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Weekly Connect From: Dermot Cowhey dermot.cowhey@limerickdiocese.org 7th March, 2022: Dear Chaplains/RE Teachers, Bishop’s homily, Sunday 6th March 2022: The poor will yet again lose out in a war that has shattered the European dream, Bishop Brendan Leahy said of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In his homily today on the first Sunday of Lent, Bishop Leahy said that while we must continue to dream, we must now acknowledge reality. But reality is also about the potential always to build a-new, he said. “When a dream is shattered, there is grief. Europe’s dream has been shattered with the war in the Ukraine. 75 years after the Second World War we had hoped the great dream of a Europe at peace had really taken hold. But that dream has been shattered,” he said. “It’s a moment for all of us to take stock. Yes, we must dream and hope and believe in peace, but we also need to recognise peace is the fruit of our unity with one another. And we have to work at that. No relationship can ever be taken for granted. “While watching the war on our social media and TVs, we’re seeing again how the powerful wage war, but the poor lose out. So many ordinary folk are facing questions of life and death. We can’t but feel our stomach churning at the sight of innocent young people on both sides whose lives are tragically cut short. And so many fleeing their native land. The ray of consolation at this time is, of course, the incredible outpouring of small and big gestures of solidarity and generous donations from around the world.” Bishop Leahy said that all of this is happening just as we are entering the season of Lent which this year will have a focus on Ukraine through prayer and giving. “Lent is very much associated with giving and giving is good for us in everyway. After all, we are created to give. It reflects what’s truly in our soul. Thankfully, in the face of horror, giving is still flourishing now. Limerick is a giving city and county and that’s very much reflected in the response to Ukraine. The wonderful response that has seen individuals such as Anna Mazeika, a young Polish woman, step forward courageously to commit to gathering a truck load of medical supplies from generous Limerick people for hospitals in Ukraine. There are many other examples and it keeps that light shining, a light of hope which will ultimately overcome darkness. Just as the Lenten experience.” The commitment to Ukraine in terms of giving and prayer, he said, must continue. “But there’s also a spiritual contribution we can make – we can check out our own personal commitment to building relationships that are genuine and true and just. Perhaps there is some relationship that has been damaged in recent times or one that needs a new effort on our part because things have grown stale. Lent is about beginning again. We don’t have to wait for others to be the first to reach out to us. We can take the initiative. The Ukraine crisis is about a breakdown in relationships. Let’s do our part to build good relationships.” Lent 2022: The diocese is providing four opportunities which you might like to avail of to nourish and inspire you as you journey through Lent.
We are inviting you to journey with us this Lent. The pastoral outreach team (Fr Chris, Aoife, Rose, Dermot, Michael along with Sr Betty, Sr Phyllis and Sharon) have put together a programme to support you throughout Lent, this includes daily thoughts, images, reflections and prayers with a different theme each week. These are posted daily on our Diocesan Facebook page; I want to reassure you that you do not need to have a Facebook account to access these resources. Our Facebook page is set up so that it is accessible to people who are not on Facebook; you can access our Facebook page on this link: https://www.facebook.com/dioceseoflimerick. Be sure to check in every day. We will have an introductory video at the start of each week explaining the theme, each day at 7am we will post an image with prayers, food for thought and/or ideas for action. Fr Chris will then host a review of the week each Sunday evening at 8:30pm live on Facebook where we can chat and share our experiences and learning. Again, to remind you, you do not need to subscribe to Facebook to be able to access these resources and events. Fr Chris explains everything in this video if you would like to know more: https://fb.watch/bwt2KoKwbU/
Aoife and Betty are showing 3 films in the Diocesan Centre on 3 Saturday evenings, starting this Saturday 5th March evening at 7pm. You will need to register for these films so we can manage numbers and catering. I have attached a poster (Attachment 1). You can register at this link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/Enviro-LentenFilms If you want to get sense of the films here are links to their trailers: Here is a trailer for the ‘The Human Element’; https://youtu.be/k34FhplukXQ Here is a trailer for ‘My Octopus Teacher’: https://youtu.be/3s0LTDhqe5A Here is a trailer for ‘Living the Change’: https://youtu.be/x3d3rl6id_c
Sr Betty Baker has kindly compiled prayers of the faithful resources for Lent. These include prayers of the Faithful from First Sunday of Lent to Corpus Christi and for International Women's Day (8th March), Mother's day (27th March), Earth Day (22 April). I have attached them to this email, (Attachments 2, 3). Please feel free to share as you wish. Our thanks to Sr Betty.
