Parish Matters November 2008

Dear Friends, NOVEMBER 2008 th Our Diocesan Synod met on Tuesday 14 and Wednesday 15th October in Taney Parish Centre. It is the single-most important meeting of the year for the United Dioceses of Dublin and Glendalough. It opened with a well-attended Eucharist in Christ Church Taney. The Archdeacon of Glendalough and Rector of Greystones opened the Synod with prayers and a reading from Holy Scripture. This was particularly poignant as he retires at the end of the year. We wish him well as he prepares for retirement. Canon Ricky Rountree was announced as his replacement taking effect from next year. Again we wish Ricky God’s blessing in this new role. Archbishop Neill then addressed the Synods in his Presidential address. It was a very wide speech and I wish to speak about two specific areas on which he touched, one, education and two, the wider Anglican Communion. In recent months we have seen a definite shift away from support of smaller Church-run Schools in favour of larger 16 and 32 teacher Schools under the patronage of the VEC. The Roman Catholic Church has indeed been most outspoken in the media on this subject and it is now time for the Church of Ireland’s voice to be heard. Our society as we know has been educated by Church-controlled Schools who have mostly been under the patronage of Roman Catholic and Anglican bishops. This shift away from support for such Schools will leave such Schools as Greenlanes and Howth Road School in a very different and dare I say it very difficult situation. A move away from the present patronage system is a further secularisation and pluralisation of our society in a time when people more and more need faith and God in their ever-increasingly stressed lives. The Church Schools abide under an ethos statement which considers faith and education as two inseparable aspects of the child’s life, and even more, one that should be encouraged. It is incumbent that the government rather than isolate and reduce the number of Schools under Church patronage, increase their support of such Schools.

The second issue touched on by the Archbishop was the recent Lambeth Conference and in particular its dealing with the issue of human sexuality and the problems which came to the surface following the Consecration of Gene Robinson as Bishop of New Hampshire. The Bishop was and is living in a single-sex union and continues to serve as a Bishop in the Episcopal Church of the United States of America. He himself was not present at the debates though the subject was very clearly discussed. The difference between this Conference and the previous one was the tone of the debate. It was respectful of all sides even if nearly 200 bishops were not present. Not all of these were absent directly due to the debates, though some clearly were. The fact that one African Primate went as far as forbidding his bishops to attend was less than helpful. The result is an ongoing debate between the Provinces of the Anglican Communion with a view to putting together an acceptable Covenant which will allow agreement and more importantly direction on where the Communion will go. This Covenant process will include an analysis and interaction between Scripture, Tradition and Reason, the very tenets of Anglicanism down the centuries. Scripture and indeed its interpretation will be central to this work. As we know each one of us interprets Scripture to a greater or lesser extent. Two people will read it in two very different ways. One will mould his life by its very words and another will feel it has nothing to say to us on this or that subject. But, through prayer and the guidance of the Holy spirit it is hoped that this Covenant will be God-inspired and represent the way forward for our Church on this subject. I urge each one of you to pray for the Archbishop who is involved in this work and I ask you to pray especially for our Schools as they face this new challenge. Undoubtedly, you have all been touched by the recent Budget. It is the most challenging Budget in 25 years hitting many where it hurts. Each of us realises that taxes are essential in any society though so also they should be equitable. I wish to write on two aspects of this budget. Firstly the 1 and 2% levy and secondly, the removal of the Medical cards to over 70s through means-testing.

