Throughout next weekend there will be events at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork (a full list is HERE) to commemorate the 1400th anniversary this year of the death of Saint Fin Barre of Cork, our patron saint. His patronal saint’s day is on 25th September every year.
On Saturday, 23rd September there is an open invitation to the people of Cork to make a visit to the Cathedral between the hours of 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. just to drop in, or on a mini-pilgrimage to mark this 1400th anniversary, to say a prayer or light a candle, or, outside, to walk the Cathedral labyrinth.
There is a special invitation to anyone out there who bears the name of our patron saint, in whatever spelling or form, to come to the Cathedral and to receive a small commemorative gift (subject, of course, to our supply).
So if you are a Finbarr, Finbar, Finnbar, Finn Barre, Finbarre, Barry, Baz or Fionbarra etc we would love you to visit on this special occasion. If you can show us that you do carry his name we have that small commemorative gift for you and look forward to welcoming you.
The Dean of Cork, the Very Reverend Nigel Dunne says:
To share the name of Cork’s patron saint is, to my mind, something special. It makes the person part of a 1400 year old tradition which lies at the heart of our city’s foundation. We look forward to welcoming many Finbarrs/Finbars to the Cathedral to be part of our commemorative festival weekend along with anyone from Cork who would like to drop in to visit.
Based on the customary historical tradition, this year marks the 1400th anniversary of the death in 623 A.D. of Saint Fin Barre of Cork. Plans are well underway for the commemoration of the 1400th anniversary in the Church of Ireland Diocese of Cork and in Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral.
Advance notice is now given of events marking the commemoration from Friday 22nd September to the Saint’s annual Patronal Festival Day on Monday 25th September.
Wood carving of St Fin Barre on the Bishop’s Throne in St Fin Barre’s Cathedral.
Announcing the plans, Bishop Paul Colton said:
I was reading some historical material late last year and noticed the date and did the sums. I said to myself “hang on a minute; next year (2023) will be the 1400th anniversary, according to the usually observed year of the death of St Fin Barre.” On Saint Patrick’s Day last at the Civic Service in St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, I announced that we would be commemorating the anniversary and, since then, the Dean of Cork, the Very Reverend Nigel Dunne and I have been working on a modest programme. I am especially delighted that the Dean and the Cathedral Select Vestry have responded positively to my suggestion that we should commission a sacred icon of St Fin Barre to mark this anniversary. What we are really celebrating, of course, is the contemporary life of faith in this part of the world to which St Fin Barre brought the good news of Jesus Christ.
The programme announced is as follows:
Friday 22nd September:
11. a.m. Presentation of Wildlife kits to the children of 3 local Primary Schools (St Fin Barre’s St Maries of the Isle and Greenmount).
6.15 p.m. Choral Evensong at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral
7.30 p.m. to 9. 30 p.m. Culture Night with tour guide presentations at 7 p.m., 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. And short musical programmes at both 7.30 p.m. and 8.30 p.m.
Saturday 23rd September
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. An open invitation to the people of Cork to visit the Cathedral
Simply to visit
To make a pilgrimage
To say a prayer or to light a candle
11 a.m. to 4 p.m. There is a special invitation to anyone named after the Saint (in whatever form, language or spelling) to come to visit and for those who can confirm their name to the Cathedral staff there is a small limited edition gift to mark this anniversary.
7. 30 p.m. Organ recital by the internationally renowned Franco-Lebanese organist, Naji Hakim which will also coincide and mark the 10th anniversary of the restoration of the Cathedral Organ
Sunday 24th September
11.15 a.m. Choral Eucharist at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral
3.30 p.m. Choral Evensong: A Diocesan Service at which the Bishop will consecrate a new icon of St Fin Barre written by international iconographer Aidan Hart of London. Afterwards the Dean of Cork will re-launch the ’Friends of Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral.’
Monday 25th September ~ the Feast of Saint Fin Barre of Cork
Special assemblies in schools in the United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and Ross. The Cathedral will be closed to visitors throughout the day until the Ordination at 7.30 p.m.
10.30 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. Quiet Day and Retreat for the clergy of the Diocese led by the former Archbishop of Armagh (a former Dean of Cork) the Right Reverend Dr Richard Clarke.
7.30 p.m. Ordination of a priest: the Reverend Martin Steele, currently a deacon at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral will be ordained to the priesthood.
