PP to the Parish of the Travelling People in Dublin, Fr Derek Farrell shares his experiences of an unique ministry with Mags Gargan

It was music that led Fr Derek Farrell on the path to the priesthood. Growing up in Rathfarnham in Dublin he says that although he had the basic background of a normal Catholic family faith, this faith did not come alive for him until his twenties when he was inspired by a religious music group. ''It was a group called the Celebrant Singers from America, and I picked up something in how they were and what they were doing. They were full of joy and happiness and very powerful singing, and it was all related to their faith. That came as a discovery to me that faith could be something very alive and something that could make a difference.''

From here one thing led to another and through prayer groups and local folk groups, Fr Derek made a step-by-step journey where he discovered the joy of the Gospels and made the decision to join the priesthood. ''I made what I think was a very big decision and a very difficult decision, because you are completely doing an about turn in life and leaving behind a lot of things, when you don't really know how it's going to work. I suppose it was a leap of faith in that sense, that's just the nature of it.''

Good experience

As a deacon Fr Derek spent two years in the parish of Bonnybrook in Coolock, which he describes as ''a very good experience''. His first parish as priest was in Our Lady of Fatima in Rialto for nine years, which was followed by seven years in St Martin's parish in Old Bawn.

For the last three and half years, Fr Derek has worked in the role of parish priest in the Parish of the Travelling People in the Archdiocese of Dublin. Originally this was a Vincentian parish, but as numbers decreased the Order had to leave the parish and the archbishop decided to appoint a diocesan priest to the role rather than have the parish disbanded.

Learning curve

Although Fr Derek had some frequent contact with members of the Travelling community in his previous parishes, he says he only saw a small part of what he has now discovered is a rich and varied world. ''Joining the parish was a big learning curve. You have got the culture first of all, and there is the geographical side of it, as the parish covers the whole diocese from Balbriggan to Arklow to Athy, and you have to learn where you are going and the links between the extended families. It takes time to make those links between places and families, and it is an ongoing accumulated knowledge.''

Instead of people coming to the central focal point of the parish church, Fr Derek goes out to the different areas where the 10,000 or so members of the Travelling community are based, to respond to requests for blessings or baptisms etc. This makes the ministry unpredictable, but certainly keeps things interesting, and he says he always receives a warm welcome from the community, who hold the role of the priest in high regard. ''There is an expectation that comes along with that, and if there is a pastoral need you are expected to respond, but there is also an appreciation of that response and it is a very affirming ministry.''

Fr Derek says he gets great support and ''magnificent commitment'' from the parish pastoral council, which is made up predominantly from members of the Travelling community. The council were central in the formulation of the initiative 'Travelling Towards Inclusion', a four-year project aimed at improving the interaction and involvement of the Travelling community within their local parishes. The first year of a two-year pilot parish in St Ronan's parish in Deansrath is just coming to an end and is currently being evaluated, but Fr Derek believes there is already evidence that the project is very worthwhile and could be applied to other parishes.

Initiatives

Martin Rowan, the Pastoral Development Co-ordinator in the pilot parish has organised many initiatives like developing an inclusive Reading Team, pilgrimages, photo exhibitions, home visitations and simple things like sharing a cup of tea after Mass. Through these activities the two communities have been able to bridge the gap that separates them.

Fr Derek says that with something like a pilgrimage ''at the start the people don't know each other but you can see something develop each day through conversations and by the end of the week friendships are formed. A big part of what we do is to try and replicate this at parish level - the sharing of each other's experiences and faith which can lead to a mutual understanding.

''Many if not most people from the settled community would not know a Traveller on any significant level, and most people's experience comes from perceptions and negative stereotypes that have persisted for a long time and are not representative of true Traveller culture and the dignity of the people.''

Ovations

As an example of how shared experience can overcome negative perceptions, Fr Derek describes when Traveller members of the parish team and pastoral council, Geraldine, Pauline and Noreen, spoke about the importance of faith and family in the Traveller community at a Novena in Newbridge. ''They got three spontaneous ovations from the church congregation,'' he says. üüüü''A lot of good can come from such interaction. Travellers have a lot to share with the wider faith community because their faith is so strong.''