50th anniversary of the Irish Inter-Church Meeting

The year 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of the first "Ballymascanlon Talks", which have evolved over time into what is now commonly known as the Irish Inter-Church Meeting (IICM). The annual IICM brings together representatives of the Irish Council of Churches (ICC) - which includes Protestant, Orthodox and Independent churches - and the Catholic Church. It is co-chaired by the President of the ICC and a member of the Irish Catholic Bishops' Conference.

The 1973 "Ballymascanlon Talks" brought together the Protestant and Catholic Churches from across the island for the first time at the height of the tensions that shook Northern Ireland. The 2023 meeting was held in Dromantine, County Down, on 19-20 October, 2023, with the theme "Our Reconciling Vision of Hope: Fifty Years after the Ballymascanlon Talks".

Martin Browne, O.S.B., an official of the Western Section of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, gave the key-note address. In his address, Father Browne summarized the work of the many dialogues and other bilateral engagements that the Catholic Church currently maintains with other Churches and ecclesial Communities, both in the East and in the West. He also spoke of the important ecumenical dimension of the Catholic Church's synodal journey and outlined some of the challenges currently facing ecumenical dialogue.