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The Church of Ireland Diocese of Dublin |
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The Church of Ireland Diocese of Dublin |
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Previous issues of The Parish News Contents of this issue
CongratulationsCongratulations: to Jonathan Fildes on winning the Dunlop RT2000 Motor Racing Championship this year. Championship rounds were held in Mondello Park, Kirkistown and Brands Hatch. School NewsOur whole school community were shocked and distressed to hear of the sudden death of the Parents Association Chairperson, Linda Traynor. Although they moved to Dunboyne just 3 years ago, Lynda and her family were already firmly established as part of the scene there, and a centre of school life with us, which was reflected in the enormous turnout at here removal and funeral. Someone who radiated happiness and a love of life to all she met, her passing has left us deeply saddened. Our sympathy and prayers are with Tony and their children, Lisa and Andrew, and Linda's sister Violet. Thank youTo all our Harvest Decorators especially the teams led by Pat Gray and Dorothy Robinson who made the Churches look so well on the day. Thank you to all who supported the Christian aid Coffee morning in the Parish centre which raised £175.00. The Rector WritesDear Friends War in Afghanistan Celebrating our oneness in Christ Thank you to all of you who have helped with our parish life in so many ways in the last few months. Yours in His service, Andrew Readings for Sunday Mornings in November
From the Parish RegistersHoly Baptism in St Brigid’s
May she shine in the light of Christ in the world to the glory of God the Father Holy Matrimony
Grant O Lord that their homes may be a place of love, security and peace. Christian Funerals and Burial
Lord now let your servant depart in peace. We remember in our prayers and extend our sympathy to all who are bereaved In Memoriam: Helen Vera McKinley (19th June 1920 to 23rd October 2001) Tiny TotsTiny tots meets on Friday mornings 10.15-11.45 in the Parish Centre, during school term time. We follow a programme planned by the committee, which includes a number of outings. The children have lots of fun, and each morning they participate in a craft. The mums always enjoy the opportunity to meet and have a cup of coffee too! As well as our own activities we contribute to the life of the parish by running the cr`eches on Sunday mornings in both churches and an annual Beetle Drive. We also staff the Toy stall at the Parish Christmas Fair. An important feature of our programme are mum’s nights out! Our programme until Christmas 2001 and a list of members of The Tiny Tots Committee are below. New members are welcome to come along or to contact the Leader of the group Lesley Anders. Susan Green, Secretary The Tiny Tots Committee consists of
The Committee members can be contacted at the Parish Centre Our program until Christmas 2001 is as follows:
Diocesan Synod 2001 by Robert LawsonDiocesan Synod of Dublin " Glendalough was held on Tuesday, 9th and Wednesday, 10th October, 2001, at Taney Parish Centre, Taney Road, Dundrum. Representatives from these Parishes were: There was a celebration of the Eucharist on Tuesday 9th at 4:00 pm. and business began at 5.00 pm each evening. On Tuesday, 9 October, at 5.30 pm, Most Revd. Dr. Walton Empey gave an address as president of the Synod. Approximately 400 delegates representing parishes through the United Dioceses attended the Synod. They was debate on reports on education, mission, communications and social action. Girls BrigadeWe are back after a well earned break and are looking forward to an exciting year. Welcome back to our existing members and a very warm welcome to our new members, especially to Amanda, our new Lieutenant who comes from Northern Ireland. Our various activities are under way P.E., skipping, Scripture and this year we hope to have a choir. We held a Parents information morning on Sat 13th October to explain to parents what Girls’ Brigade is all about and to answer any questions anyone might have. Our Enrolment Service will be held on Sunday 18th November at 11.30a.m. in St. Brigid's Church. Ros Garrett Boys' Brigade10th Dublin Company was well represented at The Annual Founders Day Parade Service which took place at St. Patrick's Cathedral Dublin on Sunday 14th October, 2001. Mark Melbourne from Company Section carried 10th Dublin Company’s Colour at the service. Company Section have been hill walking around Howth Head. Tom McCabel has kindly agreed to help out with Company Section gym this year. Junior Section have been busy making carbon dioxide (and a lot of hot air). They have also been checking the Parish Centre for fingerprints in between playing cricket. Junior Section have embarked on their Achievement Badge work. 1st year boys are working towards their white badge, with 2nd years working towards their purple badge and 3rd year boys are aiming for their red badge. In football, the boys played a friendly match against Clondalkin and also took part in a football blitz at Astra Park on 13th October. The Anchor Boys section is flourishing with 23 boys enrolled. As well as Ruby, Janet and Martha, we have now been joined by Bernard (formerly of Junior Section fame), and we also welcome back Emma McKeever as