Last autumn, I had the honour of delivering the invocation at our Belfast International Homecoming and speaking at the Ireland’s Future event in Dublin – ‘Together We Can’.
For me, the thread that rang through both of the events I participated in was our sense of ‘Home’. I believe home is more than the bricks and roof over our heads; it is the place we belong and where we are with the people we feel most connected to. Yes, homes are messy and there are often many disagreements, but home is truly where our heart is.
I admire the many people who day in and day out put their shoulder to the wheel to make our home better. Yes, we must work on improving our today, but we must also have our eye on the future. What is it we want to pass on to our children and grandchildren? Let’s together continue to make Belfast/Ireland a better place to live. I love our home and I love our people. Below is the invocation I read at the Belfast Homecoming:
Our home… Where we are bigger than two communities.
Our home… Where no-one is an addition.
Our home… Where we all belong, whatever our background, our religion, our gender, our sexuality, whether we have faith or not – we all belong.
Our home… Where our different stories make up the beautiful and messy tapestry of who we are and where we have been.
Our home… Where we know pain and loss.
Our home… Where we know what it is to hope and to heal.
Our home… Where many peacemakers continue to pave the path of peace.
Our home… Where our people are determined to better our today, with our eye on our future.
Belfast/Ireland, is our home.
To our global Irish family, our home is your home.
Come home and make a difference.
Come home and help us to build a brighter Belfast/Ireland.
Work with us.
Partner with us.
Invest in us.
Join in with us.
Come home to make a difference.
May we all MAKE a difference.
May we all BE the difference.
Welcome home.
