ST PATRICK’S TRIAN, ARMAGH
RELIGION, COMMUNITY AND CONFLICT INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
ADDRESS OF WELCOME BY MOST REV. SEAN BRADY
FRIDAY, 27 FEBRUARY, 1998, 10.00am

I have great pleasure in welcoming the distinguished speakers to this International Conference to Armagh. I congratulate the organising committee on their decision to hold this Conference. It is timely and most relevant. I commend their initiative in following through that decision and in assembling such an eminent group of speakers.

We are honoured that our speakers should come from such far-flung lands as Israel and Palestine, South Africa and Sri Lanka. I am confident that their willingness to share their experience and insights with us will prove most valuable and helpful. That there are so many participants here from throughout Ireland and Britain is a cause of great joy.

I compliment and thank the many co-ordinating organisations. This list which includes the Northern Ireland Interfaith Forum, Armagh City and District Partnership, Armagh City and District Council, the Irish School of Ecumenics, the International Inter-Faith Centre, the World Conference on Religion and Peace, Action for Peoples in Conflict, is a very impressive one. We owe them all a deep debt of gratitude.

We gather in St Patrick’s Trian in Armagh. Here St Patrick, our National Apostle, built his first stone church in Ireland, thereby establishing Armagh as his own Episcopal seat, giving Armagh the proud title of the Primatial See of All-Ireland. Patrick was no stranger to conflict. He first came to Ireland as a slave. Europe in St Patrick’s time was the scene of great conflict and crisis. The Roman Empire was crumbling, the Roman Legions were retreating further and further from the outposts of the Empire, the Barbarian invasions were changing the face of the continent. The very existence of society, faith and culture seemed threatened.

Ireland too in the fifth century was not immune from conflict. From the writings of Patrick we know of a Welsh Chieftain called Coroticus and his soldiers who conducted a raid on a community of Christians along the East coast of Ireland on the very day that Patrick had baptised and confirmed them, massacring many and kidnapping others. In Patrick’s letter of castigation to Coroticus he calls him and his soldiers “men of blood, steeping themselves in the blood of innocent fellow Christians”.

So what has changed in Ireland over 1550 years later we might well ask. That there should still be conflict in our country is a cause for deep shame. All of us would like to live in a peaceful and harmonious world. The sad fact is that we do not. Most of us experience some conflict in our lives. This is the reality of the situation. However, our belief is that these situations can change. This belief that situations and people can change is central to our hopes for a lasting peace in Ireland. For that to happen the causes of conflict must be met and addressed and the conditions and climate favourable to change must be created.

The fact is that we have found it difficult to accept others as true equals. We have been slow to fully respect and accept the rights of others to be different from us and to hold other beliefs, to follow other traditions, to possess other identities. A lack of generosity and magnanimity, an unwillingness to make legitimate and much-needed change and sacrifice, a desire to dominate, fear and suspicion, sadly continue to be hallmarks of the conflict in Northern Ireland.

But these enemies of political progress, of peace and reconciliation, must not be allowed to be victorious. All people of good will must now redouble their efforts for peace and by their increased willingness to move and to make sacrifice, by their increased efforts to reach out to those of the different tradition, the enemies of peace shall be confounded.

There are many signs of great hope. Despite the deeply disturbing events of recent weeks, the Troubles seem to draw inexorably to an end. The sense of the futility and counter-productivity of violence seems, as never before, to be strong among our people. The desire for peace and a just and lasting settlement is at this time truly palpable.

The belief that people can change is central to the hopes for a lasting peace in Ireland. People can grow to see the futility of violence and the wisdom of the ways of negotiation and discussion. They can come to know that nationalism, whether it be Irish nationalism or British nationalism, is not the supreme good in life.
We seek forgiveness that in a land with a church practice rate unparalleled in the Western world, there should be such apparent deep-rooted conflict and communal unrest. We pray that the reign of God which is a reign of justice and peace might truly become a greater reality in our time. May we increasingly realise that the only victory which matters is that of the Lord and that we may make our own his words, “in the world you will have distress but have confidence, I have overcome the world”.

I wish this Conference many blessings and great success.

DAY FOR LIFE CELEBRATION MASS
PARISH OF NEWBRIDGE, CO. DERRY
HOMILY BY CARDINAL BRADY
February 1, 1998 10.00 a.m.

True Parity of Esteem
The life of one person must be recognised as being worth the same as any other. True parity of esteem begins here. For life is a gift of God. Life is also God’s invitation. From the first moment of our existence each one of us is invited to return to the Father. No-one has the right to put an end to a life which God intends to grow into knowledge and love of Himself and calls to share His life and love forever. Pope John Paul II has put it well in his encyclical, The Gospel of Life. He says: “Everyone has an incomparable worth because everyone shares in the very life of God…. the life of every individual from its very beginning, is part of God”. This “Gospel of Life” is also at the heart of the message of Jesus.

When the Church speaks of reverence for human life, these words are meant to be taken in their widest sense. The Church does not isolate the defence of unborn life from the defence of human life and dignity in other areas where these are being cheapened, endangered or destroyed. God’s commandment, “Thou Shalt not Kill”, unconditionally forbids all taking of innocent human life from its beginnings in the womb until the end that God, not man, has set for it. One must have absolute respect for human life as coming from God’s hands at the very first moment of conception and as remaining under God’s care on earth until he takes it back to himself again in death.

The recent spate of murderous attacks on innocent people has terrified many. Its total disrespect for basic human rights has angered many. The right to live, the right to follow one’s conscience, and practise the religion of one’s choice as well as the right to work and earn one’s living and support one’s dependants, all of these are being disregarded. These rights are the foundations of all civilised society. Such murders of innocent working men, fathers and breadwinners assail human life and dignity. They bring shame not only on the perpetrator but also on all who support or condone in any way their commission. They are a terrible indictment of those who have the power to change the bigotry and hatred which underpin such conduct and who fail to do so.

