Cardinal's Irish cheer
Jul 25, 2008
Cardinal Sean Brady returned to Ireland this week with a bagful of wonderful memories, capped by the warmth of the large Irish community in Penrith.
(penrithpress.com.au, 25 July, 2008) He said he was overwhelmed by the welcome of the Sydney residents during the recent World Youth Day (WYD) celebrations.
"I congratulate the people of Sydney and Australia for a most wonderful WYD and I am very pleased to see so many young people showing a different way to overcome self-centered ways of living," Cardinal Brady told the Penrith Press.
He visited the thriving Penrith Gaels Cultural and Sporting Club on Monday afternoon where he enjoyed the hospitality of his delighted countrymen over a lunch.
"I always have high expectations of WYD having been there for the first one 23 years ago but Sydney exceeded even my high expectations," Cardinal Brady said. Keen to meet members of the large Irish community in NSW, he was taken to the Penrith Gaels by the Rev Father Tom Devereaux, who runs a welfare centre in Bondi and was in charge of the nearly 1000 Irish WYD pilgrims.
Proving that the world is indeed a small place, Cardinal Brady was surprised to meet the Rev Father Tim McKinney, whom he had ordained three years ago in County Armagh.
"He and his mother Collette are visiting family in Penrith and it's lovely to meet them here as they are from my county," he said. "I am obviously thrilled to meet Irish descendants and immigrants in Penrith and I am surprised at their large numbers."
The Penrith Gaels boasts a membership of over 4000 members though only 10 per cent are Irish, according to a club official.
The rest come from across western Sydney and beyond.
Irish Vice-Consul Louise Kelly and Cr Karen McKeown,attended the lunch along with club officials general manager David Cunningham, directors Pat and Tina Cullen and vice-president Noel Donohoe.
Later in the week Cardinal Brady also caught up with members of the Irish-Australian Welfare Bureau in Bondi, which supports immigrants and residents.
Cardinal's Irish cheer