AS I WAS SAYING...
I posed a few questions here recently, to which I now return: "What are Augustinians for? What services do they provide that are not already provided by the local clergy? The weakening of the religious impulse has imposed some difficult questions. Had Religious Orders remained sufficiently connected to their origins, such questions would be second nature to them.
"The unexamined life is not worth living" claimed the ancient Greek philosopher. How much more is it be true of the Religious Life. Many of you will remember Big Vincent McCarthy. He was Prior of St. Augustine's here over ten years ago. He was fond of telling what he called 'a little Ecumenical story'. He was returning from a wedding in Sligo town. He gave a lift to this young man. Under questioning, the hitch hiker revealed he was a carpenter by trade. (Everyone knows what a carpenter does!) "And what do you do yourself?" he asked Vincent. "I'm an Augustinian priest and I live in Galway" answered Vincent. (This latter profession was not so clearly defined as the former, apparently!)
The young man began to voice some serious theological misgivings of his own: "I can't understand why the Catholic Church doesn't get together with ye. Sure aren't ye almost the same as us now!" the young man mused in a very puzzled manner. Not wishing to confuse the young man further, Vincent moved hastily into learning mode and steered the conversation to the less perilous harbour of the building trade!
Vincent was in the habit of reserving that little story for Church Unity week. But it works equally well in the context of a discussion on the Religious Orders. What are they for? I don't blame the young man for being confused. Because a similar confusion will be found within the Religious Orders themselves.
So in what way are we Augustinians different? From the Franciscans? The Dominicans? The Jesuits? The Diocesan Clergy? Opus Dei? We Augustinians would claim a particular expertise in community-building. (You will be sufficiently experienced to recognise the irony in this claim!) But then, the Dominicans and the Franciscans would also regard community building as their raison d'être.
The Religious Orders arose as prophetic voices, addressing specific needs in the contemporary Church. They offered alternative ways of 'being Church'. They complemented rather than rivaling what was already on offer. The writings of St. Augustine stressed that the Church was primarily a compassionate community. All other factors were subordinate. The ideal is as valid as ever. A huge chasm divided the ideal from the real in Galway in recent years. Yet I do believe that our Parish has striven at all times to connect people with one another, to inculcate in them a responsibility for each other, and -above all- to afford them the 'space' to celebrate God's goodness to humanity, both liturgically and socially. I rejoice that you claimed that space with such enthusiasm, and so often. (The Mid Summer Festival was just one more example of the community spirit around this place). But, you may argue, that space could have been offered by any other parish? But it wasn't, and that's the point! Perhaps, after all, that's what Augustinians are for? No bad raison d'être, at all!
-Dick Lyng.
FRIENDSHIP
You are not as near the others, as it would console you to believe: there are distances between you and everything else. You are separate.
Often what you call beliefs and values are only frenzied ways of forgetting that you are alone in the world. Work and activities fill tip the emptiness - and so you avoid the danger of going any deeper within yourself. If the distances sharpened and stiffened around you, then insanity might be too near. This is why friends are sent to you - to help you to survive and celebrate life. They are part of a secret Providence looking after you, weaving your ways and days together, gently.
We are made of clay. Our bodies are as old as the clay of the world itself. And when friends discover each other, it is as if clay which was once all of a piece and became separated, now recognises itself again. Some ancient presence which time split up, and for millions of years wandered with no name or home, has found itself again. No longer does its memory mourn for its lost life. This is why friendship is a deep recognition - friends are not just made - they are recognised as lost parts of each other which belong together. Others will only see you through a blur of barriers and images, a friend will see clearly the special shape of your soul. A friend will see you as you are. She will not reduce you to what you do, to what others think of you, or even to what you think of yourself. You are not judged at all.
And often when the dark wind rages around your trembling mind, her voice will calm your heart. Blessed is your friend!
-John O'Donoghue.
THE EXAMINATION
'Well doctor, what do you think?'
He took the poem and examined it.
'Mmmm ...'
The clock ticked nervously.
'This will have to come out for a start.'
He stabbed a cold finger into its heart.
'Needs cutting here as well.
This can go.
And this is weak. Needs building up.'
He paused ...
'But it's the Caesura I'm afraid,
Can't do much about that.'
My palms sweated.
'Throw it away and start again, that's my advice.
And on the way out, send in the next patient, will you?'
