16.10.2026
‘God makes all things new’ – School Pupils Urged to Play Their Part
Children from all over Dublin and Glendalough were encouraged to play their part in making the world a better place at the Diocesan Schools’ Service yesterday (Thursday October 14).
Hundreds of pupils from Church of Ireland primary and junior schools in every corner of the United Dioceses filled Christ Church Cathedral for the service. The theme this year was ‘God makes all things new’ taken from the reading from Revelation 21: 1–5.
The service was led by the Revd Colin Hamilton, Curate in Holy Trinity Rathmines, in the presence of Archbishop Michael Jackson and Dean Tom O’Brien. Special guests from the world of education were in attendance at the service which is organised each year by the Diocesan Board of Education. The collection was taken up in aid of Dublin–based charity NOVAS which works with people across Ireland who are homeless, at risk of homelessness and experiencing addiction and marginalisation.
Exploring the theme that ‘God makes all things new’, Revd Colin detailed his restoration of his 1990 MX5. He told the fascinated young congregation that he bought the “pretty rough” car in February and had spent the long summer evenings replacing the old and rusting parts to make it like new. He painted a picture of “turning something which was pretty broken into something which is pretty beautiful” adding that if the children were in Rathmines in the summer they should keep an eye out for him driving around with the top down, listening to Taylor Swift with the wind in his hair.
Revd Colin said that when we look around the world today, things can seem broken. “There are some really sad situations, people who are struggling, people who are sad, people who are sick, families going through some really hard things,” he commented. “And for each one of us this morning, each of us go through some really hard days of life.”
But, he said, the theme of the service inspires and motivates him every day. “[In the reading] God speaks in a vision, like a dream, to a man called John. And he tells him that there will be a time when actually there will be no more sadness, no more brokenness, no more pain, no more fear, nothing to be scared of, nothing bad, nothing sad. And God says to John in this vision, ‘look, I make all things new’.
He continued: “How incredible is that? That God will restore everything to the way he created it, and intended it, and wants it to be. And here’s the best thing. Do you know something really exciting? God asks you to help. He asks you to play your part in making all things new, to be people who look at what is broken in the world around us to look at what’s sad, what’s not working very well, and to ask, ‘God, how can I help you? What can I do to make this situation better? How can I bring some order? How can I bring some beauty, some benefit to the broken things that I see around me?’ Each of us has a part to play,” he said.
He suggested that this could be to be loving to one another, or stepping in to help someone who is sad, or including someone who is left out. They could pick up litter from the street and care for creation. It could be creating beauty through art or music. “Making all things new, that our lives, your actions, would point to God’s big story of what he’s doing,” he said.
