metres by 2100 - twice that forecast only two years ago. Notice that the scientists are not saying this will happen unless we act on climate change – this will happen whatever we do! If we don’t act, sea-level will eventually rise by much more. The truth is that human kind is faced with a choice between change and suffering - either we change to a low carbon/low consumption economy right now, or we condemn our children and grandchildren to suffer uncertain but probably very nasty consequences, along with the rest of the biosphere.

These twin crises are intimately linked, I think. I suspect climate change has directly contributed to the crash: economic confidence may have been tipped over the edge by the dawning realisation that future material growth is impossible. And I suspect that the only way out of the crash will be to invest and put people to work in a new sustainable, green economy. More certainly, the crash will restrain world greenhouse gas emissions, if only temporarily – Professor John Fitzgerald of ESRI forecasts that Ireland will after all be close to meeting its Kyoto commitments. This will give the world a breathing space in which to begin to change our whole way of living and working. We can and must take advantage of it.

2009 will be critical for the international effort to address climate change. Two years ago world governments signed up to negotiate an ambitious and effective international response, to be agreed at a UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen in December. As you read this in early April, another round of negotiations will be taking place in Bonn. Please God they will be successful, and let us pray for a wise and just agreement in Copenhagen. The alternative is too awful to contemplate.

We must shoulder the cross in Christian hope!
It would be very easy to feel helpless and hopeless in the face of these crises. But as Christians we must shoulder the cross in Christian hope, confident in God’s loving kindness. Christian hope is not a passive, pie-in-the-sky sort of hope: it is what impelled the first disciples to go out confidently after Pentecost to change the world. Christian hope is just what we need now - without it we risk despair and immobility, and the crises would surely overwhelm us. I think our Christian hope is a great gift we can offer to our neighbours of other faiths and none. It will help all of us to pull together to overcome the crises and create a happier, more just and sustainable world, one more like the kingdom of heaven.

Crucifixion is followed by Resurrection, Ascension and Pentecost. A new creation is on the way!

Oh, the pressure!

2009-04-01T21:37:00.005Z

Magnolia 'Leonard Messel'

Every Spring it's the same - the pressure mounts to do the garden jobs that should have been done months ago, as growth accelerates. Added to which, this year I have been leading a Lenten Omega course on Climate Change, and I have just started the Foundation Course at the CofI Theological Institute - how on earth can I find the 17 hours required for the first assignment due on Monday, given that I have arranged to take visitors to the Burren on Saturday?

Truffles

I have been planting hazel trees to make the nut walk for which I have hankered for years. I was given the first for Christmas and it has been reproaching me for three months every time I passed it - a wonderful present, it is the plain species (Corylus avelana), but inoculated with the truffle fungus (Tuber aestivum). The instructions say that I may be able to harvest my own truffles within 5 years! I shall look forward to that: gourmets rave over the aroma, though I have to confess that I have never been able to taste anything from the minuscule black specks they put into some patés. I know that it is possible to find truffles in Ireland, because my father found one in his garden only 5 miles away. He sent a bit to the Bots in Dublin, who confirmed it as a truffle, though not the true Black Truffle of the Périgord (T. melanosporum). He ate the rest and pronounced it nice, but not as good as the Périgord one. Truffles are ectomycorrhizal fungi, living in a symbiotic relationship with trees: tree roots feed the fungus with the products of photosynthesis, while the mycelium of the fungus feeds the tree with soil nutrients. T. melanosporum grows exclusively with oak. Cob nuts, which I also adore, are selected forms of the native hazel, so when I saw young plants for sale a few days ago I splurged. I got two varieties, Pearsons Prolific and Webb's Prize Cob, because set is better with different varieties. They are planted either side of the truffle hazel, and I hope the tuffle fungus will also colonise them.

Fritillaria meleagris in the Meadow

Elsewhere in the garden, the delicate pink blossoms of Magnolia 'Leonard Messel' have started to open on bare twigs. I am also delighted with the Snake's Head Fritillaries (Fritillaria meleagris) in the meadow, which are spreading and colonising as I hoped. And I thought you, dear reader, might like to see this picture of the first tulips flowering with wallflowers.

Tulips and Wallflowers

Spring has arrived!

2009-03-18T15:56:00.003Z

The white stars of Magnolia Stellata

There's something wrong with the weather! I don't think I can recall such lovely warm weather on St Patrick's day. What comes to mind is watching the Dublin parade in sleet, with the long bare legs of a Florida girls' marching band turning blue with cold.

