As you may know this year has been designated, here in Ireland, as the Year of Vocation by the Catholic Church.  It is a year in which we concentrate a lot on putting across this message:

Through our baptism we all have a vocation.

In other words, we have all been called, by God, to bear witness to God’s presence in our lives and in the world.  We are all called to love God and love our neighbour. 

We are called to serve God and to serve our neighbours – especially those weaker and poorer than we are.  How we answer that call will decide how we will be in the world to come.

It so happens that today’s Readings fit nicely with the topic of conversation.

We believe that we are all being called, by God, to share His life for ever in Heaven.  God is offering that gift to each one of us.  But what do we have to do – if anything – to receive that gift?  Some people live their lives in the belief – apparently – that it does not matter what we do or how we live our lives – we are going to be all right on the day.  Nothing could be further from the truth!
Today’s Readings tell us, loud and clear, that we are all personally responsible for our own salvation.  We have a part to play.  Sure it is on the one hand a free gift of God to us – but on the other hand – and this is the message being hammered home today, our salvation is also the fruit of our co-operation and the result of us exercising our own free will.

St Augustine put it well when he said:  ‘The God who created you without you willing it – will not save you without you willing it’

In today’s Reading we have two sons – both being called, invited or commanded, by their father, to go and work in his vineyard.  The first, who obviously does not believe in having arguments with people, says ‘yes’ but obviously had not the slightest intention of going.  The second says ‘no’ initially but then thought better of it and actually went.  All are agreed that he is the one who did the will of his father. 

We have a third story of a son who did the will of His Father  – Jesus Christ was sent into the world, by his Father to do the will of the One who sent him.  He humbled himself to the point of dying the death of a criminal on the cross.   Sure – but God raised him up in glory. 

The fact is that God has sent each one of us into this world to do some good.  If we do not do that good it will remain undone.  Jesus said: “It is not the One who says Lord, Lord who enters the Kingdom of Heaven but the one who does the Will of the Lord”.  It is not enough to have pious sentiments and good intentions.  We need to set out to produce deeds and actions in order to fulfil the Will of the Lord.

The Year of Vocation Committee has designated today as Priesthood Sunday.  They have done so in the belief that God is calling men to become priests –and if that is so – it is important that they be helped to hear that call and to answer it and by so doing, play the part that is required for them to enter eternal life. 

This Year of Vocations Committee is headed up by Father Paddy Rushe.  Father Rushe is a native of Coalisland in Co Tyrone, a priest of the diocese of Armagh, formerly a Curate in Drogheda, now a Curate in Dundalk.  He is also National Director of Vocations.

Priesthood Sunday has two purposes:

1.    To give an opportunity to promote priesthood as a positive option today, and secondly,
2.    To support and encourage priests to be the best possible priests they can be.

This can be done by praying for them and acknowledging their presence on the ground in our parishes.

To celebrate Priesthood Sunday we are here in St. Catherine’s Church, Ballapousta.  You may ask why Ballapousta?  Last week the bishops met in Maynooth and, would you believe that some of them were asking a more basic question – Where is Ballapousta?

Of course we are here because of the late great Olivia Mary Taafe – Foundress of St. Joseph’s Young Priests Society.  She was born near Tuam, Co Galway in 1832 – three years after Catholic Emancipation.  Her maiden name was Blake and the Blakes were one of the fourteen Tribes of Galway.  Olivia married John Joseph Taafe in 1867.  After her marriage she and her husband settled at Smarmore Castle in this area. She lived here for 27 years.

St. Joseph’s Young Priests Society is a lay organisation, approved by the Irish Hierarchy.  Its purpose is to extend the Kingdom of God by promoting the Vocations of the Priesthood and to help its members to understand their own vocations as people of God.

So, I think it is quite fitting that we gather here to celebrate Priesthood Sunday. 

When we try to encourage people to become priests or to enter religious life you often hear the words of Jesus – “The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the Harvest to send labourers to his harvest”. 

