On Friday 28 August 2020, the Feast of Saint Augustine, Callum Douglas Young and Juan Jesus Gonzales Borrallo were ordained as Deacons in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral by Archbishop Eamon Martin, Archbishop of Armagh. Deacons Callum and Juan are seminarians of the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocese Missionary Seminary, which is situated in Dundalk, Co Louth.

During his homily, Archbishop Eamon said, “In a few moments, immediately after the rite of ordination, Callum and Juan Jesus will come forward and, as they kneel in front of me, I will place the Book of the Gospels in their hands and say to each of them: Receive the Gospel of Christ, whose herald you have become. Believe what you read, teach what you believe, and practise what you teach.

“For me it sums up one of the central roles of a deacon, and indeed of a priest – to be a herald of the Gospel – to receive the Word of God: to read it and meditate carefully on it; to believe it; to proclaim it, to share it and teach it; and, of course to act upon it – to put it into practice.” 

The Primate of All Ireland encouraged Callum and Juan, “Never underestimate the power of God’s Word, written in our hearts: to teach; to motivate; to enlighten; to challenge; to change; to inspire; to humble and chasten; to encourage; to convert!”

Drawing on the inspiration of Saint Augustine, Archbishop Eamon said, “The great Saint Augustine – whose feast we celebrate today – describes a significant moment in his conversion: while sitting in the garden he hears the voice of a young child chanting, as if in a rhyme: ‘Tolle, Lege’; ‘Tolle; Lege’; ‘Pick up and Read’. Opening his Bible at random, Augustine finds chapter 13, verse 13 of Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans, where Saint Paul is urging us to abandon the works of the flesh, to give up the way of the senses and instead to clothe ourselves in Christ. For Augustine it was a moment when he could at last hear clearly his personal call, inspired by the Word – to dedicate his life to God.

“Callum and Juan, I encourage you: ‘Tolle; Lege’. Pick up and read the Word of God every day as deacons and as priests. And do not keep that Word to yourselves. Be like that good man from Kerala, or one of the monks of old, and let the Word of God sink into your mind and heart and from there pour out on your lips and be visible in your daily actions.”

Towards the end of today’s ceremony, speaking directly to the newly ordained deacons, Archbishop Eamon emphasised, “Be chaste and beyond reproach before God and before people, as is proper for a minister of Christ and for a steward of God’s mysteries. Never allow yourself to be turned away from the hope offered by the Gospel. As I said earlier, you are now not only hearers of this Gospel but its ministers and teachers and living witnesses!

“Express by your actions the Word of God which your lips proclaim. Then on the last day, when you go out to meet the Lord you will be able to hear him say, ‘Well done, good and faithful servants, enter into the joy of your Lord’.”

Do you want to learn more about your faith?

If you are interested, why not consider joining our Theology programme.  The course takes two years with one night per week and two weekends over the academic year and is accredited by St Patrick’s College, Maynooth. There are no educational entry requirements, and completion of the course is based on submitted work and does not include sitting exams. Our Theology course will be continuing this year with predominantly online classes, starting on 8^th September.

If you are interested and would like more information contact Milanda on 00353 429336393 or [email protected] (9am – 2pm). All are welcome.

Diaconal Ordination of Callum Douglas Young and Juan Jesus Gonzalez Borrallo.
Redemptoris Mater Seminary.

Friday, 28th August 2020 at 12:00 noon, St Patrick’s Cathedral Armagh.  Friday, 28th August 2020 at 12:00 noon

Archbishop Eamon Martin will ordain Callum Douglas Young and Juan Jesus Gonzalez Borrallo deacons for the Archdiocese of Armagh.

Callum was born in 1991 in London. He is the first child of Neil and Bernadette. He has five younger brothers and sisters. He began his formation for the priesthood in the Redemptoris Mater Archdiocesan Missionary Seminary in Dundalk in the year 2012.

He completed
his philosophical and theological studies at St Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth. He has done pastoral placements in the parishes of Cookstown, Coalisland and Newry Cathedral. As part of his missionary formation, he spent some time in the Middle East, in the Holy Land, Dubai and Bahrain.

Juan Jesus was born in 1991. He comes from El Repilado (Spain). He is the first child of Jose Antonio and Maria de las Nieves. He has three younger siblings.  He started his formation to the priesthood in the Redemptoris Mater Seminary in Dundalk in the year 2013.

