I hope you enjoyed the Christmas holidays. On our first tape of the year we have a reflection on the career and life of Archbishop Henry McAdoo, who died before Christmas. We have an interview with Michael Farrell of the Council of Civil Liberties on the current situation of Refugees in Ireland. Writer Anne Dickson talks about the importance of Emotional and Spiritual health and Sr. Justine from Nigeria relates her experiences of going to Mass here in Ireland. The World Council of Churches, Illiteracy, Anne Thurston and Alice Taylor make up the rest of the tape.
 

1. Crossways: News in the Church and the World. In our main report this week
we hear from Justin Kilcullen of Trocaire about Pope John Paul II’s Christmas and New Year’s messages on Human Rights. The news was read by Martin Browne and John O’Reilly.
Time: 6.03

2. Archbishop McAdoo: Archbishop Henry McAdoo, who died shortly before Christmas, was one of the most distinguished Church of Ireland clergymen of this century. Along with his contribution to Anglican theology and his service as Bishop of Ossory and Archbishop of Dublin, he will be remembered for his ecumenical work. He was Anglican co-chairman of the first Anglican-Roman Catholic International Commission — known as ARCIC 1 — and the architect of its major reports. Jesuit ecumenist Fr Michael Hurley spoke to Martin Browne recently about Dr McAdoo’s life’s work. He began by explaining the importance of that first Anglican-Roman Catholic commission.

In: (Hurley) "It produced three ………………….. between groups" Out: (Hurley) Time: 4’ 21

[A memorial service for Archbishop McAdoo will take place in Christchurch Cathedral, Dublin, on this Sunday, January 10th. Michael Hurley SJ is the author of Christian Unity: An Ecumenical Second Spring published recently by Veritas.]

3. The Situation of Refugees in Ireland: In recent years, four to five thousand refugees have come to Ireland each year. That is half of the number of people who leave the country each year. In line with the International Convention on Refugees, we passed a Refugee Act in 1996. According to the act, we were to set up an Independent Commissioner to deal with applications for asylum. This has not happened and many people are very concerned about the way we are treating our refugees. Recently a protest march took place from the Department of Justice to Dublin City Centre to draw attention to the failure of the Government to implement the Refugee Act. Marie Stuart RSM talked to Michael Farrell after he had addressed the meeting outside the Department of Justice. Michael is a solicitor and co-chairman of the Irish Council for Civil Liberties, which has been operating for the past twenty years.

In: (Stuart) "What do we …….. don't always make their voice heard" Out: (Farrell) Time: 6.17

4. Nancy Mulvey: It might surprise you to know that there are literally thousands of adults in this country who can’t read. Many struggle through life trying to hide this from the outside world and sometimes even from their own families. Nancy Mulvey is a fifty-something Grandmother who only started learning to read nine years ago. Thanks to an adult education organisation called KLEAR she eventually learned to read and now she supports other adults with literacy problems. She spoke to Maria O’Loughlin about hiding her illiteracy and how learning to read has changed her life forever.

In: (Mulvey) "Well I would have covered up………………go for it." Out: (Mulvey) Time: 4.50

5. The Risk of Living Free Human Lives: Mass communication is supposed to facilitate contact between people. We regularly hear advertisements encouraging us to keep in touch. But are we keeping in touch or are we becoming more disconnected? We pass others on the street as we talk on our mobile phones and we don't even see them. Anne Thurston, theologian and author, believes that we are building fortresses around ourselves and only associating with people who are like us and not like them. This she says has the seeds of sectarianism and racism and is contrary to the Christian gospel, which is about the acceptance of difference. When Marie Stuart RSM talked to her, she challenged her as to how we can reconcile the gospel with our need for safety and security.

In: (Stuart) "Isn't one of our basic ……… purpose & a common goal" Out: (Thurston) Time: 5.30

Side B:

1. World Council of Churches: The General Assembly of the World Council of Churches (WCC) took place recently in Harare, in Zimbabwe. The World Council is made up of Anglican, Protestant and Orthodox Churches, though the Roman Catholic Church has observer status. This recent General Assembly was especially important as it marked the 50th anniversary of the foundation of the WCC. As we prepare once again to mark the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity,

Sr Geraldine Smyth, who was in Harare for the Assembly, shares with Martin Browne some of the insights she gained at that extraordinary gathering. Geraldine is the outgoing Director of the Irish School of Ecumenics, and was recently elected Prioress General of the Dominican Sisters. She began by reflecting on what struck her most at the General Assembly.

In: (Smyth) "The enormous diversity ……….. a challenge of dialogue." Out: (Smyth) Time: 5.26

2. Emotional Health, Spiritual Health: No matter what difficulty we have nowadays it appears there is a tablet to fix it. Anne Dickson, psychologist and author believes that this is not a good thing for us. She believes that many of our physical difficulties arise from emotional difficulties. When we feel angry or anxious, sad or afraid our bodies react and we need to understand what is happening to us before we can deal with and change things in our lives. Marie Stuart RSM asked her if there is a healthier way of dealing with life's difficulties.

In: (Dickson) "There are all sorts of ……….. fully, fully human" Out: (Dickson) Time: 6.15

(Anne is author of 'Assertiveness` and 'The Mirror Within' and hopes to have a new book out this year to be titled 'Tears in my Eyes' which is about managing emotions)

3. Mass at home and in Nigeria: Sr. Justine MMM grew up in a small village in Western Nigeria. Her family was strongly involved in their local church and she decided to join the Medical Missionaries of Mary. She first visited Ireland in the 1980’s and is currently studying in All Hallows College, Dublin. She talks to John O’Reilly about returning to Ireland in the 90’s and how mass here differs from Nigeria.

In (Sr. Justine) " I came here……………..………..that might help." Out: (Sr. Justine) Time: 5.40

4. My New Desk: Did you ever buy a piece of furniture, bring it home and find it wouldn't go up the stairs? When Alice Taylor gave in to her sons' nagging and cleared up, painted and carpeted her attic study she ordered a new desk. The desk arrived and she loved the look of it and feel of it. However, problems arose when she attempted to get it up the stairs. She told Marie Stuart RSM the saga of getting the desk up to her study.

In: (Stuart) "Was the arrival …… when the time is right it will happen" Out: (Taylor) Time: 5.55

That’s all from this tape, except to wish you all a happy New Year. 3R Productions is looking forward to continuing our good relations with you all in the coming year.