Inauguration Address by President Patrick Hillery 3rd December 1983, Dublin Castle
A Thaoisigh Uasail, gabhaim mo mhile buíochas leat as bhfuil ráite agat. Is mór agam do bheannacht agus do dhea-mhéin ar ócáid seo m’insealbhaithe mar Uachtarán na hÉireann. Is mór an t-ábhar áthais dom féin agus dom bhean chéile a oiread sin seancháirde a fheicheáil ar an gcomhluadar céimiúil seo. Táimid an-bhuíoch díbh go léir. Is mór againn bhur dtacaíocht agus bhur gcáirdeas . Is é mo ghuí inniu go mbeidh rath, sonas agus síocháin ar ár muintir go léir sa bhaile agus í gcríocha i gcéin.
{Taoiseach, I extend you many thanks for what you have said. I appreciate your salutation and good wishes on this occasion of my installation as President of Ireland. My wife and I are delighted to see so many old friends in this distinguished company. We are very grateful to all of you. We appreciate your support and your friendship. I pray today for good fortune, happiness and peace for all our people at home and abroad.}
Taoiseach, I thank you most sincerely for the warm good wishes which you have expressed to me . My wife and I are very happy to see so many friends here. To all of you, we are deeply indebted for your friendship and support. Among my most pleasant and enduring memories of the last seven years is the warm concern for others expressed in action by so many people in our community. No words could express adequately my deep admiration for the commitment of so many voluntary workers to the welfare of the young, the people who are old and the people who are handicapped. By their generosity and dedication they have enriched our community, strengthened the bonds which bind it together and set an example for all of us. I take this opportunity of thanking them for their work for others and for the example which they have set for each one us.
We live in days of anxiety, unrest and uncertainty . The problems of our times affect the lives of all of us. While the solution of some of these problems may appear at times to be beyond our power to influence, the decision as to how we behave towards one another rests solely with ourselves. It is for us to create the environment in which we choose to live, to establish the standards, rules of behaviour and conventions which will guide our lives in the years ahead. We owe it especially to our young people to give them the firm security of agreed rules and standards of behaviour and respect for the dignity and God-given rights of all.
This is a time for courage and conviction, a time which demands the resolute use of that great potential for good which exists in abundance in the Irish people . My hope for Ireland is that we turn away from the acrimony, dissension and disagreement which are destroying everything which we should value, and join our hearts and minds in united cause for peace and well- being of all.
Go dtreora, Dia muid {May God guide us}