Courtney McGrailPreparations for the upcoming Year of Mercy are well under way in many Irish dioceses, writes Cathal Barry, Mags Gargan and Greg Daly
The holy year, which has been called by Pope Francis, will begin on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, December 8, 2015 and will conclude on November 20, 2016, the feast of Christ the King.
In Misericordiae Vultus (The Face of Mercy), the papal bull which outlines the overall spirit and intentions for the Jubilee, Pope Francis said the year is “dedicated to living out in our daily lives the mercy” which God “constantly extends to all of us”.
An informal survey conducted by The Irish Catholic has revealed many of the Irish dioceses have plans to fully embrace the year ahead.
Fr Martin Hayes, administrator of the cathedral in Thurles, Co. Tipperary is on the diocesan committee in the Archdiocese of Cashel & Emly which is organising a number of events for the Year of Mercy.
“We will begin with the cathedral in accordance with Pope Francis who said he would like each cathedral to open a holy door. Last weekend we sealed the door with a brief ceremony and it will be reopened on December 13.
“We also plan to place a temporary door at different points such as at Our Lady’s Altar, the baptismal font and the crib, where we will have designated pieces of scripture.
“On a diocesan level we also hope to host events at various locations such as Holy Cross Abbey and other pilgrimage places,” he said.
Bicentenary
In the Diocese of Down & Connor, St Patrick’s Church on Donegall Street in Belfast has been nominated to host the holy door, because the church is celebrating its bicentenary. It will also be possible to go through the holy door online and take a virtual tour through the diocesan website.
After Christmas the diocese will host a Day of Mercy whereby the last Friday of each month will see a special celebration in parishes and a special emphasis will be placed on the Sacrament of Reconciliation throughout the year.
“This is a wonderful opportunity for the Church in this holy year to reflect on the merciful heart of God and what that means in terms of reaching out to people in need, and also for us as a local church and diocese to reflect upon the mercy of God and how we become instruments of that mercy to people in parishes. We hope it will be a wonderful celebration for different groups in our diocese,” said diocesan spokesperson, Fr Eddie McGee.
The diocesan liturgy committee in Ossory are organising a number of events throughout the Year of Mercy. “On December 13 we will have Mass in St Mary’s Cathedral led by Bishop Seamus Freeman with the priests and people of the diocese, including a choir made up of singers from the 42 parishes,” said committee chairperson, Fr Richard Scriven. “One of the cathedral doors is being prepared at the moment to be the holy door. It is being painted a different colour to make it obvious that is a different entry point.
“We are looking at having formal celebrations throughout the year in different parts of diocese, maybe visiting some of more ancient monastic sites and we hope Confession will be a central part of the year.”
A holy door will be opened in the Cathedral of the Assumption in Carlow on December 13, which will be followed by officially openings of holy doors in Christian sites in the Diocese of Kildare & Leighlin throughout the year, with parishioners being encouraged to make a pilgrimage to each site.
“We will also have a ‘Mountain of Mercy’ in Lent where will we ask people to bring stones as symbols of mercy and leave them on the Mountain of Mercy. At the Chrism Mass parishes will be encouraged to bring a representative stone to the cathedral mountain,” said Fr John Cummins Adm.
“The Year of Mercy is a great opportunity for people to engage with faith in a new way and you don’t know who will be touched by it and find it a great source of faith. It is an opportunity for showing mercy in acts and deeds and reaching out to those in need. We want to say to people to come with your burdens and receive God’s mercy and forgiveness, but also go out and show Christ’s compassion and be the mercy of God for people.”
In the Diocese of Waterford & Lismore a procession from the Dominican Church to the Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity in Waterford will be held on Sunday, December 13, entering by the holy door. A holy door will also be opened in St Peter’s & Paul’s, Clonmel and St Mary’s Church, Dungarvan on the same day. The diocese will also have a “renewed emphasis on the Sacrament of Reconciliation” according to spokesperson, Fr Liam Power, including 24 Hours for the Lord – “eight hours of Confessions to be held on December 19 in Waterford cathedral, St Mary’s Clonmel and St Mary’s Dungarvan with a team of confessors available non-stop from 12noon to 8pm”.
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has invited all priests and parishioners in the Dublin diocese to participate in what he has described as a “pilgrimage of Mercy” which will be celebrated in many different ways in the diocese throughout the Extraordinary Jubilee Year.
