Dec 13, 2022
Advent is well underway at Croi Nua, our MSC spirituality centre in Co. Galway, with a three-day Christmas retreat taking place from Thursday, December 15th to Saturday, December 17th.
The Christmas retreat will be led by Fr Patsy Kelly MSC, in preparation for the celebration of the birth of Christ. This special time of reflection will take place at 7.30pm to 9.30pm each evening from December 15th to 17th.
The retreat session will take place in person in Croi Nua Spirituality Centre, while a Zoom facility is also available for anybody who would like to take part remotely.
In addition, all are welcome to join what promises to be a beautiful Service of Reconciliation, which will take place on Wednesday, December 21st, at 7.30pm.
For more information, please contact Croi Nua Spirituality Centre:
Phone: 085 782 9855
Email: croinuacentre@gmail.com
Website: www.croinua.com
If you would like to join the Christmas celebrations online via Zoom,
please email croinuacentre@gmail.com to get the video link.
Nov 29, 2022
As we come towards the end of the year, so too do we mark the beginning of a new chapter for the Sacred Heart Parish on the Western Road, Cork, as we bid a fond farewell to outgoing parish priest Fr Tom Mulcahy MSC, and welcome Fr Con Doherty MSC as he steps into the role, accompanied by new curate Fr Des Farren MSC.
Having served the Sacred Heart Parish with a warm and generous spirit in recent years, Fr Tom stepped down from his role at the end of October, when Bishop Fintan Gavin celebrated the official induction of Fr Con, along with new curate Fr Des, on Sunday, October 23rd, at the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road. Fr Tom will remain a welcome familiar face, as he plans to continue with catechetical work, while we are delighted to welcome Fr Con and Fr Des in their new ministry in the parish.
A native of Thurles, Co. Tipperary, Fr Con joined the Missionaries of the Sacred Heart in 1983, and was ordained by Bishop John Buckley in the parish of the Sacred Heart, here in Cork, in 1990. Since then, Fr Con has had a fascinating missionary journey, serving in St Alban’s Parish in the UK until 1995, before travelling to Russia to join his MSC brothers Fr Michael Screene and Fr Kevin Blade on our mission there. Fr Con remained in Russia for a decade, returning to Ireland in 2015, when he took up the role of chaplain in Cuan Mhuire in Co. Limerick, and there he ministered until his new appointment as parish priest at the Sacred Heart Church.
Fr Con gladly returns to the place of his ordination, some 32 years later, and is looking forward to getting to know our parishioners and mission friends together with Fr Des. Many of our regular website viewers will already have seen the new faces celebrating Mass on our daily live stream, while Fr Con also celebrated this year’s Light Up a Memory Mass with Missions Office Director Fr John Fitzgerald MSC, who introduced Fr Con as “our brand new parish priest – and an old warrior at the same time!”
It is with grateful hearts that we thank Fr Tom for his dedicated ministry as parish priest, and welcome Fr Con and Fr Des into the heart of a wonderful local community – and indeed beyond, as so many friends become part of our parish family daily through Masses on our live stream. Please keep our MSCs in your prayers as we set out on this new chapter together.
Images: Michael English
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Nov 10, 2022
November is a sacred time to remember, as we keep in our prayers family, friends, and loved ones who have gone before us. This year, we are glad to invite old friends and new to take part in our annual Light Up a Memory Mass, which will be celebrated on Saturday, November 26th. The candlelight memorial service will take place at 6.30pm the Sacred Heart Church on the Western Road, Cork, and will be streamed live for those who cannot attend in person.
Bereavement and grief touch us all, and the Month of the Holy Souls is a special time to honour fond memories and to pray for friends and family who have gone to their eternal rest in the Lord’s love. This November, we come together once again remember specially those who are no longer with us, and to light a candle in tribute to those whose memory we hold dear.
Now in its ninth year, our annual MSC Light Up a Memory Mass has become a much-anticipated tradition to close the Month of the Holy Souls. Each year, we invite mission friends to send the names of their dearly departed for remembrance, and the list is kept on the altar throughout the month as we pray for their perpetual peace. In a beautiful ceremony to mark the end of the month of remembrance, the Light Up a Memory Mass is a beacon of light and love in honour of our faithful departed.
