Connacht Tribune
Galway church faithful’s concerns over ‘à la carte’ Catholics
Retaining the Catholic faithful beyond the big ‘celebratory’ Sacraments of Initiation was one of the main challenges facing the Church, according to local parishioners.
Positively promoting what the Church has to offer young people in the era of social media and fake news, and making the Sunday homily more engaging, were among the other suggestions to restore the faith.
The analysis emerged from a survey across the Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora which gauged parishioners’ views on the future of the Catholic Church.
The Diocesan Synthesis fed into the National Synthesis document which was sent to Rome and was prepared by 26 Catholic dioceses following a consultation in every parish.
It forms part of the Synod of Bishops planned by Pope Francis for October 2023.
National media reports on the National Synthesis focused on calls by Irish Catholics for radical changes including on celibacy rules, women priests, and attitudes to the LGBT+ community.
But none of these issues are mentioned directly in the ten-page Galway Diocesan Synthesis, which instead focused on ‘faith as a lived experience’ and ‘faith formation into adulthood’.
One of the ‘failures’ identified by local parishioners was that the celebration of the sacraments (baptism, first communion and confirmation), “has not led to a sacramental life or a daily life of faith”.
These were ‘landmark events’ but often viewed as ‘once off’ occasions rather than a journey of faith. One respondent noted first communion and confirmation were just ‘money collection’ days, while confirmation was viewed as an ‘exit point’.
The document stated that “isolation of the sacraments to mere events was a result of poor formation” and noted that “little is done to support young people to grow in faith after they receive the sacraments”.
It said, “schools alone were left with the responsibility of faith formation for young people”.
“This over-reliance on schools means that for many young people their only experience of Catholic community is through their school rather than the Church. Schools cannot be left with this responsibility,” it said.
The report said that dedicated religious teachers need to be “more actively supported” in future.
A common view expressed throughout the process was the need for “ongoing faith formation programmes at all levels”.
Faith formation should not be left to staff of Catholic schools alone, and priests and laypeople should visit schools during religion class.
Sunday schools and children faith groups at a parish level were also suggested.
The Diocesan Synthesis noted a “huge concern” was “the handing on of the faith”.
It added: “It was stated that the Church needs to market what it has to offer, especially if we are to connect with the marginalised and disenfranchised. Faith formation will have to take on the challenge in a world where social media promotes ‘fake news’ and continually sees the Church in a negative light. How will the next generation be taught or educated about their faith?”
The importance of the Sunday homily was also emphasised.
“As an expression of our lived faith, the Sunday Eucharist has to be celebrated in a more engaging manner. The whole area of liturgy needs to be examined, with special attention being given to choirs and liturgical music in general.
“We need to make the connection between the Eucharist and the daily life of each and every one of us. This is one of the major ways in which our faith grows,” it said.
The diocesan synodal team included laity and clergy, with equal representation of men and women.
It held sessions in person and online and reached out for feedback through parish meetings and an online survey.
Ten meetings, encompassing seventeen parishes, across a diocese with thirty-nine parishes took place over three months.
The synod said engagement with the survey, “exceeded our expectations”.
There was a total of 377 respondents, representing about 0.36% of the diocesan church communities in Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora, or an average of almost ten respondents per parish and was “representative of the diocese”.
Significant state investment is required to address ‘shocking’ inequalities that leave cancer patients in the West at greater risk of succumbing to the disease.
A meeting of Regional Health Forum West heard that survival rates for breast, lung and colorectal cancers than the national average, and with the most deprived quintile of the population, the West’s residents faced poorer outcomes from a cancer diagnosis.
For breast cancer patients, the five-year survival rate was 80% in the West versus 85% nationally; for lung cancer patients it was 16.7% in the west against a 19.5% national survival rate; and in the West’s colorectal cancer patients, there was a 62.6% survival rate where the national average was 63.1%.
These startling statistics were provided in answer to a question from Ballinasloe-based Cllr Evelyn Parsons (Ind) who said it was yet another reminder that cancer treatment infrastructure in the West was in dire need of improvement.