In preparation, the Diocesan Advent Service on November 28 will have as its theme, ‘Preparing to meet Jesus – the face of Mercy’ and takes place in the Church of Our Lady of Mercy in Artane; the liturgy on the day will be prepared by full time chaplain students of Mater Dei/DCU and the music will be led the Dublin Diocesan Music group.
Parishioners are being offered the opportunity to display a sticker of the logo of the Year of Mercy on a door or window in their homes. “This is to allow people to show that their home is a place where all who enter will meet the face of mercy and compassion – inviting people to open their own doors of mercy and to invite others to cross the threshold,” a spokesperson said.
In the Diocese of Achonry, one of the inner doors at the Cathedral of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St Nathy, Ballaghaderreen will be dedicated as a holy door on December 13.
The diocese is also planning a weekend of mercy in March 2016, with every parish having 24 hours of adoration and Confession during that time.
Diocesan Communications Officer Fr Vincent Sherlock said there are also tentative plans to hold an event specifically for young people towards the end of next year and confirmed that the Year of Mercy icon would be in a prominent place in every church with the prayer for the special year recited at every Mass.
He said some parishes were also exploring the idea of a ‘prayer wall’ on their individual websites allowing people to submit prayer requests, inviting others to prayer for their intentions.
In Cork and Ross, Diocesan Secretary Fr Tom Deenihan told this newspaper that the diocese has chosen St Francis’ Church in Cork’s city centre as the location for its holy door.
“It was chosen not just for accessibility but because it’s a church where Confessions are available all day by the friars. It’s a popular Confession church in Cork so it was chosen for that reason,” he said, adding that further plans for the year are still unfolding.
In Limerick, Diocesan Secretary Fr Paul Finnerty confirmed that a holy door would be officially opened at the Cathedral of St John the Baptist on the morning of Tuesday, December 8 at 10am Mass.
Fr Finnerty said Limerick was in a “unique position” in that the Year of Mercy coincides with the diocesan synod there.
“We are in a unique situation in that we are engaging with people around the synod. We have a series of events for the whole year but they need to be coordinated with the synod,” Fr Finnerty said, listing plans such as a diocesan pilgrimage to Rome in September and a diocesan pilgrim walk from Mount Saint Alphonsus to the cathedral in April.
He said Bishop Brendan Leahy had appointed his predecessor Bishop Donal Murray to chair a Year of Mercy committee, made up of priests and representatives from all aspects of life within the diocese, to establish ideas and come up with a schedule of events for the year.
Community
In Killaloe, Diocesan Communications Officer Fr Brendan Quinlivan told this newspaper that there will be two holy doors in the diocese. One will be stationed in the Cathedral of Saint Peter and Saint Paul in Ennis, while another will be located at the Cistercian Monastery in Roscrea.
Fr Quinlivan said the idea behind the second holy door was to tie in conclusion of the Year for Consecrated Life with the Year of Mercy, encouraging people to visit a religious community in the diocese.
Another point of focus for clergy the diocese throughout the Year of Mercy is the visitation of prisoners, Fr Quinlivan said, noting that this particular focus arose from Pope Francis’ request for practical acts of mercy to take place through the year.
“We are largely a rural diocese so we mightn’t have as big a prison population as some more urban centres but I think it’s important to make a conscious effort this year with the help of the chaplains in the different prisons to strengthen our links and make contact with those who are in prison,” he said.
Fr Quinlivan told this newspaper that “there is a lot of enthusiasm” among the clergy of the diocese for the Year of Mercy.
“They see it above all things as an opportunity to renew our understanding and commitment to the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Many priests would feel that the whole catechesis and connection with reconciliation mightn’t be as strong as we would like it to be. Clergy see the year as an opportunity to renew that and give it a new impetus,” he said.
In Clonfert, Communications Officer Fr Cathal Geraghty confirmed the diocese’s holy door would be in place at St Brendan’s Cathedral in Loughrea.
Fr Geraghty also said that Emmanuel House of Providence would be designated as a place of pilgrimage within the diocese for the duration of the Year of Mercy, adding that the council of priests were considering other events for the rest of the year.
