Programme of Events 2008
Keynote Speaker: Jean Vanier
Date: - Wednesday 24 September 2008
Time: - 10am - 4pm
Location: - Dromantine Retreat & Conference Centre
Dear Friends,
Isn’t it wonderful to realise that this month we are a year into our new beginning in Northern Ireland and that so much has happened in the last months that we never dreamt (although we prayed for it!) would happen in our lifetime. It is also wonderful to think that Restoration Ministries is twenty years old this year. For the most part in quiet, largely hidden ways, God has used us in the process of change and the making of peace. Whatever we have accomplished, the glory goes to him, and from Restoration House our heartfelt thanks go to you, our friends, for all your support, prayerful, financial and in other ways too numerous to mention that have enabled us to be part of the story of healing and restoration. But, as you know, there’s always more. Perhaps our biggest challenges are up ahead!
With that in mind we want to share with you something that we are facilitating in September of this year. It could, in God’s scheme of things, be our biggest ‘hidden moment’ yet. On 30th April, the ex-Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, stood before the US Congress and declared, “Ireland is at peace.” On 6th May, the First Minister, Ian Paisley stood with Taoiseach Ahern on the banks of the Boyne and declared, “To the bad old days there can be no turning back. The killing times must end forever and no tolerance must be given to those who advocate their return.” What a long way we have moved in this past year!
It was, perhaps, remiss of us in the Church not to call a national service of thanksgiving for the favour God has shown to our land. There is great healing power in gratitude. But, as in many secular institutions, we in the Church are weary. That weariness, combined with the disillusionment or irrelevance many feel regarding the Church, can be attributed to several factors. In the North it can be linked, in large measure, to the Troubles; in the South to increasing secularism and materialism, along with a sense of betrayal felt by some in relation to the Church. With one or two notable exceptions, nothing seems to be happening, and yet now is the crucial time for us to be aware, alert, relevant and envisioned. Where will the energy and the vision come from? What are the things that we need to leave behind in order to move forward together and to celebrate the diversity that is God’s gift to us? How can we leave behind our hurtful past and in humility recognise that together we have, even yet, something of hope to offer to the world?
With this in mind, we are inviting church leaders from all over the island to spend a day together with Jean Vanier. The day will include input from Jean, time for sharing, reflection and prayer. The purpose of this day is that hearts might be touched and that we in the Church might be given fresh hope and encouragement to move forward together in diversity. The venue is the Dromantine Retreat and Conference Centre. The date is Wednesday September 24th, 2008.
The biggest thing we need from you is your faithful prayer support from the moment you receive this letter up to – on - and after the day itself. You will find a prayer card here. Please use it and spread it around. If you would like more copies, please let us know. We want to get people around the world praying for this day, and where better to start than with you, our dear friends. Let this be the way we celebrate our twentieth birthday, and to God be the glory!