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Bishop Michael Launches Baptised and Sent for Lent Resources

Baptised and Sent in Lent – Launch in the Archdiocese of Armagh

The Baptised and Sent Lenten resources were launched in the Archdiocese of Armagh by Bishop Michael Router at Mass in the Church of St. Laurence, Omeath on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord.

At the beginning of his homily, Bishop Michael posed a simple but searching question:
“Do I say I was baptised, or do I say I am baptised?”

It is a question that goes to the heart of Christian life. Baptism is not simply something that happened in the past, a moment recorded in a register or remembered in photographs. It is a living reality, an identity we carry each day. To say “I am baptised” is to recognise that baptism continues to shape who we are, how we live and how we are sent into the world as disciples of Christ.

Parishes, schools, youth groups and families are warmly encouraged to engage with the resources throughout Lent and to share them widely with family, friends and faith communities.

Access the Baptised and Sent Lenten resources »

Baptised and Sent: Returning to the Heart of Christian Life in Ireland

From quiet chapels to the hidden Mass rocks of penal times, faith has shaped the story of the Church in Ireland. At the heart of that story is something simple and shared by all: our baptism.

Baptism is where our Christian life begins. It tells us who we are, God’s beloved, and sends us out to live the Gospel with others. Through baptism, we share one dignity, one Spirit and one mission. Every voice matters, and every gift is needed.

A Lenten Journey for the Whole Church

Inspired by Baptised and Sent, the preparatory document for the 2025 National Assembly in Kilkenny, these Lenten resources invite parishes, schools and groups across Ireland to journey together through prayer, reflection and shared conversation.

Each week offers a simple structure rooted in the Sunday Gospel, helping individuals and groups reflect on key themes such as belonging, healing, renewal and mission. These themes flow from a shared conviction: that baptism is the entry point to a life of faith, the gateway to mission, and the foundation for the renewal of the Church in Ireland.

The resources are designed for everyone, lay, religious and ordained, and can be used personally, in families, or in parish, school and youth group settings. They encourage each of us to listen attentively to the Holy Spirit and to take concrete steps, individually and together, towards living our baptismal calling more deeply in our daily lives.

As this season of Lent begins, it is hoped that Baptised and Sent will open hearts to new life in Christ and help prepare communities for the continuing synodal journey towards the National Assembly in 2026.

Bishop Michael’s Homily, Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

Homily preached in St. Laurence’s Church, Omeath on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Sunday 11th January 2026

Text of Bishop Michael’s Homily – Feast of the Baptism of the Lord

If I were to begin this morning by asking you the question, “Are you baptised?” most of you would probably answer, “I was baptised.” Not many of us would say, “I am baptised,” yet that is actually the truer and more accurate response.

Because the vast majority of us were baptised as infants, we have no memory of it. It can feel like a historical event — something recorded on a certificate or captured in a photograph. As a result, we don’t often think of baptism as having much relevance for the present or for what we are called to do here and now. I believe that this lack of awareness is a major contributor to the lack of life we sometimes experience in the Church today. Many people do not fully appreciate baptism as that central and deeply important moment in their Christian life.

In today’s readings, we are told that at his baptism Jesus was anointed with the Holy Spirit and with power, and that he went about doing good. That short phrase is a beautiful summary of the Christian vocation — and of what happens for us too.

Baptism is not a private blessing or simply a naming ceremony for a family. It is much more than that. Baptism is the beginning of a mission. We are baptised not just to belong to a group, but to receive a vocation. We are sent.

That truth has not always been easy for us to grasp in Ireland, largely because we were baptised so young. Many of us — especially those over fifty or sixty — were baptised within a day or two of birth. Often our mothers were not even present. Godparents brought the child to the church, sometimes even returning with a different name than the parents had chosen. It simply shows how little awareness there often was of what baptism truly means.

Yet the Second Vatican Council, and more recently Pope Francis and Pope Leo through the synodal process, have called the Church to rediscover baptism as the foundation of Christian life, dignity and responsibility. Before any distinction of role or ministry, we are first and foremost the People of God, equal in dignity because we have been baptised into Jesus Christ.

It is this renewed understanding that lies at the heart of the Baptised and Sent in Lent resources being launched today across the country for the upcoming season of Lent.

These simple resources invite parishes, schools and groups throughout Ireland to journey together through prayer, reflection on the Gospel, and honest conversation. They are available online and consist of a two-sided sheet for each week of Lent, offering a clear and accessible structure. They can be used by families, parish groups, or entire communities.

Each week focuses on themes such as belonging, healing, renewal and mission — all flowing from the conviction that baptism is the gateway to a life of faith and the root from which the Church must grow and be renewed.

These resources are not just for a few enthusiastic parishioners or committee members. They are for all of us, lay, religious and ordained, as an invitation to rediscover who we are and to listen once again to the Holy Spirit speaking in our midst.

