Irish Summer Institute Is August 14-27, 2006

The 11th Bi-Annual Irish Summer Institute is scheduled to take place August 14-27, 2006. Sponsored by the Presbyterian Committee for Northern Ireland (PCNI) of the PC(USA), and the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, the Institute is a two week-long travel seminar designed to provide American Presbyterian and Roman Catholic Christians with an opportunity to gain a better, more accurate understanding of the complex issues that continue to plague Northern Ireland, after decades of sectarian violence.

The Institute begins with orientation in Dublin in the Republic on August 15th, where participants will be briefed by eminent scholars on the issues impeding the search for permanent peace. The Institute bus will then move north across the border to Belfast, the capital of Northern Ireland, stopping along the way to visit the historic, 5,000 year old Great Mound of Knowth, one of the oldest burial mounds in all of Europe.

In Belfast the Institute will be addressed by a variety of religious and political leaders and will visit several key “cross community” projects that are forging a significant pathway near the village of Ballycastle on the lovely Antrim coast. Participants will also visit one of the most unusual geological rock formations in the world, the Giant’s Causeway, after which we will have dinner at the historic Bushmill’s Inn before returning to Belfast.

Sunday, August 20th Institute participants will worship in a nearby village at local Presbyterian, Roman Catholic, and Church of Ireland (Anglican) churches and enjoy dinner hosted by local parishioners in their homes. Over the next few days the Institute will meet at Church House, the headquarters of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland (PCI), for discussion and dialogue with local Irish Presbyterian and Roman Catholic leaders. There will also be meetings with the leaders of the Northern Ireland Civil Service, the Fair Housing Office, with the Chief Constable of the Northern Ireland Policing Service, and at the Office of the U.S. Consulate General.

On Wednesday, August 23, the Institute bus leaves for Derry, with a brief stop at Coleraine for a visit with the Borough Council. We will arrive in Derry in time for a reception by the Mayor at the Guildhall, and late that afternoon we will meet with Nobel Peace recipient the Honorable John Hume at our hotel. Over the next few days we will visit Derry’s leading Roman Catholic and Presbyterian leaders, and take a tour of the Bogside, site of the infamous, violent 1972 “Bloody Sunday.”

Leaving Derry we will travel to the towns of Omagh to meet with its Interchurch Forum, and then on to Armagh where we will be welcomed by Roman Catholic Archbishop Sean Brady at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The next day after meeting with Armagh “Cross community” leaders we will head back to Belfast for our final night in Northern Ireland, and an evening of discussion, evaluation and closing worship. The next morning Institute participants will fly home to the United States.

The cost of all Institute activities in Ireland, including hotels, most meals, and bus travel including coach tips is $2,500. Air Fare from Newark (NJ) Airport to Dublin with return from Belfast is approximately $800, including taxes, through Isle Inn Tours, which can also arrange flights from your home town to Newark and return. For further details contact “Bernie” at Isle Inn Tours, 10123 Queen Street, Alexandria, VA 22314; Phone: 1- (800) 237-9376, ext. 11; or email bernie@isleinntours.com .

For more information and Application Forms contact:
The Rev. Dr. Jim Macdonell,
9708 DePaul Drive,
Bethesda, MD 20817
(301) 530-8093
jim.nancymacx@verizon.net

Deadline for applications is May 1, 2006.