The levy imposed on all workers (1% up to 100,000 and 2% above that) hits the poorest in our society the hardest. Much has been said and reported in the media on this levy but from a Christian perspective we are called to speak out on behalf of the poor, for others will not. This levy hits the very poorest in our society the most. 1% of 35000 hits one family much more than 2% on 300,000. This is unacceptable in a modern society. Each one of us must speak out against such an attack on the low-paid, whether we see ourselves as part of that group or not. After much pressure the government removed the very poorest from the 1% levy though left all others to carry the burden. As I travel around the Parish over the last week or so since the Budget many older people were rightly worried that they will loose their Medical Cards. This was to have had a devastating effect on many elderly people in Clontarf and elsewhere. There are many people who up to a few years ago were in VHI and on receipt of their Medical card cancelled their VHI or BUPA subscriptions. If they wish to restart this membership there will be a leadin time leaving the most vulnerable in our society at the most risk. This was utterly unacceptable and went against everything we stand for as Christian people. Through pressure by both TDs and voters, the Taoiseach has rolled back much of the legislative plans thereby leaving most over 70s with their medical cards. Again it shows the power of public sentiment. I am truly delighted that the government have come to their senses on this matter. “Come to me all who labour and are heavy laden and I will give you rest.” May God continue to bless you and your family. Derek

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12th Dublin Company Boys’ Brigade Anchor Boys We are delighted to have 26 boys with us this session. It is great to see so many boys interested. If there is anyone willing to help us out on a Monday night from 6-7pm, please contact me. We are all looking forward to the Halloween Party. The costumes are always great. We will have plenty of games and goodies to eat. We are looking forward to our Annual Enrolment Service on Sunday 9th November at 7pm in the Church. I would like to thank the helpers: Breda Sargent, Olive Jackson, Susan Connolly, Jenny Newell for helping out and to Damien Duggan for teaching football skills and playing matches with the boys. Without this Anchors wouldn’t happen. H McCullagh Junior Section The new session has settled down. We have eleven boys – we welcome Brian Keane and Conor Rutherdale to Junior Section while we said farewell to James Taylor, Gareth Doolan, Graham Blay, Matthew Dawkins, Hugh Grainger, Jordan O’Brien and Ian Nugent who have all moved up to Company Section. We also said farewell to Jamie Hickey who was faced with the impossible choice between Boys’ Brigade and Football. We attended the Annual Founder’s Day Service in St. Ann’s Church in Dawson Street. The boys are now working hard at enjoying themselves with badge work, preparation for the Scripture Test and a variety of other activities. Our Annual Enrolment Service will be on 9th November in the Parish Church at 7pm. We look forward to seeing lots of family and friends at it. M. Acheson Company Section Congratulations to our tag rugby team who retained the title of Champions at Clondalkin RFC on Saturday 11th October - Gareth, Craig, David, Matthew, Hugh and our Junior Section representative Sam. It was a close competition that went right down to the wire.

Practice for the Lewis Crosbie Drill Competition in January is now underway and before then we will also be competing in the National Competitions in badminton (home), table tennis (home) and Masterteam (away in Portadown). It is hoped that as many members as possible will get to represent the Company across the various competitions. On the home front our Monday parade nights continue as usual, the Scripture course for the year is underway and the floodlights on the astroturf outside are proving very popular. A Ayling

YOU ARE WARMLY INVITED TO

A CHEESE AND WINE EVENING HOSTED BY THE NEEDS GROUP.

ON FRIDAY 21ST NOVEMBER AT 8 O’CLOCK IN THE PARISH CENTRE.

ALL ARE WELCOME, SO BRING A FRIEND

Clontarf Women’s Group We meet in the Pavilion Room on Tuesday 4th November at 8.15pm. Elaine Allen will be joining us for an evening of wine tasting. If you haven’t attended before why not come along. Cost €25.00 per person. Annual sub will also be collected at meeting (€25.00). Breda and Heather.

