22 Sep 2022
Warmest congratulations to our MSCs Fr John Jennings, Fr Charles J. Sweeney, and Fr Diarmuid O’Murchu, who each celebrated their Golden Jubilee this summer.
Golden Jubilarians (L-R): Fr John Jennings MSC, Fr Charles Sweeney MSC, and Fr Diarmuid O’Murchu MSC
On August 23rd, each of the three MSCs celebrated 50 years since their ordination, with their Sacred Heart brothers on the Western Road, Cork. A beautiful Jubilee Mass was followed by a special celebratory lunch, attended by MSCs from across the southern communities.
Fr John is originally from Cork City, and has spent much of his missionary life ministering in Caracas, in Venezuela. Fr Charles, from Ardara in Co. Donegal, is currently based in Galway, where he is dedicated to pastoral ministry in Salthill. Fr Diarmuid, originally from Inchigeela in Co. Cork, is now based in Dublin, and is well renowned as an author and social psychologist.
Golden Jubilarians celebrate with their MSC brothers on the Western Road, Cork.
Director of the MSC Missions Office, Fr John Fitzgerald, joined the Jubilarians on the day, offering his congratulations and good wishes:
“These are three MSCs who were ordained on the same day; they have completely different sets of gifts, they have travelled different roads in their ministries, they have each served very different groups of people, and yet, they still share one ambition in life – that the love of God will be known and experienced throughout the world.”
“At the Jubilee Mass, the benefactors and friends who supported the education and subsequent ministries of our three MSCs were remembered and prayed for in a very real way,” continued Fr John.
Our prayers and blessings echo Fr John’s as he says: “I wish our Jubilarians well, I wish them good health, and I pray that they will continue to serve their call for many years to come.”
The old and the new, together in harmony: MSC Jubilarians celebrating 50 years, with Br Giacomo Gelardi MSC (far right), who is preparing for his ordination to the priesthood in November,
A true commemoration of fellowship and unity, the Jubilee celebrations were a wonderful opportunity to recall the challenges and triumphs of the years gone by, and to look ahead to a future filled with hope, promise, and enduring love. We join Fr John in congratulating the Jubilarians, with every blessing on 50 years of dedication and care in their ministry, and with every good wish for enduring health and happiness as their individual and shared journeys continue.
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