President Of Ireland Gives Address At Jesuit University Residence Hall
‘Seismic shift in the economic, social and cultural landscape of Ireland’ - President McAleese of Ireland
The President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, gave the Jubilee Year Lecture at the Jesuit University Residence Hall in Dublin on Tuesday, 31st October 2000. About one hundred and fifty people attended, representing studentsa and their friends, former students, staff and friends of University Hall.
In a wide ranging address, which focussed extensively on the value of education today and its importance, the President talked of a ‘seismic shift in the economic, social and cultural landscape of Ireland’, and pointed out that people in Ireland have never before had ‘such opportunity to shape a present and future we can be proud of’.
The President said that to-day ‘twin miracles of prosperity and peace’ offer the prospect of realising the vision of ‘an Ireland of real and equal opportunity for all’. But it needs work, she added. ‘That prospect is within sight and within grasp. But it won’t happen by chance…It needs champions to safeguard it; it needs people to work at keeping that vision of a comfortably diverse, tolerant and egalitarian society in focus; it needs people who recognise that the project is incomplete, to remind us that there are still many in our society for whom this prosperous, self-confident Ireland is a world away.’
She praised the contribution which so many people are already making. ‘We are fortunate that we still have so many such people, working quietly, selflessly in every community in the country people who have dedicated their lives to public service; people who work in a voluntary capacity in resource centres and hospices, with people who are elderly or have disabilities, offering hope and support. They are people who fight complacency, who galvanise communities to believe in their own capacity to be agents of change. They are people who forge the types of partnerships and syntheses which radically extend the reach of what is possible’.
‘Our need for such leaders has not diminished, yet there is evidence of a slow but worrying decline in people’s willingness to become involved, to engage in voluntary activity, to dedicate their lives to public service. It may seem our world has grown more cynical, more obsessed with personal gain, less inclined to personal sacrifice and the service of others. Yet if we look further, there is no shortage of evidence that this is not the case: there are many people of courage across the world whose rejection of cynicism and despair continues to inspire, whose acceptance of leadership is motivated not by ambition but by a desire to serve.
The President concluded by encouraging the students and those gathered to partipate actively in society: ‘You have a choice which you will be, player or spectator, giver or taker, carer or deserter. I hope you make the best choice and that together we will live to see the best Ireland ever.’
University Hall is the Jesuit Residence Hall which serves all the Dublin colleges and universities.