Clutching a single red rose,Jennifer Hannigan walks behind
the coffin of her boyfriend Seb Creane
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A MOTHERS LOSS
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Sadly it seems the problem of youth crime is endemic in this country and the latest outrage saw 22 year old Sebastian Creane being stabbed to death at his home in County Wicklow before his killer turned the knife on himself, also dying. That his killer Shane Clancy was a theology student at Trinity College in Dublin underlines the fact that the culture of violent crime amongst young men transcends all social classes. Often such crimes are drug related but in this case it seems that this tragedy emerged out of one young man’s disappointment at breaking up with his girlfriend, Jennifer Hannigan wreaking a terrible revenge on her (she was wounded in the incident) and her new boyfriend, Sebastian. The pictures of the white wicker coffin being carried into the church with a distraught train of family and friends behind, graphically showed the waste of a young life and the legacy of pain for those left behind. During the funeral mass Sebastian’s mother delivered a remarkable and passionate eulogy , responding to the heartbreak of her loss in a most tender and considered way. Mrs. Creane explained that she had tried to make sense of “ this tragic incident which caused mayhem in all our lives and robbed D [Dylan] of a younger brother he was so proud of ”. She noted the similarities between the two ‘boys’ who died that morning, “They were both 22; both had the same initials; both were entering their final year in college and looked set, even in these recessionary times, to have fruitful careers. So many similarities.” Recalling the tragedy she went on, “Yet on the morning of August 16th, my God of Small Things said to me, one boy represented the light, the other the darkness, as they both played their parts in the unfolding of God’s divine plan. And as a result, we – my beloved J [her husband James] and I – and all of you are faced with a choice.” She then asks the question that each one of us will at some stage have to answer as we encounter pain and evil in our world, “ Do we continue in darkness, seeing only fear, anger, bitterness, resentment, blaming, bemoaning our loss, always looking backwards, blaming, blaming, blaming, or are we ready to transmute this negativity? We can rise to the challenge with unconditional love, knowing that we were born on to this earth to grow.”
I don’t know what faith this woman holds but it is obvious that she is a lady who considers what life unfolds and is not just overcome by it. To the follower of Jesus there is the incomparable help of facing up to incomprehensible evil, as He did. The pain and desolation of His Friday crucifixion is seen through faith’s eyes in the light of the empty tomb of the following Sunday, or as someone put it more succinctly, ‘It’s Friday…but Sunday’s comin’
Sadly it seems the problem of youth crime is endemic in this country and the latest outrage saw 22 year old Sebastian Creane being stabbed to death at his home in County Wicklow before his killer turned the knife on himself, also dying. That his killer Shane Clancy was a theology student at Trinity College in Dublin underlines the fact that the culture of violent crime amongst young men transcends all social classes. Often such crimes are drug related but in this case it seems that this tragedy emerged out of one young man’s disappointment at breaking up with his girlfriend, Jennifer Hannigan wreaking a terrible revenge on her (she was wounded in the incident) and her new boyfriend, Sebastian. The pictures of the white wicker coffin being carried into the church with a distraught train of family and friends behind, graphically showed the waste of a young life and the legacy of pain for those left behind. During the funeral mass Sebastian’s mother delivered a remarkable and passionate eulogy , responding to the heartbreak of her loss in a most tender and considered way. Mrs. Creane explained that she had tried to make sense of “ this tragic incident which caused mayhem in all our lives and robbed D [Dylan] of a younger brother he was so proud of ”. She noted the similarities between the two ‘boys’ who died that morning, “They were both 22; both had the same initials; both were entering their final year in college and looked set, even in these recessionary times, to have fruitful careers. So many similarities.” Recalling the tragedy she went on, “Yet on the morning of August 16th, my God of Small Things said to me, one boy represented the light, the other the darkness, as they both played their parts in the unfolding of God’s divine plan. And as a result, we – my beloved J [her husband James] and I – and all of you are faced with a choice.” She then asks the question that each one of us will at some stage have to answer as we encounter pain and evil in our world, “ Do we continue in darkness, seeing only fear, anger, bitterness, resentment, blaming, bemoaning our loss, always looking backwards, blaming, blaming, blaming, or are we ready to transmute this negativity? We can rise to the challenge with unconditional love, knowing that we were born on to this earth to grow.”
I don’t know what faith this woman holds but it is obvious that she is a lady who considers what life unfolds and is not just overcome by it. To the follower of Jesus there is the incomparable help of facing up to incomprehensible evil, as He did. The pain and desolation of His Friday crucifixion is seen through faith’s eyes in the light of the empty tomb of the following Sunday, or as someone put it more succinctly, ‘It’s Friday…but Sunday’s comin’
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Gerard O'Shea
2 comments:
Not being a parent myself I can only imagine the sense of loss experienced by the parents of all the victims involved in this tragedy.My hope is that all involved will experience the love and mercy of the Lord.
There is no good news anymore.
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