MASS OF THANKSGIVING AND FAREWELL FOR THE
CONGREGATION OF CHRISTIAN BROTHERS
ST PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL, ARMAGH
TUESDAY 15 JUNE, 1999
HOMILY BY MOST REV. SEÁN BRADY

Dear friends I welcome you all to our Mass this evening. I welcome especially Br Kevin Mullan, the Provincial Leader of the St Mary’s Christian Brothers Province. I welcome the Mayor of Armagh City and District, Cllr Thomas Canavan and Mrs Canavan, on this, one of the Mayor’s first functions since having assumed office yesterday. I welcome all of you here present, all in one way or another, associated with or touched by the Brothers: the trustees, governors, benefactors, parents, staff and pupils, whether past or present, of Greenpark Primary and Grammar Schools and St Patrick’s Grammar School; members, past and present, of St Patrick’s Grammar School Past Pupils’ Union; representatives of DENI, SELB and schools throughout this City of Armagh and of the Armagh City school catchment area; representatives of Armagh civic, cultural, parish and diocesan life, including members of Armagh religious communities; members of Armagh Edmund Rice League of Prayer; Greenpark Brother alumni, clergy alumni and former chaplains; family members and friends of the four Armagh Brothers, now sadly departing from us, and other representatives of the wider CBS family. I especially welcome those Protestant clergymen here present this evening, former pupils of Greenpark. We are most grateful for your presence. Needless to say, I welcome the four Brothers whose departure from Armagh we mourn, Br Leo Kelly, Br Larry Ennis, Br Dermot McDermott and Br Desmond Young, and I welcome back those Brothers who have served in Armagh in the past. I convey the apologies of Cardinal Daly who would have wished to be here but is out of the country at present.

Each time we come together to celebrate Eucharist we are remembering – remembering the words and promises of Christ: remembering his life, suffering, death and resurrection, and the example of love he left to us. This evening we remember in a double way. We remember the Christian work of the Brothers and their contribution to the youth of Armagh. So, in our Eucharist this evening we go to the root of that word – our Mass here now is also a thanksgiving. We are grateful and that is the source and the motive for our celebration.

Tonight we give thanks for many things. We give thanks for Blessed Edmund Rice, one of the greatest and remarkable men in the history of this country. In 1802, Edmund Rice set up his first school for poor boys in a stable in Waterford. Since then thousands of his Brothers, members of the Congregation of Christian Brothers, which he founded in 1802, to assist him in his noble work, have taught the poor all over the world; in primary and post-primary schools, in schools for the deaf and the blind, in technical schools and in universities.

The year 1831 saw the birth of the National Schools in Ireland. A grant would be paid on condition that the school was conducted on non-denominational lines, that is, with separate religious instruction. This was totally against the integrated approach advocated by the Christian Brothers. In their schools religion permeated the whole school day. Edmund Rice was persuaded to give the system a trial and attached six schools to the new National Board. However, after much controversy he severed the Congregation’s link with the Board. What this meant in practice was that, until the foundation of the Irish State, the Brothers had to depend for survival on the voluntary subscriptions of their benefactors.

In 1829 Catholics in Ireland and Britain rejoiced at the passing of the Emancipation Act. However, not all Catholics rejoiced. For the Emancipation Act caused a crisis for Edmund Rice’s new Brotherhood because there was a clause inserted in this Act “to make provision for the gradual suppression and final prohibition” of male religious orders. The Brothers faced an uncertain future knowing that they were an illegal organisation and the penalty for any new member who joined could be transportation for life to the penal colonies of Australia. The Brothers are no strangers to uncertain futures but somehow or other, with the help of God, they managed to survive.

In 1829 Edmund Rice had to turn down a request from Dr Curtis, then Archbishop of Armagh, for a school in Drogheda. Shortly after his appointment, as Archbishop of Armagh, Paul Cullen wrote to the Superior General of the Christian Brothers, Michael Riordan. Archbishop Cullen had a request to make. He requested that the school be opened in Armagh not Drogheda. He wrote: “In the midst of our troubles I have induced the ladies of the Sacred Heart (Order) to come to this city and to found a house here. In a few days time I hope to open a school here under the direction of the Christian Brothers. This city is completely abandoned and now one must make every effort to inspire it with a little Catholic spirit.”

And so the first Brother, Vincent Cronin, arrived here from Liverpool at the end of October, 1851. He was joined a few weeks later by two more Brothers and their first school opened on 24th November, 1851.

There were 120 pupils. The schoolroom was on old grain loft in a lane way off Irish Street opposite the entrance to the present-day St Malachy’s Church. Twenty years later by Br Cronin describes those early years. “Armagh at the outset was indeed a very uphill business,” he says. “I must say the people (of Armagh) never allowed us to go into school minus our breakfast. I found them very generous considering their limited means”.

Br Cronin later returned to England to collect funds for the erection of a brand-new building. Its foundation stone was laid in 1854. The two largest classrooms are still in use today.

In 1878 the intermediate or secondary system was begun. Unlike the national system the intermediate system put no religious restriction on the schools participating. With the introduction of the intermediate system a period of great consolidation started in the history of Greenpark. This lead directly, in 1904, to the first extension of the original school when two classrooms were added. The Superior, Br Titus Frisby, at the turn of the century tried to build a new residence. However, it was to be 70 years later before this happened. For as always, the needs of the pupils took priority.

On 1st April, 1927, the Primary School was formally recognised by the Ministry of Education. So, after 77 years the Brothers were in receipt of a government salary. The last Annual Charity Sermon for the upkeep of the community took place that same year.

Post-primary education was provided, by the Brothers, from 1878 until the arrival of free education in 1947. This post-primary education was provided for all-comers, irrespective of creed or class. In common with other Brothers’ schools at the time, free education was made accessible to all, long before the State made provision for such. Secondary School fees were a mere pittance and, by the Brothers’ rule, no pupils could be excluded because of the inability of their parents to pay even the small fee.

Greenpark proudly numbers some 10 Protestant ministers of religion among its alumni. To their credit, these reverend gentlemen often returned to their alma mater to say thanks and to renew acquaintances and friendships with their former teachers. They practised ecumenism long before it became fashionable. It was typical of the generosity and self-sacrifice of the Brothers that it was only after the provision of near-adequate buildings for the school that they thought of providing the much-needed new residence for themselves.

In 1984 the late Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich intimated to the provincial of the Christian Brothers that the Vincentian Fathers would be leaving St Patrick’s College. In 1988 a most successful amalgamation of the two schools was carried out. The vacated Greenpark Grammar School was occupied by the Primary School. Since then a co-educational Bunscoil was opened in 1995.

So tonight we give thanks to God for all of that. The Brothers right down the 150 years of their time in Armagh appreciate very deeply the loyalty, support and generosity of the people of Armagh, especially of their past-pupils. Without this support the schools at Greenpark would never have survived. The Brothers were, and are, deeply indebted and grateful to these local benefactors. Tonight we praise God for that generosity.

And now this evening, 148 years after the arrival of the Brothers in this Primatial City, we gather for another task. After so many years and so many people, our community, our City, is faced with an unpleasant task as we bid the Brothers farewell.

Our celebration is a family occasion. There are tinges of heartfelt nostalgia for the past. It should never be forgotten why the Brothers were invited here in the first place. They came to provide education for the poor. They came at a time when such education was not available to poor Catholics. The work of religious congregations, of brothers and sisters and priests in Ireland in the last century must not be forgotten. They provided education and health care for the poor Catholic people in this country. That must never be forgotten. They didn’t just provide their teaching. In most cases, as here in Armagh at Greenpark, they also provided the buildings in which that teaching took place. Edmund Rice, Catherine McCauley of the Mercy Order, Nano Nagle of the Presentation Sisters, and their brothers and sisters performed an invaluable service to this nation. They certainly responded to Christ’s call to serve the least of his brethren. They were patriots in the truest and purest sense of that word.

So as we remember and give thanks tonight we salute the service of so many people. We salute the Brothers and their co-workers. We remember, with gratitude, the teachers and parents of six generations who made sacrifices to hand on the faith. We remember and salute the contribution of rich and poor, who by joining the fruits of their work to that of the Brothers, shared in the work of their hands.

What the Brothers have left us here in Armagh is fundamentally a tradition of service and self-sacrifice for the love of God. They have always worked for people, not for profit. The Gospel set the syllabus for Edmund Rice. Education was his conscience.

To do and to teach, is the motto of the Christian Brothers. That motto comes from their faith in God, who has revealed Himself in Christ. Christ’s last words to his disciples were: “Go teach all nations”. In this final year of preparation for the Great Jubilee we are all called to make a journey. We are called to rediscover the heart of the Christian faith, which is faith in the Trinity. We are called to be witnesses to this faith in our daily lives. We are all called to play our part in making God’s Kingdom come on earth. The Brothers play their part by living a life of profound faith and of prayer. A life of faith which issues forth in good works.
Now 140 years later I can truthfully say that the expectations of Cardinal Cullen have been fully realised.

