Installation homily by Bishop Ger Nash – SEPTEMBER 13TH 2026
Photos Pat Shortall
Forgiveness creates true communion, transforming wounds, misunderstandings and divisions into living opportunities for deeper reconciliation, healing and shared growth.
Over the past five years, the Catholic Church has been on a journey of Synodality, prompted by the late Pope Francis and now emphasised again by his successor, Pope Leo XIV. Synodality is not a strategy or a solution; it is a way of being together as God’s people. It is our human attempt to answer the question, “What does God want of the Church at this time?” This time, this era, this messy but interesting place, is where God intends us to start. And it starts with forgiveness of ourselves and others, so that we can truly understand that God is a God of Forgiveness. The synodal pathway calls us to listen attentively, discern together and walk side by side. This journey is only possible when we deliberately let go of resentment or fear and choose the daily practice of mutual forgiveness. Forgiveness is the glue that holds the synodal pathway together, keeping the journey open when listening becomes difficult, when discernment reveals uncomfortable truths, and when the temptation arises to withdraw or dominate.
An emerging Church of co-responsible action depends on relationships of genuine trust, where the freedom of forgiveness allows people to participate fully, take necessary risks, make honest mistakes and begin again together in shared hope.
Bishop Forristal
On this very day, forty-five years ago, Bishop Laurence Forristal was installed as Bishop of Ossory, having already been an auxiliary Bishop in Dublin. We are in a very different Ireland and a very different Church from September 13th 1981. Much has changed, and needed to change, in society, in Church and in life; but what matters to us on September 13th 2026 is where we can go from here. What new way of being God’s people with each other are we invited to explore? Starting today, the question has also been broadened to how we can be God’s people across diocesan boundaries — boundaries that have remained impermeable since the year 1111. It will be a key task of discernment in the immediate future to see how the many varied tasks of Church can best be carried out by working together. I feel that the best growth will be in collaboration in everyday tasks, rather than an attempt to start at the top. The establishment of lay ministry in many dioceses in Ireland is already under way, and both Ossory and Ferns are at different stages in this project. Gradually, as the years roll on, it will be possible to imagine committed, trained and commissioned lay people across both Dioceses, collaborating in work, building supportive networks together, and working with clergy and other Diocesan staff to bring the Good News to all — young and old, local and stranger. One of the many skills that will be needed for this journey is the one that today’s readings emphasise: the ability to forgive and overlook the small irritations that other people cause, and to recognise that we are already a forgiven people. This is the insight that the servant in today’s Gospel did not possess.
A lot happened
A few moments ago, I mentioned the forty-five-year gap since the installation of Bishop Forristal in this Cathedral. But I also want to mention some shorter gaps. The date on the Bull which was read at the start of this ceremony is July 29th which is also the date 10 years ago when Bishop Seamus Freeman retired and it is now just over 5 years since I was ordained in St Aidan’s Cathedral in Enniscorthy. A shorter span of time, but much has happened in that gap — not least that five years ago we were still dealing with Covid-19 and its aftermath. And even though it was a traumatic and disconcerting time, we have almost forgotten the experience of lockdown to which we adapted. But the world changed then and continues to change now, and we are all called by our Baptism to offer the Gospel into that changing world. As we enter into a journey of change, the words that link our Dioceses of Ferns and Ossory at this point are in persona episcopi. This role will require from me not just a new set of skills, but a rearrangement and a delegation of work on a large scale. As that work is delegated, it will have an impact on the lives, work and ministry of many people in both Dioceses. The capacity and the skills needed by us all for the task ahead are not taught in colleges or classrooms. They come from the experience of walking the journey, starting with the real, trusting that God is at work even now in the world and in his people..
Collaborative Church
At this time, the Church that we are laying the foundations of, in the Dioceses of Ossory and Ferns, will be a collaborative Church. The Church needs priests so that the Eucharist may nourish the whole Body, and she needs a fully involved laity so that the Body may carry Christ into every corner of the world. Forgiveness frees us from ranking one gift as some sort of add-on. The labour of the baptised is not just a useful but secondary activity that ultimately depends on the presence of a priest to become truly ecclesial. In reality, clergy and lay faithful walk the path to heaven as fellow pilgrims: each essential, each complementary, each loved by the Lord who calls us all. We are where we are by God’s grace; let us set out togethe
Present
There was 869 people present for the installation with the main celebrant wasBishop Ger Nash.
Main Concelebrants: Archbishops, Dermot Farrell and Kieran O’ Reilly. Bishops Niall Coll and Denis Nulty. Rt. Rev. Mgr. Patrick Saw Zay Ham, Deputy Head of Mission, Apostolic Nunciature.
In total there was 18 Bishops 104 Priests – (Dioceses of Ferns, Ossory, Killaloe an friends).
Representing other Churches:Rt. Rev. Adrian and Jacqui Wilkiinson, Church of Ireland. Dean Stephen Farrell, Dean of St Canice’s Cathedral. Mrs. John Harper, Methodist Church. Mr. Guy Jones, Chairperson, Irish Lebanese Cultural Foundation.
Dignitaries present included Verona Murphy, Ceann Comhairle, Dail Eireann. John McGuiness, T.D. , Deputy Ceann Comhairle, Dail Eireann. Jennifer Murnane O’ Connor TD Cllr. John Coonan, Deputy Mayor. Cllr. Catherine Fitzgerald, Cathaoirleach Laois Co. Co. Cllr. Joe Malone, Cathaoirleach Kilkenny Co. Co. Cllr. Shane Murray, Cathaoirleach, Tullamore Municipal District, Offaly Co. Co. Lloyd McGree, Order of Malta and Team.
The celebrations continued with a reception in Newpark Hotel where 600 people gathered.
