New arrangements announced for Roscommon parish
Catholic priest on altar praying with hands joined during mass service in church
New arrangements have been announced for parishes in North Roscommon.
In a letter from Bishop of Achonry and of Elphin, Kevin Doran, parishioners of Ballinameen and Breedogue were informed of the new priest arrangements in the parish.
He said as they were aware, Fr Larry Ebuk has been reassigned to be Parish Priest of Frenchpark and Parish Priest of Fairymount.
“Fr Alan Conway, Parish Priest of Croghan and Drumlion, has kindly agreed to take responsibility for the Parish of Ballinameen and Breedogue in addition to his current responsibilities,” he said. “I am happy to say that, Fr John Mahony, who has recently been appointed Director of Accord Marriage Care in the Dioceses of Achonry and Elphin, will be resident at the Parochial House in Ballinameen and will assist Fr Alan in the pastoral care of the two parishes.”
He added that for the time being at least, the two parishes would remain distinct, and each would have its own pastoral council and its own finance council, established in accordance with diocesan policy.
“As time goes on, I hope that there will be more common initiatives and more sharing of resources between the parishes, because we are - as St Paul says - one Body in Christ. I have confidence that, if this initiative has the practical support of the parishioners, it will result in a deeper and more fruitful relationship between the two parishes,” he said. “It is becoming more challenging all the time to find priests to fill vacancies in our parishes, and I take this opportunity to thank all three priests for their willingness to accept these new assignments.”
He expressed gratitude to Fr Larry for his generous service in the parish, assisted by Deacon David Muldowney.
On a post on social media, the parish thanked Bishop Kevin for his letter.
“We continue to pray for Fr Larry as he prepares to leave to take up his new appointment. We very much include in our prayers too now Fr Alan, who will take up responsibility for our parish, and for Fr John, who will assist him. We also include in our prayers Deacon David Muldowney, who has been ministering to us since 2012 and will continue to minister to us together with Fr Alan and Fr John,” the parish said.
“Change is not easy but we hope that all in our parish will welcome and support Fr Alan Conway and Fr John Mahony as they themselves are making changes to come and minister to us. We also need to be a support to each other as we all try to adapt to the changes and work together to build a stronger community.”
