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The Augustinian Roof Appeal

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Architect and his report
1 The aspect of personal injury
2 It is my recommendation 3. 5 years ago.

 You may ask, what with the Franciscans leaving town and the decline in vocations, why bother?       Listed building The first Augustinian Foundation in Drogheda was in 1295.        The Low Lane Church  Drogheda Independent
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 The Augustinians Church in Drogheda has to be of re-roofed. Our architect's report of July 1995 conveys the urgency of this task: "The overall condition of the various elements of all the roofs on the Church, indicate that substantial works are required, to ensure the immediate and effective sealing and protection of the Church, from rain penetration, damp ingress, timber rot, structural deterioration, and to protect against damage to stained glass windows. ……. The aspect of personal injury from wind blown slates or ridge tiling is also relevant in the context of carrying out works. .... It is my recommendation that the entire slated roof be totally re-slated, all exposed coping stones be covered in copper sheeting, all gutters be replaced, all lead work and soakers be renewed, all ridge tiles be replaced and all masonry walling at high level be repointed."

That was almost 5 years ago. Understandably, time has not improved matters. Early in 1999 we asked our architect to begin the process for re-roofing. A further inspection revealed further deterioration. You may yourselves have experienced the inconvenience of avoiding buckets placed on the floor to catch the drops! The high level windows are also in bad condition and need to be replaced. We can no longer postpone the inevitable. In May 1999 a firm of Chartered Quantity Surveyors carried out and enquiry and estimated the approximate cost of carrying out the work. Since then the job has gone to tender and through our architect we have agreed on a builder to carry out the work. The estimated cost is £380,000. Work will commence of May 1st 2000, and will continue for about sixteen weeks. We hope our Mass schedules will not be effected during this time.

You may ask, what with the Franciscans leaving town and the decline in vocations, why bother?

1. We are the present custodians of these listed buildings and it is our duty to see to their upkeep.

"The aspect of personal injury from wind blown slates or ridge tiling is also relevant in the context of carrying out works. .... "

"It is my recommendation that the entire slated roof be totally re-slated,"

"A further inspection revealed further deterioration"

 

Part of the damaged roof

 
2. The first Augustinian Foundation in Drogheda was in 1295. Five years ago we celebrated 700 years here. The present church in Shop Street and Bachelor's Lane occupies much the same position as the original site. The Augustinians were here for 350 years before Cromwell came in 1649. The present church was built by two men of vision and courage, Fr. Patrick Kelly and Fr. Francis Doyle. In the middle of the last century the project seemed over-ambitious. The Primate, Most Rev. Dr. Joseph Dixon of Armagh, laid the foundation stone on Friday 28th September 1860. Thus began a saga of courage which is recorded almost day to day in the 4 volumes of Fr. F. Doyle's diaries, still well preserved in our provincial archives at Ballyboden in Dublin. "The difficulties were great and many. Money was scarce owing to the depressed state of trade in Drogheda at the time and indeed throughout the country. Fr. Doyle was compelled to collect in person throughout the counties of Louth, Meath, Cavan and in his native Co. Wexford. Later he went to Liverpool to raise funds where, as he notes, he was sometimes 'on the tramp till ten at night', to collect a total sum of £70." (A fuller account is available in Fr. Duffner's story of the Augustinians in Drogheda, entitled, 'The Low Lane Church' published in 1979) Towards the end of August 1866 work on the church was completed. It was dedicated on the 2nd September. A Mr. John Kelly, brother of Fr Patrick was a most generous benefactor. His total contributions are estimated at about £4000, equivalent to £80,000 today. One of the many comments made on Mr. Kelly's generosity is found in the following entry of Fr. Doyle's diary: 'He (Mr. Kelly) has been my consolation, strength and hope all through this great work'. Nor is mention omitted, in the many tributes paid at the time, of the generosity of the countless unknown benefactors who gave their widow's mite, at a time when to give even pennies meant real sacrifice to many. Fr. Kelly did not survive very long the completion of the Church. He died on the Feast of all Saints 1867. He was born in Drogheda 1805 and his remains, like those of Fr. Doyle who died 21st January 1896, lie in the vault beneath the church. We owe it to the memory of these men and the many Augustinians and their congregations who worked and worshipped here since then, to roof the Church.