Sr Phyllis Moynihan and Bernadette are offering a half day retreat in preparation for Lent on Saturday 12th March in the Redemptorists Church, starting with Mass at 10am and finishing at lunch time. You are welcome to join person at the Redemptorist’s Church or via the webcam for some quiet time of reflection and prayer. A poster for this retreat is attached. See Attachment 4. I hope that you will be able to avail of these opportunities. Prayer Service for Peace Fr. Chris O’Donnell and Aoife Walsh have compiled a Prayer service for Peace and have generously shared it for schools. Please see Attachment 5. Fund Raising for Ukraine Many schools have been in contact regarding colours’ days, fund raising initiatives etc. for the people of Ukraine. Below are some contacts if you wish to donate. The Redemptorists in Limerick have a special relationship with the Redemptorists in Ukraine. We have been in regular contact with them since the war began. They have opened their churches and monasteries as places of safety and refuge for the victims of war and are also helping people who are waiting to cross the border into Poland. They are working closely with the Polish and Slovak Redemptorists. They are working flat out but are close to running out of money. They asked us for help and as a result we have launched An Appeal for Ukraine. People are responding very generously. It is possible to donate online at www.novena.ie or to make a credit card donation by phoning 061-315099. Cheques should be made payable to Redemptorists Limerick and mailed to Fr Seamus Enright, Mount St Alphonsus, South Circular Road, Limerick. People are also welcome to donate by calling into the Monastery.Every little helps and every Euro will go directly to the Redemptorists in Ukraine. The Jesuit Refugee Service director Eugene Quinn has had some requests about how to support crisis efforts in the Ukraine. There are some concerns that collections of items such as blankets, toiletries etc., will be very difficult to deliver and may end up lying in containers or even in landfill. So, the Jesuit Refugee Service would like to promote the following statement and donation link. Please see the link below for the Jesuit Refugee Service Europe's Statement, endorsed by JRS Ireland, outlining how JRS is responding to the conflict in Ukraine and to the needs Ukranian refugees who have been forcibly displaced and are crossing borders in search of safety and protection. Ukraine: JRS in action to welcome refugees - JRS Europe The Salesians have been following these terrifying events in Ukraine. While a distance away they can contribute and support those people in need of help and shelter. You might not know that the Salesians are present in various places in Ukraine (there are two Provinces: PLS province and UKR vice-province). Both need support. The provinces around Ukraine that are helping refugees need assistance, too. The reception of refugees in the Salesian Centre in Przemy?l has about a hundred thousand people a day arriving. Urgent requests for help from the Salesians working in Ukraine in Bóbrka, Przemy?lany, ?ytomierz, Korosteszów and Odessa are being made. Despite the war, they have remained there with their parishioners and young people. People take refuge in their homes and in the basements of schools. See Salesians Don Bosco Ireland The Pope's Monthly Intentions for March, 2022: For a Christian response to bioethical challenges … We pray for Christians facing new bioethical challenges; may they continue to defend the dignity of all human life with prayer and action. https://www.popesprayer.va/popes-prayer-intentions To watch the Pope Video - https://youtu.be/aJpxgGQywX8 Thought for the Day: We publish a ‘thought for the day’ every morning at 7am on the Diocesan Facebook page. (For Lent, there will be a special Lenten Thought for the Day.) ‘Little by little … mountains are moved.’ (Leunig) https://www.facebook.com/dioceseoflimerick Liturgical Calendar 1st March: Feast of Saint David of Wales 2nd March: Ash Wednesday 6th March: First Sunday of Lent 8th March: St John of God 8th March: International Women’s Day 13th March: Anniversary of Pope Frances to the Papacy 17th March: St. Patrick’s Day 19th March St. Joseph’s Day 21st March: World Water Day 22nd March: World earth Day 24th March: St. Oscar Romero 25th March: Mothers’ Day 26th March: Earth Hour (Google Earth Hour) 10th April: Psalm Sunday 13th April: Spy Wednesday 14th April: Holy Thursday 15th April: Good Friday 16th April: Holy Saturday 17th April: Easter Sunday A separate email for the March liturgical calendar will be sent shortly. As always, we are deeply grateful to Colette O’Doherty, DA Diocese of Ferns, for her generosity in sharing these resources. Social Justice Module: The link to access these is We are deeply grateful to Aoife Walsh of Youth Ministry for generously sharing these. Credible Catholic: Link Attachments –
If you are accessing this from the diocese website and would like to have these resources, please email dermot.cowhey@limerickdiocese.org To conclude … March is a month to celebrate women from International Women’s Day (8th March), the Annunciation (25th March), Mother’s Day (27th March), we share one of Patrick Kavanagh’s most beautiful poems … In Memory of My Mother
I do not think of you lying in the wet clay
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