IRELAND
Irish Independent
THE Taoiseach Enda Kenny today welcomed the announcement of the appointment of Monsignor Eamon Martin as Coadjutor Archbishop of Armagh and successor to Catholic primate Cardinal Sean Brady when he retires.
“It’s a matter entirely for the Catholic Church but I think the fact that the new appointment has some experience of the area of children protection and security obviously is very welcome,” he said.
The Taoiseach said that he had “very good relations with the Catholic Church”, adding that he was due to meet Cardinal Brady this afternoon to talk about what he described as “a very long agenda as part of the structure dialogue that I have with the churches. I’m very happy to engage with the [Catholic] church. We have lots to talk about”.
However, relations have been strained between the Catholic hierarchy and the government due to a number of issues, including the closure of Ireland’s Vatican embassy, the Taoiseach’s post-Cloyne Report criticism of the Holy See’s handling of child abuse scandals, and the coalition’s decision last month to proceed with legislation on the Supreme Court abortion ruling.
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