PEOPLE STRUGGLING in the recession were prayed for last Thursday night at a special service of solidarity at Dublin’s Christ Church Cathedral.
President Michael D Higgins and his wife Sabina joined the crowd at the ecumenical service of music and readings, called In Darkness There is Light .
The Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, the Very Rev Dermot Dunne, said it was hoped the service would affirm and stir the spirit of the Irish people as they journeyed through the darkness of economic gloom.
“In these times we are all experiencing the pain of huge economic depression when everyone in Ireland is bearing the cost of world recession,” he said. “The Christian Church needs to meet and identify with the pain of the people.”
Prayers were said for people on the brink of homelessness; people whose life savings had been depleted; people in despair; and for colleagues, business partners and loved ones.
The lights were dimmed as the congregation held candles in an act of solidarity with those who were suffering most.
Dean Dunne urged people not to lose hope “but to rekindle the flame of optimism and national belief that has sustained us throughout our long and often troubled history”.
The gathering was attended by Lord Mayor of Dublin Andrew Montague, clerics from various backgrounds and a number of ambassadors.
The Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Rev Dr Michael Jackson, said people had come from the length and breadth of the city to show support for each other.
Acknowledging the suffering that some people were going through, he said the light would continue to shine and would not be snuffed out by the darkness.
“Light with no darkness at all simply is not, nor will it ever be, an option. Glory with no struggle is not, nor can it, be an option either.”