We are here in Ballapousta – in the parish of Ardee.  It is an area that is famous for its rich harvests.  Today I want to pay tribute to the farmers who, year in and year out, go out to plough the fields in the cold of winter and to sow the seed in the frost of spring and finally, struggle against bad summers, in order to save the harvest. 

I heard a lovely programme on BBC Radio Four last Sunday telling how the people used to turn out to sing Harvest Home – Harvest Home when the last loads of grain were bring brought to the granaries. 

Today the work of those who labour in the fields is much lonelier and far less appreciated one.  People don’t really appreciate all the work that has to go into producing the loaf of bread or the pound of butter.  Perhaps if we had a greater appreciation of, and a respect for, the work of those who produce our food, well then we might have a greater respect for, and appreciation of, those who dedicate their lives to making sure that we also have the Bread of Life – the bread of eternal life – namely those who have become priests and to whom God has given the power to change bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ. 
Every priest is, first and foremost, a teacher of the Word of God.  I doubt if teachers today get the credit they deserve for their help in preparing children for life.  I can think of lots of others who get far more praise and attention than teachers do and who do a lot less hard work.

The priest is also a teacher.  His subject is an important one.  It does not get points for entry into the University or the Institutes but for entry into something far more important and permanent, namely, everlasting happiness.  I have always seen preaching and teaching as a hugely important part of my life as a priest and as a bishop.  It means that I have to keep on learning myself in order to keep my sermons fresh with many examples. 

I once heard a debate about whether there was any resemblance between the work of a lawyer and that of a priest.  The lawyer pointed out that she worked to build a more just and truthful world and that she pleaded at the Bar of Justice – in the law courts and Tribunals.  The priest replied that he also pleaded for justice – the difference was that he pleaded at the Supreme Court of Heaven and Earth and before the Supreme Judge – the one who will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead.  There was this difference – that if he pleaded with faith and confidence he was absolutely certain to always get a hearing and a result.
Somebody once said to me – the priest is a wanted man. 
•    Wanted for: baptisms and burials;
•    for weddings and funerals;
•    for sick calls and anointings;
•    for times of tragedy and of triumphs.

I am often asked:  Why did you become a priest?  I have thought about the answer long and hard.  I now think that it was because the priest in the parish of Laragh, when I grew up, was always wanted.  He was wanted to pray for people, in times of sickness and of death.  I saw how the people loved their priest and, above al, I saw the efforts they made to attend Sunday Mass – walking miles in hail, rain or snow.  I decided that the one who celebrates the Mass is loved and respected and early wanted by them.

We read in the Gospels that Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and sickness.  We still do the teaching and the preaching but what about the curing and the healings? I think priests who hear confessions would tell you that their work involves a lot of healing of anguished hearts and minds and of restoring peace of mind to troubled people.  So then the priest is, in a sense, a teacher, a lawyer and a doctor all rolled into one.

Jesus said:  “I am the Good Shepherd”.  The shepherd has to travel with his flock from one pasture to another and to find water.  The shepherd leads the flock to shelter in times of storms and protects them and keeps them safe against the wolves and lions and the sheep-stealers.  In the same way a Parish Priest is described as the Pastor or shepherd of the parish.  He too has to travel the journey of life with his people, sharing their sorrows and their joys and what an enriching experience that is!
Today I want to thank God for St. Joseph’s Young Priests Society.  I want to praise God for their prayers and sacrifice and for the generous support which they have given, and continue to give, to the formation of priests here in Ireland.  It all comes, I believe, from your deep faith in, and love for, the presence of Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament.  It is a love that matters – a love for Jesus present in the Eucharist and present among his people.

Today I gladly take up the invitation to pay tribute to the priests I have known.  We priests are not angels – we are human and we are sinners.  We need to go to confessions to confess our sins and to get pardon, as everybody else has to do.  But I want to pay tributes to the priests of this diocese – whom I have known for the past thirteen years.

