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Spiritan Provincial Newsletter

No. 2 Irish Province June 2021

In olden times especially, but also today in many places, ships and boats could only enter harbour

at high tide. Arriving before or after high tide, they had to wait outside the port – ob portu as the

Romans put it – for the high tide. The English word ‘opportunity’ came from this and it also is the

inspiration for one of Shakespeare’s most quoted passages, spoken by Brutus in Julius Caesar:

There is a tide in the affairs of men.

Which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune;

Omitted, all the voyage of their life

Is bound in shallows and in miseries.

Just as we cannot control tides, we have little or no control over much of what happens to us in life.

This has been particularly true over the past year when practically the whole world has been

seriously affected by Covid-19. Much of the impact is obvious, much more will take years to assess.

What is clear is that our world of work, worship and celebration has been changed in a way that

nobody foresaw. It is unclear what world we will return to when, or if, “normality” ever resumes.

Many changes, never thought of, never mind thought feasible, have occurred and are now very

much part of our lives. Wearing masks and online meetings are taken for granted. Fifteen months

ago, the wearing of masks was left to people in Asia or to surgeons in theatre; online meetings were

the preserve of top-level international CEOs. Now, most of us can Zoom. Going into a supermarket

with a mask a year ago was a subject for local gossip; now, without one, you cannot get in the door.

On the religious front, our lives have been even more affected. With practically no in-person Mass

attendance, many now attend through the webcam or other online facility. We have the new

phenomenon of “Mass-hoppers”, people attending online Masses from various parts of the world.

Much food for thought for theologians and ministers; this is something needing to be digested soon.

Since Easter we have been listening to readings from the Acts of the Apostles. From Acts 8 it is

clear to us that the faith was brought to Judea and Samaria by believers who were fleeing

persecution in Jerusalem. Their crisis led to the expansion of the good news outside Jerusalem.

As our own crisis sees our world turned upside down and inside out, what new opportunities are

waiting for us? As people of faith, what perspective, that has its unique contribution to make, can

we bring to the situation? With councils, chapters and synods being planned or, in some cases,

being postponed, what is our mindset? Are we tied up in dry dock? Or are we ready to avail of

the tide and leave the shallows behind to sail out into the deep? To continue Brutus’s speech above:

On such a full sea are we now afloat

And we must take the current when it serves

Or lose our ventures.

Provincial Leadership Team

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NOTICES

Please note that due to uncertainty around the holding of events during the pandemic, there are no

Provincial celebrations planned for the time being.

Visits, by arrangement,to Nazareth House

“Residents in nursing homes … can have up to 4 visits per week … once the care home has had a

high level of vaccination.” See here for more on the current HSE advice on visiting nursing homes.

If you are fully vaccinated, with your card to prove it, and would like to make one of the 4 permitted

visits per week to a confrère resident in Nazareth House, please book by ringing Nazareth House

Reception (01 / 8338205). As per current HSE advice, “up to 2 people can visit at a time.” See also photo on Page 11.

BEREAVEMENTS

We extend our prayerful sympathies to:

Brendan Carr - brother (Michael)

Diarmuid Casey - brother (Tadhg Eisirt)

Edward Flynn - sister (Josephine)

Niall Greene - mother (Margaret)

Martin Kelly - brother (Gerry)

Pat McGeever - sister (Sheila)

Wally McNamara - brother (Desmond)

Noel Murphy - sister (Mary)

May they rejoice in the company of God’s saints, Amen.

Members of the EPC 2021 Preparatory Commission

Peter Conaty, Daithí Kenneally, Michael Kilkenny, John Laizer, Richard Olin, Pat Palmer and

Joe Poole.

Delegates to EPC 2021

PLT (ex officio):

Peter Conaty, David Conway, Martin Kelly, Michael Kilkenny, Paddy Moran and Colm Reidy.

Ireland:

Raphael Annan, Brian Cronin, Paddy Cully, Daithí Kenneally, Michael Liston,

Cormac O’Brolchain, Eddie O’Farrell and Brian Starken.

Overseas:

Michael Begley, Billy Cleary, John Kingston, Eugene Moran and Pat Palmer.

Associates’ representative (non-voting): Thérèse Osborne

Kimmage Connection representative (non-voting): Pádraic O’Doherty.

Welcome to the Kimmage Community:

Jimmy Heneghan and Michael Moore have joined the Kimmage Community. We wish them every

happiness.

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A Fortnight in Mandatory Hotel Quarantine

Edward Flynn (in conversation)

If ever I had envisaged spending a prolonged period in Croke Park’s hallowed environs, a fortnight

in mandatory hotel quarantine (MHQ) in the Croke Park Hotel was certainly not what I had in mind!

From late March, mandatory hotel quarantine had applied to – among others – all passengers arriving

in Ireland from ‘Category 2’ countries. In April, word filtered through to me in New York that the

USA, after an earlier false start, was indeed being added to that list. My first attempts at booking to

return to Dublin were unsuccessful as there were insufficient hotel rooms to meet demand. Therefore,

I re-arranged my flight for Friday 30th April. Landing in Dublin as dawn broke on the morning of

May Day, it wasn’t my first time taking an airport shuttle bus but it certainly was the first time that I

did so under official advice that “after immigration and customs processing you will be met by

members of the Defence Forces who will ensure you are safely and securely transported from your

port of entry to the location in which you will complete your pre-booked mandatory hotel quarantine.”

