Most people around the cathedral have known that sooner or later the dean might have to take sick leave before his operation. He is now under doctor's orders to rest so that he may be the fitter to face the operation when it comes and to recuperate more quickly afterwards. He wishes to thank all who have held him in prayer over these difficult months and that they will continue to do so. Now he has to slow down and take things very quietly. Although he would love the company of visitors, quietness is what he has been ordered to have and he hopes everyone will understand that this can only be achieved by resting.
The cathedral will be in good hands during his absence. All matters concerning the board or the chapter will be dealt with by Canon John Bartlett whose telephone number at the theological college is 492 3506. The arranging of services and of clergy to take them will be ordered by Archdeacon Brian Snow at 280 6004. The rosters for servers and for cantors at Choral Evensong will be prepared by the Reverend Andrew McLellan, curate-assistant in the cathedral group - telephone 838 0469. We are fortunate that Warwick Harte is now well installed as administrator and that Carol Jeffries will be the voice at the end of the cathedral's telephone. Both will give of their best in the service of the cathedral for the dioceses.
The cathedral grouped parishes will join together with their mother church for the service of thanksgiving for the blessings of harvest. This will be held on Sunday 5 October at 11 a.m. There will be no other mid-morning services in the churches of the group that morning.
The 1997 synod will be held in the spacious premises of Taney parish centre on Tuesday and Wednesday, 21-22 October. As usual the proceedings will begin with a Eucharist in Taney parish church on the Tuesday at 4 p.m. We hope all the cathedral's representatives will be able to attend.
The October bank holiday weekend is a choir holiday. We shall welcome from Belfast the choir of Saint Mark's church, Dundela, that striking Butterfield-designed church high above the Bangor road. They are well-known visitors to Dublin, having sung on a number of occasions in Saint Patrick's - and now in Christ Church.
Earlier this year the cities of Dublin and Liverpool were officially twinned. Why an official ceremony was necessary no one can say, for the two cities have for many centuries been like cities on either side of a broad river. To mark the official twinning, however, the dean of Liverpool, the Very Reverend Derrick Walters, will preach at the annual citizenship service. Please note that, as usual, to facilitate RTE Radio One in broadcasting the event, the service will begin at 10.45 a.m. Invitations are already being sent out for the service. All are welcome and tickets may be applied for by sending a stamped addressed envelope to the Administrator, Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin 8, as soon as possible.
The autumn meeting of the Church of Ireland Historical Society will be held in the cathedral's chapter house on Saturday 8 November 1997, beginning at 10.30 a.m. Full details of the event will appear in the church and national press but enquiries for advance information should be made to the Honorary Secretary, the Revd Dr William Neely, The Rectory, Keady, County Armagh.
Within the next two months we shall have lost no less than three members of the cathedral chapter. Oscar Wilde's Lady Bracknell might have described three losses as carelessness yet each resignation is for different reasons. Canon David Godfrey has been given preferment as dean of Kilmore; Canon Sydney Laing and his wife Lily will enjoy well-earned retirement; and Canon David Muir will be taking a career break towards the end of October. The archbishop will appoint new canons in the near future. Canon Ginnie Kennerley, appointed 12th canon as recently as 26th January, will soon be 9th Canon!
A series of lectures will take place on Tuesdays for four weeks at 1.15pm in the cathedral crypt. This Christ Church Lecture Series is a new venture which is being organised by the Archives Committee. The theme is “Canons in the Cloisters: The Augustinian canons regular at Christ Church Dublin”, and the first two lectures will be given by Lewis Ayres and Sarah Preston on 21 and 28 October. Admission is free.
Warwick Harte, our new administrator, is now in office and is settling well into the cathedral family. His warm and welcoming nature has already endeared him to all who have met him and he is finding his feet in cathedral affairs with remarkable ease. It is no mean thing being thrown in at the deep end in Christ Church.
An international group of those whose job it will be to promote the communications of the next Lambeth Conference in 1998 have been conferring at Barberstown Castle in County Kildare. On Thursday 11 September they gathered in the cathedral for a special Eucharist. The gathering was led by Archbishop Eames and Bishop Nigel McCullough of Wakefield. The celebrant was the bishop of Meath and Kildare, assisted by the dean.
One of the most popular members of the cathedral choir is Sarah Lane who was married in Dublin on Friday 12 September. Naturally the choir sang at the event. We wish Richard and Sarah every good wish for the future.
Material for November must arrive with the cathedral secretary by 12 October.
