Month: September 2014

A NUMBER of priests from the Catholic Diocese of Killaloe were among those protesting at the now postponed Permanent Diaconate, which bars women from taking up the role within the Church locally.

Among those speaking at the open forum in the Inn at Dromoland and attended by more than 150 people was Ogonnelloe, Bodyke and Tuamgraney based Fr Donagh O’Meara who queried “how are decisions made in our diocese and who makes them?”

“I was on that listening process and there was only one time when I heard about deacons. Once. Where did that decision come from and who made it? That’s the debate that needs to happen. That’s the deeper question,” he said referring to the Listening Process introduced by Bishop Kieran O’Reilly.

According to those co-ordinating it, this process included feedback from 2,500 to 3,000 people and took 400 hours to put together.

“The overriding thing that I heard was about the absence of women in leadership roles and positions in the diocese. We then subsequently came back from that and what did we do? We were supposed to have to listened but we put in another layer of men. That appals me really,” he added.

Kilmihil priest Fr Peter O’Loughlin was equally forthright.

“One of the things that holds us all back at times is fear. Fear is created by people who have power and very often we’re afraid to speak. I congratulate you on speaking [to the organisers of the forum]. Thanks be to God you were listened to when some of us who have tried to speak on other oc- casions weren’t listened to,” he said.

“For myself I need to be listened to in my own diocese, but I’m not so I think it’s great to have groups like this expressing their viewpoints and the Church has to be listening as well,” the West Clare priest added.

Fr Harry Bohan made the point “If you smoother the debate you kill the organisation.”

Meanwhile Cross PP Fr Michael Casey asked one question, “What are the implications for the Church of excluding women from effective ministry in our own Church?” Communications off cer for the dio cese Fr Brendan Quinlivan fears were different however as he was worried that the stance taken by the women could result in a vocations crisis.

Speaking on a personal capacity he said, “If we are discouraging the development of holy orders in the Diaconate, you are also discouraging the development of holy orders in the priesthood. I hope and pray that I’m not a prophetic voice here tonight,” he said adding that the Diaconate stretches back thousands of years and that people may not understand what it entails.

“I think that in a lot of the discussion that has taken place and from people that I have listened to speaking, there is something of a lack of understanding in relation the nature of holy orders and sacrament. I’ve listened to def nitions of sacred ministry that are actually at variance with the teachings of the Catholic Church.

“It may not be your intended consequence but if you say that because women cannot be deacons, therefore we cannot have the Diaconate in the diocese then you might as well say that because women cannot be priests in the universal church today, that we should not accept candidates for the priesthood. That is the logical consequence of your argument,” he said.

Bishop Kieran O’Reilly sent his apologies for his non attendance at the forum.

One of the forum organisers conf rmed that Bishop Reilly had extend ed an invitation to meet with the forum committee, which she said they would take up.

CLARE is set to lose almost half of the € 8.276 million allocated to the county for coastal protection works following last year’s devastating storms. The Off ce of Public Works [OPW] wrote to Clare County Council last week, warning them that they could lose funding for coastal protection, such as damaged sea walls, if the money is not spent by the end of 2014. To date, the council has been granted € 16.2 million from the Department of Environment to cover damages from the January storm including € 8.2 million from the OPW for repairs to coastal defences – but have yet to receive any allocation following the devastating St Bridget’s Day storm in February.

The council have written to the OPW and the Department of Envi ronment on numerous occasions over the last seven months, informing them that it is not possible to develop an effective programme to facilitate spending all the money allocated for coastal repairs and coastal defences in a reasonable and balanced manner until a decision has been made on the February allocation.

It took the government 39 days to allocate money in relation to the January storms but, as of today, September 23, 235 days have passed since the equally destructive February storms with no allocation forthcoming.

This delay has resulted in a situation where the OPW is warning the council that it is about to lose millions of euro in vital funding. The Clare People understands the OPW is fully aware that the council cannot spend this money.

Speaking last week County Manager, Tom Coughlan, says he has explained the situation to the OPW on numerous occasions but they “don’t seem to get it”.