I thought that it would be straightforward to contact the Government Liaison Officer (GLO) in the

hotel to see if I might be entitled to an exemption. None was to be seen but, on request, an appeal

form was delivered to my room by a member of the Defence Forces. I duly appealed, stating that I

had spent 10 days in self-isolation after a positive test and was no longer infectious. The appeal was

unsuccessful. With supporting documentation from my doctor, I appealed – and was rejected – for a

second time. An Irish Times story (1st May) read “Man who took court action over quarantine released

on appeal”, but this approach wasn’t for me; I now had to get on with, and get over, confinement.

With a negative test result before my return to Ireland I was confident that I would not have to spend

too long in quarantine. Alas, this was not to be as I tested positive on my first day at the hotel. I was

immediately wrapped in PPE (including the rubber gloves), moved (by security staff) to the Covid

wing in the hotel, and instructed not to touch anything along the way. Locked in a room, my branding

as a modern-day leper was complete! Instructions received from staff (by phone) included: “Don’t

answer the door when we deliver meals; wait a while so that staff can move away from your room.”

I will not be voluntarily returning anytime soon to the said hotel. The less said about the food the

better although I got hot porridge on a few occasions, and some of the food was tasty and nourishing.

Luckily, family and friends supplemented the menu with bagels, drinks, a hot meal and some fruit.

On my first day I had been able to go to the hotel courtyard for 20 minutes of supervised exercise. I

requested to exercise on a second day but was refused and informed that the first outing had been a

mistake. This was the end of regular physical exercising. I resorted to the phone and emails to stay in

touch with confrères, family and friends. News channels on the wall-sized TV kept me informed of

happenings outside my confined space and off the island. Repeat late-evening episodes of Vera on

ITV were regular companions to see me through the night or put me to sleep. ‘The Warmth of Other

Suns’, by Isabel Wilkerson, enlightened me about the migration northwards of six million African-

Americans (1915-1970) from the southern States; I recommend this as a book that is worth reading.

Before leaving the hotel, I had a brief conversation with a representative of the GLO. I communicated

to him my own personal view that mandatory hotel quarantine was a blunt instrument which did not

take sufficient account of the available medical evidence in relation to Covid-19. The representative

was a member of the Defence Forces, dressed in battle fatigues and without any markings to indicate

rank, and he would only give me his surname. The impression I had was that it was a faceless system.

My advice to any confrère who may be thinking about returning from a designated country to Ireland

while mandatory hotel quarantine remains in place would be that, if at all possible, it is to be avoided.

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Spiritan Global Citizenship Showcase 2021

Ronan Barry

Online sharing

On 29th April this year, a total of eight Spiritan post-primary schools, three from overseas and the five

in Ireland, shared their understanding online of global citizenship. The overseas representation was

from Libermann Boys’ Secondary School (Tanzania), Sultan Hamud school (Kenya), Bishop Okoye

Spiritan Secondary School (Nigeria) as well as the Centro Cultural Vila Prudente in São Paulo, Brazil.

A total of some 90 participants – comprising students, teachers, principals and others – gathered for

the discussion. Excellent inputs were provided by Ruairí McKiernan and Ruth Mumbi and prompted

great engagement from the participants. The subsequent feedback from the schools was very positive.

Projects mentioned ranged from immersion trips, engaging with nature and sustaining local

biodiversity to projects on inclusion and diversity. Pat Clarke C.S.Sp. spoke about his four decades

working with the people of São Paulo while Joseph Shio C.S.Sp. discussed the interconnection of

Spiritan schools globally and how we can encourage greater collaboration between different nations.

Reflective poem

A reflective poem written by Patsy Culleton, a Rockwell College student, introduced the Showcase:

We are Rockwell College.

The youth of the future with heads held high,

With gratitude and nurtured minds,

And kindness as we pass you by.

The smile of every individual,

Who support a world of truth and good,

Live like the knowledge we receive -

Seen, heard and understood.

These pleasant souls we stand beside,

The guides along our paths they light,

Forever in our memory,

Before we journey through our lives.

And with our peers we share this time,

Acceptance in a world sublime -

Of support, growth and those we trust,

As Rockwell is more than what you see -

Rockwell College is us.

Conclusion

In a year where schools and students were separated and isolated from each other due to the pandemic,

the Spiritan schools in Ireland and overseas galvanised the Spiritan ‘Spirit’, going on to explore new

methods of contacting and engaging new relationships with Spiritan students from around the world.

Showcase 2021 was a real expression of the Spiritan charism expressed as ‘One heart. One Spirit’.

