Up until 1914 not many people, outside of Belgium, had ever heard of the city of Ypres. But during World War One, the city of Ypres, or ‘Wipers’ as it was nicknamed, became the scene of some of the most ferocious and bloody fighting of the war. The miles upon miles of trenches dug there became synonymous with the pointless death and destruction of war. One million, seven hundred thousand soldiers were killed or wounded near Ypres.

Last month Pope Francis visited the war cemetery at Redipuglia in Italy to mark the centenary of the beginning of the war. He recalled how his own grandfather, Giovanni Bergoglio, who had fought near there, had been left with bitter and painful memories for the rest of his life. Pope Francis gave a powerful sermon that day. The Holy Father said, “War is madness … war destroys. It ruins the most beautiful work of God’s hands: human beings. War ruins everything, even the bonds between brothers. War is irrational; its only plan is to bring destruction.”

We gather this evening to join in prayer for the universal intentions of Pope Francis – for peace in the world and for dialogue among the nations. I am grateful to Her Excellency, Ambassador Alicia Castro of Argentina for encouraging us to gather in this way to honour the Pope’s wishes. The prayer intentions for peace and dialogue have been close to the Holy Father’s heart since his election as pope last year. He speaks out often for peace and justice and he has already taken courageous initiatives to draw attention to the futility of war and to the way that so many innocent children, women and men have had their livelihoods destroyed in horrific conflicts all over the world.

Just this week at the Synod on the Family in Rome, the bishops, gathered with Pope Francis, expressed their “pastoral concern and profound closeness” to all families who suffer as a consequence of war. In particular, they remembered “Iraqi and Syrian families, forced on account of their profession of the Christian faith or their belonging to other ethnic or religious communities, to abandon everything and flee towards a future without any form of certainty.”

One of my favourite photographs of Pope Francis shows him, with a big smile on his face, releasing a white dove into the sky above Saint Peter’s. It’s a beautiful image of freedom, peace, and hope, and I can’t help thinking that Pope Francis is calling all of us to be missionaries of freedom, peace and hope in the world. In choosing the name “Francis” for his pontificate, he wanted us to think of Saint Francis of Assisi, “the man of peace.” He challenges us to be, like Saint Francis, instruments of Christ’s peace in our day-to-day lives – to sow God’s love where there is hatred; God’s pardon where there is injury; to bring joy where there sadness; light where there is darkness; hope where there is despair. What a daunting but wonderful mission that is!

To be missionaries of peace, like Saint Francis and Pope Francis, we need courage – the courage which comes from God. Earlier this year, Pope Francis invited the Israeli President, Shimon Perez, and the Palestinian President, Mahmoud Abbas, to pray with him in the Vatican Gardens. Before praying he told them: “Peace-making calls for courage, much more so than warfare. It calls for the courage to say yes to encounter and no to conflict; yes to dialogue and no to violence.” He continued, “But such courage is beyond our own power, for ‘the evil one’ subverts the human efforts at peace.” That is why we need the help of God.

Much closer to home, I would like to pray this evening for our own political representatives as they begin a new round of talks as part of our continuing peace process. It will take courageous and creative leadership on their parts to move things forward, a leadership that has enough self-belief and commitment to the greater good to look beyond the next election or purely party-political interests. If we just keep on digging trenches for ourselves then there is a real risk that confidence in the ability of politics to resolve problems will be undermined. That is why I ask and pray that our politicians will have open minds and generous hearts during these talks, together with steady nerves and prudent speech. I appeal strongly to them on behalf of so many people to make the talks work this time. I am confident that many of us in the Churches and civic society stand ready to play our part in making their agreements work on the ground. I offer this prayer for all who are involved in the talks. It was written on 8 June by Pope Francis for peace throughout the world:

Lord God of peace, hear our prayer!
We have tried so many times and over so many years to resolve our conflicts by our own powers and by the force of our arms.
But our efforts have been in vain. Now, Lord, come to our aid!
Grant us peace, teach us peace; guide our steps in the way of peace.
Instil in our hearts the courage to take concrete steps to achieve peace.
Amen.

St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh

Feast of Our Lady of  the Rosary
Tuesday, 7 October 2014

Homily given by Archbishop Eamon

Click here to see some photos from the Celebration

On Friday last Pope Francis described a parish or a diocese as a ‘family of families’. What a beautiful image! I can think of no better description for our gathering this evening – a ‘family of families’. Thank you for being here and for your prayers and support.

