to be another ministry which could be developed with the help of lay people.  For example, leading prayers at removal of remains and at gravesides does not require the services of an ordained priest.


· The Church in Ireland at the moment is looking at the possibility of training people to act as pastoral leaders who would be employed and paid on a full-time or part-time basis.  A training programme is already in place for this in Maynooth.  There is also now the possibility of promoting Permanent Diaconate, an ordained ministry which is open to married men.  Many aspects of the work which is carried out by deacons is already being filled by lay people.  In Ireland plans are afoot for the development of a training programme for deacons, a programme which will be initiated this year. 


Time for Change :
Everything that I have been saying points in one direction: change is inevitable.  Of course, change is always difficult.  People have to make sacrifices when change is demanded.  Communities will have to accept lesser services of ordained priests because there are less of us around and the average age of priests goes up all the time.  I would like, at this stage, to call attention to one mindset which would make change even more difficult than it has to be.  If a community is determined to fight for its own rights and does not take into account the needs of others, then it will be very difficult to achieve rationalisation.  I am also very conscious that parishes which are adjacent to each other have their own rivalries.  Some of these may have much more to do with playing pitches than with Church buildings!  Let me say that at this time in our history and in this time of need in the Church, Christian faith demands that we move outside a narrow interest and move towards a greater generosity of spirit.  A Christian community which is inward-looking lacks a very important aspect of true discipleship.  In the Church caring does not admit of boundaries.



Way Forward
After twenty-five years in ministry as Bishop during which I have seen how resilient we can be, I am confident that the challenge we are facing will be met and the difficulties overcome.   In these past twenty-five years we have moved more towards becoming a truly people's Church than we realise.  I believe the time has come now to build on what we have achieved so far, to take new and courageous steps towards co-responsibility and to step bravely into a new world so that  together we will build the Kingdom of God.
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I am putting forward these thoughts for consideration over the coming few months.  While it is mainly to priests and Pastoral Councils that I am turning, I also want people generally to apply their minds to these issues.  I want everybody in fact who reads this letter to feel free to put forward ideas about how we can address the issues that I have outlined.  It is probably best that you bring these to the attention of your local Parish Pastoral Council but I would be quite willing, and happy indeed, to hear from people directly who may wish to convey their ideas to me.  You can write by letter to the Diocesan Office or communicate by e-mail to ardaghdi@iol.ie. 


As a focus for discussion I would suggest the following questions :