On 21 June, Father Martin Magill of Saint John’s Parish on the Falls Road, Belfast, will co-host along with Corrymeela and the Dean of Belfast Cathedral, Stephen Forde, a ‘Courage to Lament’ Service to mark the annual Day of Reflection acknowledging ongoing conflict and divisions in Northern Ireland.

Following the astonishing national and international response to Father Martin’s address at the funeral of journalist Lyra McKee on 24 April, a group of Catholic and Protestant clergy came together to build a unified Christian response to sectarian and paramilitary violence.

‘Courage to Lament’ follows on from the fifty-day long #CouragePentecost initiative, and will feature film, music, prayer, and liturgy. #CouragePentecost began on Easter Sunday and ran for fifty-days, with an image and suggested act of courage sent out to participants every day. Further information about #CouragePentecost and the daily actions can be found at couragepentecost.com.

Corrymeela, established in 1965 by Ray Davey, a former chaplain in World War II, and a group of students from Queens University. Corrymeela has a residential centre on the north coast of Ireland that hosts over 11,000 people a year, as well as a lived community of volunteers and staff. Corrymeela also has a dispersed community of over 150 members who commit to living out Corrymeela’s principles of reconciliation in their own communities.

ENDS