The events of recent years have demonstrated more than ever the tremendous power of unity, community, and love. Those who cannot be with us in person on the night are very welcome to join us on our live stream, and to light a candle in their own homes or in our online candle gallery, where those listed will have a special place in the prayers of our MSC priests.
All are welcome to join us in reflection on this special night, and to submit the names of departed family, friends, and loved ones for remembrance. We would greatly appreciate your support for our ongoing mission projects, and in gratitude for your contribution, we will be glad to remember your intentions at our annual Mass. You can then submit the names of your departed loved ones online, and our MSC priests will remember them specially during our Light Up a Memory Mass.
Through the dark winter nights, the light of remembrance warms our hearts, and the flame of hope continues to burn brightly. Please join us for an evening of reflection and remembrance in honour of the loved ones who are always in our thoughts.
Find out more about our annual MSC Light Up a Memory Mass.
Please click here to watch the Light Up a Memory Mass, and all November Masses for the Holy Souls, on our live stream.
Oct 27, 2022
Croi Nua, our MSC spirituality centre in Co. Galway, are hosting two sessions on mental health and wellbeing as part of their 2022 Autumn programme.
The first session will be led by Eoghan MacDomhnaill from Jigsaw, the national centre for mental health, which offers a range of support services to young people around Ireland. Eoghan’s talk will cover the main issues on our mental health, and the importance of an adult support system, or One Good Adult, in a young person’s life.
This session will take place in person in Croi Nua Spiritual Centre on Wednesday, November 9th, from 7.30pm to 9.00pm. A Zoom facility is also available for anybody who would like to take part remotely. Donations are appreciated, and all proceeds go directly to Jigsaw.
The second workshop, “Mindfulness & Self Compassion,” will be led by wellness coach Lizzie Harrison, focusing on self-care and addressing the different techniques that can be used to improve mental wellbeing.
Lizzie’s workshop will take place on Wednesday, November 23rd at 7.30pm – 9.00pm, in person at Croi Nua and via Zoom for remote participants, at a fee of €20.
For more information, please contact Croi Nua Spirituality Centre:
Phone: 087 6683770
Email: croinuacentre@gmail.com
Website: www.croinua.com
If you would like to join either of these workhops online via Zoom,
please email croinuacentre@gmail.com to get the video link.
   
Oct 11, 2022
This year’s annual Masses for deceased MSCs and Daughters of the Lady of the Sacred Heart will take place around the country in November, as we remember those who have gone before us in the light of the Lord.
Annual Masses will take place at 3pm on Sunday 6th November in the following venues:
- Sacred Heart Church, Western Road, Cork (this Mass will be live-streamed here)
- Woodview House, Blackrock, Co. Dublin
- Croi Nua, Taylors Hill, Galway
and
On Sunday 13th November at 2pm in St Patrick’s Church, Ballybay
We keep all our deceased members in our prayers.
We would like to invite you to pray with us during the month of the Holy Souls as we remember the MSCs and Daughters of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart who worked so hard to ensure that the Sacred Heart of Jesus is known and loved everywhere, and by everyone.
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Oct 6, 2022
All are very welcome to join us on two new series of reflections, led by Fr Patsy Kelly MSC every Tuesday and Thursday.
The sessions will take place at Croi Nua Spirituality Centre (Taylor’s Hill, Galway), and those who cannot attend in person are very welcome to join us online via Zoom.
The first series, entitled “At Home with your Bible: The Eucharist in Scripture and Liturgy,” will explore the connection between Eucharist and Scripture and why the Eucharist makes the Risen Christ constantly present to us. This will take place every Tuesday morning at 10.15am, and on Tuesday evenings at 7.30pm to 9.30pm.
The second series is titled “Good News Each Sunday,” and incorporates reflections on the readings of weekly Sunday Mass. This will take place every Thursday evening from 7.30pm to 9.30pm.
For more information, please contact Croi Nua:
Phone: 091 520960 or 087 6683770
Email: croinuacentre@gmail.com
Website: www.croinua.com
If you would like to join the weekly sessions online via Zoom, please email croinuacentre@gmail.com to get the video link.
