Two hundred years of worship and witness to God were celebrated in St Andrew’s Church in Malahide yesterday morning (Sunday November 27). There was standing room only in the church as people gathered to mark the bicentenary at the special service, which was celebrated by the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson and at which the Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd John McDowell, was the preacher.
Prayers were led by Dr Tom Healy and Retired Rector, the Revd Dr Norman Gamble, read the first reading.
It was most appropriate to have guests from the other churches in the village joining with us on this special occasion. Excellent ecumenical relations exist locally, and we were delighted that the Rev Alistair Dunlop and Fr. Kevin Doherty were able to be present. Indeed, St Sylvester’s Parish presented to sets of ribbon markers, in the various liturgical colours, to mark the bicentenary.
The church itself looked resplendent for the occasion – there was nothing out of place and every surface had been polished to within an inch of its life! The flowers, arranged by Christopher White, were stunning in the church, entrance porch and St Marnock’s Chapel and the food served at a reception in the Parish Centre after the service was simply beautiful.
All in all, the whole day was an unqualified success, but special mention should be made of the choir who excelled themselves – even singing The Gloria in Latin!
Much planning and forethought had gone into making the occasion special and we are most grateful to all those who were only too willing to help.
In his sermon Archbishop McDowell noted that when the church was built 200 years ago, it changed the landscape of Malahide. “Your calling and my calling is to do the same. To change the landscape wherever we find ourselves, so that the glory of God may be seen in the land,” he said.
“Now, you may be looking at the person beside you and saying to yourself he/she doesn’t look very glorious, or you may be looking up at rector and me and thinking they don’t look very glorious either. But this is the glory of God and it is his glory that we reflect in the world – to go to the places where people find it very difficult to be fully human for whatever reason, and to bring the humanity of Jesus with us. And of course, to search out those places within ourselves which are not fully human either– those elements in ourselves which are self–regarding or ugly and self–satisfied, which are vindictive and devious. We all have them,” he continued.
He said Christian holiness was to be an “involved goodness” not the goodness that was very often associated with Christianity which was pure and correct and aloof but had no love in it and therefore no redemptive power. “The holiness of God enables people. It helps them to see themselves differently. To see themselves as people who have a part in God and to whom he has joined himself in a solidarity which will never fail. It changes the landscape for them,” the Archbishop said.
The full text of Archbishop Mc Dowell’s sermon may be found on the parish website .
During the service, Archbishop Jackson dedicated a number of gifts which had been given to the parish. These included the anonymous presentation of a piano; an altar frontal from the Anton family in memory of their mother and grandmother, Kathleen; a brass cross from the Rector and Tanya Sewell; a set of ribbon Bible markers presented by the clergy and parishioners of St Sylvester’s Parish Church, Malahide, and a crib and nativity figures presented by the Mothers’ Union.
The service was followed by a reception in the parish centre at which a celebratory cake was cut. Those gathered also bade farewell to Diocesan Reader, Dr Tom Healy, who has moved to Kilkenny. Parish treasurer Brian Brown made a presentation to Tom and thanked him for all he had done in the parish saying he had been a friend to all. Tom thanked the parish for their support over the years and for the welcome he and his partner Bridget had been given.