The Way Forward
A way forward must be found. The pleas of those who have been bereaved that there should be no retaliation must be heard. The memory of their dead must not be dishonoured by further bloodshed.
Those entrusted with the powers of government have to protect the lives of the people. They have to protect the rights of people to go about their business and do their work in safety. They have to create the conditions where the peace negotiators can make legitimate demands on behalf of their communities without thereby exposing innocent members of that community to death.
Those involved in the talks must not be intimidated or deflected from their work. That work is the search for a fair and lasting peace. Any other peace will contain the seeds of future conflict. Only a lasting peace will create the conditions where the rights of all are acknowledged and cherished, especially the right to live and to earn one’s living, the right to be accepted and esteemed, the right to have one’s dignity respected.

Those who are trying desperately to wreck the search for agreement must be seen for what they really are. They are the enemies of life and the peddlers of death. They are like those who deal in arms and drugs. They promote the culture of death. So it is right that on this Day for Life we pray for the defeat of all the death dealers, they must not be allowed to win. The combination of patient and courageous discussion on the part of those in the Peace Talks, supported by the prayers of all who want a genuine peace, will ensure that the death dealers do not win.

Another Attack on Human Life
There is yet another attack on human life which gives cause for concern. There are fears that attempts will soon be made to extend the Abortion Act to Northern Ireland. No Northern Ireland M.P. has supported this move. This reflects the overwhelming opposition of the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland to such a move.

Some Northern Ireland M.P.s have also signed a motion affirming the profound respect for human life maintained by the majority of people in Northern Ireland.

As children of God we are known and loved and valued. “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you”. God says speaking through his spokesman, Jeremiah. God has an intense interest in each one of us, even before we existed. That message of God, “before I formed you in the womb I knew you” is hard to square with those who claim that the result of conception cannot be considered to be a personal human life, at least up to a certain number of weeks.

Decisions that go against life sometimes arise from difficult or even tragic situations. They are situations of profound suffering, loneliness. There may be a total lack of economic prospects, there may be depression and anxiety about the future. Pregnant women sometimes find themselves in very tragic circumstances, in circumstances of almost despair. Such circumstances can mitigate or even totally exclude subjective responsibility and consequent culpability of those who make choices which in themselves are evil, which are anti-life. But nowadays the problem is a greater one.

It is a problem which goes far beyond the necessary recognition of those personal situations. There is a tendency at the cultural, social and political level to see abortions, these violations against life as legitimate expressions of individual freedom, which are to be acknowledged and protected as actual rights. There is an implicit contradiction here. We live in an age when the rights of persons are solemnly proclaimed. The value of life is publicly affirmed but at the same time the very right to life is being denied or trampled upon, especially at the most significant moments of existence such as birth and death. It is being denied to the weakest and the most defenceless, at their most vulnerable moments.

Due to the tragic circumstances which some women find themselves in, as I have already mentioned, anyone who claims to be pro-life must be emphatically pro-mother as well. When crisis strikes, people can often feel vulnerable and alone. Unexpected pregnancy can be such a crisis. Sadly, there are some women for whom there will be no-one to listen and offer support at such a time. For those who support life, the mother who is about to give birth cannot be left alone with her doubts, difficulties and temptations. We must stand by her side. This is why the Irish Bishops set up CURA (Latin for Care), in 1977, to provide care for mothers and their unborn children who are in difficult situations.

The Holy Father has recently applauded CURA in its work of counselling and assisting of women facing difficulties in meeting the challenge of motherhood. CURA cares with practical help and emotional support. It has 16 centres throughout Ireland and 400 trained volunteers and deals with 10,000 calls annually. CURA also seeks to assist compassionately those who are experiencing the trauma of abortion and others affected by the problem.

The Christian “Yes” to life must also include a call for freedom, for adequate education, for proper living conditions, for more just distribution of wealth and opportunity. It is social and economic injustices such as these which often lead women to consider abortion as the best way out of a difficult situation. The Church is thus not just simply “against abortion”, it is also for life and human dignity and social justice.
We must always be aware of the agonies of conscience and the tortures of remorse which many women who have had abortions are now suffering. I want to assure them of the boundless compassion and unlimited mercy of Christ. He loves them. He loves to forgive. He has told us that he has more joy in forgiving sinners than he receives from the just who do not think they need forgiveness. No one is excluded from his love. No matter what the past, he offers everyone forgiveness and peace. His “Yes” to life is an unconditional “Yes” to all who come in sorrow and love to ask his pardon.

In his letter for the Day of Life, the Holy Father prays that: “the Day of Life will encourage clergy, religious and the lay faithful to deepen their understanding of the Church’s teaching on the human person and will inspire them to an even greater commitment to be forthright in proclaiming in society the Gospel of Life”. On this Day for Life, mindful of the Lord’s words: “I came that they may have life and have it to the full” (John 10:10), let us to resolve to remain committed to uphold the sanctity of life in all its stages of existence, through our words and deeds, and to reject all that is contrary to the nurturing and flourishing of human existence.

WEEK OF PRAYER FOR CHRISTIAN UNITY
ECUMENICAL SERVICE
ST. PATRICK’S CATHEDRAL, ARMAGH
January 21, 1998, 8.00 pm
INTRODUCTION BY MOST REVEREND SEÁN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

“All who are led by the Spirit of God are Children of God”.

Your Excellency,
Your Eminence,
Distinguished guests,
Brothers and Sisters in Jesus Christ,

I welcome you all to this Inter-Church Service to mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity.

