Address of the outgoing Moderator, Dr Michael Barry, to the Opening Meeting of the 2015 General Assembly.

The General Assembly is the decision and policy making body of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. It meets annually with approximately 1,000 delegates from Presbyterian congregations all around Ireland involved in the four days of worship, prayer, bible study, celebration and decision making. The Assembly met in Assembly Buildings, Belfast from Monday, 1st June until Thursday, 4th June, 2015.

The outgoing Moderator, Dr Michael Barry, reflects on his year in office at the Opening Meeting of the 2015 General Assembly.

The General Assembly is the decision and policy making body of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. It meets annually with approximately 1,000 delegates from Presbyterian congregations all around Ireland involved in the four days of worship, prayer, bible study, celebration and decision making. The Assembly met in Assembly Buildings, Belfast from Monday, 1st June until Thursday, 4th June, 2015.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their third joint conference under the theme ‘Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 22nd January 2015.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event was 'Living and Dying Well', addressing the ethical, pastoral and legal issues surrounding attempts to legislate in favour of assisted suicide.

Professor John Wyatt, Professor of Ethics and Perinatology at University College, London, lectures widely on issues in ethics from a Christian perspective and his most prominent book is Matters of life and death: Today's healthcare dilemmas in the light of Christian Faith. He addressed the pastoral and medical challenges from a Christian perspective.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their third joint conference under the theme ‘Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 22nd January 2015.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event was 'Living and Dying Well', addressing the ethical, pastoral and legal issues surrounding attempts to legislate in favour of assisted suicide.

Baroness Ilora Finlay, chairwoman of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Dying Well, a professor of palliative medicine at Cardiff University and the current President of the BMA, spoke on 'End of Life or Ending Life', focusing in some depth on the medical aspects of end of life care; explaining what palliative care is, how it has developed and how it differs from what is called 'palliative care' in other jurisdictions. She also discussed the implications of a change in the law for end of life care.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their third joint conference under the theme ‘Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 22nd January 2015.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event was 'Living and Dying Well', addressing the ethical, pastoral and legal issues surrounding attempts to legislate in favour of assisted suicide.

Robert Preston, Director of the think-tank, Living and Dying Well, which works to examine the objective evidence surrounding the controversial end-of-life debate and publishes research to help inform Parliament and the public, spoke on 'The Assisted Dying Debate: An Overview' where he gave an overview of the subject, linking the various strands together to show how they interact with each other.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their second joint conference under the theme ‘The Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 9th October 2014.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event, a follow up from January’s first conference, was ‘Equality, freedom and religion’.

Dr. Michael Wardlow, the Chief Commissioner of the Equality Commission NI, used a great deal of Biblical material to under gird his conviction that strong Christian faith and a commitment to human rights and equality are entirely compatible.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their second joint conference under the theme ‘The Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 9th October 2014.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event, a follow up from January’s first conference, was ‘Equality, freedom and religion’.

Professor Colin Harvey, Professor of Human Rights Law at Queen’s University in Belfast, was explicit in saying that human rights law was founded on centuries of Christian theology, and that the churches should be fully engaged in the debates that are still very much “work in progress” as the law develops.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland and Union Theological College held their second joint conference under the theme ‘The Church in the Public Square’ on Thursday, 9th October 2014.

The aim of the conference was to bring together a number of leading thinkers in the UK to consider the role that Christians and the Church can play in wider community life. The theme for the event, a follow up from January’s first conference, was ‘Equality, freedom and religion’.

Professor Roger Trigg, Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at Warwick University, argued that there ought to be much more scope to exercise freedom of conscience, and that we should strive for “reasonable accommodation” in situations where there was a genuine conscientious problem.

Address of the incoming Moderator, Dr Michael Barry, to the Opening Meeting of the 2014 General Assembly.

The General Assembly is the decision and policy making body of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. It meets annually with approximately 1,000 delegates from Presbyterian congregations all around Ireland involved in the four days of worship, prayer, bible study, celebration and decision making. The Assembly met in Assembly Buildings, Belfast from Monday, 2nd June until Thursday, 5th June, 2014.

The address of Rev Stuart Finlay (Moderator's Chaplain) at Thursday afternoon worship.

The General Assembly is the decision and policy-making body of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland. It meets annually with approximately 1,000 delegates from Presbyterian congregations all around Ireland involved in the four days of worship, prayer, bible study, celebration and decision-making. The Assembly met in Assembly Buildings, Belfast from Monday, 2nd June until Thursday, 5th June, 2014.