NEWS BRIEFS

Country and Gospel Music in Strabane

Featuring Warren Smyth (Downtown radio), The Hilarious Brian Rankin (full of yarns and stories), Heavenly Sunshine, Sinead McLaughlin, One Voice Choir and Strbane’s very own Andrew and Diane White alongside compere William Sayers. The extravaganza is on Friday 4 October. To get tickets ( £10 each) call Sammy on 07798740966 or Margaret on 07542062703.

Trek the Himalayas for Methodist World Development

The Surf Project are organising Himalayan treks for 2020 and have chosen WDR partner Kopila-Nepal as their recommended charity to benefit from 50% of fundraising. For more information, please get in touch: [worlddevelopment@irishmethodist.org]

Armagh Robinson Library conference on Disestablishment of C of I

A one-day conference will be held at Armagh Robinson Library on Friday 18 October from 10am-5pm. Entitled ‘History, Preservation and Use of Religious Libraries in Ireland’ it will feature staff from various cathedral and religious libraries from across Ireland, who will be coming together in Ireland’s ecclesiastical capital to talk about the collections they are responsible for caring for. It is, therefore, a chance to hear about the history of the libraries and the treasures that they hold.

The day will include presentations on Antrim Presbytery Library (held at Queen’s University Belfast), Armagh Robinson Library, the Benburb Priory Library, the Bolton Library (formerly at Cashel Cathedral, now held at the University of Limerick), St Canice’s Cathedral Library (now held at the National University of Ireland, Maynooth), the Christ Church Cathedral collection (now held at the Waterford Institute of Technology), Derry and Raphoe Library (now held at Ulster University’s Magee campus), the Galway Dominican Convent Library (now held at the National University of Ireland, Galway), St Fin Barre’s Cathedral Library (now held at University College, Cork), the Gamble Library at Union Theological College in Belfast and the Cardinal Ó Fiaich Library in Armagh. The conference is free to attend (or £10 to have lunch provided).
[[] www.armaghrobinsonlibrary.co.uk ]

Belfast Cathedral Pet Service

The Pet Service will be held on Sunday 6th October at 3.30pm. You are invited to bring all your furry friends (and owners) for this special service at the Cathedral.
[ https://www.belfastcathedral.org/events/2019-pet-service-at-belfast-cathedral ]

TCD Annual Welcome Service

The annual Opening/Welcome ecumenical Service for the new academic year will take place today Thursday 26th September 2019 at 5.15 pm in the College Chapel. Taking part will be former Presbyterian/Methodist chaplain Katherine Meyer at our Annual Welcome Service this week. The Chaplains warmly welcome staff and students and want to assure all of their availability throughout the year to be of service in any way possible. Also, every Tuesday, the chaplains offer a free soup lunch at 12.30 pm in the Chaplaincy, House 27

Derry woman to chair C of I Youth Department

Rev Malcolm Kingston (Diocese of Armagh), Chairman of CIYD & its Executive Committee, recently stepped down from this role after five years at a meeting of our Central Board. Bishop Pat Storey, President of CIYD, presented Malcolm with a thank you gift from all at CIYD and paid tribute to him for his leadership and dedication to the ongoing work of CIYD over the past number of years. Brigid Barrett,(Derry & Raphoe) a familiar face to many in the Church of Ireland, was duly nominated and accepted the position as CIYD’s new Chairperson.

Retiring after a decade as rector in Westport

After almost a decade as the Rector of the Aughaval parish in Westport, Reverend Val Rogers will perform his final service this Sunday before he retires from the position.
The annual Harvest Thanksgiving in the Holy Trinity Church at 11.30am on Sunday will be the Sligo-native’s final service in Westport having taken up the role in late 2009. Aughaval was the first parish in Ireland he served in when he returned from Australia with his wife Josie, and he told The Mayo News that it was ‘time to move on’.
“I hoped to do ten years when I came back from Australia. I am two months short of ten years in Westport. I am in my 70s and I plan to move on and give someone else a go,” he said.
The Aughaval parish also takes in Achill, Castlebar and Turlough and Val’s affable approach to ministry was well-received by all sections of the community. He explained one of the highlights of his time in the region was the memorial and healing service in St Thomas’ Church in Achill to mark the 190 unmarked graves of those who are buried in the five Achill Mission churchyards and graveyards.
“We had the two bishops of Tuam, the Church of Ireland bishop Patrick Rooke and Archbishop Michael Neary who prayed for everyone buried in the graveyard and in Achill and heal the hurt of the past,” he explained.
While he will be shortly retiring, Val and Josie will continue to live in the community having bought a house near Newport.
“I am delighted and grateful that we will be able to stay around. I am a Sligo man originally but no place is as good for the heart as west Mayo,” he said.
The process of finding his replacement will begin when he leaves and is likely to take up to four months.

Book publication update

The book STORIES FROM THE STREETS (See yesterday’s News Briefs on this site) will be sold on promotion at £9.95. This book has been sponsored by generous individuals, covering all the publishing costs £18,000. All the proceeds will be distributed equally between the Welcome Organisation and Hosford House, the East Belfast Mission’s Homeless Unit. This is the promotion price but the R.R.P is £12.95. It will be available at all major bookshops and by internet providers. There will be five signings, East Belfast Mission, Portadown, Welcome Organisation, North Down and Ards Council and Shankill Methodist Church.

Funeral of retired bishop of Derry

Recently retired Church of Ireland bishop Ken Good of Derry and Raphoe attended the funeral of retired bishop of Derry Dr Seamus Hegarty at St Eugene’s Cathedral in Derry on Monday. A MESSAGE of condolence from Pope Francis was relayed to mourners yesterday at Requiem Mass for retired bishop of Derry Séamus Hegarty.

His successor, Bishop Donal McKeown told mourners at St Eugene’s Cathdral that the late church leader’s ‘tough exterior’ belied a kindness and generosity which were the “hallmarks of his nature”.

He also relayed Pope Francis’s message of sympathy to the clergy and laity on bishop Hegarty’s death and the Holy Father’s gratitude for the late bishop’s ministry.

Bishop Hegarty (79), who died after an eight-year struggle with dementia on Friday, was laid to rest by the doors of St Eugene’s beside his immediate two predecessors, Bishop Neil Farren and Bishop Edward Daly.