GARDAÍ in Ennis are investigating a violent attack on a former IRA man and convicted killer that has sparked fears among residents living in the area. The attack occurred recently at Abbeyville housing estate in the early morning hours.

The intended target of the attack was asleep in his sitting room, when two men arrived at the scene at around 3am in a light coloured car.

The men smashed the front window of the room where the victim (63) was sleeping, forcing him to f ee his attackers who it is thought were armed with weapons including a machete. He suffered minor injuries from breaking glass but was not hospitalised. The men f ed the scene before the arrival of gardaí and an ambulance. A source described the attack at Abbeyville as “vicious”. “This was violent. You could see the hack marks on the PVC from them trying to get in. They meant to do him a lot of damage. It was vicious”, a source said. The man said the attack is the latest in series of violent incidents that have occurred in the area over the past year.

“It’s a nightmare to be living there. People are worried that something more serious will happen”, he added. A senior garda conf rmed yester day the incident is under investigation and that no arrests have yet been made.

have helped in a situation like that,” she said.

“I saw a young woman running from a rough area, which really isn’t safe for women to be walking in alone. She more or less ran into me and she was being followed by a masked man on a bicycle with an iron bar.”

The presence of Maura, who is a Sister of Charity of Our Lady of Evron, was enough to scare off the attacker and the North Clare nun was quickly able to comfort the teenager and reunite her with her family.

The attack took place just before 7pm last Saturday week, September 6, and the Soanes family yesterday released a description of the attacker. The attacker is thought to be around 5ft 10ins and of skinny build, he also spoke with a non-local accent which was possibly Irish.

Rebecca’s father Jeff Soanes yesterday hailed the Sister Considine as a ‘true saviour’.

“It was a horrible attack but it could have been a lot worse. Honest to God, she is a true saviour,” he said.

“This kid is dangerous. If somebody knows him, do yourself a favour and look at the morals you’ve been brought up with and drop us a name.”

CLARE has lost its greatest champion of the Irish language after the death over the weekend of Seán Ó Ceallaigh after a short illness.

Eighty-year-old Mr Ó Ceallaigh, who hailed from Connolly, was immersed in Irish language affairs in Clare and nationally for over 60 years and has been described as “a guiding light” and “inspiration” for language enthusiasts around the county.

“There isn’t an Irish language group in the county that he wasn’t involved in,” fellow language activist Domhnall Ó Loinsigh told The Clare People this week.

“Anything you care to mention with regard to the Irish language in Clare, Séan Ó Ceallaigh was there. He is going to be a huge loss because he was a huge inspiration and a motivator. He had the ability to inspire other people to become involved. He was an enthusiast and had a phenomenal love for the language. Everything he did was as Gaeilge and led by example,” he added.

Mr Ó Ceallaigh was active in Con- radh na Gaeilge in Clare for over 60 years, while his imprint of work was also felt in a host of organisations at both local and national level through the decades.

At the time of his death on Sunday, Mr Ó Ceallaigh was president of Conradh na Gaeilge in Clare, chairman of An Clár as Gaeilge and national president of Féile Scoil Dramaíochta.

He was also a founder member of Féile na hInse, chairman of Glór na nGael, while also being involved in the establishment of both Gaelscoil Mhichíl and Gaelcholáiste an Chláir.

“Séan was part of every initiative in the county over the last 50 years and more to promote Irish as a community language,” continued Mr Ó Loinsigh.

“And he was important on a national level as the author of two very important books – one on an tAthair Eoin Ó Gramhnaigh and the other on Eamonn Mac Giolla Iasachta. His inf uence spread far outside the county. “His motto and aspiration was that despite there was fantastic work being done in schools with the language, it was to take Irish out of the classroom and onto the street, into the shops, the pubs, the workplaces and the homes. He worked for that all his life,” he added.

atives aimed at preventing crime, reducing the fear of crime and pro moting community and road safety,” Crime Prevention Off cer, Sgt Joe Downey explained.

“We hope to achieve this objective, by visible, accessible, and proactive involvement with the various com munity partnerships and crime pre vention initiatives operating in their local areas.”

