Church of Sweden Visit to Cork ~ the Photos!

Last weekend was a memorable and busy weekend when the Bishop of Strängnäs, the Right Reverend Dr Johan Dalman visited the Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross together with clergy and people from his Diocese as part of the on-going relationships within the Porvoo Communion.  Here are some of the photos:

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Church of Sweden Visit to Cork, Cloyne and Ross

The Right Reverend Dr Johan Dalman, Bishop of Strängnäs in the Church of Sweden, together with members of the Bishop’s Council and the Dean’s Council of the Diocese, made a visit to the Church of Ireland Diocese of Cork, Cloyne and Ross from 12th to 16th February.

On Friday, 12th February the two groups – 14 people in all – travelled, one  from Stockholm and the other from Copenhagen to Dublin before driving to Cork.  It was a residential weekend of work for the visitors from the Church of Sweden, with plenty of opportunity also to engage with the Church of Ireland locally. On Friday evening, 12th February,  the Bishop of Cork, the Right Reverend Dr Paul Colton joined the group at their hotel for dinner and gave them an introductory talk about the Church of Ireland, the Cork region and the United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and ross

A tour for the Swedish party was arranged for Saturday, 13th February with Bishop Colton as guide.  First stop was St Anne’s Church, Shandon for a tour, a climb to the top of the tower to take in the view of Cork, and also an opportunity to ring the bells.  ABBA’s ‘Fernando’ was the choice of Bishop Dalman.

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The Right Rev. Dr Johan Dalman, Bishop of Strägnäs, plays ‘Fernando’ on the world famous Bells of Shandon watched by Mrs Lotta Novosel, Lawyer of the Diocese, and his Chaplain, the Rev. Fredrik Santell.

Then it was on to the Collegiate Church of St Mary the Virgin, Youghal, (1220 A.D) with a talk given by David Kelly followed by morning coffee in The Red Store.  The Cathedral Church of St Colman, Cloyne (1250 A.D.) was next, where Patricia Lyons showed the visitors around.  A visit to St Luke’s Home for lunch in the conservatory overlooking the River Lee, and to Northridge House (St Luke’s Home Education Centre) brought everyone back to Cork, and back to the current work of the Diocese.  David O’Brien, CEO of St Luke’s, briefed everyone on the work of the charity and the engagement of the local churches with it.

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The work of the Diocese in education was next on the agenda, and a visit to Ashton School in Cork.  There, Head Girl, Ali Lynch, and Head Boy, Stephen Jermyn, together with Adrian Landen (Principal) and Anne-Marie Hewison (Deputy Principal) were on hand to welcome the guests.  Ali and Stephen introduced the school to the visitors and showed them around, and gifts – a school pennant and paperweight – were presented to Bishop Dalman, and pens to everyone in the group.

At Ashton School, Cork Ali and Stephen present the Bishop of Strängnäs with gifts.

At Ashton School, Cork Ali and Stephen present the Bishop of Strängnäs with gifts.

The remainder of the afternoon was devoted to a visit to Kinsale where Irene Treacy showed the group around the Church of St Multose (1190 A.D.). On Saturday evening, Bishop Colton and Mrs Susan Colton hosted a dinner for the Swedish visitors, as well as the local clergy who had been involved in the Saturday programme and to introduce them to those who were hosting the visitors on Sunday morning.  Gifts were again exchanged.

Guests from the Diocese of Strängnäs, Church of Sweden arrive at the Bishop’s Palace, Cork for a dinner hosted by Bishop Paul and Mrs Susan Colton. Picture: Jim Coughlan.

On Sunday morning, 14th February, the visitors took part in Sunday morning Services in some of the parishes of the Diocese:  Holy Trinity, Frankfield, St Luke’s, Douglas, St Anne’s, Shandon, St Luke’s Home Chapel, St John’s, Monkstown, St Mary’s, Carrigaline, Nohoval Parish Church, Holy Trinity, Crosshaven, Holy Trinity, Rathclaren and St Peter, Bandon.  A number of the visiting clergy were the preachers, while the Bishop of Strängnäs preached at the Choral Eucharist in St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork.  Following lunch in their parishes with their host clergy, the group gathered at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral for Choral Evensong and a guided tour.

With the two bishops - the Bishop of Strängnas and the Bishop of Cork - are clergy from the two Dioceses following Choral Evensong in St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork, on Sunday, 14th February.

With the two bishops – the Bishop of Strängnas and the Bishop of Cork – are clergy from the two Dioceses following Choral Evensong in St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork, on Sunday, 14th February.

Sunday evening was a working session and the visitors had asked to hear about the Church of Ireland approach to recruitment of clergy, the support of lay voluntary church workers and also clergy discipline.  Bishop Colton and Mrs Susan Colton were then entertained by Bishop Dalman and the Swedish guests at their hotel.  On Monday, 15th, the Swedish party spent a working day together before leaving early on Tuesday, 16th to return to the Diocese of Strängnäs.

 Picture: Jim Coughlan.

l-r The Right Rev. Dr Johan Dalman, Mrs Susan Colton, and the Right Rev. Dr Paul Colton Picture: Jim Coughlan.