I buttoned up my manuscript and left.
Outside, it was raining odes and stanzas.
I caught a crowded anthology and went directly home.
Realizing finally that I would never be published.
That I was to remain one of the all-time great unknown poets,
My work rejected by even the vanity presses,
I decided to end it all.
Taking an overdose of Lyricism
I awaited the final peace
When into the room burst the Verse Squad
Followed by the Poetry Police.
-Roger McGough.
Knock Pilgrimage Change
Please note that the ‘regular’ date and day for the annual Augustinian Pilgrimage to Knock has changed this year. It was our custom to hold it on the second Sunday of September. However, in recent years the GAA decided to change the All Ireland Hurling Final from the first Sunday to the second Sunday of September, leaving the Augustinians in Knock on their own!
So, this year, the Augustinian Pilgrimage will be held on Saturday July 20th. A bus (or, optimistically) buses will leave Merchant’s Road at 12.00 midday on Saturday week next for Knock. Tickets are now available in the Priory Office.
GOBÁN SAOR
The Cast will meet as usual on Monday night at 8.00 for rehearsals. You will notice scattered around the church and priory motifs from the Book of Kells. Believe it or not, these were prepared by Gerry and Mairead, and painted by some of the children who entered our Summer Art competition.
MEMORABLE QUOTES
- "Be advised that all flatterers live at the expense of those who listen to them." -Jean de La Fontaine.
- "Let's have some new cliches!" -Samuel Goldwyn.
- "The workers have nothing to lose but their chains. They have a world to gain. Workers of the world, unite!" -Karl Marx.
- "Karl Marx wasn't a Marxist all the time. He got drunk in the Tottenham Court Road." -Michael Foot.
- "Television is far more interesting than people. If it were not, we should have people standing in the corners of our rooms. " -Alan Coren.
- "When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had a lot of trouble in his life most of which had never happened" -Winston Churchill
- "He said true things but called them by wrong names." -Robert Browning.
BACK TO SQUARE ONE
A Waterfordman got agitated when he encountered difficulties getting onto an anger management course and ended up going "berserk" in a garda patrol car that brought him away from the counselling centre, Waterford District court heard recently.
Garda Fergal Ging told the court that he had been called to Brook House by staff, who asked him to remove the defendant, Eamonn Cuddihy, 29 Arbour Road. The defendant had become upset and agitated because he had been left waiting two hours. He proceeded to punch the wall, but then calmed down and was taken away in the patrol car.
The court heard that Cuddihy then refused to get out of the patrol car. "He went berserk and started shouting that he would wreck the car and that he was going to kill someone," Garda Ging told the court. Judge William Harnett imposed a two-month suspended sentence on Cuddihy on condition he entered a Probation Bond and sought treatment for anger management!
- The Waterford News and Star
EVENTS OF THE WEEK
- MID SUMMER FESTIVAL REVIEW: The Steering Committee held a review of the recent Mid Summer Festival on Tuesday night. All recognised that we were so fortunate with the weather. That Saturday was one of the few nights this Summer that you could actually stand outdoors without getting soaked to the skin. As you will recognise from the photographs it was a lovely Summers evening. Nothing could have gone wrong in weather like that!
- THE BARBECUE: We invested in a gas-fired barbecue this year (€299). Peter, our chef for the evening, attended the meeting and pronounced himself very pleased with the utensils at his disposal on the night, and indeed with the fare itself. He congratulated those who had calculated so accurately the amount of food required. Having cooked for over 200 (not counting women and children!), 7 hamburgers remained over! In previous years we had been scared -for reasons of health and hygiene- of using the barbecue. Our fears on that score have now been put to rest, and the infernal machine is destined to feature centrally in future Parish celebrations!
- LOCAL SUPPORT: The level of support from local businesses this year was brilliant. This was our fourth year staging the Festival. An awareness of it as an annual event has obviously grown locally. This heightened awareness has meant increased support. Thanks very much indeed.
- THE LITURGY AND FORMAL EVENTS: The Poetry and Music evening in the church on Friday worked very well indeed. Patrick Carton was a real find and he added that extra bit of punch and life to the proceedings. The 'Split Level' Liturgy (Forthill-Church) surprised a lot of people. But it had been flagged for four weeks. There's not a lot more you can do by way of notifying people, really.
Home