Sunday Newsletter

Masses Today

11.00: Harry, Noreen & David Warner, (Anniv).
6.30: Brian Flaherty, (Anniv).

As I Was Saying...

Did you see the moon last weekend? I missed it and I had to make do with shots of the eclipse on the TV later. Even then, it was a spectacular sight. The colour of the Moon changed from silvery white to coppery red or orange as light bounced back off the "blood moon".

In ancient times blood moons were seen as omens of great change or disaster and were regarded with dread. This was a firm belief in Shakespeare's day:

Alack, our terrene moon
Is now eclipsed; and it portends alone
The fall of Antony!
-(Anthony and Cleopatra).

You could well see how primitive societies would attribute such a strikingly strange and beautiful spectacle to divine intervention, not having access to the complicated mathematics you need to work out exactly how and when an eclipse will occur. This predictability of the moon's behaviour today puts an eclipse in the realm of science rather than of religious belief. Traditionally, though, believers have harnessed that very predictability for their own purposes.

It's well known that Ramadan begins and ends with the first actual sighting of the crescent moon, though Muslims all over the world know precisely when to expect it. (The crescent moon must be seen with the naked eyes before Ramadan begins).

The baseline of the Jewish calendar once also depended on similar annual sightings, though here a more scientific methodical approach has now taken over.

In the case of Christianity, the date of Easter still depends on a complicated calculation about the arrival of the new moon. (How many of you now know the precise method of calculating the Easter date?)

But has science really eclipsed religion, as some scientists insist? It depends on the scientist. Biologists appear much more likely to be atheists than physicists or astronomers. In their Beginning, if you like, there was no Word. But it may not be the biology that made them so, maybe they simply chose the branch of science that made them most comfortable.

Perhaps the closer you look into reality with a microscope, the less mysterious reality becomes: the further you look into reality with a telescope, the more mysterious it is. In the astronomer's Beginning there was at least a Big Bang, utterly inexplicable and yet demanding to be explained. It is as if the ultimate question is not "Is there a God?" but "Why is there anything?"

The theory of 'Intelligent Design' is commonly dismissed as unscientific, and therefore as untrue. (So, unscientific=untrue? Hardly!) To someone with a religious mindset, 'Intelligent Design' is no big deal. Certainly for the person standing in the garden with binoculars on Saturday night week, it must have been just as amazing to think what science can do (to make sense of all this), as to think what God can do (to make all this out of nothing!). It may seem like lunacy to some, but to the believer it is as plain as daylight.

-Dick Lyng

Items of Some Interest

The Late Brendan O'Donnell

Brendan O'Donnell was born on the Docks in Galway 73 years ago. His first career was as a printer in O'Gorman's. But, since he came from a family of boat builders and seafarers, and had been born within yards of the water, he found the pull of the sea irresistible. In fact he was to spend the greater part of his working life on the sea and overseas as a Master on offshore vessels servicing gas and oil fields. In the latter part of his career he plied his trade in both the North Sea and in the Persian Gulf.

On his breaks from the sea, Brendan usually set up office in Freeney's of High Street. There he held court in the manner of the Coleridge's 'Ancient Mariner'. And, sometimes, like the Wedding Guest in that poem, it wasn't easy escape the enthusiasm of the storyteller:

He holds him with his glittering eye -
The wedding-guest stood still,
And listens like a three years' child:
The Mariner hath his will.

The fact that Freeney's had a fax machine made the premises more suitable for his purposes than, say, McDonagh's Fish shop! When sufficiently rested and refreshed, Brendan simply sent a fax from Freeney's to his remote masters in Saudi Arabia. He was back on his boat in a warmer and much drier climate (in every sense of that term) within days.

He loved the sea and photography. Both these loves, together with his background in printing, resulted in a very attractive volume which he published in 2001 called 'Galway-A Maritime Tradition: Ships, Boats and People' Essentially, this is a selection of old photographs from his personal collection, with an accompanying lucid commentary.

On a personal level, I found Brendan's company most convivial and entertaining. While he wasn't our most observant parishioner, his heart was always in the right place. For example, if he thought that he wouldn't be back on land for the Christmas or Easter festivals, he always anticipated the Feast by handing his 'Dues Envelope' to Peggy Carter before setting sail once more. Brendan was always scrupulous about the essentials!

During his short spells at home, he entertained generously at his apartment by the docks. Again, like the Ancient Mariner, he often detained me late into the night 'with fabulous stories from beyond the seas.' And, invariably after such sessions, I carried a debilitating albatross, not so much on my shoulder, but within my head throughout the following day!

Brendan's entire life was absorbed by the sea and maritime matters. His knowledge of the marine field was encyclopedic and his experiences sufficient to cover two lifetimes. He was always ready to share his expertise with anyone.

His concern for his crew was exemplary. While working in Chinese waters his First Officer sought his advice on many matters. This gentleman, a native of Hong Kong, continued to correspond with Brendan up to the time of his death. Brendan's final months were difficult. But he was an informed, humble and reflective man who derived great strength from the faith of his childhood. He is survived by his brother Jack, his sisters Marie, Isobel, Alice (Scanlan) and Patricia.

Bon Voyage, Brendan, and safe haven.

Lenten Sessions

We had a really interesting 'Lenten Session' on Tuesday evening last. Thirty-five people attended.

Imam Ibrahim spoke on the role of 'Fasting' within the Islamic tradition. He took questions on a broad range of topics after his address and Rev'd Patrick Towers chaired the 'Open Forum' with his customary panache. But he did lose his composure somewhat when the topic of 'Women and Islam' was broached. (But then it was his wife Anne who was interrogating the hapless Imam rather severely!)

So the remainder of the programme runs as follows:

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