What an eventful weekend! Nick already covered the Scoil Mhuire and Kennedy Park Confirmations, but I’ll just add a bit. The music was beautiful. The decorations were lovely. The students looked well in their new clothes for the occasion. But, best of all, the sixth class students received the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of Confirmation, for which they have been preparing all year in school (or with Emily and me on Sunday mornings), the You Shall Be My Witnesses programme, and on their retreat day in Ballyvaloo. Congratulations to all the newly confirmed! May the gifts of the Holy Spirit nourish your life!
On Friday night, we were privileged to hear Vocaré in concert at Clonard. They are a phenomenal group of singers led by Sue Furlong, and it was such a joy to hear them perform! They sang a wide repertoire, including “Sleep” by Eric Whitacre, “Walk in Jerusalem” arranged by Rollo Dilworth, a few selections from Carol Barnett’s Bluegrass Mass, and lots of pieces in Irish. It was a collaborative concert: each group from Clonard sang a couple pieces from their regular repertoire. The Children’s Liturgy Group sounded cherubic, and we received many compliments on “Shelter Your Name” and “I Have Been Anointed” as sung by the Youth Choir, Vigil Choir, and Folk Group. (We teamed up on a few songs.) We sang “How Can We Be Silent” with any of the Passion Play cast who was there. It was the finale of that show, and seems to have become one of our Easter anthems at Mass! At the end, all the groups sang the Irish Blessing together. It was a lovely evening, to be sure.
But wait! The special events weren’t over! South East Radio has changed their Sunday morning Mass broadcast to allow for monthly live broadcasts, instead of doing them all in the studio. They’re going to different parishes in the Diocese of Ferns each month. Sunday morning, it was Clonard’s turn for the first time! The Children’s Liturgy Group led the music and readings, and everyone agreed it came over the airwaves beautifully. If you’d like to tune in on South East Radio’s livestream, all of you in the States will have to wake up pretty early – the Mass is on at 10:00am here. You might consider catching it on June 9, when the Clonard Vigil Choir and Youth Choir will be singing!
