New 'energetic and enthusiastic priest' welcomed to Offaly parish

A SERVICE of Welcome was held for the Reverend Olive Elizabeth Henderson in St Paul's Church, Banagher on Friday evening, during which the local community was told that their new Priest in Charge is known for her energy and enthusiasm, her kindness and her sense of fun.

Reverend Henderson was warmly welcomed by her new community. Her job title is Priest in Charge of the Clonfert Group of Parishes, a position which she will hold for at least the next four years.

The Service was conducted by the Right Reverend Dr Kenneth Kearon, Bishop of Limerick and Killaloe, who said he was certain that Rev Henderson will prove to be a popular Priest in Charge.

A native of Ballickmoyler, County Laois, Olive is from a farming background. She was a nurse in the national children's hospital in Dublin. Her husband ran a carpet and floor covering business in Athy, while her seven children were growing up.

In the late 1980s she began training as a lay reader and undertook the Archbishop's course in Theology. She was ordained a priest in the grouped parishes of Rathdrum with Glenealy and Laragh in 1997, and a priest the following year.

Reverend Olive Mary Rose Donohue, Rector of the Athy Union of Parishes, gave the Sermon on Friday evening in a lighthearted, humorous style, telling the parishioners that she knew Rev Henderson very well and she could assure them that she's “a good egg.”

She quoted a bit of wisdom from the Book of Micah which said that what God wants from us is that we act justly, love tenderly and walk humbly. “And that's really it,” commented Rev Donohue, “that is the essence of being a Christian. I have written those words on a card and I look at it from time to time and it gives me inspiration.

“Rev Olive knows what it is to act justly and love tenderly. I can assure you that she will be there for you whenever you need her, in the bad times as well as during the good times. She will walk side by side with you, trying to help you as much as she can. She lives for her faith. It means everything to her. Those who know her admire her great reserves of energy and enthusiasm, her unerring kindness and her lovely sense of fun. But be warned – she will expect you to work just as hard. In fact the sweetest words any priest can hear is, Is there anything I can do to help you? As a priest it is bliss to hear that from one's community. If you bring that sort of attitude to the moment then I promise you Olive will be absolutely delighted and will go the extra mile for you.

“Olive is a realist and an empath. She gets where you are coming from. She gets it that we can sometimes draw up unrealistic lists of things to do, that we can sometimes overextend ourselves. She can see through our unrealistic expectations, in an empathetic way.

“Olive has had a long, rich and fulfilling life. She has several children and she is a grandmother. And yet she has the youthful outlook and energy of a woman many years younger. And she is a great preacher. You won't be bored during her Sunday sermons.”

Rev Donohue recalled giving a Sermon when she was “a young and green priest. I thought my congregation were spellbound and I was doing a great job. Then a lady put up her hand and matter of factly told me that the organ behind me was on fire! I turned around and was horrified to see smoke billowing from the organ. I asked Mr Hendy to bring forward the fire extinguisher beside him. His wife shook him and said, 'Wake up Jack. She needs you'!”

She concluded by asking everyone to never forget the wise words from Micah: “He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love tenderly and to walk humbly with your God”.