Proving an emotional anchor in life's rough ocean
8 October 1997
For a moment, I thought the youngish man in jeans and sweater who opened the door of the Friary House in Ballyhaunis might be an electrician or odd jobs man. Not for the first time in life, I discovered first appearances can be misleading. There was a briskness and purpose about this man as he swung open the sturdy door, an air of expectancy as he jutted his face forward to hear his caller's enquiry.
"I am looking for Fr. Michael Collender ", I informed the man half expecting at any minute to see a priest in robes, breviary in hand, descending the stairway behind him.
"Yes, I'm Fr. Collender", said the jean clad one noting the surprise on my face as he extended a hand in friendly greeting. Sackcloth and ashes are obviously a thing of the past, I mused, as I mounted the stairs behind my energetic interviewee who, in his thirties, is the youngest Augustinian Friar in Ireland.
UNBROKEN PRAYER AND WORSHIP
The Augustinians have been in Ballyhaunis since the 14th century. They are now the only male clerical Religious Order in the Archdiocese of Tuam.
Even during persecution and the Penal times, the Friary has continued as a religious centre. The history of Ballyhaunis, indeed a large part of central Connacht, is inextricably linked with the Friars.
In the words of the Augustinians themselves, the present Friary Church is special in that it has been a living place of unbroken prayer and worship since around 1400.
Some of the Friars suffered for the faith. For instance, the Venerable Fr. Fulgentius (Walter) Jordan in 1649. Others were patriots like Fr. Myles Prendergast, who took part in the 1798 Rebellion and more recently Fr. James Anderson.
There were poets too and writers as well as the artistic minded Fr. A.E. Foran who was obviously a bit of a Michaelangelo. In the manner of the Italian, Fr. Foran defied gravity to draw paintings on the roof of the Ballyhaunis chapel.
The Church is also an ecclesiastical Museum of sorts with a fine collection of old altar stones as well as historic chalices from Masses, clandestine and otherwise, celebrated in the dim mists of past centuries.
Under the Church and around it are some sealed vaults such as those of the Lords Dillon and the Burkes of Hollywell and Bekan. But enough of the past, let's fast forward to the present.
SENSE OF A COMMON LIFE
In his neat study, Fr. Collender, a native of County Waterford, told me about his vocation. He was ordained in 1991. What drew him to the Augustinians?
Pausing to consider before speaking, the Friar replied: "What attracted me was their sense of a common life. The Augustinians have always been very much to the forefront in terms of the service they gave to the people. They were very outstanding men".
In Ballyhaunis, as in other locations throughout Ireland where there are Augustinians, the tradition of the Order has been one of availability. They were the proverbial anchor in life's ocean, always there for those with problems.
Fr. Collender agrees: "Yes, we were always there in times of trouble. The Augustinians have a fantastic tradition of visiting people especially when trouble and sorrow strikes. People feel very much able to confide in us. That tradition has continued to this very day".
The role of the Augustinians today, Fr. Collender admits, is sometimes confusing. "The role has changed because times have changed and people have changed with them. But the central aspect of Ministry and helping people live out the Gospel has remained unchanged".
Those who are broken or bruised by life's experiences make their way to the Friary on the hill in Ballyhaunis where, for about 600 years, there has always been somebody available to listen.
Nowadays the person at the door may be somebody whose world has collapsed because of the untimely death of a friend or relative. Or it may be someone whose business is in ruins or whose marriage is in tatters. It could also be someone who had just been told they had a terminal illness.
What do the Friars say to the ones in such situations?
"I don't think it is about words", says Fr. Collender. "It is about trying to listen and accompany that person in their despair, being there for them as opposed to trying to come up with solutions. Many of those who call here are not looking for answers. They are looking for a sense of support and some kind of meaning in their lives.
"There are an awful lot of displaced people walking the streets. They don't know where they are coming from or where they are going. Materialism is part of the problem. But I'm sure our ancestors experienced confusion too. Poverty was rampant and there wasn't the same availabiliity of services".
In bygone times, everything was more black and white. Says Fr. Collender: "Catholics found their sustenance and nourishment in the solid structures within the Church. In the past there was a clear sense of what was right and wrong. Now its a bit hazy. There are so many transmitters. That has given rise to confusion.
"Peoples' biggest needs, especially young people, is to have that sense they belong to somebody, that somebody is there for them. That is what I hope we are doing. Whether we succeed or not is another story".
DIFFICULT DECISIONS
Outside his role in the Friary, Fr. Collender has an onerous task in that he is National Vocations Director for the Augustinian Order. He warns that the fall in vocations is posing serious problems and "extremely difficult decisions" will have to be made in the future.
He says: "The fact that we have few vocations does not necessarily mean the end but it means we are going to be faced with a very different understanding of priesthood. That will affect Religious Orders.
"We have been here in Ballyhaunis for 500 to 600 years but that does not necessarily mean we will be here forever. There is a natural stage of birth, a natural time for death as well. I am not sure how the future lies. I am sure our Provincial doesn't know either but there will be a lot of hard choices to be faced up to".
While the closure of some Houses is inevitable, Fr. Collender insists there is no need for alarm bells as regards Ballyhaunis. "We will give whatever we can for as long as we can give it".
Nationally, the Augustinian Order is an ageing one. Most of the Friars are over 60. Add in the fact that you have few ordinations and the scale of the problem facing the Order becomes apparent.
Fr. Collender says: "I think we are at a stage in our history when a lot of the certainties have faded away and we don't know what tomorrow will bring by way of our presence and by way of what we can realistically offer. Re-organisation has been forced upon us whether we like it or not.
"At the moment, statistically, on a worldwide level, we would see ourselves going through a process of decline. But then again at the turn of the century we were faced with the same dilemma. History then did a U-turn and numbers increased. Now numbers have decreased again".
GREATEST GIFT
Despite uncertainty about the future, the work of the Augustinians continues unabated. Fr. Collinder believes the greatest gift he share is a sense of friendship and provide an open door for those who are in need.
Recently, during a previous posting, he adminstered to a man dying of AIDS, someone for whom the Church up to then had only been a source of condemnation and alienation. Fr. Collender recalls: "I was really struck by the sense of love this man experienced in his final hours. To me that was a sign of God at work. To borrow Carl Jung, it is completion not perfection that is expected at the end of our lives.
"The sense of completion always comes with an air of peace, the sense of something spiritual, something deeper, in life. That is the ultimate conversion".
Do you believe in miracles? I finally asked Fr. Collender just as the doorbell rang to indicate the arrival of Trish, our photographer for the occasion.
There was the usual few second pause between the receipt of the question and the delivery of the answer.
"Yes, but I myself have not witnessed any. However, I have seen a lot of spiritual ones in my own life and the lives of those I am privileged to meet. There have been miracles of tremendous acceptance and courage, of being able to begin life again even after the blackest of tragedies".
With that it was time for Fr. Collender to slip on his habit. "It's important to have some symbol for the formal occasions such as weddings, funerals and visiting the sick.", he explained. And when photos are being taken, I reminded him.
Fr. Collender is a familiar figure in his jeans and sweater in Ballyhaunis as he goes about his everyday business or slips into a pub for a social pint at the weekend. Customers sometimes do a double take when they realise it is a Friar they are exchanging pleasantries with about football or the weather.
But he stresses that he does not discard his habit in the hope that more people will find it easier to approach and communicate with him. "I am the same Michael with or without the habit", he insists firmly .
