Irish Church Missions
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Irish Church Missions (ICM) was founded in 1849 chiefly by English Anglicans with the backing and support of the Church of Ireland clergy and Bishops. Inspiration for its beginning came from the Revd. Alexander Dallas (1791-1869), Rector of Wonston, Hampshire, who since 1843 had been involved in actively bringing the Gospel to the Roman Catholic people of Ireland. Dallas began his missionary work in Ireland by sending over 20, 000 letters to householders throughout Ireland. He followed this up by sending eight missionaries to preach throughout the country and personally conducted a preaching tour in the West of Ireland in Galway and Connemara. The result of his missionary work by 1848 was the setting up of a missionary school and church in Castlekerke, near Galway.
The means by which Dallas advanced the work of what became known as the 'Second Reformation' was through the provision of Scripture Readers, missionary clergymen and the support of the Bishops and Clergy of the Church of Ireland. The Scripture Readers were fluent Irish speakers, who were trained to preach the Gospel and refute false doctrine. Whilst the work of ICM was strong in the West of Ireland, most of its subsequent work centred on the city of Dublin, where it drew many converts. By the time of his death in 1869, Dallas had planted 21 churches, 49 schools, and 4 orphanages and had between 400 to 500 full-time workers employed in preaching the Gospel throughout Ireland.
Perhaps the most famous of the those who served in ICM is Thomas Chatterton Hammond (1877 - 1961). He entered the ICM training school in 1895, working as an evangelist for ICM from 1895 to 1899, before studying in Trinity College Dublin for ordination in the Church of Ireland. In 1903 he was ordained as Curate-assistant for St. Kevin's parish in Dublin, becoming its Rector in 1910 until 1919 when he became the Superintendent of ICM. He left ICM in 1936 on the voyage to Australia to take up the post of Principal of Moore Theological College, Sydney.
Today, the evangelistic work of Irish Church Missions continues amongst the student and business communities in Dublin from its premises in Bachelors Walk.
