Oral Hearing Overview (All Documents Available Below)
The submissions to the Oral Hearing began with the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (DoEHLG). [Unfortunately we do not have a copy of this submission at the moment, but we will post if and when we get it.]
This was followed by the submission of the Irish Georgian Society’s Donough Cahill and two submissions from An Taisce; Noel O’Driscoll, secretary of the Cork Branch of An Taisce and
Ann Wilson an Art Historian and member of An Taisce who did her Masters Thesis on The Construction of St. Colman’s Cathedral.
The Friends of St. Colman’s began their presentation with outlining the Friends Position regarding the re-ordering of the Cathedral. There followed submissions by the secretary of FOSCC,
Mrs Terry Pender and the Vice-Chairman, Mr. Adrian O’Donovan; Mary Doran Architect and Planning Consultant; Jessie Castle Metlitski Conservation Consultant; Dr. Alan Kershaw Advocate of the Roman Rota; and Dr. Alcuin Reid author of numerous books on Liturgy who holds degrees in Theology and Education and a Ph.D for a thesis on 20th Century liturgical reform.
There followed two submissions by the Local Authority. The first was from the Cork County Council Conservation Officer Miss Louise Harrington who had recommended refusing planning permission to the original application to Cobh Town Council. Her advice was ignored by the Planning officer. The Planning officer Mr. Des Heffernan followed.
There followed presentations from three of the people who had submitted Observations to An Bord Pleanala regarding the Appeal. The first was a lady from Cobh, Margaret Baker who spoke on behalf of herself and two other Cobh Parishioners; followed by Cllr. Sean O’Connor a councillor in Cobh Town Council who has been actively campaigning against the proposed re-ordering since it was first announced; and finally Miss Fionuala Sherwin from Dublin – we do not have a copy of this submission.
The last presentations were by the Applicants, the Trustee of St. Colman’s Cathedral.
They opened with a short presentation from their Barrister Mr. Maurice Collins ; this was followed by
Canon Denis Reidy who has been one of the prime movers of the re-ordering project since its inception. He was followed by Canon John Terry of the Historic Churches Advisory Committee; Prof. Cathal O’Neill Architect for the project; Mr. Brian McCutcheon Planning Consultant for the project; Guy Edwards of Cliveden Conservation Workshop Ltd.; and Fr. Paddy Jones author of Places of Worship, member of the Irish Bishop’s Commission for Liturgy and one of the Church’s representatives on the drafting of the Guidelines for Architectural Heritage Protection for Places of Public Worship.
It is these guidelines which allow any bishop to create ‘Liturgical Requirements’ for his diocese and thus re-order their churches at will, as is the current situation in Cobh. Bishop Magee of Cloyne was also involved in the drafting of these guidelines which are at the centre of the current dispute.
Closing Statement From An Taisce. Click Here