Knockanore and Slieve Rue men to become Deacon’s this Sunday

Twenty years ago, the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore had a plentiful supply of priests.

At times up to the early 90’s no position could be found within the Diocese for some newly ordained men, who were at times sent to Dublin or England for short periods filling positions there until such time they were recalled to the Waterford and Lismore Diocese when positions became available.

In recent years however, all that has changed.

Since 2007, six priests who were listed to be part of a parish at the time are currently not holding a position in a parish according to information that can be obtained from the Diocesan website.

Seven Priests that held positions within parishes in 2007 have since died. A further nine priests that had retired by 2007 but some of whom helped out in parishes when it was needed have died. A number of priests that helped out in parishes but who were attached to other parishes but moved to the Waterford and Lismore Diocese after they retired have died.

And since 2007 ten priests that held positions in parishes at that point have since retired from active ministry, some of whom help out in parishes when they can.

Since 2000 only four men have been ordained as Priests for the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore, one of whom died within ten years of his ordination.

Since 2007, one Diocesan Priest who worked outside the Diocese has returned to the Waterford and Lismore Diocese to take up a position.

Currently there is two Polish Priests working in the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore. In recent weeks a Priest from the Rosminian Order who previously worked in Parishes run by the order around the country including Clonmel has taken up an administration roll in a parish that was served up to now by Diocesan Priests, while a member of the Augustinian Community in Dungarvan has worked in the Parish with the last number of years. Parishes in South Tipperary are also at times able to avail of the services of member of the Holy Ghost Community at Rockwell College when the need arises.

Twenty years ago, most rural parishes had at least two priests to cover two or three churches in the Parish. In urban areas twenty years ago, some urban parishes could have had anything from two to five priests working in it.

Now most rural parishes in the diocese have just one priests and while all Urban parishes have also seen a reduction in numbers working with the faithful in the parish, most still have at least two priests in the parish, which in some cases is a Parish Priest and a retired Parish Priest who opted to stay working pasted their 75^th Birthday, the retirement age for Priests.

The drop in the numbers of priests available has also meant that there is a drop in the number of masses celebrated in each parish each weekend. Twenty years ago, many churches had three masses celebrated in them each weekend. Now, many churches have just one. The reduction in the number of clergy also means that some of the most traditional of Catholic’s who like to fulfill their obligations on a Sunday, have to visit a neighbouring parish to do so, as Mass is no longer celebrated on a Sunday.

In recent years, the number of parishes without a resident priest has also grown.

Ten years ago, following the death of the then Parish Priest of the Modeligo and Affane Parish, no replacement was picked. The administration of the Parish was carried out by the Parish Priest of the neighbouring parish in Cappoquin.

As the numbers of priests in the Diocese of Waterford and Lismore further dropped and it was time for the Curate in Modeligo and Affane to be promoted to the position of Parish Priest, it meant that no priest was going to be resident in the parish.

The Parishes of Tallow and Ballyduff Upper have also been administered by the same priest since the Parish Priest of Tallow retired some years back.

No Parish Priest was appointed in Dunhill and Fenor when the position became available a few years back. Instead an administrator was appointed. The Parish has since lost their administrator after he took up another position and the Parish began to be administrated from Tramore. When another Parish Priest died in recent years and a reshuffle of priests were made, Butlerstown lost their in resident Priest and the parish was administrated from the Saint Paul’s Parish in Waterford City.  

Further changes are going to be made in the coming years as more the Diocesan Priests retire or Die and there is not enough man power available to fill the positions that will become available.

However, there is some hope.

This coming Sunday at Saint Patrick’s College in Maynooth, Knockanore man Shane O’Neill will be ordained to the Diaconate along with fourteen other men from across Ireland. Amongst the others to be Ordained will be Brian Griffin from Slieve Rue who is to be ordained to the same position for the Diocese of Ossory.

 

And while it is only one that is ordained this year as opposed to four or five year in the past, that one should be seen as a bonus for the Diocese.

The Diaconate is the final step towards full Ordination to the Priesthood which would be expected to happen within twelve months.

Once ordained to the Diaconate and becoming a Deacon, a person will be able to fill many duties of a priest, such as administer the sacrament of Baptism and can serve as the church’s witness at the sacrament of Holy Matrimony, which the bride and groom administer to each other. Deacons may preside at funeral rites not involving a Mass and may assist the priest at Requiem Masses. They can preside over various services such as Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament, and they may give certain blessings but they cannot hear confession and give absolution, anoint the sick, or celebrate Mass.

Meanwhile it is expected that Pope Francis in the near future will appoint a successor to Bishop William Lee who resigned as Bishop of Waterford and Lismore on health grounds last October.

The Pontiff favouring appointments from outside the diocese that a vacancy arises, since he was elected has filled a number of vacant positions within the Hierarchy in Ireland, his most recent appointment being Father Kevin Doran, a priest of the Archdiocese of Dublin to the roll of Bishop of Elphin replacing Bishop Christopher Jones who had offered his resignation to the then Pope Benedict XVI having celebrated his seventy-fifth birthday.

Appointments have been made quicker where they arise when a Bishop reaches the retirement age than they have where a Bishop stands down for health or other reasons.

This could mean that the Dioceses Like Cashel and Emly as well Cork and Ross could have a new Bishop ahead of Waterford and Lismore as Archbishop Dermot Clifford (Cashel and Emily) and John Buckley (Cork and Ross) have passed or about to pass their seventy-fifth birthdays and are set to stand down from their positions as soon as a replacement is in place.

Meanwhile as Pope Francis is filling vacancies in Irish Dioceses, it is looking for now that a report which appeared in some sections of the media in 2011 which suggested that the number of dioceses could be cut from a current twenty-six to eleven or twelve will not go ahead at this point.

The reports suggested that Archdiocese of Cashel could be cut from its current seven dioceses to three with Waterford and Lismore merging with Cloyne, Cork and Ross merging with Kerry and Cashel and Emly merging with the diocese of Limerick and the Diocese of Killaloe.