I welcome President McAleese on this, her first official visit to Armagh as President. I thank her for her presence.

I welcome the Lord Lieutenient for Co. Armagh, Lord Caledon.

I welcome the Speaker – Bishop Paul Verschuren – Bishop of Helsinki.

Bishop Verschuren, a native of Holland has worked as a missionary in Finland for very many years. He has been interested in and has worked for Ecumenisim for a long time.

I welcome the President of the Methodist Conference, Dr. Norman Taggart, The President of the Irish Council of Churches, Rev. David Nesbitt, Dean Cassidy, representing Archbishop Eames and Rev. Tony Davidson representing the Moderator of the Presbyterian Church, Rev. Sam Hutchinson.

The theme of this week is taken from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans:

“All who are led by the Spirit of God are Children of God”.

We come to pray in a sense of deep unity with those whom the Spirit is moving and inspiring all over the world to come together and pray for the same intention at this time.

We pray that the prayers of Christ at the Last Supper may be fulfilled, that they all may be One.

We pray in a spirit of gratitude for the progress that has been made during this century and particularly during the last quarter of the century to heal the wounds and divisions which openly contradict the Will of Christ.

We thank God for the seventy-five years of the Irish Council of Churches and for the twenty-five years of the Irish Inter-Church meetings.

The Spirit comes to help us
– in our moments of weak faith
– to strengthen our belief in prayer as the means par excellence and the soul of the whole Ecumenical Movement.

The Spirit helps us to renew our conviction that:

– what unites us as followers of Christ is stronger than what divides.
– that what we have in common is far greater than what separates us.

The Spirit comes to help us in our moments of fading hope, to encourage us never to lose sight of our final goal – what gives meaning and value to life. But also to commit ourselves again and again to work to bring about the changes which are needed to make our lives and our society correspond to God’s plans in a society of forgiveness, justice and peace.

The Spirit comes to help us in our weaknesses at this particularly difficult time in the history of our land.
We ask the Spirit to never let us forget that those who wish peace and justice and reconciliation are stronger than those who want violence and injustice and hatred.

We ask the Spirit to remind us that those who want peace and reconciliation outnumber those who oppose them. We must not forget that fact and we must stand in solid support of the peacemakers.
We ask the Spirit to help us to be:

STRONG in our support of the peacemakers.
RESOLUTE in our opposition to violence in all its forms.
DETERMINED in our search for a just and lasting settlement of our problems.
PATIENT in the face of every trial and
HOPEFUL at all times.

We remember in our prayers this evening all those who have been murdered in recent weeks. We pray for those who mourn them and we beg God that these evil and brutal killings may come to an end.

ST. MALACHY’S CHURCH, ARMAGH
MASS FOR WORLD DAY OF PEACE
1 JANUARY 1998 – 11.00 A.M.
HOMILY BY MOST REVEREND SEAN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

Fifty years ago the United Nations produced its Declaration of Human Rights. The Second World War had just ended. During that war certain peoples had seen even their right to exist denied. The United Nations were anxious to ensure that this would never happen again. They wanted to find the basis for a just and lasting peace. They found it in the recognition of the dignity and rights of human beings.
From Bethlehem to Armagh.

Ever since the year 1957 a lighted lamp has been brought from the place of the birth of Christ in Bethlehem to all the churches in Austria. That burning flame was, and is, a symbol of their desire for world peace. This year the lamp has been brought via the European Parliament to Armagh. In a few moments it will be presented here in the Offertory Procession. We welcome it with great joy. It reminds us that what the United Nations declared fifty years ago, Jesus had already revealed almost two thousand years ago.

When he became one of us Jesus united himself in some way with every human being. He came on earth to reveal the boundless love of God. But Jesus also showed us the unique value of every human person. The Church acknowledges this value and celebrates it once again at this feast of Christmas. It proclaims the sacred value of human life from its beginning until its end. The lamp brought to us from Bethlehem reminds us of the words of Jesus to his friends: “My peace I give you”. Ever since those words were spoken they have provided tremendous inspiration for people to go out and work for justice, the kind of justice which overcomes division and provides the only solid foundation for peace.

Recently I watched a film about the work of the Irish for the street children of Calcutta. There was this marvelous voluntary worker named Edith Wilkins who looked after fifteen children single-handed. When she was asked why, “it is the kids’ right” she said, “to be fed and sheltered and clothed and educated”.

Another Irish girl, Therese Hennessey, spoke of her work for the sick and the dying in Calcutta. She and her colleagues try to ensure that these poor people die with dignity. Human dignity and human rights are at the centre of their work.

Justice Goes Hand in Hand with Peace

“Justice goes hand in hand with peace”, Pope John Paul tells us in his message for this World Day of Peace. When one is threatened justice and peace both falter. When justice is offended peace is also placed in jeopardy. For example, the majority of the world’s fifteen million refugees are victims of war. In war, lands and crops are destroyed, people are deprived of their livelihood and security. Money and skills are directed away from social uses and necessary schemes. The cost of one Trident submarine would pay for one year’s schooling for sixteen million children in developing countries. And for the cost of ten fighter aircraft all the infants of the developing world could be immunized against disease. These facts confirm the words of Pope John Paul when he says that “when either peace or justice is threatened both falter”.

Peace for all comes from the justice of each one of us
.
human rights of everybody are to be recognised and respected. They are to be protected and promoted. These rights are universal; they belong to one and all. They are also indivisible because social and economics rights are involved and are to be promoted as well as political and cultural rights which must also be recognised, protected and observed.

Peace for all comes from the justice of each one of us. “No-one is excused from the task of such importance”, Pope John Paul tells us in his message for today. “Human beings are equal in dignity. All deserve the same respect and have the same rights and duties”. It is important that we take these fundamentals as the basis for any lasting peace.

