DAILY NEWS

Irish church news – 13th April

Crowds bare their soles for a record challengeAn Irish Colloquy at St Nicholas’ Galway; C of I institutions; Methodist Global Vision Conference; Sligo International Choral Festival 2012; ‘Catholic Spring’ uprising prediction for Ireland over dissenting priestMost Catholics ‘in favour of married priests’; Disciplining dissent 

Crowds bare their soles for a record challenge
News letter – Crowds of people descended on Belfast’s Stormont estate yesterday in a novel bid to walk their way – on bare feet – into the record books.
While no confirmation was provided regarding the exact numbers involved, organisers are “hopeful” that they have achieved an unsurpassed accomplishment.
The current world record was set by 2,500 people in India two years ago, who walked a kilometre in their bare soles. The Belfast attempt, over the same distance, must now be officially verified by officials from the Guinness Book of Records, with notification expected within the next fortnight. The charity event was organised to raise awareness of the millions of people across the world who are too poor to own any footwear and so are regularly exposed to injury and soil- transmitted diseases.
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/local/crowds-bare-their-soles-for-a-record-challenge-1-3719407

An Irish Colloquy at St Nicholas’ Galway
Galway Advertiser – The National Chamber Choir of Ireland will present its concert An Irish Colloquy in St Nicholas’ Collegiate Church on Friday April 20 at 8pm, as part of its 2012 National Tour. The title of the show references the fact that the choir, …
http://www.advertiser.ie/galway/article/51075/an-irish-colloquy-at-st-nicholas
http://www.culturefox.ie/event/an-irish-colloquynational-chamber-choir-of-ireland/5265.aspx

C of I institutions
Upcoming Services of Institution
The Ven Roderic West will be instituted as incumbent of Seapatrick Parish on Friday 27 April 2012 at 8.00pm.
Revd Ferran Glenfield will be instituted as incumbent of Hillsborough Parish on Thursday 3 May 2012 at 8.00pm.
Revd Stephen Smyth will be instituted as incumbent of the Grouped Parishes of Kilmore and Inch on Tuesday 26 June 2012 at 8.00pm in Christ Church, Kilmore

Methodist Global Vision Conference
This will be held in Dublin on April 28 at Wesley College. Speakers include:
Speakers are –
Dr. Rachele Vernon (Evie) – 
”Mission from below: An interactive Bible Study on Luke chapter 10″.
Evie, a deaconess in the Anglican Church in Jamaica, is an activist womanist theologian who has worked with gender issues from the 1970s and with HIV issues from the late 1980s. She is currently director of the Selly Oak Centre for Mission Studies at the Queens Foundation, Birmingham.

David and Sarah Hall = 
“Restoring relationships through development.”
The session will present poverty as a result of relationships that don’t work within ourselves, with community, with those we call “other”, with the environment and with God. We will explore how the Church of Bangladesh Social Development Programme (CBSDP) is working to restore these relationships by examining a number of case studies.
David & Sarah have been with the CBSDP since 2005. David works as development facilitator, helping with the management and running of the overall development programme. Sarah, a qualified teacher, works as Education Advisor for the church, teaching in schools in Dhaka and in teacher training.

Sonia Hicks – 
“What good does it do anyway?”
With economic woes at home, there is a growing sense of ‘charity begins at home’. Can we suffer from ‘compassion fatigue’ and what do all these projects and causes actually achieve? How does this fit in with the Bible and its call to be alongside the poor and marginalized? How do we decide what to ‘support’?
Rev Sonia Hicks, who ministers on the Dublin North Circuit and is also Convener of the World Development and Relief Committee
http://www.irishmethodist.org/news/2012/03/global_vision_conference_dublin_april_2012.php

Sligo International Choral Festival 2012
PR – Cead Mile Failte! A Hundred Thousand Welcomes – to the 24TH Annual SLIGO INTERNATIONAL CHORAL FESTIVAL from November 8th – 11th 2012.  Following the success of the workshops last year, we will repeat these again in November with the Adult Choirs Workshop on the Thursday night and the Schools/Youth Choirs workshops on the Friday morning. Our competition venues, once again, will be THE MERCY COLLEGE and the nearby ST.ANNE’S CHURCH as well as The Sligo Park Hotel. We are really excited about the introduction of 2 new competitions this year – Sacred Music for authentic Church Choirs
and BEST OVERALL CHOIR OF THE FESTIVAL.
http://www.sligochoralfest.com/

‘Catholic Spring’ uprising prediction for Ireland over dissenting priest
IrishCentral – Operating like a multinational where the number one requirement is obedience is at total variance with the Church of Jesus,” said Fr McDonagh. He defended the calls for women to play a more active and equal role, “In the first century, it was possible …
http://www.irishcentral.com/news/Catholic-Spring-uprising-prediction-for-Ireland-over-dissenting-priest-Father-Flannery-147131755.html

Most Catholics ‘in favour of married priests’
Irish Examiner – The study also revealed a major disconnect between official church teaching and Irish Catholics themselves. The survey found that three quarters of respondents did not see Catholic church teachings on sexuality as relevant to them or to their family, …
http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakingnews/ireland/most-catholics-in-favour-of-married-priests-547172.html

Disciplining dissent
Irish Times – The harsh disciplinary measures taken against Fr Flannery have come shortly after publication of the summary findings of the Vatican’s apostolic visitation to Ireland. Pope Benedict sent the group to examine the condition of the Irish church in the …
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/opinion/2012/0412/1224314639690.html