church review

Works
The roof on the tower in Glenealy has been replaced and the parish
owes an enormous debt of gratitude to John Armstrong for his skill and
time in advancing this project. Conscious of the need to upgrade
security the locks are to be changed on the church door and the new
keys will be distributed to the appropriate wardens.
The roof on St John’s tower is also due for replacement and it is
hoped that this will soon be in hand.
Laragh Supper Dance
Friday 17 November is the occasion of the annual parish supper
dance in Lynhams of Laragh. The hotel serves a sumptuous main course
and the parish culinary artistes provide a stupendous range of desserts.
One should add and then there is the raffle and the dancing. Altogether
there will be mighty chat and enjoyment so get your tickets from the
usual parishioners or the Rectory.
WICKLOW AND KILLISKEY
Rector: Canon John Clarke. Tel: 0404 67132.
Vicar: The Revd. Ken Rue. Tel: 01 298 9497.
Review Distribution: Mrs. Frances Douglas. Tel: 0404 67137.
Mrs. Vera Webster. Tel: 0404 40299.
Church 21 and new initiatives
The parishes are actively involved in the Church 21 process. The next
meeting takes place in East Glendalough School on Wednesday 16th
November from 7.30pm to 9.30pm and will focus on the question of
identity. Our facilitator, the Revd. Paul Hoey, will be joining us as we build
on the conference held in September and together begin to create the
bigger picture of where we want to go and how we will seek to get
there. Thanks are due to the steering group (under the chairmanship of
Canon Peter Norton) which is overseeing the process, co-ordinating its
development and supporting implementation of activities.
New initiatives are already taking place. Spearheaded by Iain Fisher,
an experienced youth leader, our youth club got going in East
Glendalough School on Friday 21st October and will be meeting on a
monthly basis. A youth service will be held in Wicklow on Sunday 6th
November at 7.30pm.
We thank Felisity Cullen Molloy for arranging to start a children’s
choir in Killiskey. Its first evening will be on Sunday 13th November
from 6.30pm until 7.15pm.
A new parish office is opening in Ashford. It is suitable not only for
office space but also for meetings. Other plans are being considered for
what we hope will be an exciting new outlet for parish activities and
community outreach.
Wicklow Church
The special speaker at the Harvest Praise Service on 2nd October
was the Revd. Ted Woods, Rector of Rathfarnham. His message, based
on Deuteronomy 8: 11, was “Do not forget”. Truly Harvest is a time to
remember to thank God for His continuing goodness to us. As we sang:
Great is thy faithfulness, O God my Father,
Morning by morning new mercies I see;
All I have needed thy hand hath provided
Great is thy faithfulness, Lord, unto me!
We also do not forget to thank others for all they do in parish and
community life. Many parishioners do work which goes unnoticed, like
preparing tea and coffee, cleaning silver and linen, maintaining buildings
and churchyards, singing and playing music, arranging flowers and
reading lessons and prayers.
Killiskey Church
The Family Harvest service took place on 2nd October. The Nun’s
Cross school children sang two lively pieces (with actions!) and
performed a drama which was much appreciated. It was a communion
service, so we successfully experimented with the new Eucharistic prayer
which is suitable for when a significant number of children are present.
On 30th October, a memorial service for relatives and friends was
held. This was an opportunity to give thanks for the lives of all those
saints who have lived and died, especially for those dear to us. We
believe that as we entrust our lives to God so we may look forward to
being one day reunited with them.
Unity Gospel Choir
Congratulations are due to the Unity Gospel Choir. Under the
direction of Neville Cox, they expertly assisted the Revd. Patrick
Burke in leading RTE’s broadcast worship service on Sunday 9th
October. The service was live which must have been nerve-racking,
especially for the soloists!
Schools
October saw elections and appointments to new Boards of
Management in the Glebe School and in Nun’s Cross. We wish all the
new board members every blessing in their roles, and wisdom as they
oversee our schools and seek to maintain their high standards.
Nun’s Cross N.S. shortly says “Goodbye” and “Thank you” to Sarah
McGough who has been an excellent teacher. It says “Hello” and
“Welcome” to Hetta Sherwood Smith who joins the staff from
Powerscourt N.S. where she was headmistress. Hetta lives locally and
is involved in the Unity Gospel Choir.
Bereavement
We extend our deepest sympathy to the family of Anna Maria
Armstrong. Her funeral took place on October 4th in Nun’s Cross
church and was conducted by the Revd. William Bennett.
William kindly provided pastoral support during the Rector’s
holidays. It is great to have good neighbours!
The Society of St Vincent De Paul is the
largest, voluntary, charitable organisation in
Ireland and is currently spending almost €1
million per week fighting poverty in Ireland.
In the greater Dublin area alone, SVP runs 34
Vincent’s charity shops in communities’ right
across the city, where customers can access
outstanding value for money in a warm and
friendly atmosphere.
Regrettably, Vincent’s shops have recently
experienced a significant drop in donations,
especially clothing. In the medium to long term,
this will significantly impact on the work of SVP
in the local community.
Society of Saint Vincent de Paul
SVP House, 91/92 Sean Mc Dermott Street, Dublin 1 • Tel: 01-8550022 • Fax 01-8559168 • Email: info@svpd.ie
Urgent SVP Clothing Appeal “Donate with Style”
SVP is now launching “Donate with Style”
appeal for donations and is hoping that the
readers of Church Review will be able to help.
This campaign is also proudly supported by TV
presenter and leading Fashion expert, Mr
Brendan Courtney. Mr Courtney said “The SVP
appeal is very worthwhile and allows you to
give clothes with heart“
SVP are appealing for support from right
across the community and hope that local
business, churches, schools, community groups
and individuals can all support this appeal. We
are in urgent need of clothing but will be
delighted to receive household items books
and toys and will endeavour to put every
reasonable donation to good use.
It couldn’t be easier:
• Call the SVP Transport Team on 01 8198425
for an immediate collection of donations
from Monday to Friday.
• Call the Clothing Collection Team on 01
8198413. We’ll distribute and collect SVP
clothing bags at a time and place of your
choosing.
• Drop smaller quantities of donations to any
of our 34 Vincent’s charity shops around
Dublin, Wicklow and Kildare.
• Drop donations directly to our Clothing
Collection Caravan. This mobile unit is
generally located around shopping centres
but is available for placement at any location
with parking.
If you would like further information on any of the above, please call Jane Bergin on 01 8198413 or Dermot on 01 8198407.