The Northern Ireland Situation
All of this is very relevant to our situation here in Northern Ireland. Despite the tragic and terrifying events of recent days, the celebration of the World Day of Peace this year takes place in a climate of somewhat greater hope than in other years. The restoration of the IRA cease-fire last July and the participation of parties representing more than eighty percent of the population in peace talks give hope of progress. There is a growing realisation of the futility of a conflict which has lasted almost thirty years, a conflict which nobody has won and which apparently nobody can lose. The terrible events of recent days are sombre reminders that there really is no alternative to discussion and dialogue. Hopefully these killings are only temporary setbacks on the road to a permanent settlement and a just and fair agreement. Hopes rise that conditions can be agreed to allow a peaceful and just co-existence. These hopes rest on the seeds of dialogue and discussions which are beginning to emerge.

Other Grounds for Hope
The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland has identified four areas which are to be given priority: marching, fair employment, policing and mechanisms for the protection of human rights. A Commission for Racial Equality has been set up. The Government has committed itself to incorporating the European Convention on Human Rights into domestic law through legislation in the form of a Bill of Rights. It has stated that it intends to implement the recommendations of the Hayes Report for an entirely independent system for the investigation of complaints against the Police. The British Government is also sponsoring a review of the effectiveness of fair employment legislation and of government policies. Unfortunately these developments are not seen by all as positive and helpful. There is much fear and apprehension in certain quarters. Every effort must be made to calm people’s fears. Those who try to increase people’s fears at this time bear a heavy responsibility. The fact that human rights issues are being addressed is seen by some as a threat. There are some people who feel that the recognition of the rights of others in some way infringes their rights. The recognition of human dignity threatens no-one. Human rights belong to everyone. The human rights agenda is not a sectarian agenda. In fact their recognition is the bulwark and defence of true peace everywhere.

The shootings of recent days are to be condemned. They have claimed three lives, injured many and raised doubts about the peace process. I urge those involved in the talks not to lose their nerve and to deny the perpetrators of these atrocities their expected prize of the disruption of the peace talks and to press on towards the far more precious prize, the achievement of a fair and lasting settlement.

Refugees
Indeed the failure to protect human rights lies at the root of another urgent problem; that of refugees. Every twenty-one seconds a refugee is created somewhere in the world. In the last ten years the number of refugees has jumped from eight to fifteen million. As a group of democracies the European Union finds its political and ethical basis in human rights. This includes internationally accepted rights to asylum and the right not to be discriminated against. Pope John Paul has called the tragedy of refugees a wound which reveals the conflicts of the modern world. We are now part of a union of fifteen European states in which there is free movement of people by right. This process is irreversible, even though at times it may give rise to hostile reactions and alarm among some. Today we stand at a cross-roads. We can choose to turn in on ourselves and turn our back on the stranger and in doing so turn our back on our own history and indeed turn our back on the Christian faith. We are now among the richest nations in the world. We could decide to share some of that wealth, resources and opportunities with foreigners, as so many societies in the past did for our people. By doing so we could set an outstanding example of respect for the dignity of people less fortunate than ourselves.

Lack of Respect
Lack of respect for the value of other people is seen in a culture and language of contempt and disparagement. Anything which rubbishes and denigrates those who are different has no part to play in any genuine peace process. A just peace threatens no-one. Talks are the only way to reach such a peace. Talks are the only way to dispel fears. People need to be reassured that their neighbour has exactly the same hopes and fears as they. They hope to live in security, to be on good terms with their neighbours and to enjoy their esteem.

Recent Developments
During these days the thoughts of many turn to those people who lost their lives through violence in 1997. The first was Stephen Restorick, shot dead in Bessbrook last February. The last was Seamus Dillon, shot dead in Dungannon last Saturday. The parents of those two men have been united in grief and heartbreak at the loss of a son. They have also been united in a firm determination to do all in their power to ensure that no-one else will ever die in political violence in Northern Ireland. Each one of us must resolve to do the same. The shootings of recent days are of course, a threat to peace and to the peace talks. Some people have taken the law into their own hands and proceeded to shoot fellow human beings, thereby depriving them of something sacred – their human life. Everyone has the right to have their gift of life respected. Every human community is founded on that right. The political community is no exception.

The hope which the birth of Christ brings us
We urgently need the hope which the birth of Christ brings to us. Jesus comes to give us hope. He comes to give us hope in the midst of sadness and disappointment. He comes to tell us never to despair of the glory to which God calls us. He comes to ensure that we never lose the courage and trust which we need.
Christian hope focuses our attention on our final destiny. We are made to share God’s life in Heaven but we are also made to live in peace and harmony with our neighbour here on earth. Peace is about right relationships. Where violent conflicts have taken place right relationships have been disrupted. The process of healing the bad memories of the past and the giving and receiving of forgiveness are gifts from God. But the task of building the society founded on truth and justice and respect for others, especially the other who is different, that task falls to each one of us. No-one is excused from a task of such importance. The challenge of changing the structures in society that provoked, promoted and sustained violence in the first place, that task belongs to us also.