He completed his studies for the priesthood at St Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth. Juan Jesus has done pastoral placements in the parishes of Dungannon and Newry Cathedral. As part of his formation in the Seminary, he has been in mission in
the Holy Land, Mozambique and Argentina.

Archbishop Eamon Martin’s tribute to John Hume RIP: “A paragon of peace”

A great sadness has descended on my home city of Derry today as we learn of the death of one of our greatest sons, Mr John Hume. That sadness ripples out to every corner of Ireland and all around the world where the mere mention of the name of John Hume evokes admiration, respect and thanksgiving for a life dedicated to peace and social justice. Today we are remembering a paragon of peace, a giant of a statesman whose legacy of unstinting service to the Common Good is internationally acclaimed, even though it is still perhaps only unfolding.

As a young person growing up in Derry I was hugely influenced by this man of principle. For me, like many other pupils of Saint Columb’s College, John Hume was considered one of our heroes and role models. When I went to study for the priesthood at Maynooth I was happy to know that he too had once been a seminarian for the Diocese of Derry. But John’s vocation was to serve God and his community as a layman, and he totally devoted his energies to that vocation – to relieving poverty, challenging injustice and providing decent living conditions for all.

Later, as a priest working in Derry, I came to know John as a man whose convictions were rooted in a deep faith, in prayer and practical Christianity. I was honoured to announce eight years ago that Pope Benedict XVI had conferred on him a papal knighthood in recognition of his commitment to peace, reconciliation, non-violence and social justice. John put Catholic Social Teaching into practice – sometimes at great personal cost and risk – working ceaselessly for a process of reconciliation through which the dignity of every human person is recognised and upheld. For me, this is best summarized in the words of his Nobel Laureate speech (1998):

“I want to see Ireland as an example to men and women everywhere of what can be achieved by living for ideals, rather than fighting for them, and by viewing each and every person as worthy of respect and honour. I want to see an Ireland of partnership where we wage war on want and poverty, where we reach out to the marginalised and dispossessed, where we build together a future that can be as great as our dreams allow.”

Every so often we come across a person of vision, who lifts us up to see and think beyond the confines of our own, much narrower, perspectives. John Hume was such a man of vision, whose dreams were challenging but always achievable – whether it was ‘people helping people’ in a credit union or ‘countries assisting countries’ in the European project – he lived out the principle of “Ní neart go cur le chéile” (there is no strength without working together). His secret was to encourage the pooling of ideas and resources to raise the hopes and opportunities for all. B’fhéidir nach bheidh a leitheid aris ann – it is now up to the rest of us to step up and be as courageous and determined as he was to deliver (in the words of his favourite song) that “bright brand new day”!

Our prayers and thoughts are especially with his dear wife Pat and Family. Pat was such a rock of support to John, and is an inspiration to all of us. We ask that God will comfort her and John’s extended family circle, friends, former colleagues and loved ones in the knowledge that John was someone special – one in a million!

Ar dheis Dé go raibh a anam dílis.

Life Advocate Awards 2020 Winners

LifeWork’s ‘Life Advocate Awards essay writing competition’ received a tremendous response to this year’s  competition, despite school closures, and the challenges presented by Covid-19 restrictions.  

The annual award programme – which is now in its fifth year – was designed to encourage research and critical-thinking on human rights and the right to life. The entries were of a very high standard and reflected a growing interest and awareness in human rights.

This year students are asked to submit a 600-750 word essay discussing the following words of Martin Luther King Jr: “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere”.

This year’s winner Orlaith McAuley, is a Year 14 student from one of our Archdiocesan schools, St. Mary’s Grammar School, Magherafelt.  Orlaith won first place for her excellent and thought-provoking essay. In discussing the theme, she wrote: “All life is sacred and should be valued and protected, particularly those who are most marginalised and vulnerable”.

Orlaith was honored to receive a personal video from Dr Alveda King – a niece of Martin Luther King Jr – congratulating her on the winning entry.

Drumalis Retreat Centre in Larne are offering the following programmes in the coming days and months.

The first programme is a two session Zoom input by Sr Pam Thimmes on ‘Abiding Memories: Mary Magdalene, Apostle to the Apostles’.  This will take place on Saturday 1st and & 8th August.