May I publicly put on record my appreciation of the work of the Christian Brothers here in Armagh. In doing so, I know that I am speaking on behalf of countless individuals and families in this city who have reason to be grateful to the Brothers and their schools because of the quality of education they have received.

Br Kelly, you have been headmaster for the past eleven years of St Patrick’s Grammar School and in the 1970s and 80s you were teacher and headmaster in Greenpark Grammar School. Excellence has been the hallmark of both schools under your headship; you can justly be proud of St Patrick’s Grammar School, this superb educational institution, second to none on these islands, which has so splendidly developed under your competent direction from its foundation in 1988. Br Ennis, you have taught on the staff of St Patrick’s Grammar School for the past eleven years and were headmaster of Greenpark Grammar School from 1982 to 1988. You have truly endeared yourself to generations of young men and to their parents, not just by your pursuit of high academic standards, but also by the pursuit of excellence on the football field. Br McDermott, you were principal teacher of the CBS Primary School in Armagh from 1967 to 1988, during some of the worst years of the Troubles. You retired from teaching in 1988 but did not retire at all, but rather tirelessly engaged yourself in work for this parish and for this Archdiocese. We were happy last year, on the occasion of your Diamond Jubilee, to see your dedication and commitment rewarded by papal recognition. Br Young, in comparison to your colleagues, your apprenticeship in Armagh has been short, lasting only eleven years. You have served faithfully and ably during that time as teacher, dean and Superior.

We recall all the Brothers who have served here. We recall all the lay teachers who taught in Greenpark and at St Patrick’s Grammar School, the pupils who passed through these schools. We recall the living and the dead. We recall the Brothers who have died here and whose earthly remains lie here on Sandy Hill. We pray that they may rest in peace.

Finally, might I suggest one means of expressing thanks to the Brothers for all they have done. Could I suggest that you pray for the canonisation of their Founder, Blessed Edmund Rice? Here, I take this opportunity of thanking and commending the local Blessed Edmund Prayer Group who are so faithful and loyal to their meetings.

We thank the Christian Brothers for their work here in Armagh. We pray that the Lord may continue to bless them and their apostolate in all parts of the world in which they continue the apostolate of Catholic education.

Like St Patrick, in the words attributed to him, the Brothers could say:
“Is Ard Macha no charaim-si
Inmain treb, inmain tulach.”

(It is Armagh that I love
A dear people, a dear place.”)

TOWARDS 2000
LIFE (NI) CONFERENCE
Holiday Inn Express, Belfast
Saturday 25th April, 1998, 3.00 p.m.
ADDRESS BY MOST REVEREND SEAN BRADY
THE VALUE OF LIFE

The sacredness of human life has always been part of the moral teaching of the great religious traditions of the world. It is coming under systematic questioning in our time. It is very important that we find the appropriate response through study, reflection, prayer and action.

There is a story told about the Buddha. One day a crazy man attacked the Buddha with a axe and was about the kill him. The Buddha put up his hand to stop him and said, “Listen, just a moment. Before you kill me I want you to take that axe and go over and cut a branch off that tree there”. So the attacker went off, and with a big strong swing, chopped the branch off the tree. Then he came back to the Buddha. “Now”, said the Buddha, “I want you to take that branch and put it back onto the tree”. The attacker looked at him. “What?”, he said, “you’re crazy. You know very well that I cannot do that”. “No”, said the Buddha, “it is not I who am crazy, it is you, for you are about to destroy something you cannot restore and something that you have not brought into being”. His attacker paused for a moment, then after a few moments walked away without saying anything.

Fullness of Life

We are all called to a fullness of life which far exceeds the dimensions of our earthly existence. That fullness of life consists in sharing in the life of God. But the fact that we are called to eternal life reveals the greatness and the value of human life on earth, because life, here on earth, life in time, is the fundamental condition of the entire process of human existence. Life in time, life on earth is the initial stage of the whole process of our existence. Life in time here on earth is an integral part of that process.

All Life is Precious – Vegetative and Animal Life

As we drive around the roads at this time of year, despite all the bad weather, one cannot but be struck by the beauty of vegetative life. The furze is in wonderful bloom; the hedges are just beginning to show their marvelous signs of new life; shrubs and plants do likewise. Lawns and gardens are full of life. I think of the beauty of the lilies of fields and roses in rose gardens and how much joy they give to those who cultivate them and to those who admire them. I think of the goodness and nourishment provided by the crops and fruits and vegetables which our gracious and bountiful Mother Earth provides to nourish all other life – animal and human life.

Springtime

Spring is a good time to talk of the value of life with so many signs of new life beginning to appear. It is a time when birds build nests. It is a time when farmyards resound to the sounds of lambs and calves and foals. Children marvel at the sight of kittens and puppies and chickens and ducklings and goslings. Recently on a visit to the American Folk Park in Omagh I was amazed at the fascination which the remarkable collection of live pedigree rabbits had for all of the visitors but especially for the children.

All life comes from God who is the source of life. The living God calls us to eternal life. Right from its beginning to the end, the Word of God presents a profound appreciation of life, in all its forms. It is a gift in which the mystery and generosity of God shine forth. The phrase ‘The Living God’ is used frequently in the Bible. It is an indication of how highly Scripture regards life.

Life is Precious

Life is something precious. Life appears at the last stage of creation. It is the crowning point of creation. “On the fifth day are born the sea monsters, living things that glide and move in the waters” the book of Genesis tells us. The Earth then brings forth further living creatures (Gen. 1:24). Finally, God created the most perfect living thing of all, in his own image, the human person.

Therefore even though life is a time of hard work, the book of Job tells us that, “People are ready to sacrifice everything to preserve life”. (Job. 2:4). To be in the land of the living and to die as Abraham did at a happy old age, advanced in years and filled with days is the ideal. (Job. 42:17). Parents intensely desire to have children as they are a source of joy and a sort of extension of their own lives. (Ps. 127).

Life is Fragile

People and other living creatures have a rather tenuous grip on life. Death is part of their nature. So life is short, like ‘wisps of smoke’ according to the Book of Wisdom (Wis. 2:2) – ‘shadow’ according to the Book of Psalms. (Ps. 144:4).

Life is Sacred

It is true that all life comes from God, yet the power of the human being to breathe comes from God in a very special way. To make man a living individual God breathed in his nostrils the breath of life, the book of Genesis tells us. (Gen. 2:7). It is the same breath which he withdraws at death, according to the book of Job. (Job. 34:14).

Nothing in our experience has quite the same value as human life. After an accident or a big fire the first question is: Has anyone been hurt? Anyone killed? The car, even the building can be replaced, but the human person cannot. Every human person is unique and irreplaceable.

Respect for life

Human life is sacred even before it is born. Sexuality and sexual life are sacred because they are the mysterious source of human life. These truths have been honoured by the great majority of people all through history, whatever their religion, whatever their culture.

From the moment that human life begins to exist at conception it is entitled to the same respect and protection as any other human life. Any action which sets out to destroy this life is morally wrong. The lives of both the child and the mother are sacred. The right to life of each of them is inviolable. Abortion is the direct taking of innocent life and no motive can justify it. No court judgement, no legislation can make it morally right. Abortion goes to the very well-spring of human life and touches the very foundations of morality.

The birth of a child brings delight and joy to parents, grandparents and everyone else connected with the family. The death of someone we love brings suffering and sadness. Life is precious in its coming to us and its going from us.

Indeed our own deepest feelings tell us that human life ranks above all other values. We are desperately attached to life, our own life, the life of those we love. Notice how we protect ourselves from accidents and disease. The thought of facing hospital or surgery, for ourselves or for our dear ones, frightens us. In the face of death, life becomes very precious.

Christians in particular have been unanimous and undivided in their absolute respect for unborn life and in their view of what reverence for the source of life implies. These values have begun to be questioned only in recent years; so it is important that we examine these matters again in the light of the Gospel and in the light of Christian and human conscience.

The Christian principle of respect for human life at every stage of its existence is firm and clear – God and God alone is the Lord of Life. We are made in the image and likeness of God. We come from God, we go to God, we belong to God. In the Psalms we read:

Know that the Lord is God!
It is He that made Us,
and we are His;
We are His people. (Ps. 99: 3)
Thou shalt not kill

God’s commandment, ‘thou shalt not kill’, unconditionally forbids all taking of innocent human life from its beginning in the womb until the end that God, not we, has set for it. We must have absolute respect for human life. It comes from God’s hands, from the very first moment of conception, and remains under God’s care on earth, until he takes it back to himself in death.

Is Every Life of Equal Value?

