Dear Editor, I’ve been very interested in the extensive coverage of the 50th anniversary of the promulgation of Humanae Vitae reiterating the Church’s ban on artificial methods of birth control.
At the same time, I see that the US-based organisation that styles itself ‘Catholic for Conscience’ carried out a survey in Ireland which found that the Church’s teaching on contraception is rejected by 91% of Irish people who describe themselves as Catholic. Now, this organisation is hardly the most reputable when it comes to Catholicism, but few would argue with the conclusion that many Catholics flout the rules on contraception. The small size of contemporary Irish families is surely proof of this at the very least.
Now, if openness to life – avoiding unnatural contraception – is a key requirement for the validity of a Catholic marriage, it seems to me that the Church is participating in a massive hypocrisy by officiating at the wedding of couples the priest can be almost sure will be in sin by using contraception.
Do priests ask young couples about this before agreeing to marry them? You can be sure they don’t – nor are they ever refused Holy Communion if they are amongst the few newlyweds who actually attend Mass. And yet, the reason frequently given for the Church’s refusal to even countenance an ad hoc blessing for a committed Catholic couple who are gay is the fact that they may be engaging in sexual behaviour that the Church deems sinful.
So, the Church is happy to turn a blind eye to one scenario where they can be almost sure the couple are engaging in what the Church considers sinful, while point blank refusing to engage with gay couples on the off chance that they may be doing something sinful.
Yours etc.,
Colm Quinn,
Belfast, Co. Antrim.
Church scandals are ‘diabolical’
Dear Editor, The allegations against the former Archbishop of Washington DC Theodore McCarrick are very serious and disturbing.
What is also troubling is that there appears to have been a culture of knowledge around McCarrick’s alleged misbehaviour with young seminarians among senior clerics in the US and in the Vatican. It’s very disheartening for laypeople to hear things like “everyone knew” or “it was an open secret” from clerics who evidently felt disinclined to take the allegations seriously enough to investigate before now.
What the Church needs is a full root and branch review of all those in authority to see what other potential wrongdoing they may have turned a blind eye to.
The scandals in our Church in recent decades are quite frankly diabolical. Huge damage has been done to the Church’s ability to witness to the Gospel truths and countless people have lost their faith in the Church and no longer attend Mass.
Pope Francis needs to renew his focus on governance in the Church and make it clear to anyone in authority in the Church that if they mis-govern the Church and fail to live up to the expectations that people have of them they will be removed from office.
We are frequently reminded that the Church is not a democracy, but if the Church wishes to speak bout justice to a broken world it must start from within.’
Yours etc.,
Matt Smyth,
Belfast, Co. Antrim.
Archbishop causes speculation
Dear Editor, I was intrigued about the front page report in your newspaper about Archbishop Diarmuid Martin (‘Archbishop hints he’ll step down early’, 26/7/18 IC). Dr Martin seems clear that his time is limited as Archbishop of Dublin, and yet he says that such speculation is damaging. Am I alone in thinking that it is the archbishop who has begun the speculation?
Yours etc.,
Tony Walsh,
Terenure, Dublin 6W.
The Pope’s chance to assert his Church’s teachings
Dear Editor, It’s less than a month until the visit of Pope Francis to Ireland and excitement is building. I remember the run-up to the visit of Pope St John Paul II in 1979. That was, of course, the first time the Pope – the Bishop of Rome – had ever set foot on Irish soil and it marked in some ways a high point for the Church in Ireland.
Looking back, I wonder to what extent we failed to grasp the importance of what the Pope was asking of us back in 1979. Speaking in Limerick, John Paul addressed controversial issues around marriage, abortion and contraception. He said: “Ireland must choose!” Well, Ireland has chosen. In recent decades, Ireland has chosen contraception, divorce, same-sex marriage and abortion.
What will Pope Francis say to this? He must assert with courtesy and respect the unchanging Church teaching that marriage is between one man and one woman and is for life. He must also say without equivocation that all human life is sacred.
Anything less would be a denial of the truth to which people are entitled to hear.
Yours etc.,
Pearse Duffy,
Dundalk, Co. Louth.
Take Pope where he wants to go
Dear Editor, Reading the schedule for the Pope’s visit here it’s hard not to feel sorry for Francis. It seems that almost all of Saturday afternoon – a large portion of his short trip – is to be spent meeting and greeting the great and the good at a reception at Dublin Castle. If we know anything about Francis over the last five years of his papacy, it’s that he hates things like this. He never smiles for photographs with politicians and is clearly not the sort of man who enjoys sipping cocktails with prime ministers and government officials. Instead of the Dublin Castle event, the Pope should have a walkabout in Dublin City centre where he can get to meet real people and hear their hopes and concerns without the politician filter.
Yours etc.,
Chris Hennessy,
Dublin 5.
Women should educate themselves on contraception
Dear Editor, I am puzzled at Mary Kenny’s claim that “certainly the difference between ‘artificial’ and ‘natural’ contraception has become less with modern medical developments” (19/7/18 IC). The main difference between artificial and natural contraception is that with the latter no drug is involved nor interference with the natural process. In other words, the women using natural contraception is in no way harming her health.
I cannot understand how women who are so concerned nowadays about fitness and health are willing to either take a drug – such as the pill – or use artificial devices to prevent contraception when the natural methods, such as NaPro are every bit as effective and have no side effects. Why is there so little publicity for NaPro which has the added advantage of not involving any expense? It should be pointed out that the pharmaceutical companies make vast profits from the pill and are certainly pretty coy about any possible adverse effects.
Surely it is sensible for women to educate themselves on this issue of family planning and adopt methods which are healthy and free and that certainly “address the health of women and mothers”, contrary to Mary Kenny’s assertion that they do not do so.
Yours etc.,
Mary Stewart,
Donegal Town.
Church teaching largely ignored
Dear Editor, Your coverage of the 50th anniversary of the publication of Humanae Vitae has been fascinating. I’ve been very glad of it given that in the wider Church community the anniversary seems to have been largely ignored. I have not heard an Irish bishop or other senior cleric reference the document or its teaching at all. It seems that Humanae Vitae has become for most Churchmen a rather embarrassing little secret that remains on the statute book but is never spoken about. I wonder, for example, how many of those who loudly proclaim that their consciences tell them to reject the Church’s ban on artificial contraception have actually read the document itself. Very few, I would imagine.
Yours etc.,
Mary Carolan,
Portlaoise, Co. Laois.