Fr Michael Corkery now a septuagenarian
It was a wonderful occasion for the parish priest of Glanworth, Ballindangan and Curraghagalla last week, as Fr Michael Corkery celebrated his 70th birthday in the parish that has been his ‘home’ for the past 11 years. Rather than lament the ageing process however, Fr Corkery rather welcomes the wisdom that comes with age, particularly in his profession.
“It crept up on me by stealth - I don’t feel old enough for it yet! In an age where there is so much emphasis on ‘youthfulness’, passing 70 can be a challenge. However, priesthood is the one profession where such an event could be an enhancement. You see, ‘Wisdom’ is expected to be a characteristic of the priest. In the Old Testament, it was reckoned that all wisdom came from God.”
Invoking the old Irish seanfhocal, Fr Corkery reminds the reader that “Ní thagann ciall roimh aois”; or “sense doesn’t come before age”.
Fr Corkery has been stationed as parish priest of Glanworth, Ballindangan and Curraghagalla for the last 11 years. In 1958, there were four priests administering the same area and Fr Corkery admits that in any other profession, he would have retired five years ago. Despite the sometimes daunting workload, he has ‘immense help’ from the lay faithful, and says that a parish council and secretary, as well as sacristans and lay ministries are an ‘indispensable’ part of a successful parish. He also thanked Fr Dan Gould for his invaluable support in the parish.
One local attested to Fr Corkery’s empathy and kindness which goes hand-in-hand with his love of sport saying: “He loves his football and his golf - you’d hear all about it if it went good, or if it went bad! But his love for sport is equalled by his passion for the job. He’s great to work with; he has such empathy. He’s easygoing, and his door is always open, and I think anyone would agree with me when I say that. Sometimes someone is giving out, and he has this great ability to put things in context with a phrase, or a quote.”
‘COLD FEET’
Born in 1952 in Ballyvourney, Fr Corkery was the middle child in a family of 10 children on a farm.
“My parents worked long hard hours, and that ethos of work was inculcated in us from an early age. Life was frugal and money was scarce back then. I was the last child to go barefoot to primary school in Ballyvourney and at lunchbreak we would play football or soccer in the concrete yard. Sometimes my big toe might hit the ground before the ball - a painful experience! - but my appetite to continue playing would be undeterred and I always loved playing football,” Fr Corkery said.
The Ballyvourney native always felt he wanted to be a priest while at school, but as a boarder in Rochestown Secondary School and completing his Leaving Cert, he got ‘cold feet’ and instead completed a degree in Agricultural Science in UCC and UCD. After working for a time in England in the agricultural milling industry, he ‘succumbed to the call’ and in 1978, entered Maynooth.
In 1983 he commenced his profession and was appointed to Mallow as a temporary curate for a short time. The following year he was sent to a college in Dundalk to study catechetics for school work, work he would continue to do for the next 13 years along with his parish work in Mallow.
A stint in Glantane from 1987-1995 was followed by a year in Glanworth, time in Shanballymore, Newmarket, Buttevant, Aghinagh as PP, and finally back to Glanworth in 2011 as parish priest.
“I am here now 11 years, and in a strange way Glanworth had been a part of my life for many years. I used to play football for my own home club Naomh Aban, Ballyvourney, and from the years 1971 to 1981 we must have played against Glanworth circa 10 times. The first was in a Junior County semi-final in 1971 - they beat us well! Then in 1976 they beat us in a county Intermediate final by a point in the ‘new’ Pairc Ui Chaoimh.”
WARM WELCOME
Such was the standard of football at the time that there were 26
All- Ireland medals between both teams on the field that day: ‘a golden era’. Harking back to the last showdown in 1981, Fr Corkery can’t resist his loyalty to his birthplace, but says the good people of Glanworth never held it against him.
“Our last meeting was 1981 when both teams were Senior. We won that one (though it’s not talked about much round here now - so keep quiet about it). However when I came here in 2011 as PP there was a great welcome for me, especially from my former footballing opponents. That support would prove crucial as the church had gone through extensive renovation work and was left with a huge debt of over €1 million.”
The debt was cleared 12 months ago with teamwork between the parish councils, secretaries, sacristans and many other ministries.
“So Glanworth, Ballindangan and Curraghagalla is a happy place to be a priest. New challenges will come, and we look forward to the future with hope, confidence and increasing faith in the Good Lord,” he concluded.