I welcome my mother and members of my immediate and extended family and my close friends who have been so good to me down the years. I am here at the Cathedral Chair surrounded by my new family – the priests and deacons of the Archdiocese and some of my brother bishops. We are ‘family’ in a special way through the sacrament of Holy Orders, and I look forward to working closely with you, and of course with my sisters and brothers in consecrated life who live in the Archdiocese of Armagh.

As Parish Priest I greet the Cathedral parish family, including Tullysaran, Knockaconey and St Malachy’s, and of course the families of the mensal parishes in Dundalk. And I welcome members of other parish families from all over the diocese: from Louth, Derry, Tyrone and Armagh. I know that from time to time we can be fierce rivals on the football field! Still, we are united as members of this great Archdiocese under the patronage of Patrick, Malachy, Brigid, Oliver Plunkett.

And there are many other ‘families’ represented here from various schools, groups and associations. Yes, Pope Francis, puts it well – we are a ‘family of families’, the People of God in the Archdiocese of Armagh.

But what does it mean to think of our parish or diocese as a family of families? Firstly; it means that, like any family, we have a special bond that links us – across 4 counties, 61 parishes, 24 religious congregations and nearly 200 Catholic schools – a bond that inspires loyalty and encourages us to look out for one another. That bond is our unity within God’s family as brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ – If one member of the family is celebrating – we share their joy; if someone is hurting, we reach out to their sorrow.

• Pope Francis imparts his Apostolic Blessing on ‘Day for Life’ celebrations in Ireland
• The Catholic Church will continue to call for a society without abortion which loves and cares for all life equally
• The world needs to hear loud and clear the Gospel message about a culture of life – the horrific public assassination of Alan Henning, the British aid worker, is yet another grim reminder of the culture of death
• On commenting on the debate in England about assisted dying, Archbishop Richard Clarke courageously pointed out the fundamental Christian tenet that our life on earth is not our property to do with as we choose

This week I was kindly given a copy of the inspiring book Donal’s Mountain by Fionnbar Walsh.  It tells the moving story of his son Donal, an extraordinary young man from Kerry who taught us how to value every second of life.  Donal was only sixteen years-old and was suffering from terminal cancer, but his powerful personal testimony on television and other media encouraged us never to take life for granted.  Donal told us he had “wanted to live, to play for Munster, to travel the whole world, to raise children and die when I’m 100”, but sadly it wasn’t to be.  Still, instead of reacting with anger and despair at the news of his cancer, Donal embraced life to promote his anti-suicide message. Using the #LiveLife Twitter handle, he urged his fellow teenagers to “appreciate what you have, know that there are always other options and help is always there”. His #LiveLife message has touched many hearts and changed lives.

In his message to Ireland for our Day for Life celebration today, Pope Francis said he hopes that this “Day” will inspire all of us, and especially young people (like Donal Walsh), to combat the “culture of death” that surrounds us.  The world needs to hear loud and clear the Gospel message about a culture of life – the horrific public assassination of Alan Henning, the British aid worker, is yet another grim reminder of the culture of death.  Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it to the full (John 10:10).”  Every one of us can play our part in helping to build a world which cherishes the sacredness of all human life.

Our annual Day for Life challenges all of us to examine our own attitudes and behaviour, and to ask: “what am I, personally, doing to build a culture of life?”  The responsibility to build a culture of life belongs to every human being, believer and non-believer alike, and to every Church and community leader and public representative.  As people of faith we might all honestly ask ourselves today: am I a “protector” of life?  Do I fully cherish my own life and the lives of others?  In my driving, eating and drinking habits, in the way I speak and witness about life, in the way I look after my health, am I valuing life as a gift from God?

Pope Francis tells us that being a “protector” of life means “protecting all creation, the beauty of the created world … It means respecting each of God’s creatures and respecting the environment in which we live.”  The Holy Father speaks of “protecting people, showing loving concern for each and every person, especially children, the elderly, those in need, who are often the last we think about.”  He emphasises the importance of the family: “husbands and wives first protect one another, and then, as parents, they care for their children, and children themselves, in time, protect their parents.”

