2 October 2022
By Mary Bermingham
mary@TheCork.ie
The Church of Ireland United Dioceses of Cork, Cloyne and Ross in general, and the Parish of Saint Anne, Shandon, in particular, are all set to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the iconic Church of Saint Anne, Shandon in Cork this weekend.
A Service of Thanksgiving, presided over by the Bishop of the Diocese, Dr Paul Colton, and led by the Priest-in-Charge, the Reverend Meghan Farr, will be held in the church on Sunday afternoon, 2nd October at 4 p.m. The preacher will be the renowned preacher and New Testament scholar, Dr Paula Gooder, who is Canon Chancellor of Saint Paul’s Cathedral in London.
Many with current and past associations with the parish – families and clergy – will attend, and the guests will be led by the Lord Mayor of Cork, Cllr. Deirdre Forde, and the Deputy Lord Mayor, Cllr Damian Boylan, who will be joined by Cllr Oliver Moran, Colm Burke TD, Senator Jerry Buttimer, Tony Duggan (Cork City Architect) and Helen McGonagle (Cork City Library), as well as representatives of local history and community groups. An ecumenical delegation of clergy of many denominations will be led by the Most Rev. Dr Fintan Gavin, Bishop of Cork and Ross.
Recent photo of Cork COI Bishop Paul Colton. Photographer: Jim Coghlan
Bishop Colton said:
A lot of planning has gone into celebrating this significant milestone in the history of this ancient parish and its 300 year old parish church which is so iconic in the life, not only of Cork City, but in Ireland. For my part, I am looking forward, on Sunday, to throwing a little more light on ‘The Shandon Mystery’ that we asked the public to help us with earlier in the year.
The Reverend Meghan Farr, who recently arrived in the parish from Wisconsin, USA to take up the post of Priest-in-Charge, said:
I’m delighted to have arrived in Cork and taken up my new post in time to be a part of this historic occasion and to celebrate 300 years of St Anne’s Shandon with the parish and wider community. Thank you to everyone who has worked so hard and with such love for Shandon.