When we were ordained – the Church looked for a number of qualities – good health, sufficient brains to follow the courses, appropriate lifestyle and right intentions. We knew that none of us has a right to receive this office for himself.  We offered ourselves because we felt called by God and we asked the Church to consider our offer and if it was so decided, to call us to be ordained.  We knew well that it was a gift that we had not merited by our actions.

It was when Jesus saw his followers harassed and dejected like sheep without a shepherd that he felt sorry for them.  He said to his disciples:  “The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the Harvest to send labourers to his harvest”.

I grew up on a farm in an era when there was a huge variety of harvests to be saved – hay – oats – barley –wheat – potatoes – turnips.  There was quite a lot of heavy, monotonous work involved.  But there was a huge sense of satisfaction when the last load entered the haggard and the last sack of grain went out to the granary.

Mickey Harte hid the letters T.I.N.E stitched into every jersey of every Tyrone player for last Sunday’s match.  They stood for Two is not enough.  It seems to have worked and worked brilliantly.  But lo and behold – what do we now find – that neither is three enough because they are already talking about another title – next year and so on.

The Latin word for enough is Satis.  It is the basis of the word ‘satisfy’ and this begs the question – What does really satisfy the hunger of the human heart?  St Augustine recognised the question and he said: 

You have made us for yourself O Lord and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.

I have never seen young men to be found wanting when they were confronted with a harvest that needed saving.  Yes the harvest is rich – millions of people hungry to hear about Jesus Christ, worshipping so many other gods and still finding their hearts empty and thirsting for true worship. Multitudes frantically searching for reasons to hope and being led astray into deserts of despair and a wilderness of false hopes and delusions.

May St. Joseph – Protector of the Holy Family – protect all families and inspire all fathers to face up to their responsibilities in rearing their children.

May Mary, Mother of Jesus, Mother of the Church and Seat of Wisdom, help in this Year of Vocation.  May she inspire all parents to discuss, with their children, what God may be calling them to do in life.  May all those who feel that they may be called, by God, to become a priest, get the help and the support and the encouragement they need to answer that call.

Today I remember with great love and gratitude all those who helped me to answer that call.

AMEN

Good morning everyone, you are all very welcome to the launch of  “Catholic Bishops dot I E” – the new website for the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference.

The Irish Bishops’ Conference did have an internet presence since 2001 but our new website has been completely redesigned and updated.  Its content has been expanded and it now hosts a number of new features which, I hope, will be of benefit to its users.

Let me give you a brief overview of our new site and then, in conclusion, say a few words from the perspective of the Catholic Church on the importance and responsibility of the internet as a means of communication.

The purpose of “Catholic Bishops’ dot I E’ is to inform as wide an audience as possible of the online extent of the pastoral outreach of the Catholic Church in Ireland.

Our site provides detailed information on the 26 diocese on this island.  Positioned clearly on the home page there is a list of links introducing the people and organisations that make up the agencies and commissions of the Irish Bishops’ Conference.  The homepage also provides a link to the Vatican website.

Two interesting features of our new site deserve particular mention. 

•    The first is the link to the daily Mass readings, and the other
•    Is the development of an interactive diocesan map.

This is the first time that an electronic map of the dioceses of Ireland has been made available online.  

Catholic Bishops dot I E also hosts podcasts and webcasts, including interviews with bishops.   One feature which will, no doubt, prove to be very popular is the 1979 live recordings of the homilies delivered by the late Pope John Paul II during his pilgrimage to Ireland.

Major publications by the Bishops’ Conference are also available online in English and Irish and, since 2006, in Polish as well.  Subscription details for Intercom, our pastoral and liturgical resource magazine, are also provided.  The press release archive dates back to 2001.

Our new site should be of special interest to members of the clergy, religious, laity, teachers, policy makers, journalists, in fact, to anyone wishing to find out more about the activities of the Catholic Church at home and throughout the world.