It is alarming that in many ways life itself has become subject to what Pope Francis calls our “throwaway culture.”  At times human life is treated like just another commodity which is dispensable, as if it had a “use by” or “best before” date.  Increasingly there are situations, such as at the very beginning of life or near the end of life, where the value of one life is weighed up against the value of another, or the lives of some are treated as useless and disposable.

An example from the beginning of life can be found in the publication last month in the Government of Ireland’s guidelines to accompany its recent abortion legislation.  These guidelines have confirmed that, despite all the medical evidence to the contrary, abortion can now be “prescribed” as an “answer” to a mother’s suicidal feelings, and a tiny unborn child on the cusp of viability can be delivered extremely prematurely only to fight for her or his life and long-term health.  This legislation was unnecessary and is medically flawed.  A mother in crisis or mental turmoil needs every possible support and the very best of care, as does her unborn child.  The Church will continue to call for a society without abortion which loves and cares for all life equally and does everything possible to protect the life of both a mother and her unborn child, even in the most delicate and traumatic circumstances.

With regard to life at the very end of our days, we must always remember that poor health or disability does not take away the intrinsic value of a human person.  We must therefore beware of the “misguided mercy” of euthanasia whereby a right to die could easily give way to a duty to die.  For this reason I was heartened to read the remarks in August of my new neighbour and friend, Archbishop Richard Clarke, Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh.  Archbishop Clarke was commenting on the debate in England about assisted dying and he courageously pointed out the fundamental Christian tenet that our life on earth is not our property to do with as we choose.  Like Pope Francis, Archbishop Clarke reminded us that life is not a commodity which is disposable entirely at the will of the individual “possessor”.

During the past Week for Life in the Archdiocese of Armagh we have been reflecting on the sacredness of all human life and praying that life will be protected and cherished in every circumstance.  I encourage you to continue to keep this intention prominent in your thoughts and prayers as we continue to help proclaim and build a culture of life in the world. Amen.

ENDS

• Archbishop Eamon Martin is Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland.  This homily was preached at 11:00am Mass today in Saint Patrick’s, Cathedral, Armagh, to celebrate ‘Day of Life Sunday’.

• ‘Day for Life Sunday’ (see www.dayforlife.org and www.chooselife2014.ie) is celebrated annually by the Catholic Church in Ireland, Scotland, England and Wales.  It is a day dedicated to raising awareness about the meaning and value of human life at every stage and in every condition.  Day for Life is celebrated in Ireland today, Sunday 5 October, and the theme of the 2014 pastoral message is: Protect and Cherish Life #Livelife.  See the special web feature on www.catholicbishops.ie including a video interview with Bishop Brendan Leahy, Bishop of Limerick, as well as the Day for Life 2014 prayer (see below) and texts of the pastoral message in the English, Irish and Polish languages.    On behalf of the Holy Father Pope Francis, the Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin has published a special message to support of our ‘Day for Life’ this year:

Message from Pope Francis for Day for Life 2014

“As the Church in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales celebrates the 2014 ‘Day for Life’, the Holy Father expresses his confidence that this annual witness to the sanctity of God’s gift of life will inspire the faithful, and young Catholics in particular, to combat the culture of death, not only by working to ensure adequate legal protection for the fundamental human right to life, but also by seeking to bring the merciful love of Christ as a life-giving balm to those troubling ‘new forms of poverty and vulnerability’ (cf. Evangelii Gaudium 210) which are increasingly evident in contemporary society.  To all involved in the ‘Day for Life’ celebrations, His Holiness imparts his Apostolic Blessing as a pledge of wisdom, joy and peace in the Risen Lord.”

• The Day for Life Prayer

Holy Mary, Mother of Love,
holding in your arms, the fruit of your womb,
graciously look upon our earth and remove from it
all that hardens our hearts and dims our eyes
to the preciousness of human life,
from the moment of conception to natural death.

Through the example of your tenderness
teach us the ways of compassion and love
that we may build up the civilisation of love among us
and a society that is truly worthy of the human person.

Help us to reject all that contributes to a culture of death,
and to work with others of goodwill
in promoting the culture of life.

Bring us ever closer to your Son,
so that we may know the fullness of life that he offers us
and come to know that life more perfectly,
with you, and all the angels and saints,
in the eternal life of Heaven.

AMEN