MOURNERS WEEP ON DARKEST DAY
Mourners weep on 'darkest day'
By Niall Blaney
in Omagh
A SMALL river of rain flowed along the street outside St Joseph's Parish Hall close to Omagh town centre.
Hundreds of mourners, there to say goodbye to Geraldine Breslin, formed a roof of umbrellas while they shed tears for the murdered 43-year-old.
As the hearse carrying her remains sat outside the parish hall, the coffin of Deborah Cartwright lay in another hearse across the road at St Columba's Church of Ireland.
The classmates of Mrs Breslin's teenage son Gareth - a pupil at St Patrick's High School in Omagh - formed a guard of honour as her coffin was carried into the parish hall. It was followed by her distraught husband Mark, her parents, sisters and family circle.
They heard Fr John Forbes, who had married the couple, say that many in Omagh had questioned where God had been when the bomb had gone off. Amid the blackness, God "seemed far away" and impervious to the prayers of the bereaved and injured.
But he said God how spoke to people through their presence in St Joseph's and through the scriptures.
He said through anguish and affliction God held out the light of truth which was seen through the life and death of his son.
He described Mrs Breslin as a woman of kindness and beauty who doted on her son: "She was a real friend to all. With those she worked with, she cherished. Her friends became part of her family. Her life was a gentle life which shone for all to see."
Mrs Breslin died along with two colleagues fleeing from Watterson's clothes shop where she worked.
As a lone singer sang a hymn, Mrs Breslin's nieces led the offertory procession. Outside, a man stood by himself, gazing into the neighbouring graveyard of the Sacred Heart church at a statue of Mary with the dying Christ in her arms.
Among the mourners at yesterday's funeral were Irish Minister of State, Seamus Brennan, and former SDLP leader, Lord Fitt.
Fr Forbes said the callousness of the bombers in their aim to maim and destroy defied "all belief, all understanding and all reason".
"No cause, no struggle, no ideology for the future can even begin to justify such an act of cruelty and barbarism," he added.
The Bishop of Derry, Dr Seamus Hegarty, said Mrs Breslin's funeral was "yet another sad step in the consequences of last Saturday".
He said in such dark times words passed over people who were numbed by trauma and grief. "This tragedy has left a trail of destruction - the fallout of which will be felt for a very long time to come."
People had to take each day at a time, said Dr Hegarty, and go forward in small steps.
It was important for people to continue to reach out to those in need and not to forget that amid the gloom, grief and anger, the hand of God was there.
Addressing the young people in the congregation, he said what happened may have seemed like a contradiction to what they had been taught. He said he hoped business people in the town would be able to resume trading soon and rebuild their livelihoods.
But he said the emotional scars would take a much longer time to heal. The bishop said he hoped the crossing of sectarian barriers in Omagh would be held up as an example for the rest of Northern Ireland. "We are in it together, we will come out of it together," he said.
The congregation gave Bishop Hegarty a round of applause.
Members of Mrs Breslin's family were in tears as the coffin was carried out of St Joseph's. The cortege made its way along Castle Street and close to the town courthouse, where the bombers misleadingly claimed the bomb had been left on Saturday afternoon.
Mrs Breslin was buried in St Mary's cemetery, Drumragh.
By Niall Blaney
in Omagh
A SMALL river of rain flowed along the street outside St Joseph's Parish Hall close to Omagh town centre.
Hundreds of mourners, there to say goodbye to Geraldine Breslin, formed a roof of umbrellas while they shed tears for the murdered 43-year-old.
As the hearse carrying her remains sat outside the parish hall, the coffin of Deborah Cartwright lay in another hearse across the road at St Columba's Church of Ireland.
The classmates of Mrs Breslin's teenage son Gareth - a pupil at St Patrick's High School in Omagh - formed a guard of honour as her coffin was carried into the parish hall. It was followed by her distraught husband Mark, her parents, sisters and family circle.
They heard Fr John Forbes, who had married the couple, say that many in Omagh had questioned where God had been when the bomb had gone off. Amid the blackness, God "seemed far away" and impervious to the prayers of the bereaved and injured.
But he said God how spoke to people through their presence in St Joseph's and through the scriptures.
He said through anguish and affliction God held out the light of truth which was seen through the life and death of his son.
He described Mrs Breslin as a woman of kindness and beauty who doted on her son: "She was a real friend to all. With those she worked with, she cherished. Her friends became part of her family. Her life was a gentle life which shone for all to see."
Mrs Breslin died along with two colleagues fleeing from Watterson's clothes shop where she worked.
As a lone singer sang a hymn, Mrs Breslin's nieces led the offertory procession. Outside, a man stood by himself, gazing into the neighbouring graveyard of the Sacred Heart church at a statue of Mary with the dying Christ in her arms.
Among the mourners at yesterday's funeral were Irish Minister of State, Seamus Brennan, and former SDLP leader, Lord Fitt.
Fr Forbes said the callousness of the bombers in their aim to maim and destroy defied "all belief, all understanding and all reason".
"No cause, no struggle, no ideology for the future can even begin to justify such an act of cruelty and barbarism," he added.
The Bishop of Derry, Dr Seamus Hegarty, said Mrs Breslin's funeral was "yet another sad step in the consequences of last Saturday".
He said in such dark times words passed over people who were numbed by trauma and grief. "This tragedy has left a trail of destruction - the fallout of which will be felt for a very long time to come."
People had to take each day at a time, said Dr Hegarty, and go forward in small steps.
It was important for people to continue to reach out to those in need and not to forget that amid the gloom, grief and anger, the hand of God was there.
Addressing the young people in the congregation, he said what happened may have seemed like a contradiction to what they had been taught. He said he hoped business people in the town would be able to resume trading soon and rebuild their livelihoods.
But he said the emotional scars would take a much longer time to heal. The bishop said he hoped the crossing of sectarian barriers in Omagh would be held up as an example for the rest of Northern Ireland. "We are in it together, we will come out of it together," he said.
The congregation gave Bishop Hegarty a round of applause.
Members of Mrs Breslin's family were in tears as the coffin was carried out of St Joseph's. The cortege made its way along Castle Street and close to the town courthouse, where the bombers misleadingly claimed the bomb had been left on Saturday afternoon.
Mrs Breslin was buried in St Mary's cemetery, Drumragh.
Further Information
Publisher: THE IRISH NEWS
Ref: IN/0142
Published Date: 21-Aug-98
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