The heart of the Gospel message is Jesus Christ. He is everyone’s peace and reconciliation. The Spirit of the Risen Christ, the Spirit of hope is at work in the world. Pope John Paul tells us in today’s message that “the Spirit is especially present in the generous activity of all who patiently and perseveringly continue to promote peace and reconciliation between people who were once opponents and enemies”. This time last year there wasn’t much reason to be hopeful. Nevertheless many people did continue to hope and to pray and to work for progress towards peace. Those prayers were answered, their efforts were rewarded. They were people who remained undaunted in the face of obstacles. They continued to believe that God’s greatest promises can indeed by ours. They continued to hope for what is best with a confidence rooted not in themselves but in God. The hopes and the prayers and the work for peace must continue. Let them continue then in the firm belief that peace for all of us comes from the justice of each one of us. Let each one of us try to be more just in the sight of God, more faithful in the small things and the big things of life and more loving in our service of God and of each other. Let them continue in the firm belief that it is possible to achieve what God’s love plans for each one of us. Plans to bring you prosperity and not disaster, plans to bring you the future you hope for. May 1998, the year in which we celebrate the 850th anniversary of the death of St. Malachy, bring peace and joy, happiness and prosperity, to each one of you and to our land.

AMEN

ST. MALACHY’S CHURCH, ARMAGH
MASS FOR WORLD DAY OF PEACE
1 JANUARY 1998 – 11.00 A.M.
MOST REVEREND SEAN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

INTRODUCTION
The tragic events of recent days add urgency to our gathering to offer this Mass for peace on this World Day of Peace – the Feast of Mary the Mother of God. We ask her to pray for us that we may in fact be made worthy of the promises of Christ. We ask God to be gracious to us and to bring us His peace. “From the justice of each one comes the peace of all” Pope John Paul tells us in his message today. We are far from being just. We know we are sinners. We need God’s pardon to make us less unjust. We ask pardon for our sins.

LAUNCH OF LOVE IS FOR LIFE VIDEO
GLENAVON HOTEL, COOKSTOWN
THURSDAY, 24 SEPTEMBER, 1998, 2.30pm
ADDRESS BY MOST REV. SEÁN BRADY, DCL
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

It was my good fortune to work in the Irish College Rome from 1980 to 1993. I was very happy there. The work involved the training of seminarians for the priesthood here in Ireland. But one other very pleasing aspect was the celebration of marriage for Irish couples who came to Rome each week to be married. Over those thirteen years I am sure I had the privilege of celebrating hundreds of weddings of couples from Ireland, England, Scotland and the United States. I say that it was a privilege. It is always a privilege to be present when two people join hands and say, “I take you as my husband, as my wife, for better for worse, for richer for poorer, in sickness and in health, all the days of my life or until death do us part”. I was always very happy to meet the couples the day before and to go through the marriage ceremony with them and to see the great desire in each one that their marriage would be for life, that it would last, that it would be fulfilled and happy. Many of those couples were very well prepared. They had obviously thought seriously about what they were doing and made their preparations. Some indeed even chose to come to Rome to avoid the hustle and bustle of a big wedding back home so that they could concentrate on what they were doing. That all came back to me last week when I was staying in a convent in Italy where there are a lot of weddings taking place. It was great to see the amount of flowers that were being carried in. Mothers coming in at 7 or 8 o’clock in the morning to decorate the altars and prie-dieux for the weddings of their sons or their daughters later on in the day. Then there were the photographers and the dresses and all the beauty, all the lovely trappings people surround an occasion like this with. People do realise that it is a very special moment when people pledge themselves to each other for life, and that is why it has to be photographed and videoed and remembered and albums stored in safe places. Of course, in my experience, there were people who came not well prepared, not ready for what they were undertaking. Inevitably that showed. I remember one big row that broke out after a wedding when the papers were being signed and for the first time the bridegroom discovered the real age of the bride. She was quite a few years older than he thought and it provoked quite a crisis. There wasn’t very good communication there I’m afraid. On another occasion I remember when the bridegroom said his words the bride proceeded to burst out laughing. It was a hysterical, nervous laughing which went on for minutes and minutes. I was at my wits end to know how she could be stopped and how she could be persuaded to say her part of the ceremony. So I am very happy that Fr John Doherty has produced these tapes. I think they are going to be very much in demand, I certainly hope they will be very much in demand. I hope that they will be bought and watched and pondered by people who realise – no matter at what stage – the importance of their love relationship with their spouse. I hope they will be watched by people who come to see that they can improve that relationship by working at it and nurturing it and fostering it.

As the song says, it is love that makes the world go round. The Italian poet Dante puts it a little more elegantly in his Divine Comedy. He spoke of the love that moves the sun and other stars. Certainly love is what keeps the world going. Every human being, each one of us, has a longing to be loved and to love. There is a natural in-built urge and need to give and to receive love. But only those who have love in themselves are fully free to give love. In God’s plan we are meant to receive love from Father and Mother. The child is meant to grow to like and love self. Self esteem is not self indulgence or selfishness. A person who has been loved loves self and is free to love. So it is true to say that all you need is love, but not any old love will do. A preacher became so fed up with people saying that all you need is love that he decided to tell this story: There was this elephant, a very loving elephant, who lived beside an ostrich. He noticed the ostrich sitting on her nest hatching her eggs. Every so often the ostrich had to leave her nest to go to the river to get a drink of water. So the elephant, this loving elephant, was worried in case that in her absence the eggs might get cold and perish. So as soon as he saw her leave the nest the elephant rumbled over and, out of pure love, sat down on the ostrich’s eggs to keep them warm. “Love”, said the preacher, “can be a fuddy duddy elephant kind of thing”. That story is quoted by the American Jesuit, Fr Walter Burchart, to say two things. First of all that love, and specifically married love, is tough, it is costly, it makes heavy demands, it is extremely difficult to cope with because love, yes love, is patient, but lovers can be very impatient and such love is possible only if the married couple are not two but three. For what makes a couples love for each other particularly precious, what lends high promise for love that never ends is the fact that it is God’s love. God is love. God loves you, God lives in you, God ties your love to his.
I congratulate Fr John Doherty on the production of Together Forever. I thank him and those who have worked with him, Liam and Dan Doherty from Derry, Frank and Aileen Dulaghan from Newry, on this important work. I thank them for the support which they are giving to married couples who want to deepen their relationship. I wish the Love is for Life Trust continued success in their work. This programme is the fruit of the efforts of people who have worked with married couples for the past twenty years. It is a support for married couples who want to deepen their relationship. The programme consists of five videos. Each video lasts about 30 minutes. A guide has been produced which gives good detail. It is meant to help leaders who will be directly involved in discussions and asking questions of the groups who will watch this video. This is an important support for the sacrament of marriage. The risen Lord has promised to be with us always to the end of time. People sometimes ask: How can we get in touch today with Jesus Christ? He no longer walks the earth in the same way as he once did. We believe that his presence is made visible through the sacraments. The sacrament of marriage for example is an effective sign, the same as every sacrament is an effective sign. It is a way in which the risen Lord makes his presence effective in our midst and because the Lord is present and at work in them, the sacraments, and especially the sacrament of marriage, brings into the lives of the married couples the life giving action and even the self giving of Christ himself. That self giving of Christ himself is very important in a relationship where self giving is all important.