Spiritan Day of Giving 2021

An appeal by Joseph Lam Nguyen C.S.Sp. in Vietnam

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Soul Food for Sundays in June 2021: Excerpts from Reflections

The Feast of Corpus Christi (6th)

Roddy Curran

The Feast of Corpus Christi was first established for the Universal Church at the beginning of the 17th

century. Soon afterwards the practice of public processions on that day with the Blessed Sacrament

carried through the streets of the parish and, in some places, through the streets of large cities, became

very popular. Devotion to the real presence of Jesus in the consecrated host had an enormous appeal

and, for many people, looking at the host became more important than actually consuming it. Vatican

II somewhat corrected this by emphasising the importance of participating fully in the celebration of

the Eucharist, reminding us that Jesus said “take and EAT” at the Last Supper...

...it is not surprising that it was at a meal, the Last Supper, that Jesus gave himself to his disciples as

food and drink under the symbols of bread and wine, and that was how he wanted to be remembered...

The Eleventh Sunday in Ordinary Time (13th)

Daithí Kenneally

Artists are always on the lookout for the moment of epiphany …When it happens, it always touches

something deep within them and for which they are surprised and enriched and grateful. It always

comes as a surprise. It evokes wonder, awe and a sense of mystery. Somehow, after it, life is not

quite the same. It can happen in the world of nature and often in the ordinary events of daily life.

From small beginnings can come a great harvest… “It doesn’t have to be the blue iris, it could be

weeds in a vacant lot, or a few small stones; just pay attention.” (Praying. A poem by Mary Oliver)

After all, one does not expect much from a “tender sprig” or a “seed” and even less from a “mustard

seed”, and yet these have the potential within them for immense surprise…

The Twelfth Sunday in Ordinary Time (20th)

Samson Mann

26th June each year marks the UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.

Many displaced people are survivors of torture. Some embark on a boat journey in the open seas,

crossing international borders to seek protection. The kind of boats they use are often ramshackle,

not sea-worthy, and overloaded. At the mercy of the elements and vulnerable to exploitation, they

not only have to endure a storm at sea but also a storm in their hearts.

In the passage of Mark’s Gospel this Sunday (Mark 4:35-41), the vivid narrative of the stormy voyage

of the disciples has a happy ending. They all reached safety and were filled with awe. For people

forced to flee by boat, however, the storm-tossed situation and trauma often do not end on reaching

the shore. In fact, after landing, these displaced people have to confront a hurricane of challenges ...

The Thirteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (27th)

Des Byrne

There is a great air of relief and satisfaction here in Ireland at the moment as we come out of fourteen

months of lockdown. Likewise, there is great excitement in the vaccination centres; everyone is so

helpful, chatty and grateful. Good news all round! Hope for a brighter future!

Not a bad backdrop for the two healing stories in today’s Gospel. The woman who has been suffering

from a blood disorder has been shunned and excluded from society! Inspired, she approaches Jesus

humbly and tentatively – just to touch his cloak! Imagine her joy and relief at being healed and being

praised by the Master himself for her great faith, and being assured that she “is saved.”

A reminder to many of us who at one time or another felt excluded or afraid. Thankfully, we

remember also the ‘Jesus’ people who healed and included us.

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Sisters of Mercy Carlow and their work with the Spiritans in Kenya (1976 – 1986)

Sr Anne Doyle RSM

Introduction

St. Leo’s Carlow was one of the earliest Mercy Foundations. St. Leo’s College – founded as a Pension

School by Francis Warde, a companion of Catherine McAuley – is our very oldest secondary school.

The first Sisters of Mercy in America came from St. Leo’s in 1847 and in New Zealand in 1850. It

was a further 120 years before Mercy Sisters set foot in Africa, opting on that occasion to work with

established missionaries such as the Spiritans. For Sr Mary O’Toole in Carlow and 4 others interested

in teaching in Africa, this was a ‘God-incident’. A sister of Fr Peter O’Toole, Mary had taught with

the Loreto Sisters in Changamwe (Mombasa), transferring in 1976 to St. Mary’s Seminary, Kwale,

Mombasa under Spiritan patronage. I had just started teaching in Naas and had made my Final

Profession that September when Mary wrote, asking if I would like to teach in Kwale. ‘Tongue in

cheek’, I replied “Of course… but would they have me?” When a telegram reached Naas, our Superior

– thinking it might be bad news – opened it. “Reference to Seminary – deadly serious – writing,

Mary”. A little later I had begun what would become a period of nine wonderful years in Kwale!

Working with the Spiritans

Sr Mary taught English and Christian Religious Ed. I taught Science and Maths. Spiritans on the staff

included Fr Vincent Browne (Principal), Fr Paddy Roe (Senior Science), and Fr Eddie Corcoran who

was succeeded by Fr Mick Keating. Sr Mary later went to Pakistan. I was joined by Sr Francis

Conway who taught a very willing student cohort in Kwale for 6 years; to the day she died she recalled

these as the best years of her life! In 1978 Fr Paddy Leonard wrote to our Mother General, requesting

teachers for the Harambee School in Riara, Nairobi. Sr Mary Ryan (who, sadly, died in 2020) and

Sr Nancy McLoughlin, who had worked in Nigeria in a St. Louis Sisters’ teacher-training college,

signed a renewable 2-year contract to teach in Riara. Accommodated in a vacant Loreto staff house,

both were very popular with teachers and pupils, offering a unique style of education and an annual

Christmas play in the church. In turn, they were amazed that the students could learn despite the

paucity of books and equipment. After the 2 years, Loreto needed the house for its newly-appointed

lay principal. Reluctant to leave, Mary and Nancy relocated to Kitui, staying there for 4 more years.