The design and content of the site will change over time so as to retain its relevance to those who use it.

Of course “Catholic Bishops dot I E” is only one of many millions of websites now available on the internet.  Clearly the net is the single most revolutionary communications medium of modern times.  Its extent is incomparable.  Its volume and ease of access combine to make it an awesome tool of communication.  With its infinite length and breadth however comes a unique responsibility for the whole online global community. 

The positive and negative aspects of the internet are two sides of the same coin: Used constructively, its potential contribution to the common good is limitless. However, its cynical use, as a vehicle for exploitation, especially of children, and to advance aggression generally, also makes the internet a potentially hostile place.  Each and every one of us has a responsibility to prevent this form of abuse and, thankfully, international progress is being made in this regard.

For the Church, the internet offers us great scope for proclaiming the Good News.  In 2002 the Pontifical Council for Social Communications published The Church and Internet which outlined the benefits of the net for promoting the Good News.  It usefully suggested that:

“The Internet is relevant to many activities and programmes of the Church – evangelisation, including both re-evangelisation and new evanglisation, and the traditional missionary work ad gentes, catechetics and other kinds of education, news and information, apologetics, governance and administration and some forms of pastoral counselling and spiritual direction.”

The publication continues: “Although the virtual reality of cyberspace cannot substitute for real interpersonal community, the incarnational reality of the sacraments and the liturgy or the immediate and direct proclamation of the Gospel, it can complement them.  It will enable people to a fuller experience of the life of faith and it will enrich the religious lives of users.  It also provides the Church with a means for communicating with particular groups – young people and young adults, the elderly and home-bound, persons living in remote areas, the members of other religious bodies – who otherwise may be difficult to reach.”

It is my hope that our website fulfils such objectives and adequately serves your informational needs.  I wish to conclude by mentioning the 2002 World Communications Day message, dedicated to the theme of the internet.  In it, the late Pope John Paul II reminded us that:

“The internet causes billions of images to appear on millions of computer monitors around the planet.  From this galaxy of sight and sound will the face of Christ emerge? Will the voice of Christ be heard?  For it is only when His face is seen, and His voice is heard, that the world will know the glad tidings of our redemption.  This is the purpose of evangelisation.  This is what will make the internet a genuinely human space, for if there is no room for Christ, there is no room for man.”

Go raibh maith agat as ucht eisteacht agus beannacht Dé ort

END

About ten days ago I was attending a function in the Slieve Russell in Ballyconnell.  As I was leaving this fine young man from Ballyhaise greeted me with a smile, came over and shook hands and reminded me who he was.  He welcomed me back to my native county.  He knows who he is, I know who he is, God knows who he is and I am not going to embarrass him in any way.  But I really did appreciate that gesture because I think it sums up and typifies all that is best about the parish of Castletara and the village of Ballyhaise. 

How can I describe what I mean by, ‘all that is best’ about this parish and its people?  I mean that you are people whose hearts and minds are open to welcome good news and to welcome people.  Like Mary, in tonight’s Gospel, the people who gather to praise God here in St Mary’s and in St Patrick’s in Castletara are people who are thankful.  You are thankful, I think, to God for the gift of life.  I get the impression you are happy to be living in a beautiful part of the world on the banks of the Annalee and you are at ease and in friendship with your neighbours and your acquaintances.

I congratulate all of you, but especially Father Ray and the Parish Pastoral Council Committee, on the completion of this extension to this Church of St. Mary.  In times of recession it is good to hear some good news.  This extension is, I understand, going to be used for prayer and praise, for worship and adoration. 

In 2012 the next International Eucharistic Congress will be held in Ireland.  It is generally accepted that the most important part of the preparations will be prayers and study.  It will be prayers to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and study of the importance of Jesus remaining with us – in good times and bad – to offer consolation in the face of disaster and to provide hope in the face of desolation which recession often brings. 