This is deeply connected to the spiritual journey the Church is making through synodality. Synodality is not about changing the faith or abandoning tradition. It is about listening, to God, to one another, and to the signs of the times, so that the mission of Christ can be lived more faithfully in a rapidly changing world.

The challenges facing the Church today are real and often painful. But history teaches us that adversity can become the seedbed of new life. The Spirit who descended on Jesus in the Jordan has not abandoned the Church.

As we look ahead to the National Assembly of the Catholic Church in Ireland later this year, the Baptised and Sent in Lent resources offer us a practical and spiritual way to prepare. They remind us that the gifts needed for renewal are already present among us. Through baptism, we all share in Christ’s priestly, prophetic and kingly mission.

The Church does not move forward through the efforts of a few trying to keep things going, but through the faithful participation of everyone who is baptised, including everyone here today, those joining us online, and indeed all who are baptised, whether they are present at Mass or not.

So today, as we celebrate the Baptism of the Lord, let us renew our baptismal awareness. Let us remember that we are beloved, anointed by the Spirit, and entrusted with the mission of Christ.

I encourage you to engage with these Lenten resources personally and as parish communities. Allow this Lent to be a time when the waters of baptism are stirred once more among us, so that renewed in Christ, we may truly know ourselves as baptised — and truly sent — on the mission of Christ in the world.

+ Bishop Michael Router

Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh

 

Bishop Michael Router’s Homily for Closing of the Jubilee Year of Hope

Bishop Michael Router’s Homily for Closing of the Jubilee Year of Hope in the

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh, 4/1/26

Text of Bishop Michael’s Homily

On Tuesday, Pope Leo will formally bring to a close the Jubilee Year of Hope. It is fitting that this Jubilee Year ends on the Feast of the Epiphany, when we celebrate the revelation of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, to all people. The wise men who travelled from distant lands signify that Christ’s light is for every race, nation and time. The Epiphany reminds us that God’s love knows no borders and the peace that comes from His saving power is offered to all.

Even though this Jubilee Year of Hope concludes, Christian hope itself does not end. It cannot end. In today’s gospel we are told by John the Evangelist that all that came to be had life in Jesus and that life was the light of all people “a light that shines in the dark, a light that darkness could not overpower.” Through Jesus Christ we possess a firm, unshakable assurance that no matter what unfolds in our world, no matter what trials confront us personally or collectively, darkness and evil will never have the final word.

This hope, however, is increasingly difficult to hold on to. We live in a world moving closer to the edge of destruction. The continuing war in Ukraine threatens to ignite a wider conflict. Sudan and Syria are scarred by bitter and unrelenting conflicts. The situation in Gaza remains fragile, its people exhausted by violence and hunger, and just yesterday we learned of an aggressive military operation in Venezuela that could open a new, and potentially lethal, conflict in that part of the world.

At the same time, injustice continues to grow as some world leaders enrich themselves while ignoring the cries of their own people. The gulf between rich and poor grows each year. The wealthiest 5% of the world now holds roughly three-quarters of global wealth, leaving billions with too little to live on with any semblance of comfort or dignity. Such inequality is more than an economic problem, it is a time bomb that threatens to explode and devastate the earth, God’s gift to us.

In his message for World Day of Peace on 1st of January, Pope Leo reminded us that peace is not something that we should take for granted, but instead live, cultivate and protect. The Holy Father cautions us against believing that peace is achieved by preparing for war, falling into what he calls the “irrationality of relations” between nations built on fear, domination and force rather than justice, trust and respect for human dignity.

In such a world, it is very easy for us to feel small and powerless. But we as a Christian community are not powerless. While alone we may seem insignificant, together as a people we possess a mighty voice, a voice capable of crying out “Stop!” A voice able to proclaim a hope that is not passive or sentimental, but active and transformative. If we do not stand together for the values we profess, we will surely fall together into a future marked by misery and pain.

As we step into 2026, we must begin to raise our voices with new conviction. The hope we have celebrated, prayed for and reflected upon throughout this past Jubilee year must now become tangible and effective. It is time to stand unequivocally with those who suffer, with victims of aggression and injustice, to defend the poor, and to protect the environment that strains under the weight of human greed.

In our own Archdiocese of Armagh, we have reason to continue to be people of hope as we look forward. We are joined today at this Mass by the students who are currently in formation for service in the priesthood in this diocese from the seminaries in Dundalk and in Maynooth. Their presence reminds us of the continuing generosity of young people to dedicate their lives to God’s service. We ask God’s blessing on their ongoing discernment and studies, and we recommit ourselves to praying for new vocations to the priesthood and religious life in the years ahead.

We also look forward in hope in this diocese to a major event this coming year – the Diocesan Congress on Youth, Family and Faith in March. Over the past year we have been working with the parishes and schools to prepare for this gathering. We have consulted with a large number of people, reflecting on their responses and discerning proposals to put before the congress that will place young people and families at the centre of our pastoral planning in the years ahead.

