Taoiseach must articulate Church-State vision

It’s now 14 months since Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told Pope Francis that the Government felt it was time for a new covenant between Church and State in Ireland. Mr Varadkar hasn’t elaborated since and there is little to point to by way of evidence that he is either minded or capable of fostering a mature relationship.

The sloppy reaction of the Government to the canonisation of St John Henry Newman at the weekend was typical of the juvenile reaction that now passes for the norm by many politicians when it comes to relations with the Church. Newman made a huge contribution to 19th-Century Ireland and his raising to the altars of the Church by Pope Francis deserved more than a hastily-arranged late-night flight from education minister Joe McHugh and his wife to be present at the ceremony at the Vatican.

Future
 monarch

Notwithstanding the fact that Cardinal Newman was an Englishman, the British establishment quickly understood the importance of that country’s first saint in 300 years. No less a figure than the Prince of Wales – future monarch and supreme governor of the Church of England – led the UK delegation to Rome. Prince Charles also penned an article for The Times newspaper praising St John Henry’s contribution to wider society as well as within Christianity.

Ireland is currently experiencing not just an outbreak of amnesia about the wider contribution of Catholicism to shaping our culture and way of life, but also an almost reactionary dismissal of the importance of the interaction between faith and culture. Societies like Britain and France which are dominated by much more secular worldviews seem capable of understanding the proper place of faith in a diverse culture than somewhere like Ireland.

Michael D. Higgins is often fêted by his supporters as a man of huge intellectual capacity with a pronounced vision for contemporary Ireland. His initiative on ethics has made a worthy contribution to public debates. And yet, the president has been silent during his tenure on the debate about the right relationship between Church and State and the place that faith occupies in a diverse culture – this is despite the fact that he is clearly a man who thinks about things spiritual.

Bones

The Taoiseach would do everyone a service if he would start to put flesh on the bones of what he thinks a new covenant would look like.

This could be the beginning of a genuine dialogue that would hear from diverse voices both from within the religious community and without.

It is a debate that would also contribute to integrating some of the newer communities in Ireland – many of whom are from religious backgrounds.