THREE MEN were ordained to the priesthood in Dublin’s Pro-Cathedral at the weekend and 13 pastoral workers were commissioned to parishes as Archbishop Diarmuid Martin also initiated a Year of Evangelisation in the archdiocese.
Two of the new priests, Fr Aloysius Zuribo from Orlu in the state of Imo, Nigeria and Fr Colin Rothery from Kilmacud were ordained for Dublin, while Fr Stephen Kim, a Capuchin, was ordained for the Korean province.
In his homily, the archbishop said: “The Archdiocese of Dublin is living and experiencing difficult times. The generous efforts of many good priests, of parents and teachers and lay leaders do not seem sufficient to overcome the fundamental challenges to faith that are being experienced, especially by young people.”
“The legacy of scandals has seriously damaged the image and the credibility of the church. Yet the spirit is with the Archdiocese of Dublin and the spirit is renewing the Archdiocese of Dublin and we know that the spirit will sustain and renew the church in its mission today, tomorrow and for the years to come,” he said.
He warned against “sham holiness”, adding “we have all witnessed it and its consequences . . . When we lose the correct concept of a God of love then as individuals and as a church we can drift into a praxis which is the fruit not of love but of pathology,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bishop of Limerick Dr Donal Murray has urged people to pray that vocations to the priesthood and religious life will “flourish again in our country”. The bishop made the plea at St John’s Cathedral in Limerick yesterday at the first ordination in the diocese in four years.
Eamon Purcell (55) was ordained by Bishop Murray and will be attached to St Munchin’s Parish on the north side of the city where he will celebrate his first Mass tonight. A native of Co Laois he was previously attached to St Munchin’s parish where he worked as a deacon.