Continuing Ministerial Education: A day to think and talk about prayer

Revd Michael Cavanagh cuts his birthday cake at the training day in Askeaton Rectory (photo: Patrick Comerford)

Prayer was at the heart of the March training day for clergy and readers in the diocese, when two groups met at the Rectory in Askeaton to discuss personal prayer, prayers in the life of the church, praying for others, and teaching others to pray. The two groups met on 12 March. We looked at different styles of prayer and discussed how we need to develop a life of prayer that suits our own needs and personality, while also helping others to develop an approach to prayer that meets their own personality types.

These monthly training days are designed for clergy and diocesan and parish readers, but are open to others who are interested.

Each week, sermon ideas for the following Sunday are posted on the CME site at: https://cmelimerick.blogspot.ie/. Each week’s posting includes reflections on the Sunday readings, collects, prefaces, post-communion prayers and other liturgical resources, as well as suggested hymns and appropriate photographs that can be used in parish newsletters and service sheets.

The next two training days are in April and May, looking at the place of cathedrals in the life of the Church, and discussing different styles of public worship.

On Monday 30 April, Canon Patrick Comerford will lead a ‘field trip’ to the three working cathedrals in the diocese, beginning at Saint Mary’s Cathedral, Limerick, moving on to Saint Flannan’s Cathedral, Killaloe, Co Clare, and finishing in the afternoon at Saint Brendan’s Cathedral, Clonfert, Co Galway.

On Monday 28 May, participants are invited to consider different approaches to liturgy and worship. This programme, in Saint Mary’s Church, Askeaton, Co Limerick, and is being led by the Revd Michael Cavanagh and Canon Patrick Comerford.

Further details are available from Patrick Comerford.

This half-page news report is published in the April 2018 edition of ‘Newslink,’ the magazine of the Church of Ireland United Dioceses of Limerick, Killaloe and Ardfert

A corner shop in Limerick brings together Georgian and Victorian architecture

The corner of O’Connell Street and Shannon Street in Limerick … an interesting stucco shop front and Georgian townhouse (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Patrick Comerford

O’Connell Street runs through the heart of Limerick, and still retains many of its original and once-elegant Georgian houses, first built as townhouses, but now mainly consisting of shopping units on the ground floors and office accommodation on the upper floors.

One eye-catching example of this combination of Georgian domestic architecture and Victorian stucco work as the houses were adapted to burgeoning commercial needs can be seen at Timberland, at 112 O’Connell Street.

This former townhouse stands at the corner of O’Connell Street and Shannon Street in the heart of Limerick’s commercial centre. Its place where these two important streets meets in the city centre gives this building additional value and architectural interest that enhance the streetscape.

No 112 is a four-storey-over basement brick building dating from around 1800, when it was built as a corner-site, end-of-terrace house. Two bays face onto O’Connell Street, but the five main bays face onto Shannon Street.

The building has an elaborate stucco-fronted shopfront, added around 1860 (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

I find the most interesting and engaging part of this building is the elaborate stucco-fronted shopfront that was added around 1860, providing at attractive ground-floor façade. There is a heavy cornice on the ground floor above the plain frieze and channel rusticated rendered walls on a moulded plinth course.

The five beautiful pilasters have flamboyant composite order capitals (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)

Underneath the heavy black paint, there are five beautiful pilasters with flamboyant composite order capitals and alternate vermiculated blocks that occupy the building ends and also frame the door opening on Shannon Street.

There is a square-headed, fixed-pane glazed shopfront on the O’Connell Street front, while there are while four square-headed fixed-pane window openings on the Shannon Street front, corresponding to the bays above.

The roof is hidden behind a rebuilt parapet wall with covered coping, and the building also has a concealed basement.

At the most westerly bay on Shannon Street, there is a three-point arched door opening with a voussoired rendered surround, and this also has alternating vermiculated detail. Here there is a replacement timber-panelled door, but the overlight and sidelights are retained, along with the five original curved limestone steps.

Above, the building retains its Georgian upper floors. The red brick walls are laid in Flemish bond with cement pointing. There are red brick flat-arched window openings with patent rendered reveals and painted limestone sills, with replacement timber sash windows that have horns. There is some cylinder glass in the second-floor windows.

At the most westerly bay on Shannon Street, there is a three-point arched door opening (Photograph: Patrick Comerford, 2018)