The View
Martin Mansergh
‘Peace on earth and mercy mild;
God and sinners reconciled’.
These lines from the first verse of the well-known carol ‘Hark the Herald Angels Sing’ reflect the human desire for harmony and reconciliation, and for a breathing-space from life’s battles during the Christmas season and at the close of the old year. It is one of the best opportunities for people and families to come together.
2017, looking back, presents a mixed picture, with some progress made, but a lot of issues and potential threats unresolved.
One source of satisfaction is that the 500th anniversary of the beginning of the Reformation and its unwitting instigator Martin Luther was remembered in a way designed to enhance historical understanding without fanning the embers of old quarrels. The Irish Catholic produced an excellent supplement. It helps of course that about 20 years ago, the Catholic and Lutheran Churches arrived at a common understanding on the issue of justification by faith.
I have twice visited the atmospheric Augustinian monastery in Erfurt, where Martin Luther was a monk. The second time was only a few days before Pope Benedict XVI met Lutheran leaders in dialogue there. When last visiting the Wartburg Castle, towering above Eisenach, where Luther was given sanctuary from imperial pursuit by the Elector of Saxony, and where he spent much of his time working on a translation of the Bible into German and by legend threw an inkpot at the Devil, I met an ecclesiastical professor from Maynooth.
Faith
In towns like Lübeck, both Catholic and Lutheran priests died together for their Christian faith in opposition to the truly diabolical creed of Nazism. Propaganda minister Josef Goebbels once blasphemously claimed that being in the presence of the Führer was like listening to the Holy Office.
Realistically, it is difficult to identify totally with all the views and actions of the principal protagonists of the religious struggles of half a millennium ago, irrespective of one’s religious background. We have to be content with those things one can still be inspired by, and disregard those that are now alien to us.
Progress in religious reconciliation unfortunately is not well matched as of yet in the political sphere, particularly in the parts of this country where political and religious demarcations largely coincide.
In the Republic, the economy is growing strongly, as are employment opportunities. The social picture, where there is still far too much misery in a basically prosperous society, leaves a lot to be desired. Levels of homelessness and the resort to temporary often unsuitable accommodation are rising, not just for individuals but for families with children. The death of a homeless person on the street is becoming an ever more regular occurrence.
People in desperate personal circumstances can too often be given the run-around by social services. Life expectancy has greatly improved, and our health services are generally speaking excellent. The difficulty is one of access with dignity and timeliness. As the national budgetary situation improves, political priority should be given to filling the gaping holes over easing the tax burden on upper-middle incomes.
Politically, in the heart of the European Union and including Ireland, the centre is holding, just about. The near-miss of a collision leading to a premature election here was avoided. For the sake of future political stability, it is important that, if at all possible, the three-year confidence and supply agreement should be honoured, not excluding an extension, meaning there should be no election before 2019.
The EU has yet to find a way of stopping the rise of illiberal democracy, where behind a façade means are devised to convert a limited hold on power into a self-perpetuating one. On that score, it is good to see President Mugabe finally put out to grass without violence or bloodshed and as constitutionally as possible. One hopes that the people of a resource-rich Zimbabwe now get a chance of a better life without ruinous mismanagement.
Conventions
We have an American President who seems to identify more warmly with authoritarian leaders than he does with unimpeachable democrats. As conventions are flouted, one can only hope that American institutions maintain their independence.
There is nothing Christian about always putting oneself first. That particularly applies if one is already the richest and most powerful nation on Earth. Insensitive American recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, threatening to provoke intense renewed violence around the Holy Land and beyond, represents an appalling Christmas present to the world.
We live on a divided island, where division is in danger of becoming much more pronounced, because a majority of the English people have decided the UK would be better off outside the European Union. This shift potentially disrupts the far more harmonious relations established since the Good Friday Agreement between Britain and Ireland and between the two parts of Ireland.
The working assumption has to be that Brexit proceeds. The challenge is to minimise the damage in the transition to a new equilibrium. It is unlikely that either the best case or the worst case scenario will come to pass. Detailed negotiated arrangements will matter more than ringing declarations of principle.
Even where unanimity is required, Ireland should not rely on vetoes, which are of little use to a smaller country. Having strong EU backing is infinitely more valuable. Threats to hold up a deal are empty, except in the very short term, as any single country is vulnerable to pressure on many fronts.
The prolonged absence of a cross-community Executive to deal with fall-out from the negotiations remains a great pity, as the present situation gives the DUP a monopoly of Northern Ireland influence at Westminster. Where is the equality in that?
We must hope that, after the barriers or misunderstandings preventing movement to the more substantive part of the negotiation have been overcome, intense discussions on practicalities will replace political grandstanding, leading back to a greater unity of purpose that will be evident this time next year.