The Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, has asked priests of the diocese and parish representatives for "forgiveness for my own inadequacies" and to "pray for me in my ministry".
He was speaking before the Chrism Mass in the Pro-Cathedral yesterday which was attended by priests of the diocese, representatives of its parishes, papal nuncio Archbishop Lazarotto, Cardinal Connell, and auxiliary bishops of Dublin.
In his homily Dr Martin spoke of "our meetings as priests in January and February". He said: "We shared our views and hopes; we shared angers that are present among us. I respect those who spoke their minds, even if I do not agree with them.
"We would be poorer as a presbyterium if we were not willing to listen to each other. But we express our differences in order to better forge our true unity in charity and our witness to the truth and love of Jesus."
He told them "the great challenge for us as priests in the years to come will be to structure our ministry in such a way that the faith of our people, young and old, will be rekindled and renewed".
He hoped that later this year "we will be able to launch a new diocesan initiative of faith formation, with full involvement of lay men and women as our partners".
Many parishes had no programmes of faith formation apart from the Sunday liturgy and what goes on in schools, he said.
"Yet our young people in the senior years at school and in the years of their early professional and married life are constantly being challenged by questions about the meaning of life and of success. They experience the emptiness of having, which is not accompanied by giving and loving." Parish must become "a place where young people know that their searching for faith and meaning will be encountered by a genuine preaching of the word of God," he said.
At the Chrism Mass in St Aidan's Cathedral, Enniscorthy, Co Wexford, last Tuesday, Mgr Denis Brennan, bishop-elect of Ferns diocese, spoke words of gratitude and farewell to Bishop Éamonn Walsh, apostolic administrator there since April 2002.
"Hard decisions had to be made and Bishop Éamonn took these decisions with courage and with sensitivity to the pain of all involved. His time here had a particular focus and Bishop Éamonn led us through what have been the most challenging years in our history, a task which required resolve, integrity and application, none of which Bishop Walsh lacked in any measure," he said.
In his homily Bishop Walsh said "we are called to lift up our hearts, learn from the past, not live in it or, as Fr Chris Hayden says, 'not be defined by our past'. We know where to get a firm footing and we are invited to launch out into the deep of uncharted waters and 'be not afraid'. This holds for all of us, parents, teachers, hospital staff, young and old," he said.
Mgr Brennan will be ordained Bishop of Ferns on April 23rd.