‘Holy Ghostesses’

We were amazed at the Spiritans’ dedication and good humour. From our arrival, they befriended and

protected us, including us in everything; once when visitors to Mombasa asked, ‘What order are you?

we quipped “Holy Ghostesses!” We learned how to be fully Christian and inclusive in a school with

students from all over Mombasa diocese and from many tribes. We had enough Swahili to get by.

St. Mary’s was a Catholic school and a junior seminary in the centre of a Muslim district. It excelled

both academically and in sport; many students did exceptionally well in Form 4 Exams (O Levels),

going on to A Levels in St. Patrick’s in Iten, renowned for educating and training world-class athletes.

The Mercy Sisters in Kwale may not have actually trained any athlete but took seriously their frequent

supervision of training, learning to spot ‘offside’ and getting to know the rules of basketball! The

students were very keen on drama, and Mary prepared them for the local annual drama competitions.

Kwale

St. Mary’s was on a 30-acre site. When drought hit East Africa in the 1980s, food was in short supply.

Kwale got more rain than most places and an opportunity to grow some of our own food was talked

about. We were on the edge of Shimba Hills National Park (pictured), sharing our compound at night

with many wild animals. If we planted maize and beans or other vegetables, we would certainly be

sharing them with our neighbours, especially our nightly visitors. When the Spiritans arrived in Kwale

to open the seminary thirty years earlier, they planted many trees on the compound and there now

was a large stand of tall mature poplar trees near the Sisters of Mercy House that could be, and was,

thinned out a bit. This provided the posts for fencing the school shamba (farm). A 6-foot trench then

had to be dug for strong net wire that would prevent wild boar from digging and accessing the crops.

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Fr Jamie Lynch (a former principal of the school in Pugu of Tanzania’s future President Nyerere)

wasn’t so sure about fencing land considered for millennia to be Wadigo property. I will never forget

the days and nights spent pondering this dilemma. In my heart I knew he was right but, reluctantly, I

let my head win out. Suffice to say that several fine maize crops were harvested for the students, and

hundreds of kilos of tomatoes sold to the coast hotels, providing valuable money for school fees. Like

Karen Blixen, we ‘had a farm in Africa’. The Carlow Mercy Sisters physically left Kenya in 1986 but

part of their hearts, and their spirits, surely remained behind in Kwale, Mombasa, Mwingi and Riara.

Mercy Sisters remember all Kenyan Spiritans who were part of their lives at a very important time.

We often referred to Fr Gerry Foley as our ‘Founding Father’. Fr Vincent McDonald ferried us around

many places ‘up country’ during holidays, telling us stories of the Mau Mau and life in the forests.

Fr Pat Whelan once took us, in the St. Mary’s Nairobi minibus, to the tea and coffee plantations. We

often received amazing hospitality in St. Mary’s and were to return there after that journey but, alas,

the clutch ‘went’ in the bus ‘in the middle of nowhere’ on a very dark night. Luckily, Fr Peter O’Toole

and Fr Vinny McDonald, took off on foot in the direction of the nearest mission. Rescued, we were

brought to the house of Fr Conor Moloney SPS for the night. Fr Brendan O’Brien looked out for us;

so too Fr Michael Shanley who ran the Spiritan Holiday House (Shelley Beach) and who was a regular

visitor to Kwale, making sure that we were not needing anything. Fr Peter Conaty, then a student on

a motor bike, came to our rescue each Saturday to teach Geography when our regular teacher was

away. The priests in Mombasa Cathedral and across the diocese welcomed us whenever we

interviewed students for St. Mary’s Seminary. At Christmas we met up for good food and hospitality!

Mercy Sisters who served with Spiritans in Kenya between 1976 and 1986: Sr Francis Conway RIP

and Sr Mary Ryan (RIP); Sr Mary O’Toole; Sr Nancy (Vincent) McLoughlin and Sr Anne Doyle.

Did you know?

“On Thursday 13 May, Ascension Thursday (and also the beginning of the Muslim festival of Eid

al-Fitr), the members of the newly elected Scottish Parliament took their oaths and affirmations.

Using a variety of different languages to do this has become a ritual in itself, a celebration of

Scotland’s diversity. This year, the languages used included English, Gaelic, Scots, Doric

(Aberdonian Scots), Orcadian, Welsh, German, French Canadian, Punjabi, Urdu, Arabic,

Zimbabwean Shona and British Sign Language…”

Source: The Tablet, weekly online update, Tuesday 25th May 2021

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‘Church of Survival’

Jim O’Connell

Background

In his ground-breaking visit to Iraq in early 2021, Pope Francis focused on the fragility and

faithfulness of the Church in that country, the call to see religious diversity as a precious resource and

the summons to all citizens to nation-building. Pakistan too is a country where the Church is in a tiny

minority, with fewer than 2 million members in an estimated total population of 220 million people.