I understand that this Pastoral Council are going out to office and I thank each and every one of you for your dedicated commitment during your tenure in bringing about this wonderful extension and the help you have given to the priests in the running of the parish.  I am pleased also to hear of the careful planning that has gone into the preparation of this Mass.  I know that people have been chosen to carry out certain functions – for very definite reasons that link them back to my year in this parish.

So tonight I repeat with Mary, ‘My heart praises the Lord’.  I thank God with all my heart for my time here in Ballyhaise, for all the friendship and prayers with which you have helped me all these years.  It is hard to believe that it is almost 14 years.  Much has happened, many things have changed, but thank God many things remain the same.  Tonight we thank God for all of you whose faith has remained strong, despite the trials, tribulations and temptations which may have come your way.

Many have died since I was here last. We remember them in a special way tonight.  In my house in Armagh I have a little Chapel – an Oratory.  There I place memorial cards of those who have died.  Just before I left today I spotted one of a man from this parish, Charlie Young, and the thought it contains give me great consolation.  It says: ‘Those who die in grace, go no further than God and God is very near’.  I suppose the challenge therefore is for all of us to discover that Jesus is very near and to discover and to know that the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Jesus who suffered and died for love of us, is very near.

Next month I am going to Rome for a meeting.  We will be talking about the Word of God and how we read it and hear it.  Could I ask you to please pray that the discussions will bear fruit?  Maybe some of you would be so good as to read a passage from the Bible every day and talk to Jesus about it and ask Him to guide our discussions and to guide all of us, you and us, in our lives through His Word.

I often think of the young people of this parish,

•    whether in the schools, St Patrick’s and St Mary’s – and by the way, congratulations on that beautiful new school at Castletara –
•    whether it is the young people playing camogie or football in the park,
•    whether it is Castletara Band,
•    whether it is in the Agricultural College,

I think of the many students from here whom I taught in St Patrick’s College, Cavan, all those years ago.

These are difficult times for young people.  Last Sunday, in Lourdes, Pope Benedict made a speech to the young people.  He reminded them that God is looking at each one of them personally and calling them to a life of happiness, a life that has meaning and purpose.  He appealed to them not to be defeated by difficulties – Mary was troubled by the message of the Angel Gabriel who was asking her to become the Mother of Jesus – but Mary said, yes, to that call and by so doing she made sure that the Saviour of the world would be born.

Pope Benedict reminded the young people in Lourdes not to be afraid to say yes to the invitation of Jesus to follow Him. I repeat his call to the young people of this parish to respond generously to Jesus – by finding time to pray each day, by having the courage and making the effort to come to Mass each Sunday – because only Jesus can satisfy the deepest desires of your hearts.  Only He can lead you to lasting hope and joy. 

In Lourdes, last Sunday, the Pope prayed that Mary might help those called to marriage to discover the beauty of deep and lasting love.  In this year of Vocations I would wish to ask Mary to help each one of us here present, young and old, single or married, to discover the way to happiness which God has planned for us.  Naturally, I would be delighted if some were to find that this road led to priesthood and religious life, as it has done for many in the past.  Mary is, for all of us, a Beacon of Hope.  I think it is no harm to remember that here in this Church dedicated to her honour.  She is a Beacon of Hope especially for those who are sick and housebound.  I remember, with affection, the sick and the housebound whom I used to visit on the First Friday.

I praise God, with all my heart, for the example they gave us all, of patience, deep faith and hope in the face of sometimes terrible suffering.  For the Lord who is mighty did great things for them.  The same Lord can, and does, do great things for each one of us.  Mary can, and will, do great things for each one of us too, if only we allow her, if only we ask her.  Happy are those who put their trust in Jesus, the Son of Mary and the Son of God.  As He offered His life on the Cross, He offered His mother to each one of us to be our mother.  She will give us hope, even in the darkest nights.

Amen.