Sgt Downey said these measures will include: proactive foot patrols, mountain bike patrols and increased high visibility marked Garda car patrolling; erection of information stands at strategic locations such as supermarkets and festivals.

Gardaí will also meet with elderly residents of the area and multi agen cy community partners to promote interaction and joint approaches to common problems.

Sgt Downey explained that burgla ries tend to increase over the winter months.

He said security measures such as a properly working alarm and keep ing an unrestricted view of their property especially from the front in order to deprive would be criminals of cover, are essential to preventing burglaries.

He continued, “Report all attempt ed burglaries and burglaries immedi ately on discovery. Over half of all burglaries are through the rear of the property so extra security measures are required. In one f fth of burgla ries entry is gained through an un secured door or window. Keep them securely locked when the property is vacant. “The most common property stolen is jewellery, cash, laptops, tools and hi f equipment like cameras games consoles etc. Keep your most expen sive items hidden from obvious plac es and keep a record of them (photo) and mark large items in case they are recovered after being stolen. Be aware that keys left on a table close to the door can be ‘f shed’ out through the letter box,” Sgt Downey said.

A TEENAGER has been sentenced to 10 months in prison for making hoax phone calls to the emergency ser vices in Clare. In calls made on November 13, 2013 and June 16, 2014, Nathan Coughlan ( 18) claimed a male had jumped into the River Fergus, Ennis District Cour t heard on Wednesday. Both claims turned out to be false and the calls were subject to a garda investigation. Mr Coughlan, with an address at Mallow Road, Doneraile Cork but who is from Ennis, pleaded guilty to two offences contrar y to

A GROUP of women who have given their lives to serving the Catholic Church in Clare said they were hurt, upset and ignored following a pastoral letter calling for male only deacons to serve the Diocese of Killaloe.

At the weekend Bishop Kieran O’Reilly shelved the plans saying he would “not now proceed with the introduction of the Permanent Deaconate at this time in the diocese.”

Weeks earlier in a pastoral letter he asked for “men married or single, and who are already involved in some aspect of lay ministry or leadership in the community,” to apply for the position of deacon. No women could apply.

Among the jobs listed for these men were charity work, liturgy work, and becoming ministers of the Eucharist – roles currently being undertaken in the main by women in the diocese.

At a forum at the Inn at Dromoland last night (Monday) these women asked for their voices to be heard and a more inclusive deaconate to be developed.

“In 2014 is it appropriate that they bring in another male only ministry? What impression does it give of the Church?” asked Kathleen MacDonald from Cross.

Ms MacDonald is a co-ordinator of the sacraments, prepares creative liturgies, gives retreats to Conf rma tion children as well as being on the pastoral council and f nancial com mittee in her local parish.

Mary Hanley from Ennis who was part of the Diocesan Pastoral Council and involved in the two year long “Listening Process” introduced by the bishop and resulted in the pastoral plan said the document was about empowering lay men and women to do more work.

The Pastoral Plan of the Diocese of Killaloe 2013 to 2020 outlined plans to “empower men and women to live their baptismal calling in the Church at local and diocesan levels” and “To call forth the variety of gifts present in our communities and put them at the service of all.”

Ms Hanley explained that the pastoral letter was then “dropped in” and was “hugely hurtful for women”.

Rita O’Brien from Scarriff, a midwife by profession, was hoping to do masters in pastoral care and was excited in getting more involved in the Church as a layperson until she saw the letter.

“This was an ad for something I knew I had a vocation to do and have the academic ability to study for,” she said. “I was deeply upset on a personal level.”

Martina Meskell from Clonlara, the facilitator of the meeting, said this group of women were not radicals or even feminists.

“We do not want any negativity or divisiveness over this,” she said, adding that they just wanted the pastoral plan implemented to include everyone irrespective of gender.

“We are all ordinary women who give our time voluntary because we care and have a strong faith.”

“It took a lot of courage to speak out with passion and dignity.

“There was a fear of speaking out because there was a fear of damaging relationships with parish priests or jeopardising employment for those women working for the dioceses,” she said.

“We really welcome Bishop Kieran’s decision to put this on hold and acknowledge his commitment to dialogue.”