So, may the seeds of hope planted during this Jubilee Year in our diocese, and throughout the world, begin to bear fruit in the future. May 2026 be a year in which our Christian witness helps build a world more worthy of Jesus the Prince of Peace.

+ Bishop Michael Router

Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh

 

Archbishop Eamon Martin: let us resolve to be signs of peace for each other during 2026

Archbishop Eamon Martin’s 2026 New Year message to the people of Ireland

Caption Archbishop Eamon Martin in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh, during Christmas 2025 (Catholic Communications Office archive)

The Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland has encouraged people to be signs of peace for each other, and for the world, during 2026.

Speaking at Mass in Armagh to welcome in the New Year, Archbishop Martin echoed the words of Pope Leo XIV who, in his 1 January message for the 59th World Day of Peace, calls for a peace that is “unarmed and disarming.”
 
Archbishop Martin observed the custom of offering each other a sign of peace which occurs just before Holy Communion at Mass, normally in the form of a handshake, bow or other gesture.  The Primate said, “The Church understands this action as an expression of deep commitment to bringing to life the Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ.  By sharing His words, ‘Peace be with you’, with the persons beside us, we are undertaking to spread the peace of Christ in our daily lives – by our thoughts, words and deeds and in our many interactions with others – at home, in the work place, at school, and in social encounters.  I urge you to consider making a New Year’s resolution to be a sign of peace wherever you go this year.”
 
Taking his cue from Pope Leo’s message, Archbishop Martin expressed concern that social media may be influencing people to come to conversations and relationships as if ‘armed for battle’.  He said, “I am saddened when I see people of faith online who seem ‘armed to the teeth’, and who persist in “othering” and accentuating difference.  It is particularly disappointing when you see this from Christians online who label and dismiss others because of their race, religion or some other perceived difference.  This is not of God.”
 
Archbishop Martin highlighted this point in Pope Leo’s message where the Holy Father writes, “Unfortunately, it has become increasingly common to drag the language of faith into political battles, to bless nationalism, and to justify violence and armed struggle in the name of religion.  Believers must actively refute, above all by the witness of their lives, these forms of blasphemy that profane the holy name of God.”
 
Archbishop Martin said, “Pope Leo prefers a disarmed peace which is not about ‘weaponising thoughts and words’, but about healing, showing mercy and forgiveness, reconciling and bridge-building.  This is the peace which Jesus meant when He said to His friends, ‘Peace I leave you; my own peace I give you; a peace the world cannot give – that is my gift to you.'”
 
Archbishop Martin emphasised that, “This is one of the ways that religions in general, and Christianity in particular, can continue to play a vital role in the public square – by witnessing and being signs of peace, by holding humanity and the world back from the brink of self-destruction, endless conflict, violent displacement of peoples and death.
 
“Like Pope Leo, I am hopeful that even amid what the late Pope Francis called ‘a Third World War fought piecemeal’, peacemakers can continue to resist the spread of darkness, standing as sentinels in the night.
 
“They do this by fostering the ‘disarmed and disarming’ peace of Christ which is the answer to the evils that stalk our world.  Such peace is achievable.  We must reject the spread of despair, the massive investment in rearmament, and those who would talk up threats and the ‘inevitability’ of war.  We do not give up on peace.”
 
Archbishop Martin concluded, “My brothers and sisters, as the New Year 2026 begins, the challenge to speak and live the message of peace remains more important than ever.  My wish on this World Day of Peace is that Christians everywhere, who regularly exchange the Sign of the Peace of Christ, will be active ambassadors for peace in the Church and in the world, beginning in their own homes, families, workplaces and neighbourhoods.  In this way the Sign of Peace will avoid becoming an empty or meaningless gesture, but will rather be an impulse and driver towards reconciliation and peace building.”
 
+ Archbishop Eamon martin
Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland

Bishop Michael Router’s New Year Message: Hope That Becomes Action

New Year Message: Hope That Becomes Action

In his New Year message, Bishop Michael Router, Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh, reflects on the closing of the Jubilee Year of Hope and invites us to carry its meaning forward into the year ahead.

The Jubilee year of Hope comes to an end on Epiphany, the feast that celebrates the revelation of Christ to the nations. The journey of the Wise Men to Bethlehem reminds us that the light of Christ is for every people and every place. God’s love knows no borders, and the peace offered in Jesus Christ is offered to all.

A Hope That Does Not End

While the Jubilee Year formally concludes, Bishop Michael is clear in his New Year video message that Christian hope does not and cannot end. Through Jesus Christ, we are given a firm and unshakeable assurance: whatever unfolds in our world, and whatever trials we face personally, darkness and evil will never have the final word.

Yet he also acknowledges how difficult hope can feel today. We live in a world marked by war, violence and deep injustice. Ongoing conflicts in Ukraine, Sudan, Syria and Gaza continue to bring suffering and devastation. At the same time, global inequality is growing at an alarming rate, with a small percentage of the world’s population holding the vast majority of its wealth, while billions live without security, comfort or dignity.

