Bank Holiday Weekend

This weekend sees Athea Comhaltas Branch host an outdoor session of music, song and craic with a bar-b-cue thrown in at 6pm by the pagoda on the river bank.  Because this is Ireland and the weather is so unpredictable, if the evening is bad the entertainment will take place in the Con Colbert Hall. At the moment the signs aren’t great but things can change in a couple of days so it’s a case of “fingers crossed” but at least we won’t be worried about rain at Gerard Whites for the session there after at 8.30. There will also be the Duck and Swan in Batt’s on Friday night starting at 9pm and a traditional singing night on Saturday at 8.30pm. There is also entertainment at Brown Joe’s over the weekend and on Sunday there is a vintage rally in Carrigkerry so there is plenty to enjoy over the holiday.

GROW MENTAL HEALTH

Grow Mental Health- Friendly Community based groups for anyone experiencing mental health issue through 12 Step Program of connection, hope, identity by empowering people to nurture their positive wellbeing by supporting personal growth through education, peer support and self-teaching.

Contact Michael 086-6063182/Www.grow.ie

Walk For Charity

Don’t forget Damien Ahern is doing the Camino Challenge in September in support of the Irish Hospice Foundation.

Please contact him on 087-9042477

The Way I See It

By Domhnall de Barra

It was good to be from Limerick last weekend as the boys in green produced one of the best second halves of all time to take their place in history, wining four in a row. It was not so much the victory but the style with which it was accomplished that made this game stand out as a display of hurling skill we have never seen before. They scored points from every part of the pitch including attempts from 100 yards and acute angles from both sidelines. I have been watching, and playing in my young days, hurling for may years and it is definitely the one I will remember the most. The celebrations continue and it was good to see so many in the green jerseys wallowing in reflected glory. That is something that has changed in recent years. In bygone days only the team wore jerseys but now most of the supporters also are decked out in the county colours. It is as if they were part of the team and they have been rewarded in recent years. Why is the inter county so popular and well supported ?  It is probably because it replaces the constant battles between neighbouring tribes of old to decide who were the “top dogs”.  If our team wins we feel we have the bragging rights over the other team’s supporters and it is like winning a battle of old. This is why the greatest rivalry is between neighbouring counties, especially for those who live close to the county borders. Neighbours who get on well during the year will act totally different to each other as a big match approaches and they have even been known to fall out. Thankfully, it doesn’t last too long and when the dust has settled life goes back to normal. This rivalry can be even more intense at club level and even worse in a parish league. I well remember the parish leagues of old when we knocked lumps out of players we played beside for the club.  These games usually ended in a big row with spectators and all getting involved. In those days there was a sort of code about fighting. Fists only was the rule and using the boot was really frowned on by both sides. The worst you came out with was a bloody nose or a split lip. It was the talk of the day for a while but we all got together again when the club team took the field and local rivalries were forgotten. It is good that we can let go a bit of steam while following our favourite team and it really gives us a sense of belonging. At least we don’t have faction fights anymore!!

The untimely death of singer Sinéad O’Connor has taken over the airwaves for the past few days. It is tragic that somebody of her talent should die at such a relatively young age but I feel the reaction to it is away over the top. Almost every programme was give over to it with interviews of many people who knew her and constant playing of her records. Let me state straight away that she was a wonderful singer with a voice that was unequalled but she was not the Mother  Theresa she is now being made lout to be. Yes, she championed the underdog and called out injustice wherever she saw it but the way she did so may not have been the best. I do not agree that tearing up the photograph of the Pope was justified because of the failings of some of the clergy. Yes, there was abuse of young, vulnerable people and the mother and child homes were  awful places but that does not mean that the whole church was bad. The tearing up of the photo was an insult to many good priests and nuns who brought education and medical care to many of the underprivileged areas of the world and the millions of devout Catholics who believe in their faith. Sinéad became a Muslim in recent years and that religion has its own problems with extremists who think of us all who are not of their faith as infidels who should be killed. If Sinéad had torn a photo of the prophet Mohamed on television she would have been a target for thousands of Muslims and would almost certainly have been killed.  She was a gifted, talented entertainer and deserves to have good things said about her but why did everyone wait until she was dead?  We seem to be very good at that in Ireland, ignoring a person while they are alive and lauding them when they die. Even when the greatest villain dies somebody will say “ah sure, he wasn’t all bad”.  There isn’t much point in saying nice things about somebody when they can’t hear you so why not say it while they are still living? There are many amongst us who are doing great things for their fellow men and women so, wouldn’t it be nice to show them our appreciation while they see how much we value what they are doing and have done.  It doesn’t need to be someone important, it may be a member of your own family that you haven’t really talked too for a long time. If you love somebody, let them know it. You don’t know what tomorrow brings and the chance may be gone.

The Community Council “Lucky Numbers” Jackpot now stands at €17,000, a tidy sum for anyone to win. I had a query lately as to what we do with the money. The draw was initially set up to fund what was then called the FAS Scheme. This enabled us to keep the village tidy, do stone walls and paths, plant trees etc.  Over the years we have erected townland signs around the parish, created the Giant’s Garden, funded the footbridge and helped the sporting organisations, the school, the hall and the church. We bought the building next to the Gables and plans are in the making to develop this structure for the benefit of the parish. Through the proceeds from the draw we have been able to pay back  our loans on the bridge and the premises but we still need to do a lot of work so every euro we collect is important. A sincere thank you to all our supporters who sell and buy tickets on a weekly basis. Your generosity makes Athea a better place for us all.

Church Notices

Ide Naofe Pastoral Area   (Athea, Abbeyfeale, Mountcollins, Templeglantine and Tournafulla).

Canon Tony Mullins 087 2600414, Fr. Willie Russell 087 2272825, Fr. Denis Mullane 087 2621911 and Fr Dan Lane 087 2533030 (retired).

Priest on call

6^th Aug:            Rev. D Lane    087-2533030                         13^th Aug: Rev. T Mullins                          087-2600414

20^th Aug: Rev F O’Dea          087-2443106                         27^th Aug: Rev. W Russell                         087-2272825

Eucharistic Adoration & The Devine Mercy Chaplet on Tuesday morning after 9.30am mass.

Baptisms on the 4^th Saturday of the month at 2.30pm – next date Saturday August 26^th .

Next baptism course on Tues Aug. 8^th at 8pm, contact Theresa for further details 087-1513565.

Parish Administration: Tues-Fri 11am-1pm. call Siobhan on 087-3331459, outside these hours text or email [email protected]