Cardinal Seán Brady is a gentle, humble and pastoral man who carries the burden of office lightly but with great dignity. A canon lawyer by training and Rector of the Irish College in Rome during the pontificate of Pope John Paul II, he was made a Cardinal in November 2006. He settles easily and comfortably into talking about a number of subjects close to his heart.
He shows off a beautiful leather-bound edition of the Good News Bible (Catholic version) which the Bible Society of Ireland presented to him at the opening of a pastoral centre in Dundalk. ‘I thanked them for the Bible and said that this gift of the Word of God is a gift both for the pastoral centre but is also always  a gift given to the whole Church.
‘For me living the Christian journey is a journey of following Christ: to follow Christ we must know Christ. We get to know him by reading the Old and New Testaments. You know the old saying “Christ is hidden in the Old Testament but is revealed in the New Testament” is so true. It’s a fact that for 3000 years believers have preserved the story of how God has acted first through his people Israel and then through the apostles and early Church.
‘I had the honour recently of reading the account of the Last Judgement to her Majesty and Prince Philip on Holy Thursday. I prepared for my reading and was conscious that we don’t always do that well enough. Faith comes from hearing the Word of God proclaimed. This is not magic, but the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and minds. Over the last forty years, in the light of Vatican II, the Church has produced a lectionary whose main purpose is to open the treasure and riches of the Scriptures more fully to the believing community, but I think that more needs to be done in unpacking and explaining the treasure which is the word of God.
‘It’s a challenge, isn’t it, when celebrating the Eucharist we have fifteen to twenty-five minutes dedicated to the Liturgy of the Word and the opportunity to get the message of Christ to the people? I think people need some help in understanding the context and background to certain biblical texts. I know, for example in some parishes in Dublin, power point presentations are used to facilitate this.
Dei  verbum stressed that the treasures of the Bible needed to be opened up more lavishly but also more needs to be done to make us realize that the Bible is such a treasure. If we ask ourselves, “What’s my most treasured possession?” we tend to think of a valuable possession (e.g. some China or a piece of jewellery) and we take great care of it. The Bible is our most valuable possession and we need to learn to treasure and value it. We need to reflect why we genuflect before the Word of God. Why does the priest kiss the lectionary and pray: “Cleanse my heart and my lips that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel”?
‘The new ecclesial movements always seem to begin with the Scriptures. They encourage people to ask how they can apply the Word of God to their own lives. They are encouraged to hear the Word, respond, reflect, and then go out and put it into practice.
‘The Word of God is alive and active and cuts like a two-edged sword. It is a treasure that has been handed down through the centuries and we need to turn to it, treasure it and discover its riches ever anew with the help, insight and wisdom of the Holy Spirit.’
From where does the Cardinal draw strength, comfort and encouragement in leading the Church in Ireland?
‘I am a leader, of course, but I wouldn’t regard myself as eminently qualified to be one. That’s the job I have been given and I have to get on with it. Of course, I am sustained most of all by my faith. Christ is with the Church and the Spirit of Christ is in the Church: this knowledge gives me comfort and strength.
‘I am sustained by my prayer life and the many people in my life, the diocesan family and my own family and friends. When I go to a parish event, a confirmation for example, I know that there will be standing room only – the church will be packed. I find this sustains me and gives me hope.
I am always encouraged and built up in my faith when I go on the diocesan Lourdes pilgrimage. This year over 1300 pilgrims went and we took over 100 sick and infirm people. The way the young people serve and get involved is always inspiring and this sustains me also. I often pray to the Holy Spirit that he would guide and lead me. I often thank the Holy Spirit because I believe the Holy Spirit has helped me many times. I try to be faithful to the examination of conscience. Of course, the Eucharist and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament are fundamental in my life.
‘I am conscious of God’s grace in my life. I received this grace when I was baptized, confirmed and ordained but there is a special grace, of course, in being a member of the College of Cardinals. I am reminded that of the ten Irish cardinals so far only four have voted in a Conclave. It is, for sure, a big responsibility but you know, when the cardinals enter the Sistine Chapel they sing the Veni Creator, Spiritus – I too rely on the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will be there, that is my consolation.’
Sport was and is an important part of the Cardinal’s life. He reflects on this:
‘I have devoted a lot of my life to sport especially between the ages of thirteen and twenty-one when I was post-primary and then when I was at Maynooth. When I went to Rome I kept up my interest but played less. I taught in a post-primary school for thirteen years and was involved a lot during my time here, but if I knew I was going to be coming to this job I would have spent less time in sport and more time reading the Scriptures!!
‘One of the reasons I love sport is the great sense of friendship and fellowship and bonding that goes along with it. I played Gaelic football with Fr Seamus Heaney [Fr Seamus is a Trustee of Alive Publishing and a founding member of Bible Alive magazine] for three years and the friends you make doing this become lifelong. I think sport teaches us so many life skills: self-discipline, self-control, respect for others, accepting success or coping with failure.
‘Having said all that, I think today we have made something of an idol of sport and we can too easily lose a sense of the sacred and sacred times as a result. When I was very involved in Gaelic football I used to remind everybody that people have commitments to their teams, for sure, but also to their family and their faith family.’
Before we leave we ask the Cardinal whether he thinks the next Pope will be Irish. He smiles and then laughs and says, ‘I really don’t think so.’ But as we all know, we never know what the Holy Spirit has in store for any of us!