Chai Brady
Research reveals Pontiff a regular feature of Oireachtas debates
EXCLUSIVE
Pope Francis has proved a big hit with Irish politicians as excitement mounts ahead of his scheduled visit here next year, according to new statistics compiled by The Irish Catholic.
An extensive trawl of the official report of the Oireachtas – which records the speeches of TDs and Senators – shows that the Argentine Pontiff features prominently in debates in the national parliament.
The record shows that Pope Francis has been quoted about twice as often relative to his immediate predecessor Benedict XVI on a range of issues from the refugee crisis to environmental protection.
Although Francis has been Pope for a little under five years, he has been mentioned twice as much on average every year of his papacy compared to Benedict’s eight-year papacy.
The popular Pope has spurred conversation about refugees and migration, nuclear disarmament and the environment in the Dáil and Seanad, with his planned visit to Ireland drawing the most attention and questions from elected representatives.
Pope Benedict, who was elected in 2005 and served for seven years was mentioned 100 times in the two houses – while Francis was spoken of about 150 times in just under five years.
Senator David Norris mentioned Pope Francis more than any other TD or Senator. He told The Irish Catholic it was because he found the current Pontiff extremely inspirational, particularly for young people.
“He lives the Christian life, and I think young people in a country like Ireland need the inspiration of a figure like that,” Senator Norris said.
“I’m rather sad that young people seem to have abandoned religion pretty comprehensively.”
Mr Norris added he believed Francis was “superb” on issues such as discrimination and poverty as well as the ability to be critical of the “financial structures that govern the world”.
Senator Rónán Mullen told The Irish Catholic that one of the reasons Pope Francis may be mentioned more often is because he has dealt with prominent issues that have “blown up” recently, such as climate change.
Senator Mullen pointed out how “Laudato Si’ [the Pope’s encyclical on the environment] drew widespread appreciation throughout the Catholic Church and his stance on the environment continues to resonate in light of the US withdrawal from the Paris Agreement”.
However, he added that certain politicians may regard a reference to the Pontiff “as a way of appropriating moral authority without, at the same time, associating themselves with the Catholic Church.
“A kind of ‘weathervane’ approach not untypical of politicians,” he said.