I am one of some 30 Spiritans – from England, France, Ireland, Madagascar, Mauritius, Nigeria,

Uganda and Zambia – who worked in Pakistan since we first established a presence there in 1977.

Today the team comprises: John Baptist Mugerwa (Uganda), José Harivola Randrianjanakolona and

Jean-Luc Hervé Andrianoromandimby (both from Madagascar), and Chemistone Moonga (Zambia).

Spiritans have been deeply involved in 3 geographical areas: Mirpurkhas, Rahim Yar Khan and

Sukkur. We have accompanied the Marwari Bhils and Punjabi Christians – two groups who are

religiously, socially and economically marginalised – as they pray and struggle for a decent life. We

have contributed to the Pakistani Church through books (by John O’Brien), articles and animation at

a regional and national level, and have been involved in the dialogue of life with Muslims and Hindus.

Attacks on the Christian minority, their churches and institutions

I was not long in Pakistan when the late American Dominican priest, Chrys Mac Vey, commented

that he saw the Church in Pakistan as a ‘Church of survival’. At the time, and today, I reflect on that.

Christians do have freedom of worship. The Church in Pakistan is accepted at official level. Security

is provided at churches on Sundays and feast days. Christians sit in federal and regional parliaments.

However, there have also been moments of great fear for Christians. Following an earlier attack on a

convent in Rawalpindi, Holy Cross Church in Rahim Yar Khan was besieged on 3rd February 1986

by a mob of college students who had been inspired by their professor in revenge for the entry of

Israeli defence forces into the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem the previous day. 9 lay people were

injured – none seriously, thank God – including students in a hostel on the compound. The church,

parish house and vehicles were all badly damaged, and a number of religious objects were vandalised.

After a day of great pain for them, Christians marched peacefully in the town, stopping at the District

Commissioner’s office. No one was attacked and no building was touched – a true Christian witness.

Next day, sitting in the parish house amid broken glass all around, Spiritans and parish leaders, along

with Bishop Patras Yusaf of Multan and his party, got a big surprise. A group of Muslims from the

city – including well-known doctors, teachers and lawyers – came to apologise. One doctor said that

we could say what we wanted; they would bear it. He said that it was their sons, sons of the city, who

had done the damage. The visitors promised to repair the damage within a period of 3 weeks, and

they did. Bishop Patras said it was the first time that he had seen Muslims come to apologise like that.

Another positive result of this tragic event was that Christians of different denominations were now

united as never before. However, other anti-Christian attacks by mobs or armed assailants followed;

these were typically triggered either by the actions of American forces and allies in Muslim lands or

by perceived acts of blasphemy whether locally or abroad: churches in Bahawalpur, Khanewal,

Lahore, Peshawar, Quetta, Sangla Hill and Sukkur; a Christian school in Murree; a Christian hospital

in Taxila; Christian workers in a Peace & Justice centre in the city of Karachi. Also, Christian

dwellings in Gojra, Khanewal, Lahore and Shantinaggar were torched. A shooting spree took place

one Easter Sunday in a park in Lahore. It was not just that buildings were damaged or destroyed;

many lives were also lost, the seeds of fear were sown, and the very heart of a people was wounded.

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Blasphemy laws and allegations

Blasphemy laws are of deep significance in Pakistan, and their misuse and the making of dangerous

allegations are a cause of great fear and insecurity for Pakistani Christians. A few points to note:

• Various Muslim countries enact blasphemy laws differently. Pakistan’s are particularly stringent;

in lower courts and in those of local Muslims, the voice of just one or two witnesses may suffice.

• People sometimes take the law into their own hands, killing an accused person without trial.

• In many cases of alleged blasphemy, there is already a background of local disharmony.

• Commitment to Islam is as fundamental in Pakistan as, or indeed more fundamental than, the

commitment to democracy is in the West. Pakistani identity is grounded in Islam. This has led in

political terms to a certain jostling for position as the leading defender of Islam. One political

party (the TLP) has campaigned solely on the issue of the preservation of the blasphemy laws.

For years, there has been almost no debate on the changing of these laws.

An adult literacy

class being held in

rural Pakistan.

Being part of a struggling minority

One of the key experiences that I had in my four decades in Pakistan was a deep feeling within me of

what it meant to be part of a struggling minority. Most discussions with the majority community are

governed by the framework of the majority, a framework that has sometimes even got into the heads

of Christians. Fasting is a good example; most Christians I have met think of fasting in only one way,

the Muslim way, i.e. not taking food or liquids – even water – from sunrise to sunset. I have even

come across a number of Christians who felt that taking Holy Communion would break their fast.

Having said all this, I want to make a few observations. Many Muslims fully accept their Christian

compatriots. Some work hard for justice for minorities. The majority of Muslims do not espouse mob

violence; in fact, they loathe the actions of the armed assailants. Also, Muslims regularly cooperate

with Christians on a practical level and sometimes show great compassion to Christians in distress.

Work continues.