a very keen helper. Our squads this year are called Land, Sea and Air. In November, the leaders will announce which squad is to be awarded the “Squad of the Month” Award. As well as doing craftwork and playing plenty of games every week the Anchor Boys were treated to a Halloween Party on 23rd October. Date for your Diary Our Enrolment Service takes place in St. Brigid’s Church, Castleknock on Sunday 11th November, 2001 at 11.30 a.m. Martha Waller, Secretary. Mothers' UnionOn Monday 1st October we enjoyed a very informative evening with a representative from the Euro Conversion Board of Ireland. We look forward to joining other branches at the North Area Meeting in North Strand on Tuesday 6th November. On the night there will be a panel of speakers to answer questions on a variety of topics. For our December meeting on Monday 3rd Dec, we will be having a Craft Evening with a demonstration by Aideen Hayden. In addition, we will be having a clothes collection for the homeless. Our collection of Irish coins for the Clonsilla Project will continue until the end of January. Collection bins are situated in Clonsilla and Castleknock Churches and donations can also be given to any member of the committee. Shirley McGuckin (Hon. Secretary) Pathfinders Youth ClubOn Sunday 23rd September 10 Pathfinders plus 4 leaders headed for Rathbeggan Lake for a day out fishing! The weather was gloriously mild and sunny and the lake was very calm. On our arrival at the fishery log cabin, we were kitted out with rods and bait and headed for the trout lake, specially designed for beginners. After starting with a bait of sweetcorn (yes, the type that comes in a tin) and a paste of fish food, we progressed onto live bait (yes, I mean maggots!). Amazing what you'll do to catch a fish. So catch one we did - just one! One of the two junior leaders, Dawn Anderson, landed a fine brown trout much to the delight and squealing of all those about her. The rest of us caught nothing but we had great fun trying. Tried and tested recipe for fun...... Result..... Pathfinders Youth Club Update In the coming weeks we are planning:- to make up Christmas gift boxes for Operations Christmas Child, who will deliver the boxes to children in the deprived countries of Eastern Europe.
Have a Happy (and Safe) Halloween everyone! If you’d like to join, call Evelyn Pender on 8200040 Wasting Time with GodPrayer has been described as “wasting time with God”: it should be as natural as talking to a friend or neighbour. However, few of us find prayer as simple or as easy as that. Sometimes, we can feel embarrassed, assuming that other people find prayer easier than we do. Many of us struggle to keep prayer from being squeezed out of already very busy lives. Often it seems difficult, unrewarding and we can be easily distracted. But prayer should be the heart of our life as a Christian community, because it is only through prayer that we can discern God’s will for us. Rather than feel guilty if we find prayer a struggle, it is far more productive to join with others in getting help, learning new ideas that will help us to pray more regularly, more effectively. A short 4 week course from 8 p.m to 9.30 p.m. on Wednesday nights in November/ December will help us do just that. 4 speakers will help us understand different ways of prayer better:
Each night will involve some theory and some practical work! Please do come and join us. We are asking for a nominal charge of £5 to cover speakers’ expenses and refreshments; please fill in the form below, enclose the fee, and return it to the parish office before November 15th. A War Can Only Be Judged ‘Just’ in Retrospect‘Is war against Osama bin Laden and the Taliban of Afghanistan morally justifiable? Patrick Comerford considers the concept first used by Aristotle ‘. Pope John Paul has expressed his "anguish and worry" following the US-led attacks on Afghanistan, but did not say whether he condemned or approved the military action. The Vatican said last month that it would understand if the US had to resort to force to protect its citizens from future attacks. But the Pope yesterday called the attacks a dark day for humanity and said religion could not be used to justify conflict between peoples. The caution of Church leaders underlines the fact that most Christians hold that war is inconsistent with the teachings of the New Testament and the participation of Christians in war must be limited by the demands for justice and peace. But when is a war just? Is the "just war" theory simply a formula to allow Christians to take part in any and all wars? And can the war against Osama bin Laden and the Taliban be regarded as a just war? Over the centuries, the Christian tradition has produced three contrasting approaches to the dilemma posed by war: pacifism, Crusades, and the just-war theory. Christian pacifism, with its roots in the Sermon on the Mount and the practice of the early church, demands total opposition to all wars. However, the call to peace-making in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:9) is not a call to maintain an unjust cessation of violence or to seek peace at any cost. Nor must the demands of peace always take priority over the demands of justice. Those who invoke the principles of pacifism in the present conflict are open to condemnation if they have not spoken out