Memorial Booklet for Fr Con
To celebrate Fr Con's memory, our Parish Newsletter Team has produced a commemorative booklet of various tributes published in honour of Con after his death.  Please feel free to pick up a copy in any of our Churches or directly from the Parish Office.  You can view the booklet online as a PDF file by clicking on the image of the booklet cover. 

Welcome Fr Sibi

This week I plan to be away for a short break and to catch up with some family and friends up the country.  During my absence Fr Sibi has kindly agreed to celebrate Mass and cover any duties that arise.  Fr Sibi has previously worked in Clogheen Parish and Clonakilty Parish and is currently helping in the Cathedral Parish.  We welcome Fr Sibi and thank him for supporting us this week.                                                                                                    

Beginning a challenging conversation

It is hard to believe that ten weeks have now passed since Fr Con’s tragic accident. In many ways it all still seems so unreal.  Since then, our focus has been on grieving for Con, honouring his life and ministry, entrusting him to the Lord in prayer and supporting one another through the pain of his loss.  That journey will continue for all of us.  Some days, grief will unexpectedly ambush and overwhelm us. Other days, we will hopefully cope a little better, but his absence will always be with us and we will continue to feel it deeply. Even as we grieve his loss, we also need to begin to look to the future. It is almost certain that the diocese will not be in a position to appoint a second priest to our parishes. Over recent months, four parishes in the diocese  have been left without a resident priest and neighbouring parishes are striving to work more collaboratively to serve the needs of all the parishes in their area.  In such circumstances, it is difficult to argue that our parish should have a second priest.

That means that, over the coming weeks and months, we are faced with the challenge of devising a sustainable programme of services for our parishes into the future.  Our present rota of  six Sunday Masses [two Vigil Masses and four Sunday Morning Masses] was devised  when our parishes were served by three priests.  Now we will only have one priest available to serve the needs of our four Churches in Passage West, Monkstown, Shanbally and Ringaskiddy. Fr Con and I often spoke about this impending challenge, but we figured that it was still a couple of years away, most likely when he would reach retirement age for priests in two years time  Little did we imagine how quickly and tragically everything would change for all of us. The change will involve difficult choices for all of us and it will inevitably mean letting go of certain services we have grown accustomed to or that suit us personally.  But, if Con has taught us anything, surely it is not to be afraid of change.  Con proved that doing things differently can be every bit as blessed and every bit as beautiful as the way we have always done things in the past!  Over the coming weeks, together with our Parish Assembly, we will try to work out a new plan for a new moment in the long proud history of our parishes.  That plan must be both fair and sustainable for everyone involved.  As we begin that conversation, I ask the Spirit of God to bless us with the wisdom to discern a new way forward; the courage to embrace change, seeing it not simply as loss but also as an opportunity; and the generosity of heart to place the shared needs of all the community ahead of any parochial or personal preferences and desires.                                                                                                                                                                                         Fr Seán

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Useful guidelines from the Diocese of Cloyne

Last week we began the challenging conversation about how we plan for the future with only one priest available to serve all the needs of the parish. Last year our neighbouring diocese of Cloyne discussed this same challenge at length and agreed certain general principles governing the celebration of Sunday Masses.  Whilst we have to find a solution that fits our own particular circumstances, their guidelines offer a useful reference point for our own reflection over the coming weeks.

Within their diocesan policy, the diocese of Cloyne has agreed the following practices:

• Each priest should normally celebrate two Sunday Masses and no more than three Sunday Masses, including the Vigil Mass.

• Each parochial church should have at least one Sunday or Vigil Mass [An exception can be made in parishes where one priest serves four parish churches].

• There should normally be no more than one Vigil Mass in each parish.

• Priests should allow at least 90 minutes between Mass-times on Sunday.

• A temporary reduction in Sunday Masses may be introduced to provide for the priest’s annual leave or where a priest is absent due to illness.

• The parish is the basic unit of the diocese, and its own churches are the ordinary place of worship for the faithful.  In the event of a Sunday Mass being cancelled, we appeal to parishioners to choose one of the alternative Masses within their home parish.

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MASS SCHEDULE
Please note that for the coming weeks, the schedule for weekday Mass may vary from week to week.  The times of weekday Masses for the coming week will be published each weekend in our newsletter. 
Click here for a copy of our latest newsletter.

THE ORATORY
RINGASKIDDY

Sunday:                            9.00 a.m.
 

ST MARY'S CHURCH
PASSAGE WEST

Saturday:                            7.30 p.m.
Sunday:                             11.00 a.m.
 

CHURCH OF THE IMMACULATE HEART OF MARY, SHANBALLY:

Sunday:                           10.00 a.m.
 

CHURCH OF THE SACRED HEARTS
MONKSTOWN

Saturday:                            6.00 p.m.
Sunday:                             11.30 a.m.
 

CELEBRATION OF BAPTISMS AND MARRIAGES

Please contact Cathy in our Parish Office for baptism and wedding bookings. 

We look forward to being part of these special moments in your lives.

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WELCOME

Welcome to the parish website of the Harbour Parishes incorporating the communities of Passage West, Monkstown, Ringaskiddy and Shanbally in the beautiful Lower Harbour in Cork.  Whether you are a parishioner, a visitor or simply someone interested in knowing more about our parish and its services, we warmly welcome you and hope that our website proves useful.  If you need any further information about our parish please feel free to contact the Parish Office or any of our clergy.  Our contact details are listed at the foot of our website.