The Dean of Cork, the Very Reverend Nigel Dunne, adds:
It is important that we mark significant anniversaries such as that of the death of our Patron Saint. Bishop Colton and I have been working out a programme of services and events at Saint Fin Barre’s Cathedral and for our schools which will celebrate this important milestone by giving thanks for the rich heritage we have inherited as we strive to continue Saint Fin Barre’s work of Christian witness, teaching and welcome 1400 years after his death. It is important that we give thanks for Saint Fin Barre’s legacy on the site where our city was founded and where Christian worship has continued unbroken for so many centuries. It will be a busy weekend at the Cathedral and hopefully the wide variety of events will be of interest to people of all faiths and none across the city and county.
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St Mary’s Church in Carrigaline is holding a Musical Evening on Saturday, 23rd September 2023 at 7.30 pm. For more information contact the Rev. Canon Elaine Murray.
This year the organ of St Fin Barre’s Cathedral will be ten years old, or more correctly it is ten years since the Irish organ builder Trevor Crowe gave the existing organ a full rebuild and added significantly to its makeup. To mark that birthday there will be a celebrity recital on 23rd September at 7.30pm when the famous organist and composer Naji Hakim will be flying over to Cork from the south of France. Tickets are available on the Cathedral Webstore and on Eventbrite.
Organist Naji Hakim
The renowned composer and organist Naji Hakim was born in Beirut but he studied the organ in France with Jean Langlais. He was the organist of the Basilique du Sacré-Coeur, Paris from 1985 until 1993, before becoming organist of l’église de la Trinité (1993-2008), in succession to Olivier Messiaen.
In 2010 it was decided in some way to return to the vision of the cathedral architect, William Burges, of having both an organ in the west gallery and a choir organ close to the choir stalls, while retaining much of the instrument in the organ pit in the north transept. The whole instrument was removed from the organ pit in 2011 and a new frame was constructed to contain a new and more practical layout, one which would also allow the restored pipes to ‘speak’ more clearly into the cathedral. A key principle in this regard was, as far as was possible, to return the pipes to their original voicing. Work continued in the organ pit, following the full renovation of the pit and north transept in early 2013 with the full rebuild being completed by October that year.
With over 4,500 pipes (including the 3,012 originals) the cathedral organ is one of the largest in Ireland. The celebrity recital will include works by Bach, Franck, Langlais and by Hakim himself, and it will end with an improvisation, for which the great French organists are so famous. Refreshments will be available during the interval, including a birthday cake!
ST JAMES’S CHURCH OF IRELAND MALLOW INVITES LOCAL GROWERS & PRODUCERS TO SHOWCASE THEIR WORK AT HARVEST THANKSGIVING CELEBRATIONS
St James’s Church of Ireland in Mallow is holding its annual Harvest Thanksgiving celebrations over the weekend of 22nd to 24th September this year. It begins on Friday 22nd September with the weekly Mallow Farmers’ Market from 9am to 1pm. On the same evening at 7.30pm, there will be a concert in the church organised by the Mallow Arts Collective, featuring a range of musical talent in the town and the surrounding area.
On Saturday 23rd, the church would like to offer local craftspeople, growers and producers an opportunity to showcase and sell their work. The church will not charge for stalls in the church grounds, but it would be helpful if they could be booked in advance and stall-holders are asked to bring their own tables and coverings.
The Rector of St James’s, the Reverend Meurig Williams, is keen to support and encourage the range of skills and crafts in the town and surrounding area.
I know there is a great deal of talent out there, along with culinary, horticultural and agricultural skills, and it would be very good if we can offer people a shop window in our central location in the town to tie-in with our harvest celebrations. I hope this acts as incentive for more people to visit Mallow over the weekend, and to make use of all the businesses in the town when they are here.
As well as the stalls of produce, arts and crafts, there will be exhibitions on a harvest and environmental theme in the church. Refreshments will be served in church throughout the Festival.
The Festival will end with ‘Songs of Praise’, a popular service of hymns and well-loved music at 3.00pm on Sunday 24 th September. The speaker will be Canon Tom Sherlock, chaplain of Kingston College, Mitchelstown. The collection at this service will be shared between the Mallow Day Care Centre and Meals on Wheels.
Anyone interested in having a stall at the Harvest market can contact the Rector at mllwyd@aol.com or 022 21473.
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