This level of inequality, Bishop Michael reminds us, is not just an economic issue. It is a moral and spiritual crisis that threatens both humanity and the earth, God’s gift to us.

Peace Is Not Automatic

Drawing on the World Day of Peace message from Pope Leo XIV, Bishop Michael reminds us that peace is not automatic. It is a gift that must be lived, nurtured and protected. When it is not, aggression seeps into personal, social and political life.

The Holy Father warns against the dangerous illusion that peace can be secured through fear, force or preparation for war. True peace is built instead on justice, trust and respect for human dignity.

Finding Our Voice Together

In such a troubled world, it is easy to feel small or powerless. But Bishop Michael insists that the Christian community is not powerless. Together, we have a voice that can speak out against injustice, a voice that can say “stop,” and a voice that can proclaim a hope that is active, courageous and transformative.

If we fail to stand together for the values we profess, he cautions, we risk drifting into a future shaped by misery and pain. As we step into 2026, this is the moment to raise our voices with renewed conviction and allow the hope we have prayed for and reflected upon to become real and effective.

Hope Taking Shape in Our Diocese

Looking closer to home, Bishop Michael points to a major moment of hope for the Archdiocese of Armagh: the Diocesan Congress on Youth, Family and Faith, taking place in March. Over the past year, parishes and schools across the diocese have been deeply involved in listening, reflecting and discerning how young people and families can be placed at the heart of pastoral planning for the years ahead.

This Congress represents a concrete step in turning hope into action, rooted in the voices and experiences of our communities.

A Prayer for the Year Ahead

Bishop Michael concludes his New Year message with a prayer that the seeds of hope planted during the Jubilee Year, in our diocese and across the world, will begin to bear fruit in the coming year. May 2026 be a year in which our Christian witness helps to build a world more worthy of Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace.

Bishop Michael prays that everyone will experience a peaceful, blessed and hope-filled New Year.

+ Bishop Michael Router

Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh

Bishop Michael’s Christmas 2025 Homily – “The Gift That Costs Everything”

“The Gift That Costs Everything”

Photo: Stained Glass Window from the Church of the Nativity Bethlehem

“The spirit of Christmas is not just for a season but a way of life – a call to sacrificial love without counting the cost.”

Bishop Michael Router

 

 

 

Text of Bishop Michael’s Christmas 2025 Homily

The Happy Prince written by Oscar Wilde is a short story that captures very well the spirit of Christmas. It tells the story of a magnificent golden statue of a young prince that stands high above a city. When the Prince was alive, he lived a sheltered life of luxury within the palace walls and never saw human suffering. After his death, his statue is placed on a tall column and from this vantage point he finally witnesses the poverty, misery and injustice endured by his people.

A little swallow, on his way to Egypt for the winter, stops to rest at the statue’s feet. The prince persuades the Swallow to stay and helps him to relieve the townspeople’s suffering. He asks the bird to little by little pluck the jewels and gold leaf from his body and deliver them to those in need. As the Prince gives away all he has, his statue becomes dull and bare, while all the time the swallow grows increasingly devoted to him and to the mission he has been given.

When winter arrives the swallow does not fly away or neglect his duty. He is, unfortunately, unable to survive the cold and dies at the prince’s feet. In his sorrow, the Prince’s leaden heart breaks in two. Declared ugly and useless by the city council, the statue is melted down and the broken leaden heart and the lifeless body of the swallow are thrown on the rubbish heap.

In heaven God instructs one of his angels to bring him the two most precious things in the city and the angel brings back to him the broken heart and the dead bird. “You have chosen rightly,” said God, “for in my garden of Paradise this little bird shall sing for evermore and in my city of gold the Happy Prince shall praise me”.

This story captures the essence of Christian love: sacrificial giving without counting the cost. The Good News we celebrate today is that God has modelled this sacrificial love for us. He has entered our world, not as a distant ruler cloaked in majesty, but as a newborn child lying in a manger, crying like any other infant, vulnerable and dependent on human care.

We celebrate this divine gift because it opens for us the way to eternal life. Jesus’ birth is not simply a beautiful story from long ago; it is God’s embrace of our suffering, our weakness, our brokenness. He identifies with the poor, the lowly shepherds who first heard the angels’ song, and He remains present in all who suffer and struggle today.

And yet we know that the world continues to be fractured by poverty, inequality, war, violence and indifference to the suffering of others. We see a world where a tiny minority controls an overwhelming share of wealth, while billions struggle for basic necessities. According to global wealth data, the top 5% of the world’s population own around two thirds of the global wealth, while the bottom 50% owns just about 2% of its resources.

This is not a statistic to be dismissed easily. It reflects a moral and spiritual crisis. When so few hold so much and so many have so little, we see the consequences in every aspect of life,  in families struggling to pay for food, electricity, and healthcare and in societies racked by conflict and tension fostered by injustice and exclusion.

