Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment
On 6 October 2024 at Gougane Barra, Bishop Fintan Gavin invited everyone in the diocese to begin a year of prayer, listening and discernment
During this time, we seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit to help us know how to be faithful disciples and to build His Church in this time and place
Please find below the latest articles...
In September, two meetings have been held for representatives of the parishes across the Diocese of Cork and Ross to respond to topics raised by parishioners and clergy during the past year
Hundreds of representatives from the 16 families of parishes have been hearing the main themes and proposed responses from both the people and the bishop. These have centred on a range of topics that include how Baptism is prepared for and celebrated, how communities celebrate Sunday Mass, how parishes can reach out to young people and children preparing for school-age sacraments.
At Gougane Sunday 2025, Bishop Fintan Gavin launched what he termed a “Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment” throughout the diocese.
Its purpose was to have people of all ages listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Catholic Church in Cork and Ross at this time, to listen to one another and to develop a sense of the future.
Key moments during the year were when the Office for Mission and Ministry of the diocese organised meetings in every family of parishes and other faith communities. They were presented with challenging questions and asked for their views and responses.
At the diocesan meeting of parishioners and clergy with Bishop Fintan at Rochestown Park Hotel, Cork.
All the feedback was compiled into local and diocesan reports and shared with the diocese and is published here:
Read the Summary of all Responses
The first meeting was held in Rosscarbery on Sunday 7th September and the second was on Sunday 14th September in Rochestown, Cork.
Hope comes seeping through the feedback from the people of the diocese to the bishop during a special year which commenced this last year
At Gougane Sunday 2025, Bishop Fintan launched what he termed a “Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment” throughout the diocese.
It’s purpose was to have people of all ages listen to what the Holy Spirit is saying to the Catholic Church in Cork and Ross at this time, to listen to one another and to develop a sense of the future.
Key moments during the year were when the Office for Mission and Ministry of the diocese organised meetings in every family of parishes and other faith communities. They were presented with challenging questions and asked for their views and responses.
All the feedback was compiled into local and diocesan reports and shared with the diocese.
View a Summary of all Responses
Bishop Fintan has published a response to the main threads of the reports.
Meeting at Rosscarbery - Sunday 7 September
In September, two diocesan meetings have been organised for representatives of the parishes across the diocese to connect again with the main themes and to reflect on proposed responses from both the people and the bishop.
The first meeting was held in Rosscarbery on Sunday 7 September and the second is planned in Cork on Sunday 14 September.
Detail from a stained glass window in Skibbereen's St. Patrick's CathedralThe people and clergy of the Diocese of Cork and Ross responded with 111,193 words to questions posed by Bishop Fintan Gavin across the diocese.
That’s 291 pages on standard paper. It’s the feedback from a series of meetings held by the Office for Mission and Ministry of the Diocese as part of what Bishop Fintan had called a year of “Prayer, Listening and Discernment”.
Now the content of these conversations has been collated and analysed and the summaries have been made available online.
No! You won’t need to read 291 pages of text because as Bishop Fintan noted in his pastoral response “There was a remarkable unity across the diocese as to what God is challenging us to do, to work towards and to prioritise for this time.”
You can read all the documents, including thematic summaries for each family of parishes, by clicking on this link:
Bishop Fintan Gavin initiated a Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment in the Diocese of Cork and Ross at the annual pilgrimage at St. Finbarr’s Oratory in Gougane Barra in September 2024
At that time, Bishop Fintan published a “Prayer from the Boat” and asked people across the diocese to pray it at Mass, for personal prayer and various liturgical gatherings during the year.
Bishop Fintan also published a pastoral message which was also read at Masses in the diocese and widely circulated in print and online
A series of gatherings was also to be held in each family of parishes across the diocese and with other faith communities, including the Catholic communities of people who have migrated to live in the diocese. The meetings in families of parishes were attended by members of each parish’s parish assembly or pastoral council, members of the parish finance committees as well as clergy. The focus of the gatherings was to be the principal questions posed by Bishop Fintan in his pastoral – on Baptism, the Eucharist and Families of Parishes. These gatherings were convened by the Office for Mission and Ministry. The template for the gatherings was piloted in Autumn 2024 with the family of parishes which includes Carraig na bhFear, Glanmire, Glounthaune and Watergrasshill.
year of prayer, listening and discernmentLogo for year of prayer, listening and discernment
The Diocesan Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment, continues
Bishop Fintan and the Office for Mission and Ministry thank all who participated in the recent sessions across the sixteen Families of Parishes.
In the coming weeks, the responses received are being prayerfully reviewed. This stage of reflection and discernment is vital as we seek to hear what the Holy Spirit is saying to us as a Diocesan family and to shape the next steps of this process.
The diocese asks everyone to continue to pray that those entrusted with this work may be guided by wisdom, humility, and hope.
The next steps will also include reporting back to the families of parishes.
“Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” (1 Samuel 3:10)
More about the Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment
This week the Office for Mission and Ministry completed the Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment sessions with 16 Families of Parishes
Since mid-January, each Family of Parishes hosted three gatherings, creating spaces for reflection, deep listening, and hopeful conversation. The engagement of teams of Priests and Parish Leadership Teams was both encouraging and inspiring, showing a real desire to journey together in faith.
Over the next month we will also be engaging with other groups and communities, and we are now in the process of collating the feedback shared at these gatherings, which will help shape the path ahead.
Sincere thanks to our dedicated volunteer facilitators who gave their time so generously and accompanied each Family of Parishes with care and commitment.
Prayer Listening and Discernment with St. Josephs Mayfield Upper Mayfield Pastoral Care of Holy Family Church Military Hill
Parishioners with priests and deacons continue to meet in each family of parishes to consider the future of the faith communities in the diocese.
The Office for Mission and Ministry with the support of other facilitators is guiding a series of three meetings in each of the 16 families of parishes.
The discussions are focused on responding to questions posed by Bishop Fintan Gavin in his Sept 2024 Message to the Diocese.
Read the Pastoral Message here
Last evening's gathering was in the family of parishes which includes Ardfield & Rathbarry | Barryroe | Clonakilty | Kilmeen & Castleventry | Rosscarbery & Lisavaird | Timoleague.
At the third meeting in the family of parishes for the Prayer, Listening and Discernment process in the diocese.
Meeting of parishioners in West Cork
Next steps in Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment about to begin
Gatherings in each Family of Parishes across the diocese are the next steps in the Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment which was annoiunced by Bishop Fintan Gavin last autumn.
Over the next four months, all the Parishes and Families of Parishes of our Diocese will be involved. Representatives of each Parish Leadership Team along with the local priests will participate in three meetings over three weeks reflecting on the questions posed in Bishop Fintan’s invitation in September.
Since September, people individually and in Parishes, have been praying the Diocesan Prayer from the Boat. As we continue to pray this prayer together, we pray for the success of these gatherings and we pray that the Holy Spirit will guide us as together we try to pray, listen, and discern God’s future for our Church.
- Plans being made for vital meetings in early 2025 about parishes and faith
- Reps of over 28 parishes gather for final diocesan information meeting
- Room filled to over capacity for West Cork gathering
- Storm didn’t put first information meeting for Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment off course
- Year of Prayer, Listening, and Discernment enters New Phase
- The Logo for our Year of Prayer, Listening and Discernment
- Bishop of Cork and Ross calls for a time of prayer, listening and discernment
Year 2025
Year of Prayer
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September 2025
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July 2025
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June 2025
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May 2025
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March 2025
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January 2025
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December 2024
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November 2024
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October 2024
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