THE late Jim White has been recalled as a “dynamic and generous man” who made an “immense” contribution to the tourism industry in Clare.

The former Fine Gael TD and businessman passed away aged 76 last Tuesday. Originally from Donegal, he has a long association with the hotel industry in Clare.

He purchased the Hydro Hotel in Lisdoonvarna in the mid-seventies, which laid the foundations for what is now known as White’s Hotel Group, comprising the King Thomond, the Burren Castle Hotel and the Imperial Hotel. The Group also runs hotels in Donegal and Kerry.

Chairman of Lisdoonvarna Fáilte Ltd, Paddy Dunne, said Mr White was an “extremely popular and wellrespected man who will be greatly missed both at home in Donegal and here in North Clare”.

He continued, “Since the 1970s Jim’s contribution to the promotion of tourism in Lisdoonvarna has been immense. The White family’s investment in the town created, and continues to create, much needed employment in the local area. Indeed from the moment Jim arrived in Lisdoonvarna, following the purchase of the Hydro Hotel and the Moher Inn, which is now the Burren Castle Hotel, he employed locals. Initially during the renovation of the hotels he employed local trades people and then subsequently hotel staff.

“There are not many families in Lisdoonvarna who haven’t had at least one member employed at one of the White’s hotels. Jim was a dynamic and generous man who will be remembered fondly, particularly in September when the hotels are full and Lisdoonvarna really comes alive to the sounds of music and dancing,” Mr Dunne said. “Lisdoonvarna Fáilte would like to extend their sympathies to Jim’s family, in particular to his son, Marcus, who is a great supporter of Lisdoonvarna.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny also paid tribute to Mr White, “a man of enormous positivity and generosity with huge credibility in the area of tourism and business”.

Mr Kenny continued, “In particular, his hard work led to an increase in tourism – spend in the north west of Ireland. He was a man of enormous popularity in Donegal and the North West in general and even managed to head the poll against Neill Blaney in a general election.”

Mr Kenny added, “I would like to extend on my own behalf and on behalf of the Fine Gael party my sincere condolences to all his family, especially his children Caroline, Bettina, Marcus, Sinead, James Jr, Megan and Mitchell. I called to see him only last Sunday in the Mater hospital where I met and spoke with his family as Jim approached his last days.”

THE community of Ballyea was plunged into mourning last week following the death of father of five Gerard O’Connell.

Mr O’Connell died following a farm accident in Ballyea last week.

Just before 10pm on Wednesday night, Gardaí and emergency services were called to a farm in Ballyea where the 57 year old was fatally injured in an incident, believed to have involved a tractor and trailer.

He was pronounced dead at the scene, which was sealed off.

The Health and Safety Authority were informed of the incident and an investigation commenced when a HSA inspector visited the site on Thursday.

It is understood the deceased was loading cattle into the trailer at around 7pm when the accident occurred.

His body was later discovered at the scene by a family member.

One local described Mr O’Connell as an “absolute gentleman”.

“It’s an awful thing to happen. He was a lovely man, a hard worker and an absolute gentleman.”

Mr O’Connell’s son Gearóid is a member of the Clare U21 hurling side that will play in the All-Ireland final against Wexford on Saturday. Another son, Paddy, is also well known club hurler and footballer.

The tragedy is the second to take place on a farm in Clare in a fortnight.

On August 20, a 38-year-old single man died while he was fitting a wheel to a vehicle near his home in Liscannor.

The chairman of the Clare IFA, Andrew Dundas, expressed his condolences to the O’Connell family on their tragic loss.

“This was certainly a very sad case,” he said.

Mr Dundas said farm safety has been at the top of the IFA’s agenda in recent months.

Mr Dundas said it is important farm families get together and compile a safety audit of their farm and farm practices to identify areas that may be of concern.

Mr Dundas said the association is also concerned by the growing number of farmers who are working longer hours in order to earn a living.

“Certainly that is something that we are hearing again and again. People feel that they have to work longer and longer. Very few people can make a living directly from farming so you find people are working a lot longer,” he explained.