Fenor 1996 – Diary of a Parish Community
“Sharing our Gifts”
6th May, 1996
A conference of three hundred delegates from every parish in the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore was held in Clonea on Monday, May 6th, 1996. Delegates from this parish were Fr. Gerard Purcell P.P., Father Stephen O’Brien C.C., Patrick Baldwin, Breda Murphy, and Fidelma Curran. The theme of the conference was “Sharing Our Gifts” and the delegates participated in a day of dialogue and listening.
Reflecting on the proceedings, a number of things stood out for the bishop:
- The need to listen and to dialogue to see where people are coming from, what their hopes are, and what their concerns are.
- The richness of the contributions today. There is an energy, a talent in our diocese that is wonderful to experience.
- The emphasis on prayer, the centrality of the Eucharist and, of course, the central place of Jesus Christ in all our lives.
- The need to create communities where all can belong and feel welcome.
- The need for prayer and liturgies to speak to and celebrate in a meaningful way the experience of life today, especially for young people.
- The need to respond to our youth.
- The need to address women’s issues.
- The need to create new structures to enable involvement and partnership in parish life.
The bishop committed himself to carry forward the work: “I want to commit myself to carry forward the work of the conference into all parishes of the diocese through some concrete steps”.
- The working group which planned the conference, and to which I am so grateful, will be extended to include some participants of the conference.
- A report on the conference will be circulated to all priests of the diocese and to all who attended the conference. There will be copies for parishes as well.
- Representatives from every parish, who were present at Clonea, should meet to discuss future plans and initiatives.