Some will say that not every life is of equal value. But in the eyes of God every life is of equal and priceless value. We must see every life as having the value which it has for God. Christ told us something about that when he said: “Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny yet, not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why every hair on your head has been counted. There is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than hundreds of sparrows (Mt. 10:29-31).

Each human being is called to live with God forever. This is where we see the value of each human being. Sometimes people answer the question about what the person was, by stating the value of his/her assets or the amount of his annual earnings. The true answer is that every person is worth the life blood of Christ. There, and only there, is the true standard for judging the value of life

The Hippocratic Oath

The unwritten laws of the Creator can be seen by human reason and witnessed in God’s creation. They are engraved in the human heart. They are found in the human conscience and in the sense of personal responsibility. The ethics of the medical profession for example have found expression in the Hippocratic Oath.
Hippocrates was a little Greek who lived about 500 years before Christ. He traveled a lot and became the most famous Greek physician of ancient times. He became the embodiment of the ideal physician. By the terms of the Hippocratic Oath doctors solemnly swore:

“I shall never, no matter who may demand it, supply homicidal drugs. I shall never supply any woman with an abortive peccary. By chastity and sanctity I shall protect my life and my profession”.

The Geneva Medical Book, drawn up in 1948 by the World Health Organisation has a more modern form of the Hippocratic Oath and it says simply:

‘I shall keep absolute respect for human life from the moment of conception”.
Here we have the oldest and noblest tradition in the medical profession. That profession takes its stand for the sacred character, the absolute rights, of the unborn child. Here we are also at one with the deepest conviction of the human conscience.

Threats to Human Life

We live in an age marked by an extraordinary increase in the number of threats against the human life. Today those threats are very many and very serious. This is especially so where life is weak and defenseless. Poverty, hunger, diseases, violence in war, have always proved a threat to human life.

Thirty years ago the Second Vatican Council condemned very powerfully a number of crimes and attacks against human life. The passage, that is still relevant today, says: “Whatever is opposed to life itself, such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia, or willful self-destruction, whatever violates the integrity of the human person such as mutilation, torment inflicted on body or mind, attempts to coerce the will itself; whatever insults human dignity, such as sub-human living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children; as well as disgraceful working conditions, where people are treated as mere instruments of gain rather than as free and responsible persons all these things and others like them poison human society. They do more harm to those who practice them than those who suffer from the injuries. They are a supreme dishonour to the Creator”.

Unfortunately this disturbing state of affairs is expanding instead of decreasing. Scientific and technological progress have made possible new forms of attacks on the dignity of the human person. A new cultural climate is developing which gives crimes against life a new and even more sinister character. The reason is that broad sectors of public opinion try to justify certain crimes against life in the name of the rights of individual freedom. On this basis they claim not only exemption from punishment by the law but even authorisation by the State. The result is that these things can be done with total freedom and indeed with the free assistance of health care systems. The result is that choices, once unanimously thought criminal and rejected by common moral sense, are gradually becoming socially acceptable. Some doctors, who by their calling are directed to the defence and care of human life, are increasingly willing to carry out these acts against the person.

The very nature of the medical profession is, in this way, being distorted and contradicted. The dignity of those who practice it is degraded. The end result is tragic. The destruction of so many human lives, which are still to be born or in their final stage, is extremely serious and disturbing. But the fact that conscience itself is finding it increasingly difficult to distinguish between good and evil in what concerns the basic value of human life is immensely disturbing.

Law and Society

Why does society exist? Why do we have laws? Society and the law exist to serve the human person.

They exist to protect the rights of the person, and to promote respect for the basic rights of all members of society. The right to life is the most fundamental of all rights. It is the foundation of all other rights. But who in society has the obligation to see that the basic rights of all members are protected? The obligation to see that basic rights of all members of society are respected falls on legislators, members of the judiciary and in the last analysis, on every citizen. But the primary duty falls on the Legislators and the Judges. Now a law which purports to authorise the direct and intentional killing of an innocent human being withdraws the protection to which every innocent life is entitled. Such a law denies the equality of everyone before the law. Such a law therefore contradicts the very purpose for which law exists. It is not a true morally binding law, but rather an act of violence and a corruption of law. So, keeping in mind that the obligation to protect the basic rights of all members of society, including the right to life, is one that falls on legislators, let us examine what actually is happening. First of all the promoters of liberal abortion for Ireland are trying to sow confusion and doubt. They know well that promoting abortion is not likely to draw support from the communities of Ireland. So what do they do? They claim that the present legal situation is unsatisfactory.

It is said that the present law is unclear or uncertain. Those arguing for clarification are in reality obscuring the situation in order to try to hide what they are doing. People opposing change in the law are pro-life campaigners in general. What is the law on abortion in Northern Ireland? Northern Irish law protects unborn children. The statutes prohibit abortion establishing no exceptions other than acts to preserve the life of the mother. With reference to English Case Law, Northern Irish courts have allowed abortions in a few cases. This Case Law makes it clear that abortion on demand is not lawful in Northern Ireland.

Does the Law need Clarifying

What of the claim that the law needs clarifying. It is clear that the law gives substantial protection to unborn children while the British Abortion Act fails utterly to do so. The interpretation of preserving life to include a serious adverse effect on health may be controversial but that doesn’t mean that the law cannot readily be interpreted and enforced by the courts. The British Abortion Act is considerably harder to enforce. Is there cross-community support for legal protection of unborn children? Yes. People of Northern Ireland have, through every democratic means, expressed their overwhelming opposition to any liberalisation of their abortion legislation. In 1990, the then Health Minister, Virginia Bottomley said, “To the best of my knowledge no Northern Ireland member of parliament has ever called for changes in the Northern Ireland Abortion Act Laws”. Similarly all the soundings of opinion have made it very clear that there is no will in Northern Ireland for such a change. What of the women from Northern Ireland who go to England for abortions? Quite clearly people have the means to travel abroad to do things that are not legal in their own jurisdiction. This will always be the case as different jurisdictions have different laws
A law intended to permit the killing of the most vulnerable members of the human family is not justified by the fact that others already have such legislation. The experience of other countries is that unless abortion is entirely unrestricted it will result in some degree of what pro-abortionists call “exporting the problem”.

France has a very permissive policy on early abortion but restrictions on later abortion. The result is that many French women travel each year for abortions in England where later abortion is more readily available.

What can be done?

It can happen that a person acts under the pressure of panic or great fear or under the influence of psychological forces or under severe coercion and we may not blame them fully for their actions. Such considerations do not alter the fact that a person’s right to life has been fundamentally violated by the process of abortion.

A discussion of the value of life is incomplete if it doesn’t discuss the dilemma of a single or married women faced with an unplanned pregnancy and frequently under enormous pressure from every side to solve her dilemma by abortion. So as often as we speak of preventing abortion we must speak of our concern for the mother of the unborn child who is searching for understanding, acceptance and assistance.

In the United States some three thousand pro-life centres, staffed mostly by volunteers, have been established to provide every form of support needed to help women have their babies. The formation of such groups as Lutherans for Life, Methodists for Life, Presbyterians for Life and the Choose Life Society, a national Jewish pro-life organisation, demonstrates that abortion is not simply a Catholic or Evangelical religious issue. According to pollster, Louis Harris, 68% of all Americans think that it is against God’s will to destroy the life of an unborn baby, and 60% believe that a foetus should have rights just like all other human beings. So the simple answer to the question, why choose life in the face of an unwanted pregnancy is, because the child in the womb is a human being.

Doctor Bernard Nathanson, of New York, performed thousands of abortions and lobbied for abortion rights before advances in medicine convinced him that human lives were being taken. An atheist, he has produced two dramatic films on abortion to educate people about life in the womb.

One of the most profound experiences of my life was to visit a home for homeless babies in Calcutta last October. Mother Teresa had founded that home out of her profound respect and love and joy for the gift to life. The morning we visited there were four hundred and forty babies there. Mother Teresa invites us all to see that respect for human life is an attitude, a way of living. It is planted and nurtured in the many places and circumstances of our lives where we work and live and play. Each one of us, no matter the circumstances of our lives, can follow her example of respect, compassion and joy at the gift of life. Our witness will be treasured in the heart of God and in the hearts of those whose lives we touch.
Injustice and Tyranny.

Every form of injustice and tyranny is based on treating some people as less valuable than others. When historians come to write the history of the present age, I wonder will they ask, in amazement: How the Western world, considering itself so politically correct, so enlightened, so liberal and so liberated, could tolerate the situation of so much abortion in the world, of so many starving and living beneath the poverty line and finally of the crippling debt to the industrialised world of some of the poorest countries in the world?

The abortions women procure abroad can be the product of fear, anguish and isolation. Too often they are the fruit of the abandonment of responsibility or lack of responsibility of the father. We are living in a world where abortion is widely accepted and promoted. A society, founded on respect for every human life would not respond by seeking to facilitate abortion. It would be generous in ensuring that understanding and support are always available.

