Happy Christmas

Irish Dominican Vocations wishes the many readers of this blog the joy and peace that only the Christ-child can give. My prayers are very much with the many people who support the work of vocations ministry for the Irish Dominican province. May the Lord continue to bless you and your families.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

God Bless You this Christmas.

Hope in a Difficult Time

Please excuse the lack of blogging over the past few weeks. Anyone familiar with the happenings in the Irish church will appreciate how difficult it has been for people, for the church itself, for victims of abuse, for those in priesthood and religious life. There is a palpabe air of anger, hurt and disbelief shared by all concerned.

It is fair to say that Irish Catholics have endured dreadful humiliation in recent years as revelation upon revelation of sinfulness and wrong done by those entrusted by the Church has been exposed for all to see. There is an awful sense of betrayal too by those who have held leadership positions in the Church (and state).

While the church in Ireland is humiliated and has lost the confidence of many, the ongoing mission of bringing God to a broken world is needed as never before. The Good News of Jesus Christ needs to be preached 'in season and out of season'. As a priest, religious and Dominican, I share the shame and hurt that has been expressed by so many in the past number of weeks. As the director of vocations for the Irish Dominicans, I am acutely aware too of those who are considering the Dominican way of life at this time and their need for support and prayer. They, along with all the many others, need hope in this difficult time.