The current St Patrick’s Church as seen through the window of the Old Abbey in Wicklow town. The Abbey was established around 1265 AD by the Conventual Franciscans and remained until they were expelled in 1552. After that it was used as a prison and court house but has been a ruin since about 1640. Fr Aquinas Duffy
“I suspect that if there is no real radical change in the immediate future, then the priests left will find themselves on a quicker path to the eternal world”
We have just begun a new Jubilee Year. We are reminded that we are called to be “Pilgrims of Hope”. I have always seen myself as a pilgrim. I have been privileged to have served in so many appointments in the Archdiocese of Dublin. I have also learned so much on the journey through the people that I have encountered. I have given myself to serve the Lord in the places that I have been sent to minister in. I am always hopeful for the future because that future is in God’s Hands. Our hope springs from our faith and trust in the Lord who accompanies us on the journey.
I met a man over Christmas who was telling me that he would soon be 65. He is already retired but commented that once you get to this age, you start to think more about your own mortality. I was reminded that I will soon be this age myself but am not retired yet. And yet in my way of life, people seem to expect priests to continue being in active ministry until the Lord calls them to the next world. One hears comments like “Isn’t he wonderful at the age of 90 to be still actively involved in the parish.”
At times, the demands can seem endless with no real break within a twelve month period. Given the current pastoral plan of the Church in Ireland, these demands will increase and multiply”
And people often have an expectation that priests, advanced in years, should continue to keep everything going as it was in the past. There is a belief that there will always be a priest available for baptisms, weddings, funerals, Sunday Masses in all the churches, daily Mass in a number of churches and nursing homes, Confirmations and First Holy Communions. There is also an expectation that the priest attends everything including parish meetings and various gatherings of one kind or another. But that expectation is not possible to sustain. As I reach my sixty fifth year, I am aware that my energy levels are not what they used to be. At times, the demands can seem endless with no real break within a twelve month period. Given the current pastoral plan of the Church in Ireland, these demands will increase and multiply.
Reality
The reality is that there will be very few priests in Ireland in the future. No one has easy answers as to how the Church is going to adapt to that reality. Currently, the plan seems to be to try and use available priests to cover all the existing parishes. As the number of priests declines, priests will have to cover a bigger number of parishes. I am currently looking after three parishes with seven churches in it. Fortunately, I do have two other priests with me, one over 75 and the other 72. In the not-too-distant future, there will be just one or two priests to cover a whole county. When that day arrives, the Sunday Eucharist may be celebrated in only one or two of the big towns in the county. People will have to travel. A day may come when the Sunday Eucharist may be only celebrated in the cities of the country. Indeed, under the current plan, there may well come a day when Mass one Sunday will be in Dublin and in Cork, Limerick, Galway and Belfast on the alternative Sundays. Clearly, the Church needs to find new ways so that the Eucharist can continue to be celebrated. But of course, the Lord will continue to be present when people gather in his name and when people listen to the Word of God. The Holy Spirit too will be alive and active in the communities who want to share the message of the Lord.
I once had a priest from one of the African countries assisting in the parish. I asked him for his observations about the Church in Ireland. He told me that in his country a typical parish had 20 churches in it covering a large area. Each parish had a Sunday Eucharist every few months. He commented that they had enough priests at present to cover those parishes. The catechists gather the people on the Sundays when no priest was present. The catechists also conducted the funerals and baptisms. In Ireland, he said, each church seems to be a parish rather than a parish of churches. It’s worth reflecting on.
Thankfully, parishioners are starting to be involved in leading Eucharistic services and involved in funeral ministry and other ministries. But perhaps the time has come for the Church to authorise lay people to also officiate at weddings, to administer the sacrament of Baptism, to conduct Funeral services. I suspect that if there is no real radical change in the immediate future, then the priests left will find themselves on a quicker path to the eternal world. Perhaps, their absence will force change to come about. Change is always difficult as we tend to want the stability of what we are used to. There is a painful and difficult journey ahead for the Church in Ireland. It’s hard to let go of the current structure of the Church. The Lord has led us to where we are for a reason. And out of the journey will be born something new and beautiful.
Ultimately the journey is in God’s hands, but God may have a different plan than the one we think or want. But it is to God that we entrust the Journey.
Fr Aquinas Duffy is Parish Priest for Wicklow, Kilbride & Barndarrig, and Ashford & Glenealy