We have also seen, in recent times, how political leaders of powerful nations dismiss the real struggles of ordinary people, telling them they are imagining the crisis of affordability while millions go without health care or the ability to pay their bills. This kind of indifference contradicts the very Gospel, the good news that we celebrate today.

Christ was born not to the wealthy or powerful, but to Mary and Joseph,  humble servants, and was first worshiped by shepherds, ordinary people on the margins. He chose poverty, identified with the weakest and taught us that true greatness in God’s kingdom is found in service, not in dominance.

This truth, the self-giving of Christ that leads us to self-giving lives, must guide us not only today, but far beyond when the Christmas decorations are put away and the last carol is sung. The spirit of Christmas is not just for a season but is a way of life. It is a call to be an instrument of God’s peace, a channel of God’s compassion and a voice for those who have none.

As we reflect on the Word made flesh, let us ask: How can we, in our families and communities, in our places of work and learning, mirror the generous heart of Christ? How can we reach out to the poor, the lonely, the oppressed? How can we, like the Happy Prince and his loyal Swallow, give of ourselves, our time, our effort and our compassion, so that others might taste the warmth of God’s love?

Christ has come. He has brought God’s light into our darkness and hope into our despair. Let the joy of this day spur us to greater generosity and deeper solidarity with all God’s children, especially those on the margins. For in giving as Christ gave, we receive the true joy of Christmas that lasts forever.

+ Bishop Michael Router

Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh

Archbishop Eamon’s Christmas 2025 Homily – “Christ Knocks at the Door of Our Hearts This Christmas”

“Christ Knocks at the Door of Our Hearts This Christmas”

“I pray that for those out there who are lonely, isolated and struggling, poor, sick or in need, that we who love God can bring Christ to them this Christmas”

Archbishop Eamon Martin

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recording of Archbishop Eamon Martin’s Christmas 2025 Homily, Christmas Midnight Mass, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh

Text of Archbishop Eamon’s Homily 

The late Pope Francis – God rest his soul – was speaking at Christmas time some years ago and he described Jesus “knocking at the door of our hearts”.

Christ comes into our lives, including at Christmas time, but often we don’t notice him because our hearts are so restless and preoccupied – especially in the run up to Christmas – and its as if we keep Christ standing outside, waiting. As Pope Francis put it: “Christ is asking for our acceptance, he’s wants us to say “yes”, as Mary did.”

It’s written in the Book of Revelation, the very last book in the Bible: “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, [then] I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me.” (Rev. 3:20)

On Christmas Eve, I think of Mary, carrying in her womb the unborn Christ child – and wandering through Bethlehem with Joseph, knocking at the doors, hoping that someone would find it in their heart to invite them in.

Sadly in many ways it’s the same today, because in these troubled times of war and violence, fear and uncertainty, it’s as if Christ is standing before the whole world this Christmas, knocking to be let in, urging our world to open its heart to Him. We continue to watch with concern the situation in Gaza, Ukraine and other parts of our world where war causes such death, devastation, displacement of people and heart break. And even here on the island of Ireland there are people still struggling to get by, to find shelter in the night, food in the day, and love always.

As John puts it in the first chapter of his Gospel:
“He was in the world
that had its being through him,
and the world did not know him.
He came to his own domain
and his own people did not accept him.”

Christ knows how much we need Him, how much the whole world needs His Good News of peace on earth, of mercy, forgiveness, generosity, compassion and kindness, and of course, His promise of hope. So even though at times we won’t answer the door, He just keeps on knocking; he really wants a ‘heart to heart’ encounter with us. He’s standing right there, with Christmas gifts, of love, mercy and healing; – gifts of hope and joy. He wants to share all this with us, so that we, in turn, can share it with others. But Christ simply can’t get to us, unless we make the effort to open the door of our hearts, and let him in.

The mystics used to say, “were Christ to be born in a thousand stables it would be to no avail, unless He is born in our hearts “.

Pope Leo, loves to quote St Augustine’s beautiful prayer:

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

So friends, I wish you and your loved ones a happy and restful Christmas this year, with peace in your hearts and in your home, and Christ beside you, – inside the door – seated at your table, heart to heart.

And I wish that for those out there who are lonely, isolated and struggling, poor, sick or in need, we who love God can bring Christ to them this Christmas and New Year, gently knocking at the door of their hearts to remind them, “You are loved” and I bring you News of great joy; you’re not alone, for “Today a Saviour has been born for us. He is Christ the Lord”.

God bless you all.

+ Archbishop Eamon Martin

Archbishop of Armagh, Primate of All Ireland and Apostolic Administrator of Dromore

Church Leaders: “The Christmas season is a reminder that God is always with us”

Church Leaders’ Christmas 2025 message to the people of Ireland

“The gift of hope is as precious as ever … In our own country there are many who live in fear and uncertainty, struggling to make ends meet and fearful of what the future may bring … Every life should be lived out in hope”

 

 

Christmas 2025 message

His name will be called Emmanuel, which means ‘God with us’ (Mt 1:23).