The entire visit was organised on foot of a long held hope of Bishop Dalman and Bishop Colton who have been firm friends for nearly 25  years, and came to know one another in the process that led to the Porvoo Agreement and the Porvoo Communion.  The Porvoo Communion is a fellowship of  Anglican and Lutheran Churches in Great Britain and Ireland, the Nordic region, Iberia and the Baltic countries; more information may be found here.

Watch out for the full photo gallery in coming days on this NewsBlog.

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New Rector for Kilgariffe Union of Parishes (Clonakilty, County Cork)

The Bishop of Cork, the Right Reverend Dr Paul Colton, has announced that, following meetings of the Board of Nomination, the Reverend Kingsley Sutton has been appointed as the new rector of Kilgariffe Union of Parishes (centred on the West Cork town of Clonakilty).  The Service of Institution will take place on Tuesday, 19th April in Kilgariffe Parish Church.

Having recently resigned his incumbency in Newry, in the Diocese of Dromore, the Reverend Kingsley Sutton currently holds a General Licence in that Diocese, and he has been looking for a new opportunity for ministry.

Bishop Colton said:

I am pleased that the Board of Nomination are giving him that opportunity.  I know that he will receive a warm and encouraging welcome in Kilgariffe Parish. We also look forward to welcoming him and his family to the Diocese, and to supporting Kingsley in this new beginning in ministry.

The Reverend Kingsley Sutton

The Reverend Kingsley Sutton

Kingsley is originally from County Wicklow where he grew up on a farm in Powerscourt Parish in the Diocese of Dublin and Glendalough, and his wife Daphne, a teacher, is from Cork.  They have five children.  Having completed his education in Wesley College, Dublin, Kingsley spent some years full-time in farming before training for ordination at the Church of Ireland Theological College (at Trinity College, Dublin).  He served curacies in St Matthew’s Parish, Belfast (Diocese of Connor) and in Willowfield Parish, Belfast (Diocese of Down) before being appointed as Rector of the Parishes of St Patrick and St Mary, Newry, County Down (Diocese of Dromore) in 2002.

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Cork, Cloyne and Ross ~ Annual Weekend Away for Youth Leaders

Youth Leaders from Cork, Cloyne and Ross at their annual weekend away.

Youth Leaders from Cork, Cloyne and Ross at their annual weekend away.

Last weekend, 5th-7th February, the annual weekend away for youth leaders in the United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and Ross took place in the Blarney Golf Resort. Attended by leaders from all over the Diocese and visitors from other Dioceses, it was led by Jonny Phenix, Diocesan Youth Officer from Clogher Diocese. Jonny took the theme ` Abide` and led participants through the passage in John 15 in which Jesus encourages his followers to Abide in Him and thus bear much fruit in His name. The weekend is also an opportunity to plan events for the year ahead, and to learn about what is happening in local parishes and in the schools team.

There was much interest in the Church of Ireland Youth Department’s  planned trip to Cambodia in August to work with a Tearfund partner. There will also be a visit from the Romanian team again and a visit to Germany.

For more news about what is happening on the youth scene in Cork, Cloyne and Ross visit the CDYC website or Facebook pages: cdycwest or CofI East Cork Youth.

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Statement by Bishop Paul Colton ~ Closure of Cork Synagogue

Statement by Bishop Paul Colton

in response to the closure of

The Synagogue in Cork

The Right Reverend Dr Paul Colton, Church of Ireland Bishop of Cork has made the following statement in response to the news of the closure of the Synagogue in Cork:

‘It is with immense sadness and a heavy heart that I read the news, on this Sabbath Day, that the last religious Service is to be held in the Synagogue on the South Terrace in Cork this weekend.

‘On behalf of all of us in the local Church of Ireland community, I extend prayerful greetings of solidarity, and friendship in faith, to Mr Fred Rosehill, Chairman of the Trustees and also to the members of the Cork Hebrew Congregation as they gather with their guests from further afield for this emotional occasion.

‘The people of the Church of Ireland in County Cork, having closed a number of churches over the years, know well the emotions and responses that are associated with the closure of a place of worship; especially a place in a locale that has figured prominently in the pilgrimage of faith, as well as in the big occasions on life’s journey.  This is all the more the case when it is the last such place of gathering of a religious congregation in a community like Cork.

‘Thousands of Corkonians drive or walk past the Cork Synagogue every day.  To our shame, perhaps, many have engaged with or known little about this minority community of faith in our midst, yet we do recognise too the immense contribution of members of the Hebrew congregation  to our life in Cork, at least since the 18th Century,  particularly since the 1880s, and subsequent Consecration of the Synagogue in 1905.

‘Growing up in Cork, I remember well Jewish neighbours and school friends in Cork Grammar School, and how living and learning alongside them taught and enriched me and my contemporaries.  The change in circumstances – demographics and practical realities – which bring about the closure of the Synagogue are sad not least because the closure represents a diminution of the religious pluralism in Cork at a very time when, in Ireland as a whole, greater religious diversity than ever before is a mark of our nation.

‘I wish all the members of the Hebrew Congregation Shalom aleikhem (peace upon you all) for the journey of faith that lies ahead.’

– Ends –

Cork Synagogue, South Terrace, Cork

Cork Synagogue, South Terrace, Cork

 

Further information from:

Sam Wynn Church of Ireland Diocesan Communications Officer

Telephone:   +353 (0)86 813 7659

E mail media@corkchurchofireland.com

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