Winter is behind us now, spring is accelerating, and summer will come in its own good time. I count myself so very blessed to live in the country in a land with seasons, where every spring day brings something miraculously new. Already the first green shoots are showing on elder and whitethorn in the hedgerows and golden celandines glisten in shady places, a foretaste of summer abundance. Birdsong surrounds me on my morning walk, and nesting has begun - today I saw a chaffinch fly off with a feather for her nest. And as I write I am watching my neighbour’s mare with her foal cantering around her.

Prunus incisa 'Kojo-no-mai'

Prunus subhirtella v Rosea

But we mustn't get ahead of ourselves: we still have two months to wait and prepare for summer – we might get a late frost as late as mid May to burn the shoots and ruin the fruit.

Darning Socks

2009-03-13T18:24:00.005Z

Did you see the TV adaptations of Henning Mankell's Kurt Wallender novels, with Kenneth Branagh as the Swedish detective? I found the gritty realism set against the beautiful flat landscape around Ystad quite compelling - so like the Cambridgeshire fen landscape of my childhood and my dreams. I'm looking forward to more of them, and Susanna has found a new literary enthusiasm in Wallender. A couple of days ago she read me this little extract from The Fifth Woman. Wallender is talking to his grown-up daughter Linda.

Linda poured herself some tea and suddenly asked him why it was so difficult to live in Sweden.
“Sometimes I think it’s because we’ve stopped darning our socks,” Wallander said. She gave him a perplexed look. “I mean it,” he continued. “When I was growing up, Sweden was still a country where people darned their socks. I even learned how to do it in school myself. Then suddenly one day it was over. Socks with holes in them were thrown out. No-one bothered to repair them. The whole society changed. ‘Wear it out and toss it’ was the only rule that applied. As long as it was just a matter of our socks, the change didn’t make much difference. But then it started to spread, until finally it became a kind of invisible moral code. I think it changed our view of right and wrong, of what you were allowed to do to other people and what you weren’t.”

My mother, God bless her, kept up the old ways - she was a champion knitter right up to her death, and for every family birthday, Christmas and Easter she produced new pairs of lovely woolly socks. I still have one pair left which I wear in my hiking boots, still intact because I don't use them very often. As a teenager and young adult it was an everyday task to darn socks, or sew a button on a shirt, but as Mankell observes like everyone else I have long since stopped doing so.

It's increasingly clear that our throw-away culture and the attitudes that go with it are unsustainable. We throw away things, and we throw away people too, where once we mended broken things, and cared for broken people. Is Wallander right to detect a link between all that and ceasing to darn?

Visitors

2009-03-02T17:48:00.007Z

We had a mystery visitor yesterday: Susanna tells me that while I still slept she saw a bird drinking at the famine pot in the Labyrinth garden which she did not recognise. "Black on the head, back and wings like a cape, with white at the side of the throat, and a dove-grey underside, definitely not a magpie, and big, almost like a turkey or a goose", so she described it. "A Hooded Crow?" say I - but no, "Definitely not that", she said, when we looked at the picture in Collins' Birds of Britain & Europe, and she has since poured through every picture in the book without finding what she saw.

I suppose I was mulling over black and white birds at the back of my mind, because later that afternoon I heard a rapid, low drumming, and immediately thought it might be a very distant Woodpecker. Now that would be really exciting. Until recently we have had no native woodpeckers in Ireland. But Birdwatch Ireland say that a good many Great Spotted Woodpeckers (Dendrocopus major) have been seen here in recent years. They speculate that this species, common in Britain and mainland Europe, is about to colonise Ireland.

This morning I went out in my dressingown to see if the first asparagus is ready for picking - it is, just two spears, to be poached in a little butter to garnish poached eggs for breakfast tomorrow! Then, I heard the drumming again, in the direction of the house, and discovered I was mistaken. It was not a Woodpecker, but a frog calling from the little overgrown pond on the patio! I hadn't realised our common frog (Rana temporaria) had a mating call, and it wasn't very loud, but that was what I was hearing. I am delighted to have heard it. There were at least three frogs in the pond, and a large mass of frog spawn had been laid overnight - no doubt there will be even more tomorrow!

Common frogs (Rana temporaria) in a pond

We have had other visitors too recently. For about three days we had a pair of Common Redpolls (Carduelis flammea) feeding on the peanuts, a species I've not identified before. Their diagnostic black beards distinguish them from Linnets. They have gone now, so perhaps they were only passing through on their spring migration. And we have also had a few Siskins recently (Carduelis spinus), the first of the winter.

Redpoll, Carduelis flammea, Male