Book celebrates history of Cork Presbyterians

The Presbyterian Moderator, Rev Ken Newell, launched a book at the weekend celebrating the history of Presbyterians in Cork.

The launch of Presbyterians in the City of Cork took place at Trinity Presbyterian church. Written by Rev Alexander Cromie (93), it tells a story spanning over three centuries. Rev Cromie was minister at Trinity Presbyterian from 1950 to 1955.

The first Presbyterian congregation in the city dated back to 1675 when a meeting house was built in Princes Street. Today it is the Cork Unitarian church.

The book highlights the difficulties of building a Christian community in Cork with people moving to and from the city because of work.

Rev John Faris, currently minister at Trinity Presbyterian in Cork, described the publication as "a remarkable book written by a remarkable man".

He said the Presbyterian churches in Cork must look to the future to assess the work that still needs to be done.

"The social and political context of Cork is now so different from the experience of many whose lives are recorded in this book, but the spiritual needs of people remain the same."