3. The future of the Augustinians in Drogheda is in God's hands. There are fewer entering religious life in general. This should not be seen as an invitation to despair, but rather as a challenge. The old church was organised in such a way that it could not function without clerical numbers. This had a negative side effect: many Catholics identified the church exclusively with the clergy. For almost a century, lay people were virtual spectators. It has been extremely difficult to thaw this frozen mind-set, to convince lay people of their central active role in the church, that the church is THEIR church. So, rather than bemoaning the decline in clerical vocations, we should view it as an opportunity to restore the church once again to its rightful owners, the lay people. The church is the church of this particular community rather than the private possession of one clerical caste or another. We cannot cling to old structures or yearn for a return of 'the good old days'. 4. Down through the years the Augustinians have enjoyed very good support from the people of Drogheda. Working together at this project will bind us more together and renew our hope. The more we are involved, the greater will be our sense of ownership, our sense of belonging. What is it that we hold dearly in our faith that we want to pass on to our young people? How do we involve our young people in this? The rebuilding of this roof can challenge and encourage us to build up the people of God which we are? The experience can teach us that the church is not a community with one or two ministers, but is a ministering community, and a community of ministers, in their own way involved because of Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation. People using their gifts together as partners in the service of the Kingdom, to youth, bereaved, sick etc. Because of factors already mentioned, some people find it difficult to regard the Priest as a partner; they prefer to see themselves as 'the priest's helpers', as mere auxiliaries, literally. But the priest is not the only one asked to further the kingdom of God here. We are all in this together, "a ministering community and a community of ministers" in the words of Fr. Enda Lyons, in his book Partnership in Parish. In short, what we are now witnessing is the emergence of not so much a new Church as a new way of 'being Church'.

The work will begin in the immediate aftermath of Easter. The transforming power of Easter is best summed up in the experience of the two disciples on the road to Emmaus. Luke told us that they left Jerusalem 'downcast and despondent'. But their experience of new life transformed them into men of hope. Let us embark on this project in that spirit, alive with the new hope that Easter brings.

