IRELAND
Irish Independent
Colum Kenny
Published 14/09/2014
‘Sing a new song to the Lord”. That’s the motto of the new head of the Catholic Church in Ireland. Last week, Eamon Martin became Catholic Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland when Cardinal Sean Brady stepped down.
Like many priests and nuns he is committed to helping people who are isolated, lonely, ill and anxious.
But a Catholic Church that really strikes a new note will do much more than that. It must offer all people hope by being believable itself. …
If Irish bishops really want to set an encouraging example, the hierarchy should be seen to engage in a process of honest self-criticism of its institutions and its doctrines, a process leading to real and painful changes. Instead, the Irish hierarchy still sounds like it’s singing off an old hymn sheet.
Archbishop Martin was full of feel-good sound bites last week. He said that he would not want back the 1940s and 1950s: “It was very much tarnished gold.”
But he needs to be more specific. What exactly does he think was wrong then, and why? And how much is fundamentally different in the organisation that he leads.
The absolute power of bishops has not changed. The way that policy is decided still ultimately excludes the laity in general and women in particular.
This will be graphically illustrated when a synod of bishops meets in Rome next month to discuss family matters.
Note: This is an Abuse Tracker excerpt. Click the title to view the full text of the original article. If the original article is no longer available, see our News Archive.