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Clontarf Guides Ladybirds, Brownies and Guides are now in full swing with loads of activities, games and challenges each week. We have all been collecting non perishable goods each week as we are going to make hampers for the needy again this year. The girls and their parents have been more than generous in bringing some lovely items for those less fortunate than we are. Rev. Sargent will distribute these at Christmas. As usual the Brownies are looking forward to our annual trip to the pantomime in the Gaiety Theatre on November 30th with over 1000 Brownies attending from all over the country. ( The guiders however look forward with trepidation to the usual headaches etc after listening to over 2 hours of screaming "Oh, no you didn't"etc!!!) M Watts. Mothers’ Union The opening Service was held on Thursday 9th. October in the Parish Centre. It was nice to meet up again after the summer break and have a chat over a cup of tea. Our next meeting will be held on Thursday 13th. November at 3pm. The North Dublin Area meeting will take place in Finglas Parish on Tuesday 25th. November at 8pm. Looking forward to seeing you there. Iris Acheson. Sunday Club We are settling in nicely. Our new schedule is varied and between singing and breakfast , following some bible stories on DVD and doing some worksheets following them and this month we will be doing some Art/Craft working towards a Jessie Tree this Christmas. We would welcome anyone aged 4 or more to come along and see if they would like to join us. We would love to meet you and your child/children. Parents – Please complete a consent form if you are leaving your child in. A new one is needed each year. Thanks to those who have already done so. Also remember the 30th November and 7th December might be a little more messy than usual so don’t have the best clothes on!

We hope to have an extra practice on Saturday 13th December 4.30pm (provisional date) in preparation of 14th in Church. Please contact me if you have any queries. November 2008

Date Church Service 2

nd

Morning Prayer

9th * Parish Family Communion (*BB enrolment in evening) th 16 All Age Worship with Baptism rd 23 Parish Family Communion with Baptism th 30 Service of the Word

Schedule Any Comments Sunday Club Sunday Club

Breakfast & Music/Song Story Keeper & W/S

In Church

Song in Church

Sunday Club

Story Keeper & W/S

Sunday Club

Art/Craft for Jessie Tree

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Tennis Club With the advent of court lighting the Parish Tennis Club is enjoying a new experience - playing tennis in winter. It provides a great opportunity to get some exercise through the winter months so anyone who would like to try their hand at winter tennis should come along on Tuesday nights from 7PM. On Saturday 27th September the Tennis Club held it's Final’s Day in the afternoon followed that evening by an official re-opening of the club. Over 100 past and present members attended including some members from 1935 the year the parish tennis club was founded. In true Tennis Club fashion the re-opening was followed by great food and dancing late into the night.

Elaine Allen (Ladies Captain), Helen Erskine (Founding Member), the Rector and Nigel Darragh at the turning on of the lights ceremony. Coaching for Juniors is well underway on Saturday mornings and we still have some vacancies for the current coaching session. For further details pop down on any Saturday morning. Full details on the Club website - see www.clontarftennis.com

Alice Joy Flood (1932-2007) “Thy faithfulness is unto all generations” Psalm 119: 90 Rather than commemorate our dear Joy’s first anniversary in the public press, we feel she would have appreciated mention in our Parish Matters. She lived out her priorities – she loved the Lord dearly, loved her church and was devoted to her family and friends. Two siblings remain. From choice, Joy remained single and lived a happy, fulfilled life. She was a loving, loyal daughter, sister and relative. She delighted in her nieces and nephew, having a unique bond with Karin whom she regarded as ‘nearly a daughter’. All mourn her passing, not least the writer, and we thank God for every remembrance of her. She was known as “joy by name and nature” and lived up to the title. Gifted by God in many ways, she used her gifts. Private Secretary and PA to two successive Chairmen of Cadburys. We could never forget her sense of fun and her piano and guitar-playing. Her generosity was remarkable. Joy died suddenly in Fethard-on-Sea Co. Wexford (her second home). Diagnosed with cancer 14 years earlier and deemed to live only two months, she cast this care on the Lord and He held her here for us for a long spell. How humbled she would have been by the support and love from her Parish into which she was born. She attended Greenlanes National School before Rutland High School. The Parish Church was her spiritual home. We mourn still but not as those without hope.

“He is faithful that promised”. Audrey Maharry. Noel Flood.

