This evening in St Fin Barre's Cathedral, Cork, an art exhibition will be officially opened by Mr Toddie O'Sullivan. This will be a significant contribution to the cultural life of Cork and part of a pattern in which cathedrals act not only as a spiritual focus but as a centre of learning and arts. The exhibition will include pieces created by local artists from the Cork Artists Collective, the Crawford College of Art and Design, the Blackwater Artists Group, and others. The exhibits will be in a variety of media - paint, canvas, fabrics, photographs and sculpture.
Traditionally the church has been a patron of the arts. Cathedrals, in particular, have been to the fore. The great medieval cathedrals of Europe are exhibitions of art: the stained glass of Chartres, the soaring architecture of Durham, the exquisite workmanship in the reliquary of the three kings in Cologne or the mask of the Charlemagne in Aachen.
More recent forays into modern art in English cathedrals, notably Chichester and Winchester, have provided a renewed stimulus to thinking in this area.
The Church of Ireland has been slow to come to terms with the theology of art and apart from some good stained glass, a few pieces of excellent needlework, and occasional commissions of three dimensional objects, its contribution as a patron of the artistic life of Ireland in the 20th century has been limited.
Exhibitions such as that in St Fin Barre's have the capacity to provide a bridge between the church and the artistic community. The exhibition will be on view in the cathedral from 10 a.m. - 5.30 p.m., Mondays to Saturdays until August 28th.
Today the Chaplain of Trinity College Dublin, Dr Alan McCormack, will address the third international conference of the colleges and universities of the Anglican Communion, in Toronto, on the subject "Late Anglican Aesthetic in Late Secular Dublin". In Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, Evensong will be sung by the choir of Croydon Parish Church who will also sing the services tomorrow. Tomorrow RTE will broadcast Morning Service from Buncrana, Co Donegal, where the rector is the Rev Sam Barton. The Bishop of Tuam, Dr Richard Henderson, will visit Aasleigh while in Rath drum, Co Wicklow, the ecumenical service for the Parnell Summer School will be held in St Saviour's Church. There will be a celebration of the Eucharist in Temple connor Church, Clonmacnoise, at 4 p.m.
In St Columb's Cathedral, Derry, there will be a service in celebration of the hymns of Mrs Cecil Francis Alexander. The service will include an act of re-dedication of the refurbished bible of the Rev George Walker, Governor of Londonderry in 1689.
On Wednesday the organ recital in St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, at 6.30 p.m. will be given by the cathedral's sub-organist, David Leigh, while on Thursday in Castletownshend, Co Cork, the St Barrahane's Festival of Classical Music will continue with a recital by Ann Morgan (soprano and harp).
Thursday is the 100th anniversary of the consecration of St Saviour's Church, Arklow, and there will be a celebration of the Eucharist to mark this event. St Saviour's is one of the finest 19th-century churches in Ireland and was commissioned by Lord Carys fort as a memorial to members of his family. It is the work of the distinguished London architect, Sir Arthur Blomfield, and contains some fine examples of the stained glass work of Clayton and Bell of London.