In Northern Ireland the Pro-Life Movement spans all political parties and all religious denominations. In a land where so much has divided us in the past, it is always uplifting to identify an area where all shades of political and religious opinions seem to be in agreement. Long may that situation last and may it flourish.
A new human life, once conceived, is not the property of its parents, even if it is still dependent on them. Every human life is sacred, right from the first moment of its existence, because it involves the creative power of God. God did not create death and takes no pleasure in the destruction of the living. God has trust in life and so should we.

OPENING OF COLLEGE FARM NURSERY SCHOOL
THURSDAY JUNE 3, 1999
ADDRESS BY CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY

I would like to associate myself with the welcome extended by Mrs Brenda Murphy, the Principal, to all of you who have come here today for the blessing and official opening of College Farm Nursery School.

College Farm Nursery School opened its doors on 4 January, last, to some fifty 3-4 year old pupils. I am told that the pupils enjoy very much the care being given to them by the Principal, Mrs Murphy and by Mrs Greene who are assisted by Mrs Martin and Mrs Kennedy. Catering is looked after by Mrs Barton while Mr Gribben is the general caretaker.

We are very grateful to the Peace and Reconciliation Fund of the European Union for making all of this possible and for the management offered by CCMS. I welcome here also the representatives from DENI and from the Southern Education and Library Board.

I think the community of Armagh is very fortunate to have such a beautiful nursery. Nowadays the importance of nursery education is being understood and emphasised more and more and the prayer of the blessing is that these children will appreciate it and derive great value from their attendance here.

Mr Jim Maxwell, the Chairman, will speak in more detail about funding for College Farm Nursery School. Armagh has been successful in obtaining agreement for an alternative model of nursery provision, that is, alternative to the existing pattern of separate provision for the maintained and controlled sectors. Inevitably as nursery education continues to develop, and I am sure it will develop, there will be pressure on all partners to respond in a proactive and flexible manner to this new situation.

I have read the information for parents prepared by the staff of this school and I must say that it is very impressive. The photographs tell us that learning is fun at College Farm Nursery School as we see Rachael, Gráinne and Niamh making circles together, Gary enjoying the Lego house, Adam experimenting with markers and Mrs Greene’s class playing with blocks and dough and painting the walls with water. It is all very exciting. The children eat what they bake for their snack in the weekly cookery session. They sing together, they make music, they learn new songs. They paint, they draw, they share a story book every day in the school. There is also a lending library from which they can borrow books.

I simply want to congratulate and thank everyone associated with the provision of this marvellous new facility for the nursery pupils of Armagh. In it, I hope, the children will develop a great respect for each other, a great love of learning and a great desire to develop all their talents. When they get all of that confidence they will be able to relate to each other in a healthy, positive and good way.

So my prayers and my blessings are with everyone involved in College Farm Nursery School. I trust that the understanding and skills and exchanges which these young people have here will help them to be peaceful citizens, at peace with the world, with their neighbours, with themselves and with their God. I hope that it will enable them to play their part in the reconciliation of our divided community.

ARMAGH DIOCESAN PILGRIMAGE TO LOURDES

HOMILY BY CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY

MAY 1999

Eternal life is this: to know You, the only true God of Jesus Christ whom You have sent.
In the Magnificat which Mary pronounced on the occasion of her visit to her cousin, Elizabeth, she says, “My soul praises the Lord. My spirit rejoices in God, my Saviour”. The God whom Mary knows and loves and praises is a God of faithful love – a God who reveals Himself in His actions and in His message. And, the hope of each one of us is that we will experience, in a new way, and in a deeper way, during these days of pilgrimage to Lourdes, the God who revealed Himself in a new way in Jesus Christ, as a God of faithful Love.

Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no-one can come to the Father except through me”. And, since he is the way to the Father, since he is the truth that will set us free, and the life that we are all thirsting for, it is important that we come to know Jesus. If you want to know the nature of a tree it is sometimes important to examine the soil that encloses its roots. The soil from which its sap grows into branch, blossom and flower. To understand and know Jesus we would do well to look at the soil that produced him, Mary his mother.

We are told that she was of royal descent. Certainly Mary’s answer to the question of the Angel Gabriel was queenly. She was confronted with a choice of tremendous greatness, a decision that called for a trust in God which reached far beyond her understanding. She gave her answer simply, totally unconscious I would say of the greatness of what she was doing, because, from that moment on, Mary’s destiny was shaped by the destiny of her child, Jesus. This is soon obvious in the journey to Bethlehem. In the birth of her son which took place amidst danger and in poverty. In the sudden break off from the protection of her home and in the flight to a strange land. We can think of the wrench it was for her not to be allowed to return to her home with her newborn child and all the uncertainty and the troubles she had to endure.

The true nature of what stands at the centre of her existence is probably only revealed to her years later in the finding in the temple when her son said, in reply to her question, Why have you done this to us? Your father and I have been looking all over the place for you?, in sorrow Jesus said: “How is it that you are looking for me? Did you not know that I must be about my Father’s business”. At that moment Mary must have begun to understand the prophesy of Simeon when he said: “And your own soul, the sword shall pierce”. We are not surprised to read and they did not understand the words that he spoke to them and his mother kept all these things carefully in her heart. She does not understand but she buries the words like precious seed, deep in her heart. The vision of Mary is unequal to that of her son, but her heart, like chosen ground, is deep enough to sustain the highest trees.

There follows eighteen years of silence. There is not a word in the Scriptures except that the boy went down with them and grew in wisdom, years and grace before God and men. And yet, the silence of the Gospels, speaks a powerful message, deep, still, eventfulness, cloaked in the silent love of this holiest of mothers. Then Jesus leaves home to begin his mission. Still Mary is near him, for example, at the wedding feast of Cana. Later on she was upset probably by wild rumours that he was out of his mind. She leaves everything and goes to him, and stands outside the door. And of course, at the last she is with him, under the cross to the end. From the first hour to the last, the life of Jesus is enfolded in the nearness of his mother. The strongest part of their relationship is her silence.

Mary did not understand. How could she, a mortal, understand the mystery of the living God? She was capable, however, of something which on earth is far more than understanding, something possible only through that same divine power which, when the hour has come grants understanding, faith – she believed. “And blessed is she who has believed”, Elizabeth said of her. This cry of her cousin, Elizabeth, describes Mary’s greatness.

Mary believed blindly. Then again she had to strengthen that belief and possibly each time with more difficulty. For years she had to combat confusion. Who was this holy one whom she, a mere girl, had brought into the world? This great one she had suckled and known in all his helplessness.

Later she had to cope with seeing him outgrow her love and to rejoice in it as the fulfillment of God’s will. Despite the fact that she did not understand everything that was happening, she never lost heart.

Perseverance in faith, even at Calvary, this was Mary’s greatness and every step which Jesus took towards the fulfillment of his destiny, Mary followed in faith. Understanding came only with Pentecost. Then, at last, she understood all that she had so long reverently stored up in her heart. It is this heroic faith which places her forever at Christ’s side in the work of saving the world. And, what is demanded of us, as of her, is a constant wrestling in faith with the mystery of God and the evil resistance of the world. And, the purer we see and understand the figure of Mary, the Mother of God, as she is recorded in the New Testament, the greater the gain for our own lives.

“Blessed is she who has believed”. And, I suppose there are times in the lives of each one of us when we are confused, have doubts. Perhaps we do not understand why something should have happened to us, yet those are the moments when God is closest to us. We should try to experience his presence in those moments.

Take the incidence in the Temple of Jerusalem. He was, after all, only a child when he stayed behind, without a word. It is a time when the city was full of pilgrims, when not only accidents but every kind of violence could be expected. Surely they had a right to ask why he had acted like this. Yet his response expresses only amazement. No wonder they failed to understand. It is the same at the wedding feast in Cana in Galilee. He is seated at a table, Mary tells him there is no wine. Jesus answers “What would you have me do woman? My hour has not yet come”. In other words I must wait for my hour. Another time Mary came down from Galilee to see him. He was told your mother and your brothers are outside looking for you. He said: “Who are my mother and my brother? It is the one who does the will of God that is my brother and sister and mother. And, although certainly he went out to her and received her with love, the words remain and we feel the shock of his reply and sense something of the remoteness in which she lived. Even his reply to the words: “Blessed is the womb that bore thee and blessed are they who hear the word of God and keep it”.

Finally, in Calvary, his mother on the cross thirsting for a word, her heart crucified with him, he says with a glance at John “woman behold thy son” and to John “behold thy mother”. Yes, here he is, this is the expression of a dying son’s concern and care for his mother’s future and yet her heart must have twinged. Once again she is directed away from him. Christ must face the fullness of his last hour, all alone. He must fulfill it from utterly alone with the load of sins he has shouldered, before the justice of God. Everything that affected Jesus affected his mother. Yet no intimate understanding existed between them. His life was her life. He is the holy one and yet her faith was finally rewarded.