Christians are there to stay in Pakistan. They are men, women and children of the soil. They have

always been – and probably always will be – a tiny minority. A lot of their energy goes into seeking

their rights, but they are not simply concerned with self-preservation. As well as pain, there is joy and

a celebration of little things. Their endurance through adversity is a spiritual quality of the highest

value. On occasions, such as in Rahim Yar Khan in February 1986, they gave witness of great value.

Continuing to accompany Marwari Bhils and Punjabi Christians, blessing and being blessed by them

in life’s journey as the Spirit gives strength, Spiritans highlight faith-formation and prayer, encourage

school attendance and help to create a better learning environment. We accompany sick people,

especially anaemic women and children, and epilepsy patients. We promote individual and group

training for personal and societal transformation. Work continues with Muslims and Hindus on justice

and care of creation. Researching Asian music, we contribute particularly to Bhils’ liturgical worship.

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The Spiritan Mission Ireland Animation Commission (SMIAC)

The PLT has announced an important new initiative to progress Spiritan commitment to mission in

Ireland: the establishment of the SMIAC. The primary objective of the commission is to animate,

facilitate, coordinate and resource the work of all who are actively involved in Spiritan mission in

Ireland. Its membership of 10, drawn from a variety of backgrounds, will serve for a 3-year period.

Membership

Brendan Carr C.S.Sp. (chair of the commission) has served in Angola. A board-member of Spirasi

and Misean Cara, he was pastor in Kimmage Parish for 7 years and was on the PLT (2012 - 2018).

Patricia Carroll is a Pastoral Coordinator (Dublin archdiocese) and a PhD student. A former Director

of Education for Parish Services in the UK, she has worked in pastoral development for over 20 years.

Séamus Claffey has been a parish pastoral worker and university chaplain. A member of SET’s ethos

sub-committee, he has written on faith and justice matters, and has done facilitation / animation work.

Peter Conaty C.S.Sp. worked in Africa, Mexico and the USA. In Ireland he has served in formation,

and is a member of the PLT. He is based at the Spiritan Retreat and Spirituality Centre in Ardbraccan.

Amanda Dillon is Assistant Professor in Biblical Studies (New Testament) at Dublin City University.

She has worked in South Africa and studied Theology at the then Kimmage Mission Institute (KMI).

Brendan Carr Patricia Carroll Séamus Claffey Peter Conaty Amanda Dillon

Sean Goan Daithí Kenneally Deirdre Markey Aisling Mulherin Radegunda Shayo

Sean Goan is Coordinator of SMAI. He was a teacher and chaplain in Blackrock College. Actively

engaged in adult faith-development work, he is a founder-member of the Tarsus Scripture School.

Daithí Kenneally served in education and parish ministry in Sierra Leone. In Ireland, he has worked

in formation, parishes and safeguarding, was Kimmage Community Leader and served on the PLT.

Deirdre Markey is a qualified accountant who worked at a senior finance level in the private sector

for many years. Following a career break and further study, she has been with Spirasi since 2017.

Aisling Mulherin has lectured in Religious Education & Theology. Her Doctorate focused on

medical ethics and moral decision-making. She is a chaplain and class teacher in Rockwell College.

Radegunda Shayo, a member of the Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMM) for some 30 years, did

public health ministry in Benin and Nigeria. From Tanzania, she has served in Ireland since 2009.

May the Holy Spirit guide and inspire their deliberations so that our mission of proclaiming the Good

News of God’s Kingdom may be undertaken with renewed enthusiasm in these challenging times.

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Grateful for an Irish Church experience in the West of Ireland, and also for the chance of

returning to work, this time with migrants in Lisbon, Portugal.

Joe Poole

In 2009, after a period of several months recovering from what was assumed to be cerebral malaria,

I arrived in Ballintubber & Ballymoe parish in Elphin diocese. I volunteered to spend 2 months in a

relief role, working for the first time in an Irish Church situation. I left, over a decade later, in 2020!

Looking back, I can say that, facilitated greatly by the people of Ballintubber & Ballymoe parish,

rural life in the west of Ireland suited me immensely. Gradually putting in place the basic necessities

of parish administration and learning from the experience of my 12 years in Angola, I identified

leadership potential in my new pastoral situation. Leadership was easily promoted at parish level but

was complicated by diocesan and institutional structures that were not always life-giving. Joined by

John Laizer in the parish some six months after I had begun, I started to think about new spaces to

meet parishioners and others who had minimal or no contact with the Church, and how to build trust

and a bridge within the community. Playing pool again for the first time in years and taking part in

social dancing, I got to know people I wouldn’t otherwise have known, and celebrated the sacraments

with them, doing funerals for some. I went to the local farmers’ mart fortnightly, meeting buyers and

sellers of cattle and sheep, and eventually getting to understand the mart’s intricacies. Spiritans

facilitated the celebration of weekly Mass and more in Castlerea Prison as part of its chaplaincy team.

I really enjoyed every aspect of living in Ballintubber / Ballymoe. It gave me back a sense of purpose,

confidence as a leader, and an acceptance of the present. The local bishop once asked me if I would

consider being incardinated into Elphin diocese i.e. leaving the Spiritans to become a diocesan priest.

