Northern Ireland

'Service of Recommitment' at Clonard to mark anniversary of Good Friday Agreement

Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern signing the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Picture by John Giles/PA
Tony Blair and Bertie Ahern signing the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Picture by John Giles/PA

A 'SERVICE of Recommitment' to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement will take place on Sunday at Clonard Monastery in west Belfast.

Led by the Corrymeela Community, the 3pm service will be attended by political representatives, senior clergy, community leaders and lay people from across Ireland and Britain.

The congregation will hear contributions from those who were instrumental during the peace process, as well as young people born after the Agreement’s signing.

Clonard Monastery and Redemptorist priest Fr Alec Reid played a central role in the early years of the peace process, hosting talks between John Hume and Gerry Adams, then the leaders of the SDLP and Sinn Féin respectively.


Fr Alec Reid
Fr Alec Reid

The leader of Corrymeela, Rev Dr Alex Wimberly, described the service as "an opportunity to acknowledge the courage of those who helped create a moment of hope 25 years ago, and an opportunity to rededicate ourselves today to a just and lasting peace".



The service will include a performance by the 'Towards Inclusion Choir' from the Wave Trauma Centre, the north's largest cross-community victims’ group.


"Clonard is very happy to host this recommitment service," said Clonard's Fr Ciarán O’Callaghan. 

"We are delighted to be able to pray and give thanks with our brothers and sisters in other Christian churches and from other faith and belief communities, and to work together for ongoing reconciliation."



The recommitment service is the centrepiece of a series of events Corrymeela is hosting to mark the anniversary of the Agreement.

Corrymeela executive director Tim Magowan described the events as "an opportunity for people from different backgrounds to reflect on the progress we’ve made over the last 25 years and to recommit ourselves to building a society where everyone thrives in the future".



:: To register for Recommitment at Clonard visit https://recommitmentatclonard.eventbrite.co.uk or visit www.corrymeela.org