Lent as desert

A flute playing, Irish speaking, Church of Ireland minister from the Protestant heartland of East Belfast is the interviewee on Lenten Voices for the fourth week of Lent. Rev Gary Hastings is rector of St Nicholas’ Church in Galway, where he lives with his wife, a Catholic, and two grown-up children. As well as working closely with the neighbouring Augustinian church on courses and liturgies, Gary will often be found in his local pub playing traditional Irish music. He is a renowned musician, with many recordings to his name. In conversation with Pat Coyle of the JCC he speaks about the symbolism of ‘desert’ in Lent, his ecumenical work, and the challenges of being a Christian in Ireland today. Lenten voices is a joint venture of the JCC and Brian O’Leary SJ, the Province Delegate for Ecumenism. Listen here.