President Michael D. Higgins. Balally parish was constituted in 1977 from Sandyford parish and comprises of more than 2,200 homes with a population of approximately 9,000 people.
The Church of the Ascension of the Lord has served the people of Balally since its opening, but some items in the church building were not finalised until sale of land for the construction of the Luas project enabled the completion of the church, which was then re-dedicated by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin in 2006.
At the centre of the parish activities and events there is a team of three people: Msgr Dermot Lane, Brid Fitzgerald and Peter Byrne. They meet regularly and contribute to the day-to-day running of the parish. They are supported in secretarial work by the parish office and by two priests, Fr Padraig McCarthy and Fr John Looby, who, though retired, continue to make a huge contribution to the parish.
Fundraising
“We have a good mix here,” says Brid Fitzgerald. “We have about 35 different parish groups, such as a very good environmental group called BEG (Balally Environmental Group), a parish pastoral council, a junior choir, a senior adult choir, a very good baptismal team, a funeral team. There’s a lot going on. We just got a new roof, so we’ve done lots of fundraising for that.”
The BEG received the Eco-Congregation Ireland award in 2015 and will have a formal presentation ceremony in the autumn. The group formed about five years ago and Orla Carroll describes them as “a small but very committed group concerned about what our response as Christians should be to the problem of climate change”.
“Our Parish Priest, Msgr Dermot Lane is very committed to the cause of climate justice and he speaks often and eloquently about that issue and about our duty as Christians to care for creation. So it was partly inspired by him and supported by him and the parish pastoral council.”
Last September the group hosted a conference in response to Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’, which saw six experts from different disciplines and organisations speaking over two days. In March they held a candlelit vigil in the church for International Earth Hour, where parishioners were asked to switch off their lights and come to the church for music, poetry and prayer. They also organise Creation Masses, bulb planting days and have collection boxes in the church porch for used stamps and batteries.
“We are also regularly in consultation with the liturgy committee to ensure that prayers with an environmental theme are included in the Prayers of the Faithful at Sunday Masses,” Orla says.
David Healy, secretary of the liturgy committee, says most of their energy would be geared towards the two major feasts of the year, Christmas and Easter. “For the last maybe five or six years now, we’ve had no Mass on Holy Saturday. Instead we have what’s called the Descent of Christ into the Dead, which would involve a short talk, and in particular, icons and music in relation to the Descent of Christ into the Dead,” he says. “The last couple of years as well, at Advent, there’s been a lay-led Advent morning prayer.”
There are two other lay-led initiatives – evening prayer on Thursdays and a lay-led prayer service in the summer months. The liturgy committee also help plan a special liturgy for the families of people who have died in the past 12 months.
The parish feast day, the Ascension of the Lord on May 8, is celebrated each year with doughnuts in the parish centre following the family Mass “because some people remarked that our church is shaped like a doughnut”. “I think it was a great way of bringing people together after Mass into that little setting, to give them a space to talk, to chat, to celebrate,” David says.
The 400 Club is an important source of income for the parish. The committee raises funds through a monthly draw and they collect subscriptions after all Masses on one Sunday each month.
The opening of the Balally Parish Pastoral Centre in 2013 by President Michael D. Higgins was a very welcome addition to the community and it has become a hive of activity through the week. Staffed by volunteers; the centre hosts a number of classes, club meetings, youth activities and the weekly parish bingo. The coffee dock is a popular after-Mass venue on Sundays and on weekdays. “It’s a nice social area and a good asset to have,” Brid says.
“We’ve had parish parties every year since we built the centre. Recently we had a really special party for Fr Peter, he’s 25 years ordained. Fr Peter celebrated the Mass at 7pm and the whole parish turned up and we fed everyone after.
“The parish party has become an annual event and we just thought it would be a good opportunity to celebrate Fr Peter,” she says.
The parish has also organised a number events inspired by Pope Francis and the Year of Mercy. “At the start of the Year of Mercy we installed a tree of hope organisation, so you call us up and we provide you with a tree for those who may have lost someone to suicide or depression, or any mental illness, really,” says Paul Hand, joint-chair of the parish pastoral council.
“We also installed a walkway in the shape of a question mark leading to the tree of hope on church grounds. I think it’s really something special.”
Assemblies
The parish hosted a music event for the Year of Mercy and had two assemblies to review Pope Francis’ recent documents which “really got a lot of people involved”.
“We’re also reviewing our mission statement now, since it’s been a few years and that will take us a couple of months to do, but we’re just trying to make sure it’s up to date and relevant to our community,” Paul says.
The parish also have a few plans in the pipeline to get more young people involved in the parish. “Fr Peter is initiating a junior readers group and we’ve been talking about having a film club for young adults. We’re kind of processing that stuff now, planning for the future. We’re just trying to get the young people engaged. I think that’s the challenge that we all have. Just to try and try,” Brid says.