Cathal BarryA leading Catholic theologian has said the result of the same-sex marriage referendum last month should be a “wake-up call” for the Church.
Fr Vincent Twomey told The Irish Catholic that the Church “has to be ready now to become the only opposition to the dominant forces that are trying to shape society”.
“This should not be seen as a defeat, it should be seen as a wake-up call. The Church has to be challenged, that is what we need, to stand up and preach the Gospel in season and out of season.
“The Church has to tap in to those people who actually had the courage to stand up and be counted during the debate. It has to recognise that there are people out there who have common sense and who have something to contribute to the Church,” he said.
Fr Twomey, emeritus Professor of Moral Theology at Maynooth, said that paradoxically, the referendum on same-sex marriage was passed due to “the best in Irish Catholicism”.
“We as a people do have a great sensitivity for the underdog, somebody who is perceived to be treated badly. I think that was the main factor in the sympathy of people leading up to the referendum.
“So many people came out who were well known figures, sports personalities and celebrities so in the end it was no longer marriage that was the issue. It became a question of if you were for or against people who are gay,” he said.
Fr Twomey also claimed the ‘yes’ campaign in the referendum was a “huge propaganda effort” that was “intimidating”.
“This didn’t just happen in the last few weeks it goes back over the past five years. There has been a constant trickle of subliminal messages being put out there which then intensified with the help of huge funding,” he said.
Accord marriage courses ‘questionable’, expert claims
Fr Vincent Twomey has criticised as “questionable” the content of Accord’s marriage preparation courses.
Fr Twomey told The Irish Catholic that the Catholic agency’s marriage preparation courses were “purely horizontal” with no reference to God.
“There is no dimension of God at all, it’s purely horizontal with questionable moral theology thrown in,” the expert said.
This newspaper revealed last month that the Government had withdrawn all funding for pre-marriage courses from Accord.
The agency’s president, Bishop Denis Nulty, said he was “very disappointed” at the decision “which will certainly undermine a vital service provided to women and men preparing for marriage”.