The second is ‘Growth in Prayer and Reflective Living: Ignatian Spirituality’  which we will be offering over 30 Monday evenings.  This course is in collaboration with the Ignatian Spirituality Centre, Glasgow.  Initially the course will be by Zoom but, if circumstances permit, it will be delivered in-house while continuing to be accessible remotely.

Click Here for video promoting ”Growth in Prayer and Reflective Living: Ignatian Spirituality’ 

If you are interested in either of these programmes enquiries can be made by phone from 9 am – 5 pm (Mon-Fri) – 028 28272196 / 28276455. Alternatively, please email [email protected]

“I WAS SICK AND YOU VISITED ME” – HOSPITAL CHAPLAINCY TO RESUME ROUTINE VISITS

On behalf of the Chaplaincy Teams across the Southern Trust, we are delighted to say that routine visitation of wards by chaplains will re-commence from Monday July 20th. Emergency on-call cover continued to remain in place throughout the Covid-19 pandemic and returning to wards for more routine visits is an important step forward at this time.

As you can imagine, it will be a gradual and tentative re-engagement as we encounter the “new normal” in hospitals. It is a very changed environment into which we step. For example, given the visiting restrictions now in place (see attached), we will be avoiding visiting hours as only one nominated person can visit a patient at a time.

While visits by the Chaplaincy Teams are permitted to resume, visits by parish clergy / ministers are not yet permitted by the Southern Trust in their hospitals. This is due to the strict limits on visitor numbers and infection prevention & control procedures. Please refrain from visiting parishioners in hospital at this time. If you know of a parishioner who is in hospital and would like a visit from the Chaplaincy Team, please ask them to consent to the visit when asked by the nursing staff. Alternatively, a member of their family can ask the hospital to call us. You can always contact the hospital and ask to speak to the chaplain on call.

On behalf of the Chaplaincy Teams across the Trust, we are deeply grateful for your support in so many ways. We know you join with us in continuing to pray in a special way for those who are sick at this time and those who care for them.

If you have any queries about hospital chaplaincy at this time, please feel free to contact any of the chaplains.

Statement by the Bishops’ Council for Life regarding the Report of the Department of Health on “Termination of Pregnancy” in 2019

In recent months Ireland has experienced the traumatic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has touched every sector of society. While many people have suffered emotionally and economically, we think immediately of those who have died, 1,735 people as of 30 June. Each one was a unique human being, created in the image of God, and each one’s death is being grieved by a family, a friend, a community.

Every human life is worthy of respect and care from the moment of conception to natural death. The enormous contrast between the collective grief of the nation at the recent deaths of so many people, and the bland five page report from the Department of Health, published on the same day, 30 June, which details the 6,666 – six thousand six hundred and sixty six – “Terminations of Pregnancy”, which took place in Ireland in 2019, is staggering.

The report states that 24 of the abortions were carried out on medical grounds. Those carried out on the grounds of a “condition that was likely to lead to the death of the foetus” numbered 100. The Irish Catholic Bishops pointed out in advance of the referendum in 2018 that there is absolutely no moral justification for deciding that a baby should die because he or she has a serious health condition.

The vast majority of babies who were aborted in Ireland last year, 6,542 of them, are euphemistically described as having been “terminated” in “early pregnancy”. While we never got to know them personally, each one was a unique and precious human being. It was not their fault that their conception was inconvenient or untimely, or the result of sexual assault or that their parents lacked the support that would have helped them to embrace life.

The publication of the Government report is, however, a timely reminder for Irish society of the concrete consequences of the decision made in May 2018, when the majority of Irish voters (66.4%) chose to remove constitutional protection from the unborn, and the majority of politicians voted to enact this law against life. The report, for those who will look beyond the statistics, represents a fresh call to conversion for individuals, for the political establishment and for society.

It is an important expression of our pro-life commitment that Catholics would commit to offering practical and emotional support to women who experience difficulty because of pregnancy. We encourage all our parishioners to be sensitive to this need in their own network of relationships and to support the various pro-life organisations which offer that kind of outreach.

While there may be no public grief over the deaths of these 6,666 unborn babies, we know from our own experience that there will be much unexpressed personal grief. We take this opportunity to invite all those affected by abortion – women and men – to avail of spiritual, sacramental and pastoral support, and we assure them that they will be welcomed without judgement and helped to find healing and peace.