At a special Mass broadcast on BBC Radio Ulster to mark ACCORD’s
golden jubilee, Bishop Anthony Farquhar said the work done by the
marriage care agency to ease domestic difficulties over the last fifty
years was often carried out against a backdrop of civil and community
tensions in the North.
In his homily, the Bishop said these civil and community tensions,
“at times spilled over, particularly into the area of inter-Church
marriages,” and as a result the pressures that exist for all marriages
were often accentuated for couples in inter-Church relationships.
“Through ACCORD many such couples received invaluable help from
ministers of other denominations,” he added, acknowledging the
contribution of leaders from other Churches.
Though there will always be those in relationships who claim they
don't need a piece of paper or a certificate to seal their love, the
auxiliary bishop of Down and Connor said ACCORD’s philosophy is that
marriage is a two-way relationship between the couple and indeed a
three-way relationship celebrated and lived in the presence of God.
The special anniversary broadcast Mass was transmitted live on BBC
Radio Ulster from St Mary’s, Chapel Lane, in the centre of Belfast.
“The downtown Church of St Mary's where we meet may well be known to
many; shoppers, inner city workers, bus-pass users of one sort or
another. You may frequent the church on weekdays. It is a parish of
few resident parishioners but of many weekday visitors,” the Bishop
commented.
Welcoming the special broadcast Mass, Deirdre O’Rawe, Regional
Director ACCORD Northern Ireland said it was, “particularly
appropriate," that it took place in St Mary's Church as, "it was in this
particular parish that CMAC/ACCORD came into being fifty years ago.”
She also paid tribute to Bishop Farquhar’s involvement with ACCORD over the years.
ACCORD’s core services are marriage and relationship counselling and
marriage preparation programmes, which are available to all who need
them, regardless of denomination, race, creed or ability to pay.
It is
Ireland’s leading nationwide agency supporting marriage and
relationships through 60 locations across the island of Ireland.
The aim of ACCORD is to help couples prepare for, achieve and sustain
their marriage and family relationships, to offer on-going relationship
support and assist them in times of difficulty or crisis.
Ahead of the radio Mass, BBC Radio Ulster’s Sunday Sequence
programme broadcast a discussion on the work of ACCORD today, and its
contribution to marriage support over the last fifty years in which
ACCORD representatives, Denis Bradley and Mary Goss, spoke of their
experience in agency’s marriage education and counselling services.