The Drogheda Independent this week carried a feature about our church roof. You might have seen me on the fire brigade. I would like to talk to you about that. Next week I hope a member of our congregation will speak and the following Sunday a young person. It is a pity last Sunday's gospel is not on today. If you remember the paralytic going through the roof. Today's gospel is also suitable in that it talks about moving out of the wilderness and new wine, new wineskins. We are faced with an enormous task. Re-roofing this church at a cost of £380,000! It is an urgent task as is clear from the architect's report. We have been dodging buckets and collecting water in various places in the church, since I came here nearly three years ago. The architect's report and recommendations were made in 1995. In the meantime the building has deteriorated further. You can see the photos at the back of the church. We have no choice, we'll have to look after it. I have written all this in the Drogheda Independent so I won't labour the point. It is going to cost a lot of money. We will have to fundraise. We'll need all the help we can get. All suggestions and efforts in this regard will be very welcome. As well as securing this church against the elements, I see the re-roofing project as an opportunity for us to make a strong statement of hope, at a time when hope is needed. We are saying that this building is important to us. We gather here daily and at weekends as people have done for over 140 years to celebrate our liturgy. In renewing the roof we have an opportunity to renew ourselves, to listen to God speaking to our hearts and leading us in the wilderness. In my day to grow up in Ireland was to grow up as an Irish Catholic adult. Catholicism was in the air. I joined the osa in 1968. The biggest intake ever of the augs in one year. There was a sense of joining a going concern, which offered life, hope and opportunity through service to others. There was generous idealism. The churches were packed. Missions and retreats drew crowds, which required loudspeakers outside. Times have changed. In this church we have what most churches have, readers, collectors, choirs, folk musicians, altar servers, church workers the Monday group and large congregations. Much is already going on here. There are people who are content with this. There are also people who hope and pray for a turn-around to an increase in church practice. All that is required of the Church they say is a bit of patience, a judicious sitting on the hands. The swine-husks of modernity are but a temporary distraction. The return of the prodigals is inevitable. This is a recipe for pastoral passivity, for doing nothing. It cultivates an almost fatalistic indifference to reality, a denial of a growing crisis that has been scientifically tracked by every sociological survey conducted over the last fifteen years. There is a paradox in this in that while it identifies religious indifference as the problem, it advocates pastoral indifference as the solution. But those who are willing to look know that there are many whose needs and desires are not being catered for. These are found in all age groups. Can this project give us a kick start. How can we use this project to listen to each other, to name some of our needs and dreams, to look for a new vision of church together and plan the best way forward. How can we move from being inward looking and obsessed with survival to being outward-looking, life giving and concerned with humanity? What would you like to see happen in this church that would make you feel you belong more? How can your desire for God, or that of your children, be facilitated here, at a time when the quest for spirituality and meaning is widespread? As a young person what are your hopes and your needs? There is a common assumption that students are lacking in faith and have little interest in spiritual matters. Young people are under pressure from many directions and they often feel the need to live out some of the negative and rebellious roles assigned to them. When youth are treated as responsible individuals they frequently rise to the challenge. It is realized that educated young people will play an important role in the country in the years ahead and therefore building contacts with them is deemed a wise option. The church also needs to look beyond the short term difficulties and invest for the future. …. What I find most impressive about today's youth is the courage they display in meeting challenges and problems that their parents never had to cope with. We need people of this caliber in the Church of the future, so let us do all we can to support and understand them now. How can we reach out to our youth? How can we reach out to those who don't practice?There are those for whom religion is seen as something for the children, confirmation as the sacrament of farewell to Church and religion as something to grow out of rather than grow up into. According to one survey the quandary for those in their twenties is fairly simple. They grew out of religion. They have small children. They associate religion with 'goodness' and 'doing the right thing' and would like their children to have faith, to be faithful - but they themselves are not. And so they look to others, to Catholic schools in particular to do the job. And to involve them as little as possible. For the thirty something, the quandary is more complex. They carried faith into their twenties, saw it battered and bruised into our thirties and now find that staying faithful takes more energy than it used to. Staying faithful puts you in a minority position. Where do we go in search of a new vision of church for ourselves. One thing to avoid is banging our heads off the brick wall of resistance to change, a resistance which is all over the place, at the bottom no less than at the top. All that will bring is a brain that is smashed to pulp and the walls of resistance will remain as strong as ever. Should we for the sake of unity, move only at the pace of the slowest member? That would mean no movement at all because the slowest members do not want to move forwards but rather backwards. The best way to move forward is for people who are open to change to come together and work positively for the future. One thing we can do is ask questions, even if we don't have answers. For instance what is God saying to us about priesthood, not just its roles or functions, but its nature and significance as we look towards a future of fewer and aging priests? How is the traditional understanding of the relationship between the ministerial priesthood of the ordained, and the general priesthood of all the baptized likely to be affected by the changing situation? Other ideas on this in today's special edition of Crossroads for your reflection. In a few weeks we will hold a public meeting in the church to which you are invited, so that together, we can air our views, and talk and listen to each other on these and other matters. Our story parallels the journey through the wilderness. It is all there. The reluctance to leave Egypt. Things could be worse. The plagues that gave them the impetus to move. Scandals and dis-ease. We have no choice but to move on. On the way difficulties that drove many to want to go back to what they deemed the 'fleshpots of Egypt'. Oh to be back to the days of full churches. In our day, the Lord continues to lead his Church. It is our task to listen for his guidance and discern where he is leading us in all this. This is the context in which we are re-roofing of our church.

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