Youth News September came and it felt like I hit the ground running. Klub has grown beyond our imaginations this year with a max of 26 children joining. This is a vibrant group where we learn action songs and doing crafts and baking! We meet on a Wednesday afternoon at 4pm till 5pm. Wired is also growing and we are completing a course called Rock Solid where we learn about our faith and we discuss how it effects our lives. We play games and sports - Dodge Ball definitely being a favourite!! - Sunday evenings.

Fused is our new confirmation group and we meet on a Saturday evening and are doing Confirmation classes every second Saturday. We do games on the other nights and have more of a social night, playing games cooking and just generally hanging out. Connect is our oldest youth group and we are doing Rock Solid with this group also but going into more depth with the discussions etc. – Sunday nights. All the youth groups are going from strength to strength, but we are in need of helpers. So please consider volunteering even just for a night every couple of months would be helpful. Also keep all the children in your prayers as they grow in their faith together. S Connolly Whist Group Parish Whist Drives will take place on the first Thursday of every month – 6th Nov and 4th Dec at 7.30pm in the Pavilion Room. Do come along and support this Parish activity. Entrance 5 euros. H. Hunter

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We are receiving more enquiries to book the Centre for various activities, such as art exhibitions and workshops. We were pleased that the contributions made by Parish organisations were able to be kept at the same level as the first year, although the charges for external groups were increased. The cost of running the centre for the year was matched by income generated. In the year 90% of the income raised was generated from external groups. A new feature this year is the installation of floodlights on the all-weather surface. We can expect to see these being used most evenings, for tennis and other sports. We would welcome comments from users inside the Centre if you find these affecting your use of the Centre. Other new matters include the installation of small paving setts in place of the white stones at the triangles outside the new west door. Unfortunately, while very attractive, the stones were too high maintenance, too attractive to children and caused malfunction in the front door (stones in the frame). The lift in the centre is now operated by a keypad instead of a key. This should make life a lot easier for all the groups using the lift. A couple of flat screen televisions are available for use. One is positioned on the wall in the upstairs Pavilion Room while the other is mobile, and can be moved to whatever room its required. There is a Wii games console linked to the mobile TV which is proving very popular with children (and some leaders!!). Finally the Stepping Stones Book of Record has now been placed in a specially made cabinet on the wall of the Meeting Room. You might like to view it during the coffee after church on Sundays or anytime you’re in the centre when someone is around to give you access to it. Please support the Organisations using the Centre by referring friends and contacts to them. If you are aware of any matter that requires attention please let the PCMC know. B Maxwell (PCMC)

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PARISH REGISTER

Victoria, Jonathan, Colin and the Rector following Jonathan McCullagh’s Baptism Baptisms Rory William Free and Jonathan Derek McCullagh were baptised on 21st September and 28th September respectively. May God bless them both in their lives of faith. On 26th October we look forward to the baptism of Gemma Kate Louise Sargent, daughter of Andy and Sandra. The following Sunday we baptise Naoise Watson and Rachel Blake. Mina Dawson will also be welcomed into God’s family on Sunday 23rd November. May God bless each one as they begin their journeys of faith. Weddings The marriage of Michael Scully and Felicity Rowden (daughter of our Organist, John) took place on Friday 26th September in the Parish Church. It was a lovely day and we wish them every blessing in their married life. Interment of Ashes On Friday 3rd October Bea Lynch’s ashes were placed in our Columbarium. It was a lovely service with her children and grandchildren leading the readings. Bea was a wonderful quiet and friendly person with a warm and loving way. May she and all God’s faithful people rest in the presence of God for ever. Our prayers are with her family in these days.

