Friday, August 30, 2013

Bishop who wed tragic Michaela returns after sabbatical

http://cdn2.independent.ie/irish-news/article29538436.ece/ALTERNATES/h342/NWS_20130830_ANA_022_28764116_I1.JPGBISHOP John McAreavey, the uncle of John McAreavey, whose wife Michaela was murdered in Mauritius, has returned from the sabbatical leave that he took in part due to the "great sadness and tragedy" of her death. 

The Bishop of Dromore announced the sabbatical last year, saying he would travel to the Holy Land to study and pray for a number of months.

He has now announced that he has resumed his "full range of pastoral duties as bishop".

It was Bishop McAreavey who presided over Michaela's marriage to his nephew and, only weeks later, her funeral.

Michaela (27) was murdered at the former Legends Hotel resort in Mauritius while she was on honeymoon there in January 2011.

Two hotel workers were cleared of her murder last year following a lengthy trial.
During his sabbatical, Bishop McAreavey spent three months in the Holy Land, visited a diocese in the United States and spent time in China, where he was a guest of the Columban Fathers.

Announcing his return, Bishop McAreavey said: "I am delighted to be back in Ireland and in Dromore.

"The experience of sabbatical has refreshed me physically, emotionally and spiritually.

"I have not come back with any ready-made solutions to the difficulties that confront the church life in Ireland or Dromore.

"However, I feel better equipped to face them."