360 Miscellany

News and views

Photo above – “Viking Sun” docked under the mighty cranes in Belfast

Body of Belfast priest in US boating accident recovered

The body of a Belfast priest missing after a boating accident on the Detroit River in the US last Sunday has been found.

Fr Stephen Rooney’s brother Pilib Ó Ruanaidh told RTÉ News the family was notified that his body has been discovered.

He said his brother was a priest in America for the last 30 years and was a pastor at St Joseph’s parish in Trenton in the Diocese of Detroit.

He regularly returned home to Belfast for family visits.

An emotional vigil was held in the Short Strand area of Belfast last night to support the Rooney family as they awaited the latest news from the US.

The body of another man, Robert Chiles, was discovered by search teams near the Grosse Ile area of Detroit River on Tuesday night.

It is understood the large speedboat collided with an underwater rock on the river and capsized.

Another ten people on the boat were rescued, among them three children.

Knock church’s effort for deaf in Lebanon

Knock Methodist have raised over £1,400 for the Methodist Church’s partner in Lebanon, Father Andeweg Institute for the Deaf!

They’re going ‘All the way to 50k’ to raise even more for FAID, so that more children can access education.

Derry nun a “saint for the new millennium”

A new shrine to Sr Clare Crockett was unveiled in her native Derry at the weekend and many local people say they have started praying for her intercession. In The Irish Catholic Máire McAteer of Youth 2000 predicted that Sr Clare will be a “saint for the new millennium”.

Black and Irish

My name is Ayo Fierce, I’m 18 and I’m from Westmeath. I was raised in a small village-like town called Moate. Me and my Mam moved into Moate when I was three, being one of the first if not the first black family to move into Moate.

I was the first black person in my primary school and they welcomed me with open arms. I was very very small and very much adored from junior infants to around 2nd class in an obsessive way, kinda like a pet? But I loved the attention. All through primary school I had a bit of an identity crisis – I made myself believe I was white and I didn’t like black people whatsoever. My mam used to tell me stories about how she couldn’t even leave me with black minders because I’d cry the whole time I was around black people.

I didn’t know anything about racism until about 6th class when the teacher spoke about Martin Luther King and everyone turned back to stare at me. That day changed me for the better.

Secondary school was a little bit more diverse (out of 900 students there was about 10-15 max in my 6 years that were of non Irish backgrounds). Through these years along with my 2 new black friends I learnt acceptance and became pro-black.

I’m now a student mental health nurse in Trinity College, youtuber and a growing social media influencer and I’ve never loved my skin and my roots as deep as this before.

My hope for Ireland is that it becomes more diverse in countryside areas and that more black history is taught in schools.

Thank you for sharing your story Ayo.

Well said

Pointers to prayer

Pray for those who are already experiencing ill health or who are in homes; that God will protect their mental health as well as their physical health.

Today we pray for those displaced from their homes. Covid-19 has increased the political, social & economic turmoil already present in many countries, forcing many out of their homes. God we pray for your safety and guidance, and for strong national responses to these challenges.

Lord, we’re so thankful that you promise to be with us always. We pray today that we’ll be really aware of your nearness to us, especially if we feel alone or uncertain of how life is panning out at the moment.

It’s wonderful to know that Jesus calls us his friends and doesn’t just treat us as servants. Let’s ponder on what the friendship of Jesus means to us, and then try to reflect some of that in our friendship with others.

God in creation

Puffin – on RSPB reserve, Rathlin Island, Co. Antrim