SERVICES FOR NOVEMBER 2nd November 8.30am 10.30am

9th November 8.30am 10.30am 7.00pm 16th November 8.30am 10.30am

23rd November 8.30am 10.30am 30th November 8.30am 10.30am

All Saints’ Sunday Holy Communion Service of the Word with Holy Baptism Remembrance Sunday Holy Communion Parish Family Communion BB Enrolment Service 2nd Sunday before Advent Holy Communion All-Age Worship with Holy Baptism and Children’s Address Christ the King Holy Communion Parish Family Communion with Holy Baptism Advent Sunday Holy Communion Service of the Word for Advent

Scripture Readings for November 2nd November

All Saints’ Sunday Revelation 7: 9-17 Psalm 34: 1-10 1 John 3: 1-3 Matthew 5: 1-12

9th November

Remembrance Sunday Amos 5: 18-24 Psalm 70 1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18 Matthew 25: 1-13

16th November

2nd Sunday before Advent Zephaniah 1: 7, 12-18 Psalm 90: 1-12 1 Thessalonians 5: 1-11 Matthew 25: 14-30

23rd November

Christ the King Ezekiel 34: 11-16, 20-24 Psalm 95: 1-7 Ephesians 1: 15-23 Matthew 25: 31-46

30th November

Advent Sunday Isaiah 64: 1-9 Psalm 80: 1-7, 16-18 1 Corinthians 1: 3-9 Mark 13: 24-37

ROC Insurance Consultants --------------------------------Construction House, Canal Road, Dublin 6 -----------------------------------Tel: 1850 213 030 Fax: 01 662 4781 Reflection We learn something every day. In a daily reading, it was amazing to learn that the dreaded locust cannot fly! He can, however, jump 200 times his own height. He waits for the wind, jumps and the wind carries him to his destination. It brought to mind the eagle using the thermals.

An analogy sprang to mind. We read in Scripture, John 15: 5, “without me you can do nothing”. The spiritual connotations of this are very real.

The Holy Spirit, the Comforter and the Enabler is spoken of in the Bible in terms of wind. Yes, much is done and much achieved by human effort and much is valuable. But, unless our aims are Spirit-inspired and Spirit-driven, all effort is really ephemeral. Indeed, just as the desired destination of a sailing-ship is reached depending on the wind, so our destination, in God’s purpose, can only be reached guide by the wind of the Holy Spirit. The locust, by instinct, fulfilled his need – not our, however salutary his method. A. Maharry

YOUTH GROUPS As you will notice there are 4 youth groups in the Parish now. Klub (4-6 yr olds) – Wed 4-5 Wired (7-10 yr olds) – Sunday 6-7 Fused (11-14 yr olds) - Saturday 6-7.30 Connect 15+ - Sunday 7.30-9 It is increasingly difficult to man these groups, considering the legal requirements for a ratio of adults to children. We are asking that you seriously consider helping on Wednesday, Saturday or Sundays, even just once a month. You help with this would be much appreciated. Please contact Susan Mobile: 086 377 7278

PARISH GROUPS/CONTACTS RECTOR:The Rev’d D.C.Sargent (833 1181) [email protected] YOUTH AND CHILDREN’S PASTOR: Susan Connolly (086 377 7278) [email protected] GREENLANES NS: Principal:Ms.C.Atkin (833 1554) YOUTH GROUPS: Susan Connolly (as above) ANCHOR BOYS: Mrs.H.McCullagh (853 5594) B.B.JUNIOR SECTION: Mr.M.Acheson (831 8645) B.B.COMPANY SECTION: Mr A.Ayling (831 5234) WOMEN’S GROUP: Mrs.B.Sargent (833 1181) Mrs.H.McCullagh (853 5594) BOWLING CLUB: Mrs. H. Erskine (833 8139) BADMINTON CLUB: Mrs.P.Watts (832 6078) JUNIOR BADMINTON: Mr.R.Watts (832 6078) PARISH STUDY GROUP: The Rector (above) FLOWER GUILD: Mrs.I.Acheson (833 8288) Mrs B.Gallagher (833 8683) LADYBIRDS: Ms. E. Richardson (087 322 4670) BROWNIES: Mrs.P. / Ms.M.Watts (832 6078) GUIDES: Ms. N. Flynn (086 379 3218) MOTHERS UNION: Mrs.I.Acheson (833 8288) SUNDAY CLUB: Mrs.J.Acheson (831 8645)