Today we reach the highlight of our journey, the goal of our pilgrimage. Today seventy people have come from Ireland, from the Archdiocese of Armagh, to remember that some 339 years ago on the First Sunday of Advent, one of the great Archbishops of Armagh, St. Oliver Plunkett, was ordained here by the Bishop of Ghent. Today we will unveil a plaque here in the Cathedral to commemorate that event.

We come on the first day of the new liturgical year, the first Sunday of Advent. . The message in our liturgy is to ‘Stay awake’.  The first Sunday of Advent has two clear messages for all of us. It calls us to prepare spiritually for Christ’s coming at Christmas. It also has a more immediate message. It calls us to think seriously about the great issues of life, about the meaning of life, about our relationship with God, the role of faith in our own lives and the duty to hand on that faith to the next generation. 
All of those issues engaged St. Oliver Plunkett in his ministry and work as Archbishop of Armagh.

Oliver Plunkett was born in County Meath, in the midlands in Ireland in the year 1625 (363 years ago). Catholics at the time were being persecuted for their faith. Many were evicted from their homes and forbidden to attend Mass. At the time there was only one active Bishop in Ireland. Priests were hunted down and persecuted. Many fled to the Continent of Europe. Oliver Plunkett had to go to Rome to study for the priesthood because there were no Colleges or institutions of learning at home. Oliver was ordained priest in Rome and remained in Rome as a professor of Theology at the Propaganda College for twelve years. Because the persecution of Catholics was at a high point in Ireland Oliver Plunkett could not be ordained Archbishop in Ireland but was ordained here in Ghent by Bishop Eugene D’Allamont on 1st December, 1669. During the persecutions in Ireland the Bishops of Flanders had been more than generous in giving help to exiled Irish churchmen. 

Archbishop Plunkett returned to Ireland and began a ministry of reform and renewal of clergy and laity for the next decade. For a short time the Catholic religion was tolerated. At stages attitudes to the practice of the faith were even lenient so much so that in his first years as Archbishop of Armagh Oliver Plunkett was able to administer Confirmations. He ordained priests and even set up a school in Drogheda for the education of young men. It was a period of reform but all that changed in the Protestant backlash that followed. Oliver himself became a victim of the new period of repression and persecution. False charges were made against him.  During the reforms he made many enemies not least among the clergy and it was one of the renegade priests whom he had censured who gave evidence against him in his trial. Oliver was brought to England and was charged with treason. He was executed in London in 1681. In 1920 he was declared a martyr for the faith and was canonised on 12th October, 1975. 

Oliver Plunkett was also a man of peace. At the time he returned to Ireland as Archbishop of Armagh there were on-going battles between those who had been evicted from their lands and the representatives of the British establishment who were responsible for the evictions.  Oliver was a key figure in arranging a permanent peace. Today he is regarded as the patron of the peace process in Northern Ireland. Today people continue to pray that the peace process which came about after some 40 years of struggle and rebellion in Northern Ireland will prove effective in delivering a permanent peace and justice in Northern Ireland. In recent times we have seen the beginnings of that peace. We are also aware at this time that it is still a fragile peace. We have seen that process falter in recent times but once again is on course hopefully to bring a lasting peace and justice to Northern Ireland. Today we still need determined leadership and we need prayer.  

Oliver Plunkett’s ministry was one of renewal of faith and commitment among the Catholic community. More than anything else Oliver Plunkett brought hope to a suffering and dejected people. The words of the Prophet Isaiah that we heard in our reading says;

“Lord, you are our Father,
We are the clay, you the potter
We are all the work of your hand”.

That is our dignity as God’s creatures. That is the context in which we live as followers of Jesus Christ. This season of Advent is a time for all of us to reflect on that. It is a time to reflect on priorities. It is a time of hope. The message of the Gospel is as urgent as it was two thousand years ago. “Stay awake because you do not know when the master of the house is coming”. That’s the message Oliver Plunkett preached. It is a message for every one of use at this time. I hope it is a message that every one of us will take to heart.

+ Gerard Clifford.
30th November, 2008.