The sacrament of marriage is an outward sign. It is a visible sign of something that is invisible, but very real. That in reality the invisible reality is God’s grace. It is God’s grace and favour given to a couple to help them in their married life. Grace builds on nature. God’s grace builds on human nature. The grace of marriage builds on the nurtured love, the wholesome human love which a couple getting married have for each other. People love only what they know. They love only what they know to be good, so it is important that knowing each other well is important in a marriage relationship. We only love and respect what we know to be good, for respect means seeing again the beauty which first attracted one to the other. Then there is the importance in married life of what is dealt with in that first video, spending time together. The art of communication is emphasised and studied because it is by communicating we tell people who we are and what we like and what we are like. The second tape deals with respect for each other, respect for each other’s rights and each other’s needs, but again we need to look and see what our own needs and our own rights and therefore our neighbour’s rights and needs are.

In a marriage ceremony those getting married say: “I take you Mary/John for better for worse, in sickness and in health, until death do us part”. I am taking you, not your beauty, not your wealth, but you the person and if I am taking somebody for life it is important that I have affection for that person, that I show that affection in word and action and in a sexual relationship.

Fr John Doherty and those couples who help him have done a great service to marriage but they need more help. We all need to commit ourselves to the care of marriage, to its preparation and enrichment, both are important. The pressures on marriage are tremendous but they can be resisted. That is what the sacrament of marriage is all about. A sacrament that brings Christ’s self-giving love into the lives of the people who are committed and have committed themselves to self-giving.

It is said that the greatest form of love is self-sacrifice. Marriage calls, within reason, for great self-sacrifice. A spouse will frequently put the interests of his partner before his own, while feeling enriched by this self-giving. Selfishness and self-seeking are the very antithesis of the true meaning of marriage and are very destructive of the marriage bond.

The marriage breakdown rate in the Western world is unacceptably high. While undoubtedly some marriages will break down since some individuals are simply incapable of a lifelong commitment of this kind or because the preservation of the union due to the conduct of one spouse becomes essentially impossible for the other single-handedly to maintain, the marriage breakdown rate in the Western world should simply not be as high as it is. It seems that modern Western society has lost a sense of what marriage is about. Marriage is not about feeling good all the time or enjoying a relationship that makes no demands or fails to challenge. Demands and challenges are part and parcel of life. Through them we grow and become more mature. In them we learn to accept legitimate duty and responsibility by which we and others are enriched. We all must learn not to uncritically follow our feelings and emotions but rather to be guided by a higher code of conduct and set of values within which the institution of marriage lies.

The divorce culture fails to accept the awful effects which separation and divorce can have on children. Children are a great gift from God, the fruit of the love of their parents. Just as children are given in trust by God, so the responsibilities of guardianship may not lightly be divested by their parents. It seems that if parents were to more seriously take into account the needs and rights of their children, the marriage breakdown rate in the world would be considerably lower.

Like all things in life marriage must be worked at. Allowing love grow and develop and indeed change through the vicissitudes and various stages and situations of life is a lifelong task. It is one, however, to which the marriage bond commits its partners. I am convinced that these videos are a very helpful aid to helping all understand the true nature of marriage and to assisting couples in growing and working through the inevitable difficulties.

POPE JOHN PAUL II
MESSAGE FOR THE IRISH CATHOLIC
FROM THE MOST REVEREND SEÁN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH

Pope John Paul II repeats often the words of Christ: “Be not afraid”. He sees them as an inspirational call not to fear the truth about ourselves or about God, but to believe.

His courage in accepting and preaching the truth comes from his faith in Jesus Christ, the true light that enlightens everyone.

I have seen the Pope many times at prayer. I am convinced that his strong faith is constantly nourished by the hours he spends in conversation with God.

Pope John Paul II has suffered immensely during his life, losing his mother at the age of eight, his sister soon after birth and his brother in his 20s. He sees suffering as a test of physical and spiritual strength and as an incentive to pray with and for those who suffer.

Pope John Paul speaks directly and with passion to all people about the existence of God, about human dignity and about pain, about hope and about the civilization of love which we are called to create.

– His love of his native Poland – and of Ireland – which he visited so early in his pontificate is remarkable.
– His readiness to forgive his would-be assassin.
– His devotion to Mary, Mother of God and Mother of Mercy.
– The list of what inspires me about Pope John Paul could go on and on.

October 13, 1998.

ANNOUNCEMENT OF AWARD OF NOBEL PEACE PRIZE TO
JOHN HUME AND DAVID TRIMBLE
STATEMENT BY MOST REV. SEÁN BRADY
ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH
16 OCTOBER, 1998

I am delighted to hear the news that John Hume and David Trimble have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for 1998 and I congratulate them.