For Christians, what happened on the first Christmas night over 2,000 years ago, was much more than the birth of a baby boy.  The child who came to birth in the darkness of that night in Bethlehem was the love of God made flesh, and the sign of God’s closeness to all people.  Christ’s birth fulfilled the hope of God’s people which had gone before and brought to light the hope of all believers for the ages to come.

In our present time the gift of hope is as precious as ever.  We don’t need to look very far or very hard to see where people’s hope is in danger of being crushed.  In too many places, from Gaza to Sudan to Ukraine and beyond, people live in the shadow of war and the threat of violence.  Millions are still afflicted by the scourges of disease, poverty and famine.

There are many who are worn down by injustice and exploitation, human beings trafficked and treated as commodities or slaves, and those targeted because of their race or religion.

In our own country there are many who live in fear and uncertainty, struggling to make ends meet and fearful of what the future may bring.  From young people uncertain of their prospects in an increasingly market–driven society, to farmers becoming ever more conscious of the precariousness of making a living off the land and worried about what the next generation will inherit, to those for whom homelessness is a daily reality or a real threat, hope can be very fragile indeed.

And for all who are suffering deep hurt, pain or grief, hope may be the only comfort and lifeline they have.

When we lose hope we lose part of our humanity, and our reason for living.  Life is a precious gift from God, from its beginning to its end in this world and beyond.  Life is a gift to be cherished and respected, and always treated with dignity.  Every life should be lived out in hope.  It is not just essential for us to hold on to hope for ourselves, but also to nurture and support hope in others.

In acknowledging our own human weakness, our faults and failures, we need the assurance of sins forgiven and the hope that is found in Christ who offers new beginnings.  In the face of the many struggles and sufferings of our world, we need to proclaim constantly a message of hope.

In particular, for those who have power and influence, whether in politics, business, religious life, civic society or in any other way, there is a solemn and inescapable obligation to be messengers of hope and enemies of despair.  May none be lost or forgotten.

For Christians, the Christmas season is a reminder that God is always with us.  He shares our burdens of pain, anxiety and fear, as He did in the person of Jesus.  The Christ–child of Bethlehem is also the one who endured the agony of the Cross and the one who triumphed over death.  In Him, even in darkest times, our hope and refuge is found.  He is our Emmanuel, the loving God who is with us now and always.  We pray that all people of goodwill at this time may hold in their hearts the gift of hope for themselves and for a more peaceful, just and compassionate world.  May all of our words and actions bring that hope closer to reality.

Archbishop John McDowell
Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh & Primate of All Ireland
Archbishop Eamon Martin
Catholic Archbishop of Armagh & Primate of All Ireland
The Rt Revd Dr Richard Murray
Moderator of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland
The Revd Alan Wardlow
President of the Methodist Church in Ireland
The Rt Revd Sarah Groves
President of the Irish Council of Churches

Let Justice Flow Like Rivers – Creation Care Conference, Saturday 17 January 2026, Newry

Let Justice Flow Like Rivers

Creation Care Conference | Saturday 17 January 2026 | Newry

Following the visit of Church leaders Group to Lough Neagh in July 2025, the Irish Council of Churches and the Irish Inter Church Meeting invite you to Let Justice Flow Like Rivers, a one-day Creation Care Conference which will be held on Saturday 17 January 2026, from 10.00am – 3.30pm, in the Canal Court Hotel.

The Church Leaders’ visit to Lough Neagh represented a moment of listening, prayer and witness where the impacts of poor stewardship, pollution and climate change were experienced up close by the Church Leaders Group. The visit revealed the beauty of Lough Neagh as a shared natural treasure, but it also allowed all to talk about the serious ecological crisis it faces, from pollution and algal blooms to the loss of livelihoods and biodiversity. That visit now becomes a call to action and a wider invitation from the Church leaders to reflect, learn and act together.

Rooted in faith, justice, and responsibility for creation, the conference brings together theology, science, and lived experience. Keynote contributors include Jim McAdam, Hilary Marlow, and Gail Heffner, alongside presentations from local church and community initiatives. Minister Andrew Muir will attend, along with a representative of the Irish Government.

Reflecting on care for our common home, Archbishop Eamon Martin reminds us that God will ask whether we have cared for the world entrusted to us, and for one another. 

Tickets (£10) are available via Eventbrite.

 https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/let-justice-flow-like-rivers-tickets-1870086843089?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

All are welcome, especially parish groups, youth groups and those concerned about the future of Our Common Home.

