The clergy of TKA joined with those of Limerick and Killaloe for our annual get together over a couple of days in October. We continue to forge relationships and build on already strengthening bonds of friendship and a shared sense of ministry in The West as we study together and pray together and simply enjoy each other’s company.
This year our guest speaker was Scott Evans, Church of Ireland Chaplain of UCD. He chose as his theme ‘ Our Ancient Future and elaborated on this in his introduction:
‘ There’s big money to be made in the Christian publishing world if you can develop, brand and promote the perfect model for parish growth, evangelism, discipleship or Christian living. For most of us in Ireland, however, these programmes and formulas don’t work. They either miss the mark or miss the point.
Instead of looking around us to see what the rest of the world is doing, perhaps there is wisdom and insight to be found in looking behind us to the rich spirituality of Ireland’s past and how it might shape our ministry in the present and into the future. ‘
Scott walked us through various seminars in which he had us look at what it meant to be Irish, both in today’s world and in received traditional outlook, not to mention caricature ( The Tullamore Dew TV advert raised particular comment! ). He engaged us in exercises about how our own faith had been shaped and by whom, had us tell personal stories of triumph and disaster and asked us to dream about what might be in our ministry going forward.
Over and through and beside the formal sessions there was prayer and worship and reflection, and much laughter and debate around the meal table.