It is a well-deserved recognition of their outstanding work for the cause of peace and of their part in bringing about the Good Friday Agreement. Their belief that an honourable and fair peace is possible has inspired them and many others to work tirelessly to achieve that goal.

The award is also a tribute to countless other people who have taken risks for peace and who continue to build the trust that is essential to any lasting settlement.

On of the aims of the Prize is to encourage others to follow the example of the winners. I hope this will help to convince those who have still to be convinced that the Good Friday Agreement is the best way forward.

That Agreement lit the light of hope in many hearts. It challenges us all to walk together the road to greater understanding and to help each other and to rely on each other to build a better future for ourselves and for those who come after us. David Trimble and John Hume have signalled the way. Let none be afraid to follow.

LAUNCH OF TACKLING DRUG PROBLEMS TOGETHER
THE IRISH BISHOP’S POLICY STATEMENT ON DRUGS
ADDRESS BY CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY
SLIGO, FRIDAY 13th NOVEMBER 1998

The misuse of drugs is one of the gravest problems confronting the world today. It has destroyed, debased and diminished many lives. A sense of helplessness is often manifest among its victims, their family and the communities in which they live. Our Holy Father has rightly called it “an insidious social plague”.

In Ireland, the problem of drug abuse has reached serious proportions in many of our communities, both urban and rural. Many families suffer grievously because one of their member’s abuse of drugs.

I need hardly labour the point: the misuse of drugs can be very bad for the abuser, for his or her family, for their communities, for society and for the future of our young people.

The policy document I launch today on behalf of the Irish Bishops’ Conference is another step in a process, which we initiated in the summer of 1996. We began by recognising that the Church, the people of God, has a responsibility to play its part in trying to tackle the problem of drug abuse.

To try to discover how the Church could most effectively make that contribution, we consulted widely. Views were sought from many agencies and groups with practical and professional experience in the treatment of substance abuse. As a result, it became clear that the key concept that should underscore the Church’s contribution is “partnership”. Partnership, especially, with those in the voluntary and statutory sector who have been engaged in the arduous work of healing and rehabilitation for many years. They have cared generously for the broken. Their work has not always received the public acknowledgement it deserves.

When we issued our pastoral statement, Breaking the Silence in the spring of 1997, we saw it as a call to the Christian community to play its full part in confronting the drug crisis. Jesus himself said that he had come “that you may have life and have it to the full”. As Christians we believe that there is a meaning to life which is stronger than any of the things which frighten us.

We outlined three practical ways in which the Christian community could give expression to that belief in the context of drug abuse. The key words of our policy continue to be inform, support, and act.

Firstly, to inform ourselves about the nature of substance abuse, its effects on those who abuse and on their families and communities. The Church, through its network of parishes, is ideally placed to spread the word on this. By making information about the nature and effects of drugs easily accessible through parishes, the Church has tried to help people come to a better understanding. Knowledge is the first step in prevention.

Secondly, in our parishes and communities we should support and make better known the services that are available for people who need help. Our policy on drugs is not to replace what is already being done by others, but to support their efforts.

Thirdly, we must reach out to those hurt by drugs and addiction. We must remember who these people are. Some we have gone to school with, some we have worked with, and some are our friends. All are our brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ. If we don’t welcome them, who will?

Our policy document, Tackling Drug Problems Together, confirms and consolidates the strategy of informing, supporting and acting which we outlined in Breaking the Silence. By setting down the guidelines detailed in this policy document, we are reaffirming our commitment, and that of the Church, to playing our part in helping to tackle problem drug-use in our society.

By the term ‘drugs’ we include any substance, legal or illegal, which alters a person’s physiology, perception, mood or feelings. We do this advisedly. Alcohol, for example, is often thought of as a benign substance and, for most drinkers it is. Yet, it is a striking fact that alcohol causes more problems for young people and for families than any other drug available in Ireland.

That is why our policy emphasises the importance of preparing young people in school for a world in which many of them will drink alcohol. We would also want, for example, to encourage alcohol-free options for young people.

Our policy statement emphasises prevention, because this, in the practical sense, is the responsibility of us all. We want to encourage schools, through educational and prevention programmes, to focus on what can be done to avert problems in the first place.

Our policy recognises that the phenomenon of drug use is a rapidly changing one and any policies will have to be reviewed and updated at least every two years. It is our intention to identify each year a priority issue regarding drugs.

For the coming year we have chosen to focus on education and prevention. The Church has considerable influence in the education sphere and we particularly ask that it uses that influence at Board of Management level to encourage educational programmes in schools. We also want to encourage the development of supports for parents in how they can develop skills in promoting prevention at home.

Finally, I want to thank the Network for the Prevention of Drug Problems. which is established in all dioceses for helping us to formulate the proposals in this policy statement. The people involved in the Network are knowledgeable and committed and many are professionally involved in various aspects of drugs awareness, treatment and prevention.

The Network will continue in existence until at least the end of next year and the fact that the bishops will continue to provide funding for secretarial service and for co-ordination of the Network until then, affirms our commitment to supporting the Network.

I am happy and privileged to launch this initiative. I do so in a hopeful and confident spirit. The hope is that it will empower people to find their own solutions by availig of all the resources already there and, where necessary, by devising new strategies. People in the grip of addiction need to be awakened to hope. The Christian community is the instrument of God in this awakening and in bringing what help they can to their sister or brother in need.

INSTALLATION OF BISHOP LEO O’REILLY
AS BISHOP OF KILMORE
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 15, 1998
ADDRESS BY CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY

Your Eminence, brother bishops, priests, religious, representatives of the other churches, representatives of the civil authorities and of the parishes of the diocese of Kilmore, my dear brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ.