I was glad he asked this question; it helped me to make a decision regarding my future, recognising

that what I wanted was to return to work with those who were the poorest and the most abandoned.

On a holiday, I went to meet the Spiritan leadership team in Portugal where I first learnt Portuguese

before going to Angola in 1995; the Provincial there outlined the diverse range of their activities. It

was immediately clear to me that this was where I now wished to work and flourish as a human being.

On leaving Ballintubber / Ballymoe in June 2020, I took time to deal with my own health issues and

I have been lucky enough to spend time at home caring for my mother. I had hoped to take up a new

appointment in Lisbon as Chaplain to Migrants in early 2021. However, like everybody else I have

had to wait for vaccinations. Grateful for the experience that I have had to date in both Africa and

Ireland, I am greatly looking forward to a service which is at the very heart of the Spiritan charism.

Pentecost 2021 Visit

to Nazareth House

L-R Brendan Carr,

Martin Kelly and Joe Beere

and (in front)

Vincent O’Grady.

12

Spirasi launches a new media campaign to meet the team and to celebrate befriending.

Carrie Benn, Fundraising and Development Officer

Befriend: To act as or become a friend to someone, especially when they are in need of help / support.

There is much talk of every-day heroes these days; in Spirasi we believe that we are really lucky to

have more than our fair share of them in our client base. In celebrating our vital work, we have

launched a new section at www.spirasi.ie presenting the hard workers who inhabit the staff space at

Spiritan House. We support torture victims from all over the world who have sought safety and refuge

in Ireland. Keeping the doors of our ‘House of Welcome’ open has been a challenge over the last 21

years; support comes in many forms: our amazing funders and donors and our wonderful volunteers.

To mark National Volunteer Week, an individual certificate of appreciation was sent to each one of

our large team of befrienders to acknowledge our thanks for the support they give to their befriendees.

While face-to-face meetings have been suspended since the onset of Covid, our befrienders have

responded magnanimously and resourcefully to the challenges presented. Regular contact has been

maintained with befriendees via telephone, text-messaging and video technology. We are hopeful

that a return to face-to-face befriending will be possible soon. Our team of over 70 volunteers supports

over 100 befriendees (clients and students); befrienders are currently working in a total of 18 counties.

Some of

Spirasi’s

younger

supporters

(from 1st

and 5th

classes),

with

teachers at

Willow

Park

Junior

School.

13

APPRECIATIONS

Brian Cannon

by Tom Sheridan

Brian, who died recently after a long illness, was in the first year of his second term as Chairperson

of the Board of Management of St. Michael’s College. His absence from the board is a great loss.

Under his leadership as principal, Malahide Community School had a reputation for

educational excellence. Brian, who was also chairperson of the BoM of Loreto

Foxrock, was highly respected in educational circles as a man of the highest integrity.

SET is hugely indebted to him for his commitment to leadership in St. Michael’s and

his support for the school’s senior management. Our sympathies go to his wife Marie,

their children Jennifer and Derek, grandchildren, extended family and many friends.

Micheál Feeney by Michael Kane

Micheál, who died in April, was from Donegal. He entered the Novitiate in 1962 and

was ordained in 1970. Appointed to Brazil, he ministered for ten years in a cluster of

parishes – Pacaembu, Irapuru, Florida Paulista and Florica. After a sabbatical in

Denver, Colorado, he heard the call to work among Indigenous people in the Amazon

region. He later relocated to Mato Grosso do Sul on the Paraguayan border, married

and lived with his wife Edna Teixeira Lopes and their two sons Michael and Daniel.

Remembered for his dedication to the people wherever he worked, and for his warm personality

and simple lifestyle, Micheál was a devout Catholic all his life who found comfort and courage in

the Good News of Jesus Christ. Our sympathies go to his family and friends in Ireland and Brazil.

May they Rest in Peace.

1970 Ordination Year Group

L-R:

Micheál Feeney RIP,

Diarmuid Davin,

Jim Byrnes,

JB Doyle (Director of

Theology) RIP,

Lloyd Rebeyro RIP,

Martin Keane

and

Seán O'Connor RIP.

Inset:

Brian Cronin

and

Gerald Hasson.

14

APPRECIATIONS (continued)

Paddy McGhee

by Paddy Cully

Born in England and ordained in 1988, Paddy served with the Congregation in

Brazil until his return to Ireland in 2002. First appointed curate in

Paróquia São João Batista, a peripheral parish in São Paulo, he later served in

the Jardim Alto Alegre parish where he founded, constructed and directed a

Youth Training Centre for information technology and English language

courses. This supported many marginalized young people to gain a sense of

empowerment and employment. Returning from Brazil, he took care of his

parents in their final years in Co. Donegal where, aged 66, he died in March.

Vivacious, Paddy was warmly welcomed by the Brazilian people whom he, in turn, loved very

much. His was an open spirit and the generosity he always showed was seen in Donegal where he

offered any visitor a warm welcome. Anois tá sé leis an Tiarna air ar fhreastail sé le linn a shaoil. (‘Today he is with the Lord for whom he laboured during his lifetime.’)

May he Rest in Peace.

