Bishop Kieran O’Reilly ordained

Editorial
A NEW chapter in the history of the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Killaloe was ushered in on Sunday last when the Episcopal ordination of Bishop Kieran O’Reilly was conducted at SS Peter and Paul Cathedral in Ennis.
It is the first time in more than 200 years that a man born outside of the diocese has been appointed to lead the Catholic flock in the region, which stretches from Carrigaholt and Cross on Loop Head to Knock and Kyle in South Offaly. He succeeds Bishop Willie Walsh who retired after a 16-year tenure on reaching his 75th birthday.
Bishop O’Reilly, as an outsider, comes to Killaloe free of any preconceived ideas or indepth knowledge about how the Church and its people interact in this diocese. He is coming here as a new man, with new ideas, humbly accepting the many challenges which his new role as bishop will bring.
While his predecessor, Bishop Walsh, as a Tipperary man, a student and teacher at St Flannan’s College and a priest in Ennis parish, had an intimate knowledge of the diocese before his appointment back in 1994, Bishop O’Reilly can draw on his strengths forged from his particular life experiences.
A native of Cork, his background is that of a missionary priest serving with the Society of African Missions (SMA) in Africa. In May 1995, he was elected Vicar General and in 2001, Superior General of the society and was then re-elected to a second term in 2007. The combination of pastoral work and lecturing he carried out in Africa, together with the administrative skills he honed while leading the order should stand him in good stead as he embraces a heavy workload as bishop.
No doubt Bishop O’Reilly has a vision of how he sees the Catholic Church develop in the diocese but will need a settling in period before he brings his missionary leadership into play.
Nevertheless, in addressing the huge congregation at Ennis Cathedral on Sunday, he made it quite clear that he will be building on the solid foundations laid by Bishop Walsh.
“Bishop Willie, it is not possible for me to express adequately the gratitude that is due to you for your ministry as priest and bishop. Your leadership and commitment to the development of the Church in the diocese, to ensure that it is alive and relevant to our times, through the reorganisation of pastoral areas of the diocese, will be, I believe, your lasting and enduring legacy.
“I hope over the coming months and years to build on what is now in place and with the collaboration of all the faithful, to ensure that the gifts and the talents, very often hidden, of the members of our communities are brought to the fore for the good of our faith communities,” he said.
The importance which the new bishop attaches to working towards Christian unity was underlined in his address. Present at the ceremony was Bishop Trevor Williams, Church of Ireland Bishop of Limerick and Killaloe and members of other Christian Churches.
“I hope and pray that the work of ecumenism will continue. I will be particularly interested in working closely with the members of the different churches in areas of common concern and witness,” he said.
Bishop O’Reilly’s experience as a member of a missionary society shone through when he said that the Church in Ireland has been particularly blessed by the presence of people who come from cultures very different to our own; from Africa and Asia, the Americas and countries of the new Europe.
“As our missionaries were warmly received and welcomed in many of your countries, I hope that you too, will experience a similar warm welcome here in the Church and be fully involved in all aspects of our Church life,” he said.
It will take a little time for people in the diocese to come to know and understand Bishop O’Reilly. People eagerly wait to hear him publicly discuss, debate or comment on current religious, moral or social issues, which will be an indicator of how he will lead the Church in the Diocese of Killaloe and contribute to the greater Catholic Church body in Ireland.

Airport charges in dispute

SHANNON Airport Authority and Ryanair are set to lock horns once again as aeronautical charges at the airport are due to increase from the end of next month.
A proposed increase of €1.58 per passenger would bring charges to €6.30, but Michael O’Leary has warned that this could spell further cuts in Ryanair services at Shannon. Shannon Airport director, Martin Moroney, claimed the increase only brings it into line with other airports but the Ryanair CEO is not entertaining this.
Mr Moroney says the increase is needed and notes that prices have been stable for a long time; six years since the last adjustment. He describes it as a small but necessary increase in overall charges that reflects the fact that Shannon is loss-making and needs to improve its viability
“While this is an increase in headline prices, Shannon continues to offer generous support schemes to our airline customers, which include discounts of up to 100% on airport charges,” he said, adding that Shannon charges remain lower than Dublin.
Referring to the fact that Shannon traffic in 2010 is on target to fall by 37% from 2.7 million passengers to 1.7 million, Mr O’Leary says the €10 tourist tax has already made Shannon Airport totally uncompetitive as a gateway to the West of Ireland.
“At a time when Shannon Airport should be lowering costs, particularly entering the winter, the airport has announced a crazy plan to raise passenger fees by 33%. This will further damage Shannon’s traffic and tourism business, since price sensitive passengers simply won’t pay these unjustified price hikes from a Government-owned airport monopoly.”
There is a terrible nervousness that Michael O’Leary will follow through on his latest threat, just as he did last March in cutting services at Shannon when the airport authority didn’t respond to his call to reduce charges.
It’s extremely quiet at Shannon and it will be quieter still over the winter when Aer Lingus introduces a reduction in transatlantic services for three months. Shannon is highly dependent on Ryanair and great negotiating skills are called for to persuade him to put a stay of execution on his latest demands.