Amid "Time of Purification," Ireland's Moment of Communion

Here below, fulltext of the Opening Homily given today by the Papal Legate to the 50th International Eucharistic Congress in Dublin -- the prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, Quebec's Cardinal Marc Ouellet:

Prior to today's preach, B16's handpicked Hatman -- who, as primate of Canada, presided over the last global Eucharistic Congress in his then-archdiocese in 2008 -- delivered a notable lead address on "The Ecclesiology of Communion" 50 years after Vatican II to kick off a theological symposium held in Ireland's national seminary, St Patrick's at Maynooth, in the run-up to this week's event.

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And as a "Healing Stone" (left) set before the altar -- the prayer etched on it written by a survivor of clergy sex-abuse -- bore witness to the historic weight hanging over the once-vaunted Irish church, some snips from this morning's welcome remarks of the host-prelate, the capital's Archbishop Diarmuid Martin:

Today the Church in Ireland rejoices. It rejoices not in triumphalism or external festivities. It rejoices in the gift of this Eucharistic Congress which has been attentively prepared throughout the length and breath of Ireland through prayerful reflection on the great Mystery of our Faith: the sacrificial death and the life-giving resurrection of Jesus, present in the Church wherever the Eucharist is celebrated and worshipped....

Above all the Church in Ireland rejoices in the gift of the Eucharist itself, the presence among us of Jesus Christ, our Saviour, given for us, poured out for us, in a sacrifice of love.

The Church in Ireland is a Church on the path to renewal. The fifty years since the Second Vatican Council have brought many graces to the Church in Ireland. The message and teaching of the Council still constitute the blueprint for our renewal.

But those fifty years have also been marked with a darker side, of sinful and criminal abuse and neglect of those weakest in our society: children, who should have been the object of the greatest care and support and Christ-like love. We recall all those who suffered abuse and who still today bear the mark of that abuse and may well carry it with them for the rest of their lives. In a spirit of repentance, let us remember each of them in the silence of our hearts.

The Church in Ireland is on the path to renewal. It will be a lengthy journey. It requires renewed and vigorous New Evangelization, a renewal in faith and in coherent and authentic witness to that faith in the world and in the culture in which we live....

The Church in Ireland is on the path to renewal. The Church is not ours to redesign; it is gift that we receive from the Lord with the guidance throughout history of the Holy Spirit and following the example of Mary and the saints.

We look forward in hope. We do not rely on our own talents. We are sure that in our efforts of renewal we are never alone. The Eucharist is food for our journey, inviting us to emulate the self-giving love of Jesus who gave himself for us.

Slated to attract pilgrims by the tens of thousands, the Congress will run throughout the coming week.

Among others, our friends at Salt + Light will be streaming the days of liturgies and catechesis sessions.

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