In the course of our lives we may meet many doubts and yet none of them can be settled by our intelligence alone for the essence of true understanding is not the fruit of argument but of obedience and faith. And so, we ask for the great gift of a faith like Mary’s, a rock-like faith, a granite-like faith. From the start Jesus demanded of all his followers a clear yes or no to the demands of faith he made upon them. Jesus came to redeem us, to do thus he had to inform us who God is and what we are in the sight of God.

Faith is as essential to our understanding of Jesus Christ as the eye to colour and the ear to sound. If anyone should ask what is certain in life and in death, so certain that everything else may be anchored in it? The answer is: the love of Christ. That is the only true reply. Not people, not even the best and dearest of people, not science, philosophy or art or any other product of human genius. Not even God for His wrath has been roused by sin and how, without Christ would we know what to expect from Him? Only Christ’s love is certain. We cannot even say God’s love, for ultimately we know that God loves us only through Christ. And, even if we did know without Christ that God loved us, love, the more noble it is, the more demanding it is. Only through Christ do we know that God’s love is forgiving. The only thing that is certain is that which manifests itself on the cross. What has been said so often is true, the heart of Jesus Christ is the beginning and end of all things.

Faith is not easy. Everything in and around us contradicts us, often with arguments which are difficult to answer. It can be pointed out that the greatest power and weightiest deeds come from elsewhere. We might be asked the embarrassing question whether the redeemed shouldn’t look more redeemed. The faithful, the true are names of the Lord. How is it possible then that the Divine Word is not believed?

Truth is the foundation of existence and the bread of the Spirit, yet in the realm of human history truth is separated from power. Truth counts, but power forces. What truth lacks is immediate power. The loftier the truth, the weaker its direct force. The nobler the truth the more easily it can be shoved aside or ridiculed. This applies particularly to sacred truth, for the moment it enters the world it lays down its power and comes in the shape of a helpless slave. The light shines in the darkness and darkness did not grasp it, but one day truth and power will be inseparable. Then truth will have as much power as it has validity and value and the higher it stands, the greater will be its force.

How will this come about? Through the word of Christ, truth’s first word was weak, as weak and defenseless as Jesus himself and the powers of darkness could easily reject it. But truth’s second word will be as forceful as its sense which is all-powerful and then everything in us that shrinks from the light will have to go for there will be no more shade. Now untruth can exist because truth is feeble. Just as sin can exist because God allows our free will room in which it is able to decide against Him. Now, for yet a little while, it is possible to ere and to lie. However, once truth comes into power, untruth will no longer be able to exist because all existence will brim with truth and light.

For those who long for truth, for that in us which loves it, what a liberation. As Thomas Aquinas says, ‘Beauty is the splendour of truth become reality’.

OFFICIAL OPENING
CARDINAL TOMÁS Ó FIAICH MEMORIAL LIBRARY AND ARCHIVE
SATURDAY, 8 MAY, 1999, 11.00AM
ADDRESS OF WELCOME BY MOST REVEREND SEÁN BRADY,
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

Secretary of State, Minister, Deputy First Minister Designate, Members of Parliament. Archbishops, President, Deputy Mayor and Alderman, Reverend Sisters, Brothers, Fathers, Ladies and Gentlemen.
Cuirim fáilte roimh cách. I welcome all of you to the official opening of the Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich Memorial Library and Archive on this the Eighth of May, the ninth anniversary of his death.

Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich would have been very pleased – I will not say proud because he was not a proud man – but happy to bid you welcome here today.

The Secretary of State, Dr Mo Mowlam, is most welcome. Your heroic efforts for a lasting peace and your untiring work in the search for that peace make you a very welcome guest in any part of this island.
I said that the late Cardinal was not a proud man. I think, however, he would be seriously tempted to pride to see here, his past student and illustrious statesman, now a recipient of the Nobel Prize for Peace, Mr John Hume. As an Armagh man, he would have been very happy to welcome also the Deputy First Minister Designate, Mr Séamus Mallon, MP for this constituency. With the Secretary of State and many others, both John and Séamus have worked tirelessly to provide an enduring peace in our land. We pray that their efforts will bear much fruit and that the fragile peace we now enjoy may grow to full strength, stature and maturity.

The Cardinal loved Donegal and went there often. The presence of Dr Jim McDaid, TD, Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, a Donegal man from St Colmcille’s native heath, is very much appreciated. We are truly honoured and privileged that both the Irish and British Governments should be represented here today at such a high level.

Tomás Ó Fiaich was a Cardinal and therefore a special advisor to the Holy Father. It is most fitting that the Pope’s representative in Ireland, the Apostolic Nuncio in Ireland, Archbishop Storero, should be present. He too is most welcome.

Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich greatly enjoyed and cherished the company of leaders and representatives of the other Christian Churches. He was for many years a member of the Catholic Church’s Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. His motto, Fratres in Unum, Brothers in Unity, reflected his desire to promote understanding and respect for those who differ. He would have greatly appreciated the presence here today of Archbishop Eames. Both served together as Archbishops of Armagh. He would have been very happy that Dr Eames and I, his successor, are the two Patrons of this Library/Archive. The Cardinal would also have been very happy to welcome The Reverend David Kerr, President of the Methodist Church in Ireland and Dr Samuel Hutchinson, General Secretary of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, representing the Moderator who is abroad. I look forward to our joint prayer of blessing later this morning.

Céad míle fáilte to our guest-speaker, Professor Peter Ochsenbein from St Gallen, Switzerland. It is most appropriate that we should reflect today on Irish-European links and that we have a distinguished scholar from the site of an ancient Irish monastic settlement to lead that reflection.

I welcome Mrs Deirdre Fee and the Cardinal’s nephews and nieces. This is a proud if poignant day for you. I welcome Cllr Tommy Canavan, Deputy Mayor of Armagh City and District, representing the Mayor. I also welcome Alderman Joseph Trueman, Chairman, Southern Education and Library Board; the Department of Education in Northern Ireland has co-operated most generously with this Library/Archive.

All here present, from Armagh City and Archdiocese, from throughout Ireland and from many countries abroad, have in one way or another been touched by the life and times of Tomás Ó Fiaich, either during his life or posthumously, sharing his spiritual, cultural, literary, historical, peace or scholarly interests. Mgr Murray will thank the various groups and individuals later whether from the Church or historical, political or academic worlds . I also warmly welcome the benefactors of whom Mgr Murray will speak later but I must now mention the Heritage Lottery Fund which has contributed so handsomely to the project and in so doing to the study of history and to the promotion of literary and cultural interests. Mrs Primrose Wilson will later address us and unveil a plaque.

As Cardinal Ó Fiaich’s second successor it is a great privilege and joy for me to be here today. Cardinal Daly, his immediate successor, is unavoidably absent today honouring a long-standing engagement abroad. In his letter of apologies to me he wrote as follows:

“I have long looked forward to the opening of the Library and Archive, having shared in the planning and preparations for it from the beginning. …. It will be a very important occasion in the life of the Archdiocese of Armagh, and will stand as a wonderful memorial to the life and learning and the culture of the late Cardinal. It will also be a great enhancement of the facilities, which Armagh can offer as a centre for Irish ecclesiastical studies. I hope that the new Library and Archive will contribute greatly in the development of Armagh as once more a centre of higher studies, for which it was so renowned in the past. The new building certainly enhances the architectural heritage of Armagh and I look forward to visiting it at an early date in the future.”

We all applaud Cardinal Daly’s sentiments. Bishop Gerard Clifford regrets that because of a Confirmation ceremony he cannot be here today.

The opening of the Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich Memorial Library and Archive is indeed a proud and happy day for all who have supported the project and have worked tirelessly for its achievement. I congratulate them warmly. Today marks the fulfilment of a long-cherished dream for Cardinal Ó Fiaich’s many friends and admirers.

This elegant, modern, state-of-the-art Library and Archive provides a worthy monument to the memory of a much-loved son of Armagh.

We know the past because we keep a memory of it. This building will be an eloquent testimony to the memory of the late Cardinal. It salutes the life and work of a highly respected academic, a well-known ecclesiastic and a greatly esteemed priest. It will keep his memory alive and vivid for a long time. The fact that his books and papers are now being placed in a public Library and Archive to provide a rare and precious opportunity to know the man in a real way is very appropriate, for his books reflect his many interests. They reveal his strong sense of identity, his pride in his Irishness, his love of history and of sport, his passionate interest in Irish history and Irish spirituality.

He lived twenty busy years on this hill. This Library and Archive will offer a wonderful opportunity to those who wish to come and interest themselves in the subjects in which Cardinal Ó Fiaich was interested, to study the kind of material and literature and sources which he studied and which made him the wholesome, graceful person whom we knew and admired.

