Carmel O’Neill sent us this report:
Blessington Parish marked the Season of Creation with a number of liturgical services throughout the month of September.
We began by displaying a poster of the the logo for this year’s theme together with an explanation of the image in all three churches, Blessington, Lacken and Valleymount.
We all agreed how relevant was the image depicted on the logo as we witness daily the devastation caused by war and climate change. It reminds us, how, as people of faith, we are called to make a greater commitment towards sustainability in our lifestyle choices and work towards finding peace with Creation.
In mid September, we had a meeting for the parents who have enrolled their children in the Holy Communion programme for 2025/2026. Having a sacred space set up on the Season of Creation provided us with an opportunity to speak about the ceremonies for September and our role as an Eco Parish.
On September 21st, we had our first Family Mass to mark the start of the new school year.
Children brought up symbols of the Harvest and read short prayers of thanksgiving for a bountiful harvest. We included a special prayer for beekeepers who must remain vigilant with the arrival of the Asian Hornet in late August.
A few years ago, we established the tradition of blessing the school bags to mark the start of the school year. The infant classes in all three schools were invited to the blessing. After the blessing ceremony we devoted some time to talk about the poster “Peace with Creation”.
We loved the image of the dove of Peace bringing an end to war and destruction as we pray for reconciliation between the warring factions in Gaza.
On September, we celebrated our annual mass of thanksgiving for our Tidy Town volunteers who work tirelessly to enhance the beauty of our village.
Children from the Green School’s committee in Blessington junior school brought symbols of the work carried out by our volunteers. A beautiful reflection by the late John Moriarty was read at the end of mass. He speaks about the beauty of the wildflowers in the Burren. For him to inhale the fragrance of the primrose was like a Eucharist. He concludes by saying that “the wildflowers in the Burren seem to say …. that inside us somewhere paradise has never been lost”.
Permission has been given to use all the photos above