against the tyranny of the Taliban in Afghanistan, condemned bin Laden's attacks, or challenged racism and violence towards Muslims. President Bush has spoken of a "crusade" against terrorism. The Crusades found their initial justification as defensive action aimed at protecting Christian pilgrims to Jerusalem, but quickly took on the characteristics of the jihad or Muslim holy war. The theological justification of Crusades has long been abandoned, and there is no place in international law for either a crusade or a jihad. But the Crusades continued to have resonances in the Cold War, in talk about a crusade against Communism, and this was reflected in debates about a "clash of civilisations" between the West and the Islamic world. The third Christian approach has been the just-war theory. The concept of a just war owes its original formulation not to Biblical principles but to Aristotle (who first used the term), Cicero and others. The theory was first framed by Saint Augustine, who was exercised by the problem of when a Christian might take part in war with a good conscience. For Augustine, all wars remained sinful and could only be waged in "a mournful spirit". War involved resorting to a lesser evil only in the hope of preventing a greater evil and of restoring justice. He accepted that the command to love the neighbour included a duty to defend the vulnerable against attack, while the commandment to love the enemy placed moral limits on the use of force in defending the vulnerable. Augustine's theory was developed in the 13th century by Thomas Aquinas, and by 16th century Spanish and Dutch theologians. Their formula for a just war passed into international law. The just-war theory does not seek to legitimise, and still less to glorify, war. Jurists and theologians alike accept that seven conditions must govern a decision to go to war (jus ad bellum) and three conditions must govern its conduct (jus in bello). The seven conditions governing a decision to go to war are: there must be a just cause; war must be waged by a legitimate authority; it must be formally declared; those waging it must have a right intention; it must be the last resort; there must be reasonable hope of success; and must be a due proportion between the benefits sought and the damage done. Three conditions govern the conduct of war: non-combatants must have immunity; prisoners must be treated humanely; and international treaties must be honoured. Each condition must be met for any conflict to be regarded as a just war. Is the present conflict a just war? It might even be asked whether this is a war. Has there been a formal declaration? Bin Laden is not a head of state with competence in international law; and it is questionable whether the Taliban regime is an appropriate authority to have war declared against it. Undoubtedly, there is a just cause if the intention is to stop further similar attacks. But revenge is not a just cause, for vengeance has no place in international law; nor could it justify bombing cities or creating hundreds of thousands of civilian refugees. The refusal of the Taliban to hand over bin Laden, despite four weeks of international pressure, may support the argument that war has become a last resort. But is there a reasonable hope of success? Or is it a predictable failure? The just war theory also demands a due proportion between the benefits sought and the damage caused. If further terrorist attacks on the West are a foreseen consequence, who can weigh the damage caused in Afghanistan against the damage that may be caused afterwards? And while the principle of proportionality may sustain the argument that saving the lives of another 5,000 people justifies killing one bin Laden, can 5,000 bin Ladens be killed to save 5,000 future lives? Or 5,000 bin Laden supporters to save, perhaps, 10 lives? In a just war, non-combatants must be guaranteed safety. The conditions do not allow us to dismiss any large-scale death of civilians as mere "collateral damage". One of the weaknesses of the just-war theory is that it is only long after a war is over that we have the time and the luxury to determine whether all conditions have been met. In the meantime, we can only accept that all moral decisions are contingent and, at best, penultimate. We are left to confess that war is evil, and accept that many people of good will resort to a lesser evil in the hope of preventing the perpetration of a further, greater evil. Gift AidIncrease your Church giving by up to 42% without costing yourself a penny!!!! From April of this year the Minister for Finance has introduced a Gift Aid scheme for charities which allows them to claim back the income tax paid by donors – a potentially significant amount for our parish How does it work? All records held are completely confidential, and it will cost you nothing. This scheme has been running successfully for many years in Northern Ireland parishes: last year one medium sized Belfast parish claimed back £28000 from the Income tax authorities. Can anyone take part?
What will happen now? Dates For Your DiarySunday Service Times:
Looking ahead to December 1st December: Christmas Fair—see advertisement inside. |
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Parishes of Castleknock and Mulhuddart with Clonsilla |
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