Irish Spiritans et al in Brazil c. 1990

1, Niall Colgan; 2, Barney Murphy RIP; 3, Michael Foody; 4, Paddy McGhee RIP;

5, John Kilcrann RIP; 6, Pat Clarke; 7, George Boran; 8. Paddy Kelly RIP; 9, Maurice Shortall;

10, Michael O’Looney; 11, Eamonn McMahon RIP; 12, Seán Doyle RIP; 13, Ned Nealon RIP;

14, Niall Greene; 15, Tony Sheridan; 16, Ger Griffin; 17, Vincent Deely; 18, Jimmy Heneghan;

19, John Horan; 20, Paddy Donovan RIP; 21, Pádraig Leonard; 22, Arturo Paoli LBG (visitor) RIP;

23, Paddy Cully; 24, David Regan RIP; 25, Patsy Keegan RIP.

15

John Anthony (Seán) Doyle (1944 – 2021)

Fr Seán Doyle died peacefully in Kimmage Manor on Saturday,

3rd April 2021. The following is an extract from the funeral homily

preached by Fr Tony Sheridan in Kimmage Manor on 7th April.

Humans have 2 anxieties: death & the desire for immortality. Seán, a philosopher, would talk of angst.

Today we celebrate Seán’s new life in Christ. These days we celebrate that Jesus is risen from the

dead; problem solved. Today’s Gospel says “Let not your hearts be troubled¨. In the Sequence

Victimae Paschali, Mary Magdalene says “Christ, my hope, is risen.” We too can say – Seán can say

– that Christ is Risen. Mary says ‘To Galilee he goes before you, Christ indeed from the dead is risen.’

Seán and I were together in the Novitiate (in 1962) and in Brazil, in Bairro da Luz parish for 4 years

and in the community of Vila Geni from 2013-2018. Very gifted, Seán learned so much from his

father, Goggles Doyle, captain of the famed Clare hurlers of the 1930s. In fact, together they built

their house in Tulla. Seán loved technology so much that he would even bring his phone into the

shower! When he came back to Kimmage in 2018, he helped so many with their phones; he was

always available and very, very patient. He sent jokes and uplifting phrases to many people each day.

It was his way of spreading some joy to others, a ministry which in the end he was unable to continue

due to his illness. It was very hard for him these last few months because he could not use his laptop

or phone; however, he never complained. So many people have said to me, “He was a lovely man”.

Seán served for many years in Brazil. He was in one parish for 12 years. Fr Des Mc Gillicuddy mhm,

who overlapped with him from 2003-2015, said that Seán “was a great help to me in the parish where

he lived”, often taking on Masses on a busy weekend. Also, he “was a wonderful host”, a much-

appreciated service in a mission context. One of his interests was the laity. Our Group in Brazil was

asked to accept a lay missionary couple from Australia. Seán accepted them into his Bairro da Luz

parish; they remained there for 2 years. An American lay missionary followed; he stayed for 3 years.

Seán’s idea of mission was being present to the people. He did this quietly, never boasting about

his achievements. He was the first of our Group to form lay Spiritans in Rio; today there are 22 lay

Spiritans in the Rio area, many of them watching this Funeral Mass online. A number of people

contacted us in recent days, remembering him: One said: “I lost a friend and a father figure. He was

with so many of us in our difficult and joyful moments, a comforting presence, a discerning presence.”

Another said that Seán was a “great counsellor who gave me great advice.” A third wrote that “I have

no words at the moment, just that we lay Spiritans of Rio and Brazil are so grateful for all that he did

for us: his teaching, his joy and his presence. In a word, he was a friend. I will never forget him.”

St. Paul tells us that nothing can separate us from the love of God and that love has conquered death.

We can never be separated from God, except in our heads. In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that “I

go to prepare a place for you”. God called Seán to this place, his heavenly mansion. I`m sure that

Seán’s first question was “Is there wifi”? I would say that he has already begun repairing the mansion!

I would like to finish with some words that Seán is, no doubt, saying in heaven:

The Lord is my shepherd; there is NOTHING I shall want.

Fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose.

Near restful waters he leads me to revive my drooping spirit. (I´m sure he`s fishing there now!)

João, Voce está nas mãos de Deus. Paz agora. Descanse em paz. (Seán, You are in God’s arms now.

Rest in peace, my friend.)

May Seán rejoice forever in the company of God’s saints, Amen.

16

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

We stand before you, Holy Spirit, conscious of our sinfulness, but aware that we gather in your name.

Come to us, remain with us, and enlighten our hearts.

Give us light and strength to know your will, to make it our own, and to live it in our lives.

Guide us by your wisdom, support us by your power, for you are God, sharing the glory of Father and Son.

You desire justice for all: enable us to uphold the rights of others, do not allow us to be misled by ignorance, or corrupted by fear or favour.

Unite us to yourself in the bond of love, and keep us faithful to all that is true.

As we gather in your name may we temper justice with love, so that all our decisions may be pleasing to you, and earn the reward promised to good and faithful servants.

You live and reign with the Father and the Son, one God, forever and ever.

Amen. (A prayer used before every session of Vatican II)