The late Cardinal would most certainly have wholeheartedly welcomed the Good Friday Agreement. He would have rejoiced in the opportunity which it provides. I believe that he would have been delighted at the election of his nephew, John Fee, to the Assembly.

Now the implementation of the Agreement is being delayed by the present impasse. Many of you remember the pleas made by Cardinal Ó Fiaich at the time of the impasse over the hungerstrikes in 1981. Those appeals were for concessions to be made by both sides. Those pleas fell on deaf ears – with tragic results.

Today I re-echo a similar appeal to those embroiled in the present impasse to go the extra mile and give the people the peace for which they have overwhelmingly voted. Let both sides give a little so that all may gain a lot.

This is a splendid monument. But I know that the future memorial which would really delight the late Cardinal would be the sight of people, young students especially, from different traditions, religions and politics, sitting side by side in this public library – studying their own culture, religious history and way of life and those of others – and growing in their understanding together and appreciation of each other in the process.

We are immensely grateful to those who have provided this excellent Library and Archive. Let us hope that the achievement will inspire and challenge many people to use it often.

THE PASSION OF OUR LORD
DUNDALK
GOOD FRIDAY, 2 APRIL 1999
ADDRESS BY CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY

We know that the Passion of Our Lord asks a lot of questions. Jesus asked a lot of questions of the various people he met in Jerusalem on that weekend. There were the cohort and the police, sent by the Chief priests and the Pharisees, just doing their day’s work, earning their pay. At the end they took his clothing and divided it among them and Jesus asked them: ‘Who are you looking for?’ Yes, they had a name, Jesus the Nazarene. That is the man they were sent out to arrest. Perhaps the name did not mean much to them. Did they care? Were they interested?

Then when Peter drew his sword and wanted to use violence, Jesus asked him: ‘Am I not to drink the cup (of suffering) that the Father has given me?’ In other words, am I not to do the will of my Father.

Then there were Annas and Caiphas and the Chief Priests. They were questioning Jesus about his disciples and his teaching. Why ask me? Ask my hearers what I taught. Annas wanted a quick answer, a short-cut. He couldn’t be bothered going to much trouble to find out about Jesus.

Then there is Pilate who wants to know “Are you the King of the Jews”? But then Pilate doesn’t know what truth is. All he wants to know is; is this man a king? If he is, therefore he might be a threat to Pilate, who is the Governor. So Pilate is interested in himself really, nothing more. ‘Yes I am a King. I came into the world to bear witness to the truth.’ The truth to which Jesus bore witness is that he came to save the world – a world that was otherwise destined to be lost. ‘All who are on the side of truth listen to my voice’. The answer of Jesus is plain. We must be either on the side of truth or on the side of falsehood. All who are on the side of truth listen to his voice.

Then there were others. There was Simon of Cyrene, for example, the man who just happened to be there, in from the country to do a bit of shopping perhaps, seized and compelled to carry the cross. Not liking it one bit. The experience asked him a few questions and probably changed his life, as there is a tradition that his two sons became Christians and followers of Peter. The Cross of Christ once it touches our lives, even if we resent it at first, in the form of some tragedy or disaster, changes life, if we gradually accept it, the cross has the power to change our hearts. It asks questions also. There were the women of Jerusalem who wept for Jesus. Jesus asked them no questions, he just simply said, “Weep not for me but for yourselves and for your children”. There was Veronica who couldn’t carry the cross but she did carry it in her own way by wiping the bloodstained face of Jesus.

There were the bystanders, the onlookers, who laughed and sneered and ridiculed. There were the two thieves, one good, who asked to be remembered by Jesus and got a wonderful answer to his prayers. There were also the women, Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary, the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala; and there was John the beloved disciple. Jesus has no questions for them. They have proved their worth, to the end.

What about you and me? If we had been in Jerusalem that weekend, where would we have found ourselves? Who speaks for you and me among all those various groups? Would we be among the officials and soldiers and everybody else who is just doing a job, dividing the spoils? Throwing a dice for the seamless garment. Looking for Jesus, the Nazarene, yes, but in a very superficial way. Not really interested to know him but to know what I can get from him – a day’s pay perhaps, a share of the clothes and if I am lucky, a seamless robe.

Or would I be like Peter blowing hot and cold. One moment drawing the sword to defend Jesus, big stuff, and next minute denying that he had ever known him. One minute saying, he will not allow Jesus to wash his feet and the next minute saying, not only my feet but also my hands and my head.

Or am I to be found among the Chief Priests with Pilate; pretending to be interested in what Jesus teaches and stands for but only really going through the motions? Never interested enough to ask and listen to those who know what Jesus said. Washing my hands at every possible opportunity of any responsibility for the truth. Wondering perhaps, like Pilate, is there any such thing as truth. Jesus for those people is a bit of a bothersome nuisance really. Is Jesus in danger of becoming that for any of us. Ah yes, it is Good Friday. Better drop into Church at some stage and kiss the cross just in case of the worst. But I can’t stay too long or get too involved. You’d never know what I might be asked to do? Or are we like Simon of Cyrene, caught and pushed under the cross against our will at first, resenting and resisting like hell, but gradually coming to realise that the cross is the greatest proof of God’s love for each one of us.

Or are we to be found fortunately with that great crowd of courageous women and with John, the beloved disciple? I suppose we would all like to be but who knows?

Or are we like Veronica or the women of Jerusalem or the three Marys? “Weep for yourselves and for your children”, Jesus told them. It is a call to repentance. Weep for yourselves and for your sins, weep for your children and their sins. We cannot just scrape at the surface of evil. We have to get down to its roots and its causes. We have to face the truth of our conscience and do something about it.

There are two more I didn’t mention yet, Joseph of Aramathaea and Nicodemus – both were disciples of Jesus but secret ones. Not very courageous people but faithful, faithful in their own way. They arrived late and by that stage Jesus was no longer asking questions. He had met these men during his life and influenced them and convinced them that what he was saying was true. Now his dead body, hanging on the cross, once again asked them a question, What am I going to do about it?

Jesus forgives sins by the power of his cross and resurrection. The first time he saw his disciples after his death and resurrection he didn’t scold them for denying him and running away and abandoning him. Some show for a set of newly-ordained priests, or were they newly-ordained bishops as well? He simply says: “Receive the Holy Spirit. To any whose sins you forgive those sins will be forgiven”.

Jesus does not start accusing them. He is the shepherd who gave his life, out of love, for his people. He always welcomes those who accept the truth about themselves as sinners and who come looking for pardon. When someone kneels down in the confessional because he has sinned, that person, at that moment, adds to his/her own dignity. It does not matter how long or how heavy the sins are, or how long one has been away. It doesn’t matter how seriously our sins may have damaged our own dignity. The very act of a truthful confession, the very act of turning again to God is a sign of that person’s special dignity.

“Father I have sinned against God and against you”, says the prodigal son. That is a moment of deep truth. We are all sinners and we put ourselves in touch with God in a special way when we do that. This is the grace given by the sacrament of confession, the sacrament of Penance, the sacrament of Reconciliation. It has at least three names, because it has at least three parts. Sometimes we want to get cut-price grace by wanting the reconciliation part without the confession and without the penance. But sin is a very personal sort of offence, offered to God. It requires a personal sort of meeting, face to face, to sort it out with God the Father, who listens to us in secret. There is a certain nobility about someone who accepts the truth about his or her sinfulness and repents. That grace of repentance, which is given in the sacrament of Penance, flows from the Crucified Christ. Today we thank God for that grace and make a resolution to seek it often. Yes Jesus asks a lot of questions. What are we going to do about it?

AMEN

MURDER OF MRS ELIZABETH O’NEILL IN PORTADOWN
PRESS RELEASE
BY
ARCHBISHOP SEAN BRADY
5 June 1999

I offer my sympathy to Joseph, the husband, and family of Mrs. Elizabeth O’Neill, murdered in Portadown this morning. Her death is the latest in a long line of terrible tragedies. I condemn those responsible for this atrocity. I appeal to them, and to their leaders, to realise that these senseless deeds are only making the resolution of conflict more difficult.

The death of Mrs. O’Neill has been linked to the Drumcree crisis. It has often been said that the only resolution of that conflict is an agreement worked out by the two sides. That is clearly true which is why the present talks are so important and must continue. In the meantime it is the responsibility of the Government to see that the basic rights of people to life and security are protected in Portadown and everywhere in Northern Ireland. As I offer sympathy to all those whose homes have been attacked in recent times, I call on the Government to exercise that responsibility and ensure that Northern Ireland becomes a safer place for everyone.

I call on those elected and already given a mandate to implement the Belfast Agreement reached last year, to continue to try and make progress and so eliminate the dangerous vacuum created by the current impasse.