 

Archbishop Eamon Martin expresses solidarity following attack on Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach

Archbishop Eamon Martin expresses solidarity following attack on Hanukkah celebration in Bondi Beach

“I know that many Irish families have sons and daughters living in the Sydney and Bondi Beach area, as well as countless others in other parts of Australia, and no doubt everyone is deeply impacted by the awful attack, which must have been terribly shocking and frightening for everyone present.”

 

Archbishop Eamon Martin, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland, has expressed solidarity with the Jewish community following the horrific attack on a Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia.  

Speaking during the annual Christmas Carol Service in Saint Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh, Archbishop Eamon shared words of prayer and compassion as the third candle of the Advent wreath was lit. He acknowledged the deep shock and grief caused by the attack, which took place as Jewish families around the world were celebrating the Festival of Light, leaving twelve people dead and many others injured.

Archbishop Eamon was particularly mindful of the many Irish families, including young people from Ireland and from within the Archdiocese, who are currently living in Sydney and the Bondi Beach area, and who may have been directly or indirectly affected by the events.

In his statement, Archbishop Eamon spoke clearly against antisemitism and all forms of prejudice, calling on Christians to actively counter hatred and discrimination towards Jewish people and towards all minorities. He reflected on the Christian belief that Jesus came as the fulfilment of Isaiah’s prophecy, bringing light into darkness and peace into a broken world and invited those gathered to pray for the families who have been bereaved, for those who have been injured, and for the first responders whose courage helped prevent further loss of life.

Archbishop Eamon Martin’s statement

“As we gather this evening for our Christmas carol service, and light the third candle on our Advent wreath, we unite with our Jewish brothers and sisters around the world who are celebrating the festival of Hanukkah today, and whose festival of light this year has been horrifically overshadowed by the darkness and evil of a terror attack on the Hanukkah celebration at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, leaving twelve people dead and many, many more injured.

I know that many Irish families have sons and daughters living in the Sydney and Bondi Beach area, as well as countless others in other parts of Australia, and no doubt everyone is deeply impacted by the awful attack, which must have been terribly shocking and frightening for everyone present.

Sadly, in recent times there appears to have been a rise in antisemitism, and every one of us Christians must do everything in our power to counteract prejudice and hatred towards our Jewish brothers and sisters, or indeed towards any minorities.

Jesus came into our world fulfilling the age-old prophecy of Isaiah that the people who walk in darkness have seen a great light.

Jesus came to be the Prince of Peace, and tonight we pray for peace and comfort for all those families who have been bereaved in this awful attack, for those who have been injured, and for the courageous first responders who helped to prevent even more death and destruction.”

Archbishop Eamon Martin, Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland.

Archbishop Eamon: the Church needs to champion & promote the dignity of women

Homily of Archbishop Eamon Martin during Mass for the ‘Abide in His love’ Women’s Conference in Bundoran, Co Donegal.

Today’s gospel reading situates the kingship of Christ on the Hill of Calvary.  He is the King of Friday; the Servant King.  An inscription above his head declares him to be ‘the King of the Jews’, but at his feet, according to John’s Gospel, a group of holy women is gathered – courageous to the last: Mary His mother; her sister Mary, the wife of Clopas; and Mary Magdalene.  Other women are named elsewhere – Matthew says many women are there; Luke relates the encounter between the suffering Jesus and the weeping ‘daughters of Jerusalem’; tradition gives us the story of Veronica, who steps forward to wipe away the sweat and blood from His gentle face.  In short: it is clear that women are leading characters in the story of Christ the King.

That wonderful hymn, Hail Redeemer, King Divine, sings of the “King of Love on Calvary” – no greater love.

For Christ is a humble King, emptying Himself completely, forgiving his persecutors, winning souls for God even as He died: “today you will be with me in paradise”.  Christ the suffering King is consoled by those faithful women who stayed.  They had already been by his side from Galilee to Jerusalem; they had consistently cared for Him with loyalty and affection, sustaining His ministry by their presence and resourcefulness; all along they had shown a deep commitment to His mission.  Now, in these final hours, they do not desert Him or run away.  They remain, ‘abiding’ in his presence, silent yet strong, these courageous “queens of love” on Calvary – faithful to the end.

Pope Saint John Paul once wrote these powerful words in appreciation for the dignity and vocation of women:

“The Church gives thanks for each and every woman: for mothers, for sisters, for wives; for women consecrated to God in virginity; for women dedicated to the many human beings who await the gratuitous love of another person; for women who watch over the human persons in the family, which is the fundamental sign of the human community; for women who work professionally, and who at times are burdened by a great social responsibility; [The Church gives thanks] for “perfect” women and for “weak” women – for all women as they have come forth from the heart of God in all the beauty and richness of their femininity; as they have been embraced by his eternal love; as, together with men, they are pilgrims on this earth, which is the temporal ‘homeland’ of all people and is transformed sometimes into a “valley of tears”.