This is an historic day for the Church in Kilmore. It is right therefore that we celebrate this joyful occasion. with solemnity and dignity, with music, song and prayer and thanksgiving. Bishop MacKiernan, after twenty-six years as Bishop of the diocese of Kilmore steps aside and welcomes Bishop Leo O’Reilly, his successor in the see of St Felim, to take over the helm and guide this beloved diocese through the celebration of the Great Jubilee of the birth of Jesus Christ and into the new millennium.

Today Bishop Leo is being solemnly installed in his Cathedral Church surrounded by his family and his friends, by the priests religious and fellow bishops, by representatives of the other churches and of the civil authorities and by representatives of each of the thirty-six parishes.

This is a happy day, not just for the O’Reilly family, but for the O’Reilly clan, traditional chieftains of East Breffini as they continue their record of providing a Bishop to this diocese in each of the last seven centuries. There was Richard in the 14th, John in the 15th, Dermot in the 16th, Primate Hugh in the 17th, Charles in the 18th, Farrell in the 19th, and now Leo in the 20th. Granted they left it late enough this time but it was a similar story two hundred years ago when Dr. Charles O’Reilly was made Bishop in 1798.

This is also a proud day for the parish of Kilsheridany where Bishop Leo was born as it continues its tradition of providing leadership in the Church. Bishop Charles O’Reilly’s mother was from Kill. At the beginning of this century Bishop Edward Maginnis was Bishop of Kilmore, native of Tullyvin, Co Cavan and the parents of William Cardinal O’Connell of Boston were natives of this parish. Earlier this year Father Eugene King, native of Corick, Tullyvin (Kill parish), was elected Vicar General of the Order of the Oblates of Mary Immaculate, the renowned missionary order in the Church. No wonder that Father Vincent Hannigan, a native of Lappan, next townland to Corgreagh was very happy as he headed back to Nigeria in recent weeks. Father Hannigan is eighty-two years young and is now in his fifty-fifth year as a missionary of St. Patrick’s Missionary Society, Kiltegan. He was noting, with a certain pride and joy, that a neighbour’s son was soon to take over as Bishop of Kilmore and his comment was: “There was always a bit of faith in this part of the country”.

Today we are all here to do two things; to once again show our respect and appreciation, our affection and esteem for Bishop MacKiernan. We thank God for all that he has been over these many years. Today he steps aside from the frontline of leadership but I know that he will continue his ministry of prayer for all who are in need and his great concern for the sick. I would be immensely surprised if he doesn’t find time to drop into the library and the archives to continue his historical research in the records of the life of the Church in Ireland and Kilmore.

Secondly we come today, to this Cathedral of St. Patrick and Felim, to welcome the new Bishop to wish him God’s choicest blessings and to assure him of our help and support. At the beginning of this Mass he was accompanied to the Chair. With the help of God’s Holy Spirit he will preach eloquently from that Chair. He will teach the faith so as to make people holy in the truth and give them spiritual nourishment. And I am sure that he can count on the help of everyone here present, clergy, religious and laymen and women, to help him in that formidable task.

Last Tuesday we celebrated the feast of St. Leo the Great, the patron saint of our new bishop. He was a Pope in Rome in the time of St. Patrick. It was a time of great upheaval as various hordes of Barbarians, like the Huns and the Vandals, swept down on the Holy City and threatened to destroy it. We are told that Pope Leo was a rock-like figure. He worked tirelessly for the people and strengthened their faith and I am sure that Bishop Leo will do likewise and that he will be supported, not only by his great patron, St. Leo the Great, but also by the saints of this diocese:

St Felim of Kilmore
St Mogue/St. Aiden of Templeport
St Dallan of Kildallan
St Cillian of Mullagh
St Laighne of Killinagh
St Laisir of Killesher
St Osnat of Killasnet
St Mochanna of Annagh
St Fincheall of Kilsheridany

CENTENARY OF
THE PIONEER TOTAL ABSTINENCE ASSOCIATION OF THE SACRED HEART
MESSAGE OF CONGRATULATIONS FOR PIONEER MAGAZINE
FROM CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY, ARCHBISHOP OF ARMAGH
9 November 1998

I gladly congratulate the Pioneer Association on reaching the centenary of its foundation on 28 December 1898. Within twenty years the Association had more than a quarter of a million members. Today it has half a million throughout the world. That growth tells its own story.

The founder, Father Cullen, wisely concentrated on commitment rather than numbers. He emphasised prayer and fasting as means of reparation to the heart of Christ for sins of intemperance. He believed that the ‘demon’ of intemperance could only be driven out in this way.

The Association has inspired amazing loyalty and enthusiasm. The witness of the Pioneer is silent and humble, gentle and kind, devoid of all superiority, arrogance, or pharisaism. It makes other people reflect on their own attitudes and actions. It calls for honesty, integrity and dependability. That integrity, one of its great strengths, explains its success over the last 100 years. No-one can calculate the immense contribution of the Pioneer Association to the stability of family life in Ireland during this century.

I am convinced that the Association will continue to play a very significant role in Irish society. Intemperance is still a large problem. There is need for a counter sign, another way. The Pioneers provide that sign splendidly. With initiatives like RAY and Young Pioneers they have proved their adaptability and capacity to survive.

The many Centenary events will demonstrate once again the transforming power and vibrancy of the Association. They will not only dispel the doubts of the faint-hearted but instil new heart and new courage. May they inspire a new commitment to the self-sacrificing prayer and abstinence of Father Cullen. Those ideals have served the Association outstandingly during the century that is ending. There are many good reasons to believe that they will do the same in the Millennium that is about to begin.