Martin says ‘look to the future’ as Mater Dei closes its doors

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin has dismissed claims that the Irish Church is “selling its family silver” to a new godlessness in Irish society.

In a homily at the final Mass in Mater Dei Institute of  Education’s Chapel, the archbishop acknowledged that the closure of institutions such as Mater Dei and All Hallows College in his diocese was the end of an era, but said it did not mark the end of the Christian faith “as a constitutive part of Irish society”. While the Church in the past had invested in the bricks and mortar of unchanging institutions to provide a firm basis for education in the faith, he said, those institutions had to be replaced and renewed to be effective and incisive in the twenty-first century.

The archbishop, who is Patron of Mater Dei, suggested that something more flexible, such as virtual structures, within which young people grow and develop were needed.

Later this month a new Centre for Faith and Dialogue in Society led by Notre Dame University will open in Dublin at University Church.

Announcing the initiative last June, the archbishop said it would not be just “an intellectual debating centre, but will also work in the formation of an active and committed faith community of young people”.

Mater Dei and another teacher training college, St Patrick’s in Drumcondra, will cease to exist in their current form, but the names of both institutions will remain under a new Faculty of Education in Dublin City University, where those intending to teach in denominational education will study with secular trainees.