The substantial hope already raised must not be dashed. I appeal to all those who value that hope, to do all they can now to sustain it and to ensure that the journey towards a lasting peace continues. Above all they must remain calm and not allow themselves to be provoked into retaliation of any sort.

EASTER 1999
MESSAGE BY
ARCHBISHOP SEÁN BRADY

The Resurrection is the crowning truth of our faith in Jesus Christ. Some people are surprised by the statement that Easter is the most important of all Christian festivals. After all, they ask, does not that distinction belong to Christmas?

Of course, Christmas is a very significant feast because it celebrates the birth of Jesus. But Easter marks the most significant event of all, when Jesus suffered, died, and rose from the dead.

He passed from death to life. He set the world free from the slavery of sin and from the fear of death. He led us all into a freedom that will last forever. He is the Saviour of the world. St Paul’s frank assertion to the Corinthians proclaims a compelling truth: “If Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain”.

Easter means that through the Son, God the Father stoops down to every woman and man and offers each one of us the possibility of freedom from sin and liberation from everlasting death.

When we celebrate the Easter ceremonies, commemorating the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ, we are placing our own bodies and sufferings under the sign of the cross. It is our way of saying to Christ: “We want to share in the mystery of your bodily dying and rising”. It is our way of expressing the hope that one day God will raise up and transform these poor, sick bodies, and our divided world as well.
Easter is a time of new life and new hope. The earth is waking from its winter slumber; buds are on the trees and the flowers of spring are in full bloom.

The light of the Easter candle is a powerful reminder to us of the sure hope that the Spirit of the Risen Lord continues to act in our lives and in our world. This is a time when we realise that what we yearn for in the depths of our hearts can become a reality.

We long for a safe and peaceful world where people can live in peace with God and with each other. A world where people can live with dignity, free of fear and intimidation. A world where everyone is made welcome – especially the sick, the weak and the old. At Easter, we do not simply commemorate the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ as an event which occurred many years ago. The Risen Christ is with us here and now. His victory over death gives real grounds for hope that our deepest human hungers can be satisfied. One of the challenges of Easter is to confront honestly the weaknesses inherent in the human condition. At Easter we name the forces of darkness present in our world and in our own lives. We ignore these dark forces at our peril.

But we must not let these forces determine and control the course of our lives. Our prayer must be that the light of Christ, rising in glory, may dispel the darkness in our hearts and minds. Only the light of Christ is powerful enough to drive out hatred and anger from our hearts, hatred and anger nourished on the memory of ancient wrongs powerful enough to sour and embitter us. Only the light of Christ can enable us to move hearts hardened by bigotry and prejudice.

At Eastertide we celebrate the victory of Christ over those very forces of darkness. We celebrate that victory with joy because it points to God’s final triumph over the power of evil. Only Christ gives hope that does not deceive.

The light of Christ can help us to see ourselves as we really are. It can also help us to see and respect others as they are, not as we would wish them to be. They, like us, are equal and precious in the sight of God. We are all sinners, sinners to whom the real possibility of becoming saints is offered.

In the tomb Jesus conquered death with death. The continents of our planet are constantly being studded with fresh tombs. The culture of death would have us believe that death is the end; that there is nothing beyond the tomb which awaits each one of us. But all who look to the empty tomb of Jesus Christ, and the stone rolled back, are filled with resurrection faith.

May Christ’s victory over death fill you with resurrection faith this Easter. May the greeting “Peace be with you”, pronounced by the Risen Christ on Easter morn, become a powerful reality in your life now.

March 31, 1999

ST PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL, ARMAGH
ST PATRICK’S DAY MASS
HOMILY BY CARDINAL SEAN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH
TUESDAY, 17 MARCH, 1998, 12.00noon

I am very happy to see so many young people here today. I thank the Order of Malta, the Girl Guides and the Boy Scouts for coming here in uniform to honour St Patrick so faithfully each year.

What has St Patrick to say to young people? Quite a lot I think and if the adults will forgive me for doing so, I will try to pick out a few things from the life of St Patrick which hopefully will be of interest to you young people, but also say something to your parents as well.

Practically all that is known for certain about Patrick comes from his writings. These are two open letters – one is called his Confession – not a confession of sins but a confession of thanks to God for all his graces and favours. The second is a Letter to Coroticus condemning him and his soldiers for the murder and the destruction they carried out on people he had just baptised. Patrick calls them fellow citizens of the devil – strangers to him and his God because of their terrible crimes. I suggest that you try and get the writings of Patrick and read them for yourselves – you will find it well worthwhile.

I am going to divide up Patrick’s life into four chapters. The first chapter covers the first sixteen years of Patrick’s life. It is the chapter that many of you are in now. Patrick was born in Britain – probably near Carlisle. I told that to two young men yesterday. They were unaware that Patrick came from Britain. His grandfather was a priest and his father was a deacon – which is next to being a priest. So I would say there was fair amount of religion in that house. By the age of 16 it would appear that Patrick was getting a bit fed up with religion. Let us listen to what he says himself:

“I had neglected the true God. For we cut ourselves off from God and did not keep his commandments.”
That is the first chapter. We don’t know a lot except that Patrick felt he had cut himself off from God.

Then disaster struck. Patrick was barely 16. He was taken captive and carried off into slavery in Ireland along with a great number of people. Patrick saw it as punishment for his carelessness as regard his religion.

“It was well deserved”, he says. God revealed his being to him through His wrath. He scattered us among foreign peoples. Try and imagine the scene, Patrick snatched away suddenly and without warning. No chance to tell his parents or pack a bag or say good bye. How did it happen? As they were on their way home from school? Or playing on the beach? Or working in the fields? We simply do not know. No way of writing a letter or telephoning or sending word to say he was alive and safe!

It was a terrible experience. But for those who love God all things, even the greatest disasters can be turned to good. That is exactly how Patrick came to see this disaster.

They had made me aware of my unbelief, he says, so that I might recollect my offences and turn with all my heart to the Lord. That is exactly what Patrick did. He turned to the Lord with all his heart. Night and day Patrick turned to the Lord in prayer on the hills of Antrim. Patrick discovered that he was not alone. He found and came to know and love a God who took pity on him as a father pities a son.

During those six years Patrick built up a great friendship with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. “More and more the love and fear of God came to me until I was praying up to a hundred times every day and in the night nearly as often.”

This second chapter of Patrick’s life ended with his escape. After a lot of exciting adventures Patrick returned home. His family wanted to know if they could trust him now as a son never to leave them again.
The third chapter deals with the question which every young person must face. What am I going to do with my life? What does God want me to do with my life? Because the one mighty motivation force in all his work was the love of God. Patrick decided to be guided by that love. As we might expect Patrick’s love of people was just as great. After his escape from captivity his heart was never at rest for he had seen the misery of a pagan people. The voice of the Irish rang in his ears calling him to come again and to tell them the good news that their names are written in Heaven.

And come he did, this time to voluntary captivity. Patrick could not believe what was happening to him. It was all God’s doing. He owed everything to God, so he could praise God’s name not only when things went well but also in times of stress.

Whether he receives good or evil, Patrick returns thanks equally to God. Patrick compares himself to a stone buried deep in a drain. God came and found him and raised him up and put him sitting on the top of ditch.

The fourth and final chapter is being celebrated around the world today. It is the fact that thanks to Patrick, Ireland became a Christian country. Here in Armagh we celebrate with special joy. For Armagh is Patrick’s special Church. The saint himself was its first bishop. The conversion of the Irish to Christianity was a work of extraordinary distinction.

It was carried out by a man who through prayer and suffering was united very closely to God. Patrick never allowed suffering to drive a wedge between him and God. Instead suffering was the bond which united Patrick even more closely to Jesus Christ in his passion and death.

Patrick met with great success. Obviously people listened to him and believed what he told them. They knew he spoke the Words of Life.

But Patrick met also with great suffering. He was deeply hurt at the treachery of a friend. He felt intensely the loneliness of exile and of separation from family and friends. With very few words he shows how hurt he was that his work should be criticised. He resents untrue and malicious rumours about his work, that he had no real authority to teach and that he was only in it for the money, so to speak.

HIS MESSAGE TODAY

People have tried to imagine the kind of letter Patrick would write to us today in Ireland. He would probably begin by asking us all not to be taken in by the rumour that he had banished all the snakes. He would point out the dangers that still beset us all. He would probably tell us all to pay more attention to what he actually did and said and to try and imitate that in our own lives. He would tell us not to be flaunting his name about without really embracing his message and without living it in our own lives.

Since we all know that the search for peace in Northern Ireland is now at a very critical and important stage Patrick would have something to say to all of us on that topic as well. He would probably remind us of what he wrote to Coroticus that those who murder “are strangers to me and to my God”. He would join in condemning those who plan and prepare the instruments of murder – the arsenals of arms, the bombs and the mortars.