“There will also be a push on the Sacrament of Reconciliation. That is something that the bishop will be suggesting in his communications about the year of mercy, encouraging people to the Sacrament of Reconciliation,” he said.
In the Diocese of Ardagh and Clonmacnois, the Administrator of recently restored St Mel’s Cathedral, Fr Thomas Healy, said he was “struggling to understand” the concept of the holy door.
“Here we are after spending five years building up doors now we are having to break one down! It’s hard to convey the concept,” he said jokingly.
Longford’s iconic cathedral, which was almost entirely destroyed by a devastating fire in 2009, was finally reopened to worshippers last Christmas after a five-year, €30million restoration project.
Fr Healy confirmed there would be a holy door nominated at St Mel’s, while the diocese would be “placing an emphasis on mercy” in its initiatives through the year.
“On the one hand that will mean Confession and Reconciliation and on the other hand we’re conscious of the call to visit the sick, to care for the prisoners and to be conscious of the poor. It’s about mercy in a broad sense. We will try to ensure the theme of mercy dominates the year ahead,” he said.
Fr Healy said the holy door at St Mel’s will be formally opened on December 13 and “will lead towards a confessional area to put an emphasis on God’s mercy”.
On the third Sunday of advent the Year of Mercy in the Diocese of Elphin will officially begin with the opening by Bishop Kevin Doran of a special holy door in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Sligo Town.
During the year, each parish of the diocese will be invited to travel for a special day pilgrimage to various shrines in the Sligo area culminating with a crossing of the “threshold of mercy” at the cathedral.
On each Saturday during Lent in each of the six deanery towns of the diocese the priests of that area will come together to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation throughout the day.
There are also plans at an initial stage of development to reach out practically to those on the margins in an effort to embody the mercy of God to those most in need physically, spiritually and emotionally.
There will also be an extensive series of events throughout the year, at various places in the diocese, which will invite various sectors of the community to contemplate the theme of mercy.
In Killala, Bishop John Fleming, will open the holy door at St Muredach’s Cathedral, Ballina, on Sunday, December 13 at 11am.
In advance of this the bishop intends to publish a Pastoral Letter to the priests and people of the diocese on the subject of the Year of Mercy.
The diocese also hopes to celebrate the Sacrament of Reconciliation in the cathedral and all the churches of the diocese on the fourth Sunday of Lent 2016.
In the Diocese of Derry the holy door will be located at St Eugene’s Cathedral. A mercy space is envisaged in the cathedral comprising of a holy door, two confessional boxes and small chapel of mercy.
In the Diocese of Clogher, Fr Patrick McGinn, Administrator of St Macartan’s Cathedral, Monaghan said plans for the Year of Mercy were in the pipeline now that a committee was in place and that an official opening ceremony for the holy door in the cathedral will be held on December 13.
In Meath, Fr Padraig McMahon, Administrator of the Cathedral of Christ the King in Mullingar, said the plan for the diocese throughout the year was to have extra Confessions.
“There’ll be a little bit of extra attention and focus on mercy, and more options should encourage people to come forward for Confession,” he said.
Bishop Ray Browne will be opening the holy door in St Mary’s Cathedral, Killarney in the Diocese of Kerry.
Similarly, Archbishop Eamon Martin will be opening the holy door in St Peter’s in Drogheda followed by another in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh.
Assigned times
On Saturday, December 12 a holy door will be officially opened at the 6pm vigil Mass in St Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh by Bishop William Crean of the Diocese of Cloyne. “We will open a holy door in a side chapel which has not been opened since it was closed for the jubilee year in 2000,” said Fr John McCarthy Adm.
“The whole side chapel has been designated as a Shrine of Mercy so people can enter at assigned times during the week. We have also chosen three designs from three stained glass windows in the cathedral for banners and bookmarks featuring the Good Samaritan, the Prodigal Son and the Good Shepherd. Some 25,000 bookmarks have been printed with the images and Gospel passages and they will be made available as banners for parish churches.”
A resource on ‘How to Go to Confession’ is also being made available to parishes and there will be a Year of Mercy workshop with Dr Edward Sri in February and a follow-up workshop in April.
Preparations are ongoing in the Dioceses of Dromore, Ferns, Galway, Raphoe and Tuam, and a representative was not contactable in the Diocese of Kilmore.
The Year of Mercy awaits.