“The situation is pretty stark. In the Western Regional Health Forum area, we have the highest incidence of deprivation and the highest health inequalities because of that – we have the highest incidences of cancer nationally because of that,” said Cllr Parsons, who is also a general practitioner.
In details provided by CEO of Saolta Health Care Group, which operates Galway’s hospitals, it was stated that a number of factors were impacting on patient outcomes.
Get the full story in this week’s Connacht Tribune, on sale in shops now, or you can download the digital edition from www.connachttribune.ie. You can also download our Connacht Tribune App from Apple’s App Store or get the Android Version from Google Play.
Galway 3-18
Cork 1-10
NEW setting; new opposition; new challenge. It made no difference to the Galway minor hurlers as they chalked up a remarkable sixth consecutive double digits championship victory at Semple Stadium on Saturday.
The final scoreline in Thurles may have been a little harsh on Cork, but there was no doubting Galway’s overall superiority in setting up only a second-ever All-Ireland showdown against Clare at the same venue on Sunday week.
Having claimed an historic Leinster title the previous weekend, Galway took a while to get going against the Rebels and also endured their first period in a match in which they were heavily outscored, but still the boys in maroon roll on.
Beating a decent Cork outfit by 14 points sums up how formidable Galway are. No team has managed to lay a glove on them so far, and though Clare might ask them questions other challengers haven’t, they are going to have to find significant improvement on their semi-final win over 14-man Kilkenny to pull off a final upset.
Galway just aren’t winning their matches; they are overpowering the teams which have stood in their way. Their level of consistency is admirable for young players starting off on the inter-county journey, while the team’s temperament appears to be bombproof, no matter what is thrown at them.
Having romped through Leinster, Galway should have been a bit rattled by being only level (0-4 each) after 20 minutes and being a little fortunate not to have been behind; or when Cork stormed out of the blocks at the start of the second half by hitting 1-4 to just a solitary point in reply, but there was never any trace of panic in their ranks.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
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GARDAÍ and the IFA have issued a joint appeal to all road users to take extra care as the silage season gets under way across the country.
Silage harvesting started in many parts of Galway last week – and over the coming month, the sight of tractors and trailers on rural roads will be getting far more frequent.
Inspector Conor Madden, who is in charge of Galway Roads Policing, told the Farming Tribune that a bit of extra care and common-sense from all road users would go a long way towards preventing serious collisions on roads this summer.
“One thing I would ask farmers and contractors to consider is to try and get more experienced drivers working for them.
“Tractors have got faster and bigger – and they are also towing heavy loads of silage – so care and experience are a great help in terms of accident prevention,” Inspector Madden told the Farming Tribune.
He said that tractor drivers should always be aware of traffic building up behind them and to pull in and let these vehicles pass, where it was safe to do so.
“By the same token, other road users should always exercise extra care; drive that bit slower; and ‘pull in’ that bit more, when meeting tractors and heavy machinery.
“We all want to see everyone enjoying a safe summer on our roads – that extra bit of care, and consideration for other roads users can make a huge difference,” said Conor Madden.
He also advised motorists and tractor drivers to be acutely aware of pedestrians and cyclists on the roads during the summer season when more people would be out walking and cycling on the roads.
The IFA has also joined in on the road safety appeal with Galway IFA Farm Family and Social Affairs Chair Teresa Roche asking all road users to exercise that extra bit of care and caution.
“We are renewing our annual appeal for motorists to be on the look out for tractors, trailers and other agricultural machinery exiting from fields and farmyards,” she said.
For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.
Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App
Download the Connacht Tribune Digital Edition App to access to Galway’s best-selling newspaper.
Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Or purchase the Digital Edition for PC, Mac or Laptop from Pagesuite HERE.
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The Connacht Tribune Live app is the home of everything that is happening in Galway City and county. It’s completely FREE and features all the latest news, sport and information on what’s on in your area. Click HERE to download it for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, or HERE to get the Android Version from Google Play.
Families queue up for school’s offer of free house
West has lower cancer survival rates than rest
Galway minors continue to lay waste to all opponents
Gardaí and IFA issue a joint appeal on summer road safety
Marathon Man plans to call a halt – but not before he hits 160 races