Because Patrick was above all else a humble man, he would never dream of proposing himself as a model of reconciliation. He was a strong determined and independent man but his strength and his determination were rooted in a deep conviction of his own nothingness, but he knew he had been chosen by God in whom he placed all his trust.

So God gave him the gift of forgiveness. Patrick forgave the Irish the wrong they had done him and so he had the freedom to come back and begin a glorious new chapter of his life. There was a Pan European Ecumenical Assembly in Austria last year. Its theme was: ‘Reconciliation – Gift of God and Source of New Life’. Patrick exemplifies that theme exactly.

Today we ask the help of Patrick that an agreement may be reached in the peace process, that an end may be found to the ancient hostilities and that the process of reconciliation may begin in earnest. I am convinced that the conditions now exist to bring about a whole new chapter in the life of these Isles.

What a prize that would be. What a real Millennium project! What a celebration of the Great Jubilee of the birth of Jesus Christ. Let us ask St Patrick to intercede for us that it may come to pass and grant the peacemakers the light to see and the strength to do what will lead to lasting and just peace.

Patrick has been remembered ever by a grateful people. One great honour they have never ceased to pay to him. Throughout the world the sons and daughters of Patrick have carried his name and his memory: for the land which he hallowed has never ceased to send forth men and women whose hearts are aglow with the same fire which burned in Patrick’s breast, men and women who remember the slave of Christ who heard the voice of children who were without a shepherd and who dwelt by the western sea.

Dochas linn Naomh Pádraig
Aspal mór na hÉireann
……………………………….
Iarr’mid ort a Phádraig
Guigh orainn-ne Gaela,
Dia linn lá agus oiche
‘S Pádraig Aspal Éireann.

AMEN

ST PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL, ARMAGH
ST PATRICK’S DAY MASS
HOMILY BY CARDINAL SEAN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH
TUESDAY, 17 MARCH, 1998, 12.00noon

I am very happy to see so many young people here today. I thank the Order of Malta, the Girl Guides and the Boy Scouts for coming here in uniform to honour St Patrick so faithfully each year.

What has St Patrick to say to young people? Quite a lot I think and if the adults will forgive me for doing so, I will try to pick out a few things from the life of St Patrick which hopefully will be of interest to you young people, but also say something to your parents as well.

Practically all that is known for certain about Patrick comes from his writings. These are two open letters – one is called his Confession – not a confession of sins but a confession of thanks to God for all his graces and favours. The second is a Letter to Coroticus condemning him and his soldiers for the murder and the destruction they carried out on people he had just baptised. Patrick calls them fellow citizens of the devil – strangers to him and his God because of their terrible crimes. I suggest that you try and get the writings of Patrick and read them for yourselves – you will find it well worthwhile.

I am going to divide up Patrick’s life into four chapters. The first chapter covers the first sixteen years of Patrick’s life. It is the chapter that many of you are in now. Patrick was born in Britain – probably near Carlisle. I told that to two young men yesterday. They were unaware that Patrick came from Britain. His grandfather was a priest and his father was a deacon – which is next to being a priest. So I would say there was fair amount of religion in that house. By the age of 16 it would appear that Patrick was getting a bit fed up with religion. Let us listen to what he says himself:

“I had neglected the true God. For we cut ourselves off from God and did not keep his commandments.”
That is the first chapter. We don’t know a lot except that Patrick felt he had cut himself off from God.
Then disaster struck. Patrick was barely 16. He was taken captive and carried off into slavery in Ireland along with a great number of people. Patrick saw it as punishment for his carelessness as regard his religion.

“It was well deserved”, he says. God revealed his being to him through His wrath. He scattered us among foreign peoples. Try and imagine the scene, Patrick snatched away suddenly and without warning. No chance to tell his parents or pack a bag or say good bye. How did it happen? As they were on their way home from school? Or playing on the beach? Or working in the fields? We simply do not know. No way of writing a letter or telephoning or sending word to say he was alive and safe!

It was a terrible experience. But for those who love God all things, even the greatest disasters can be turned to good. That is exactly how Patrick came to see this disaster.

They had made me aware of my unbelief, he says, so that I might recollect my offences and turn with all my heart to the Lord. That is exactly what Patrick did. He turned to the Lord with all his heart. Night and day Patrick turned to the Lord in prayer on the hills of Antrim. Patrick discovered that he was not alone. He found and came to know and love a God who took pity on him as a father pities a son.

During those six years Patrick built up a great friendship with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. “More and more the love and fear of God came to me until I was praying up to a hundred times every day and in the night nearly as often.”

This second chapter of Patrick’s life ended with his escape. After a lot of exciting adventures Patrick returned home. His family wanted to know if they could trust him now as a son never to leave them again.
The third chapter deals with the question which every young person must face. What am I going to do with my life? What does God want me to do with my life? Because the one mighty motivation force in all his work was the love of God. Patrick decided to be guided by that love. As we might expect Patrick’s love of people was just as great. After his escape from captivity his heart was never at rest for he had seen the misery of a pagan people. The voice of the Irish rang in his ears calling him to come again and to tell them the good news that their names are written in Heaven.

And come he did, this time to voluntary captivity. Patrick could not believe what was happening to him. It was all God’s doing. He owed everything to God, so he could praise God’s name not only when things went well but also in times of stress.

Whether he receives good or evil, Patrick returns thanks equally to God. Patrick compares himself to a stone buried deep in a drain. God came and found him and raised him up and put him sitting on the top of ditch.

The fourth and final chapter is being celebrated around the world today. It is the fact that thanks to Patrick, Ireland became a Christian country. Here in Armagh we celebrate with special joy. For Armagh is Patrick’s special Church. The saint himself was its first bishop. The conversion of the Irish to Christianity was a work of extraordinary distinction.

It was carried out by a man who through prayer and suffering was united very closely to God. Patrick never allowed suffering to drive a wedge between him and God. Instead suffering was the bond which united Patrick even more closely to Jesus Christ in his passion and death.

Patrick met with great success. Obviously people listened to him and believed what he told them. They knew he spoke the Words of Life.

But Patrick met also with great suffering. He was deeply hurt at the treachery of a friend. He felt intensely the loneliness of exile and of separation from family and friends. With very few words he shows how hurt he was that his work should be criticised. He resents untrue and malicious rumours about his work, that he had no real authority to teach and that he was only in it for the money, so to speak.

HIS MESSAGE TODAY
People have tried to imagine the kind of letter Patrick would write to us today in Ireland. He would probably begin by asking us all not to be taken in by the rumour that he had banished all the snakes. He would point out the dangers that still beset us all. He would probably tell us all to pay more attention to what he actually did and said and to try and imitate that in our own lives. He would tell us not to be flaunting his name about without really embracing his message and without living it in our own lives.

Since we all know that the search for peace in Northern Ireland is now at a very critical and important stage Patrick would have something to say to all of us on that topic as well. He would probably remind us of what he wrote to Coroticus that those who murder “are strangers to me and to my God”. He would join in condemning those who plan and prepare the instruments of murder – the arsenals of arms, the bombs and the mortars.

Because Patrick was above all else a humble man, he would never dream of proposing himself as a model of reconciliation. He was a strong determined and independent man but his strength and his determination were rooted in a deep conviction of his own nothingness, but he knew he had been chosen by God in whom he placed all his trust.

So God gave him the gift of forgiveness. Patrick forgave the Irish the wrong they had done him and so he had the freedom to come back and begin a glorious new chapter of his life. There was a Pan European Ecumenical Assembly in Austria last year. Its theme was: ‘Reconciliation – Gift of God and Source of New Life’. Patrick exemplifies that theme exactly.

Today we ask the help of Patrick that an agreement may be reached in the peace process, that an end may be found to the ancient hostilities and that the process of reconciliation may begin in earnest. I am convinced that the conditions now exist to bring about a whole new chapter in the life of these Isles. What a prize that would be. What a real Millennium project! What a celebration of the Great Jubilee of the birth of Jesus Christ. Let us ask St Patrick to intercede for us that it may come to pass and grant the peacemakers the light to see and the strength to do what will lead to lasting and just peace.

Patrick has been remembered ever by a grateful people. One great honour they have never ceased to pay to him. Throughout the world the sons and daughters of Patrick have carried his name and his memory: for the land which he hallowed has never ceased to send forth men and women whose hearts are aglow with the same fire which burned in Patrick’s breast, men and women who remember the slave of Christ who heard the voice of children who were without a shepherd and who dwelt by the western sea.

Dochas linn Naomh Pádraig
Aspal mór na hÉireann
……………………………….
Iarr’mid ort a Phádraig
Guigh orainn-ne Gaela,
Dia linn lá agus oiche
‘S Pádraig Aspal Éireann.

AMEN