The Gospels tell us that some of the courageous women, who were present at the death of Jesus on the Cross, went on to assist at His burial.  Women were also ‘lead characters’ on Easter morning, among the first to hear the Good News that “he is risen”, and prominent among its first proclaimers – Mary Magdalene is ‘apostola apostolorum’.  And women are there again on Pentecost Day, waiting and praying in the upper room.  Saint Paul, in turn, will point to many faithful women helping to build up the early Christian communities, and nourishing the faith of the first Christians.

This year we mark the centenary of Quas Primas, the encyclical letter by which Pope Pius XI promulgated in December 1925 – exactly one centruy ago – for today’s great Feast of Christ the King.  Those were troubled times, as Church and society emerged from the horrors of the First World War and the political turmoil that followed.  In the midst of such chaos, Pope Pius offered Christ to the world – the King of Kings – to reign in the hearts of all women and men.

Pope Pius pointed out that the many evils in the world at that time were due to the fact that the majority of people “had thrust Jesus Christ and his holy law out of their lives; (holding) that these had no place either in private affairs or in politics”.

Pope Pius added that to have any hope of a lasting peace among the nations, Christ the King must reign in our minds, our wills, our hearts and in our bodies.  For His kingdom – as today’s preface reminds us – is unlike the warring kingdoms of this world.  His is an ‘eternal and universal kingdom’, ‘a kingdom of truth and life, a kingdom of holiness and grace, a kingdom of justice, love and peace’.

Of course the task of building up this kingdom belongs to all of us – women and men – baptised members of the faithful.  Together we share in the priestly, prophetic and kingly vocation and mission of Jesus Christ and of His Church.

Pope Saint John Paul emphasised this point when he was in Limerick during his historic Apostolic visit to Ireland back in 1979.  The laity – women and men – are “a chosen race”, “a holy priesthood”, called to be “the salt of the earth” and “the light of the world”.

“It is their specific vocation and mission to express the Gospel in their lives and thereby to insert the Gospel as a leaven into the reality of the world in which they live and work.  The great forces which shape the world – politics, the mass media, science, technology, culture, education, industry and work – are precisely the areas where lay people are especially competent to exercise their mission.  If these forces are guided by people who are true disciples of Christ, and who are, at the same time, fully competent in the relevant secular knowledge and skill, then indeed will the world be transformed from within by Christ’s redeeming power”.

His words of course are reminiscent of the words of Jesus in Matthew’s gospel, when he said: “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened” (Mt 13:33).

I love the way that the Irish poet, Tomás Rua Ó Súilleabháin, in his beautiful hymn A Rí an Domhnaigh, reminds us that Jesus is not just King of Sunday, but he is also Rí an Luain; Rí na Máirte; Rí na Céadaoine; Rí na Déardaoine; Rí na hAoine; Rí an tSathairn!  This task of ‘leavening’ the Kingdom of God in the world is not just for Sundays.  And it belongs to men and women.

In recent years we have become more appreciative of the indispensable contribution that women make to transforming the world “from within” and contributing to the daily life and mission of both Church and society.  Sadly we live in a world where the personal dignity of women is too often threatened by violence, abuse, inequality, commercial surrogacy, pornography, gender ideology and various forms of exploitation.

Friends, delegates to this Women’s Conference, all the more reason then for us, and for all in the Church, to champion and promote the dignity and specific charisms that you bring as women to enrich the quality of mission, governance, leadership, education, catechesis and evangelisation, as well as dialogue and decision-making in the Church. In a special way you are called to insert, as leaven in the Church and in the world, your particular insights and witness as women to key contemporary matters such the protection of human life; outreach to poor, vulnerable and marginalised people; the safeguarding of children, marriage and the family; quality education and spiritual formation in our schools and parishes; and best practice in care and support for those who are disabled, sick or dying.

I congratulate and thank God for you, the organisers speakers and delegates at this Women’s Conference, ‘Abide in His Love’.  Your woman’s voice, your specific vocation and charisms are needed more than ever today in Church and in society, for we struggle at times to navigate the complex, contradictory and misleading messages surrounding many contemporary issues which, left unchecked, risk the ‘dehumanising’ of human life and dignity.

Pope Saint John Paul, in Christifideles Laici, (his apostolic exhortation on the vocation and mission of the lay faithful) emphasised that women exercise a “special role in the Kingly mission of Christ” because, “women have the task of assuring the moral dimension of culture”.  He reminded us that God actually entrusted the human being to women, “precisely because the woman in virtue of her special experience of motherhood is seen to have a specific sensitivity towards the human person and all that constitutes the individual’s true welfare, beginning with the fundamental value of life.”

No pressure then, conference delegates!  But as Pope John Paul often said, ‘Do not be afraid’!  Millions of lay women are already doing just that – not to mention the 600,000 women religious around the world who, like you, are unashamedly “working for the kingdom”.

May the Lord give success to the work of your hands. 

Amen.

+ Archbishop Eamon Martin

Archbishop of Armagh, Apostolic Administrator of Dromore, Primate of All Ireland

 

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