IRELAND
The Pilot (US)
11/12/2015, BY MICHAEL KELLY
DUBLIN (CNS) — Former Irish President Mary McAleese said her devotion to her Catholic faith remains strong, despite public disputes with the church over issues such as same-sex marriage and the ban on female priests.
In an exclusive interview with The Irish Catholic newspaper, her first major interview since she stepped down as president almost four years ago, she also praised Pope Francis for what she sees as “welcoming debate and allowing the church to breathe.”
“I like the fact that Pope Francis welcomes debate. That is by far the greatest legacy he has given the church,” she said.
McAleese has spent much of her time since retirement studying canon law. In the second half of 2016, she plans to return to Rome’s Pontifical Gregorian University to complete her doctoral thesis, “The Christening Contract,” which examines what the 1983 Code of Canon Law says about the rights of and obligations to children.
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