Sixty years of theological education at Braemor Park in Dublin were celebrated on Saturday (May 18) with a Service of Thanksgiving and a public lecture in the Church of Ireland Theological Institute.
Both the Archbishop of Armagh, the Most Revd John McDowell, and the Archbishop of Dublin, the Most Revd Dr Michael Jackson, attended the service. Those in the congregation represented the different pathways to ministry within the Church of Ireland as well as many clergy and friends of CITI.
Introducing the service, the Director of CITI, Canon Dr Maurice Elliott noted that the previous Divinity Hostel was in Mountjoy Square where it had been since 1913. When the decision was taken by the Adelaide Hospital to close Fetherstonhaugh House, a convalescent home in Rathgar, in 1961, it was bought by the Representative Church Body and became the new location for the Divinity Hostel which was later renamed Braemor Park.
Dr Elliott said that the building was quite different then and the chapel was furnished with pews. It was dedicated on February 17 1964.
The sermon was preached by Archbishop Jackson who noted that CITI, CITC or The Hostel (in reverse order) had been home to many for a formative period of their lives. He suggested that the years spent in ministry helped people to appreciate and value the years of formation and the foothills of learning.
“My hope is that for each of us gathered here, and for any who are tuning in remotely, CITI over its sixty years in existence has enabled us and countless others to move from co–existence to collaboration and into a community of learning together and meeting God together. The unfinished business of the Church of Ireland’s marking of 150 years of Disestablishment in 2019, that of being a church without borders as outlined by the archbishop of Canterbury in his sermon, is given a good start and a fair wind in CITI where being un–bordered in spirit is the essential deepening of our calling to serve God. This is and remains the great challenge and the uncharted waters,” he stated.
For the gift of solidarity, the Archbishop said the Church was grateful to successive generations of staff – Wardens/Principals/Director, academic, administrative, library, gardening, catering and cleaning staff – all working together in what is a team effort and in a family atmosphere.
In becoming a Theological Institute, the Archbishop said it had become a place to stay, meet, retreat, envision and train in a range of ministries. He described it as a green oasis in densely populated suburbia but close to access routes to the city centre and the University of Dublin. CITI had also expanded the way it teaches and the range of content to respond to the demands made of it by the bishops of the Church of Ireland and it picked up fresh needs for fresh ministries in the development of Irish Anglicanism.
Following the service the congregation joined a wider audience for a public lecture given by theologian and author, Bishop Graham Tomlin. The theme of his lecture was: ‘What is the Church for?’
The 60th anniversary celebrations came in the midst of a busy weekend at CITI with students of the MTh, CCTP and Reflective Learning programmes all in attendance. The keynote lecture was given by the Revd Prof Maggi Dawn, Professor of Theology, Durham University.
