Bishop Alan McGuckian has invited the people of Creeslough to seek support during their time of need.
The Bishop of Raphoe said the entire community and the nation are feeling helpless and shaken by the trauma and loss of the Applegreen Service Station explosion on Friday.
Bishop McGuckian told parishioners today: “You, the people of Creeslough are living through a nightmare of shock and horror since the very heart of the community was deeply wounded on Friday afternoon.”
“The trauma is different for every single individual,” he said, adding that the community has been shocked by the randomness of the incident and some are carrying a sense of guilt.
“There is a terrible realisation that we are not masters of our own destiny, we are very fragile and vulnerable,” Bishop McGuckian said.
Bishop McGuckian celebrated 11am Mass in St. Michael’s Church Creeslough this morning alongside Fr Duffy and Fr Murphy.
Ten red candles flicker on the altar of St. Michael’s and and ten empty chairs sit below the stations of the Cross in memory of the 10 lives lost in the tragic accident. The victims were named by gardaí this morning as Catherine O’Donnell, 39, and her 13-year-old son James Monaghan; Robert Garwe, 50, and his five-year-old daughter Shauna Flanagan Garwe; 14-year-old Leona Harper; Jessica Gallagher, 24; James O’Flaherty, 48; Martin McGill, 49; Martina Martin, 49, and 59-year-old Hugh Kelly.
The altar of Michael’s Church in Creeslough
Referring to today’s Gospel reading of The Story of the Ten Lepers, Bishop McGuckian invited people to ask Jesus for healing during this time of unique trauma. He urged people to seek support by contacting counsellors or local priests.
“We are a community in need, like the group of ten, so we make the prayer for each other, we make it especially for those most cruelly affected, the most traumatised by the grief.”
Commenting after the visit to Creeslough, Bishop McGuckian said: “I have witnessed at first hand the immediate reaction of the local community to the tragedy who, in their bravery, took risks at the site to help others even to the detriment of their own safety. I wish to commend the first responders, and the emergency services of Donegal and Derry, for their high level of professional cooperation and rapid response.”
Father John Joe Duffy, speaking at 9am Mass, told the congregation that while the community has been hit with a tsunami of grief and numbness, there is also goodwill.
“Let us realise this morning that we have been hit by another tsunami, and tsunami of prayer, of support from right across this country.
“People are praying for us, people are wishing every goodwill for us.
“We are heartened by the prayers of this entire nation north and south and from other places.”
Fr Duffy said Creeslough people are a ‘people of hope’ and, as the state of disbelief and shock continues, the events have reminded everyone of the fraglity of life. “If the last few days have been a reminder for anything to us, it should be a reminder to us of how important family are, how important relationships are,” he said.
