IN what must be one of the most unusual Holy Week events, a Bible reading marathon has been going on in Dublin since Tuesday. A cross denominational exercise involving reading the Bible from cover to cover has been taking place at St Thomas's Church on Fosters Avenue, Mount Merrion.
Reading began from the Book of Genesis at 10 a.m. on Tuesday and ends at 10 a.m. tomorrow morning, when it is hoped the Book of Revelation will have been completed.
Readers include parishioners from St Thomas's Church of Ireland, St Teresa's Roman Catholic and St Andrew's Presbyterian parishes.
St Thomas's church warden, Mr Robert Marshall, said "a lot" of inter church couples had taken part.
One of the 170 readers has been the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Rev Walton Empey.
He read from the nativity scene of St Matthew's Gospel for 30 minutes yesterday morning, and was followed by Father Martin Cosgrove, of St Theresa's Church, Mount Merrion, who read for the same period, the average for each reader.
Afterwards Archbishop Empey said that any ecumenical gathering was a good thing and he had been delighted to participate.
Father Cosgrove thought Good Friday was "a tremendous day" for such a coming together "to share the word we hold in common".
Reading halted temporarily last night at the end of evening prayer, which began at 8 p.m. It will resume at 1 p.m. today and continue until 11 p.m. Tomorrow morning it resumes at 5 a.m.
