Cardinal Desmond Connell pointedly referred to the Catholic Church's reverence for the family and marriage when he spoke during last night's State reception held in his honour to mark his elevation by Pope John Paul II.
The Dublin Castle reception, attended by nearly 1,400 people, was overshadowed by the role to be played at it by the Taoiseach's partner, Ms Celia Larkin, whose name was on the invitation cards alongside that of Mr Ahern.
In his address, the cardinal said a leading churchman had observed "that losing important values without people noticing what is really happening creates the situation that the church faces today. "It is the situation of those who find that fundamental values have been lost without their having noticed the danger. This explains why the church so insistently defends that most basic of all human rights, the right to life.
"The church too has a profound reverence for the home, designed by the Creator through marriage and family as the deep centre of human intimacy on which the whole future of our society depends.
"And so it has been critical, for example, of political moves in the European Parliament when this has been required in defence of the family," he told the guests gathered in St Patrick's Hall.
He said he "deeply appreciated" the honour accorded to him of a State reception. "I thank the Taoiseach and the members of the Government for this recognition of the Holy Father's great benevolence towards our land."
Later, he said: "I was greatly honoured by the presence of the Taoiseach and of the members of the State representation at the Consistory in Rome. With all my heart I thank them for their deeply appreciated goodness."
He paid tribute to politicians, past and present, for their "indispensable part in our recent economic advancement. "With a deep appreciation of our indebtedness, I willingly salute and wish to encourage those men and women who so generously devote their lives to this patriotic service," the cardinal said.
The Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, said it was "a great pleasure" to honour the cardinal. "It is right, therefore, that we should celebrate the fact that you have been honoured by the Holy Father, your eminence.
"This is a joy not only for Roman Catholics. It is something to be celebrated by the civil authorities too and not simply because so many of our citizens share your faith, nor that so many church organisations provide such valuable social service.
"It is because civil society is enriched by the faith and witness of the churches," he declared.
Later, he said that Ireland was now a pluralist society "where doubt and disbelief exist side by side with an increasing diversity of faiths. This is the challenge to the church as we begin the third millennium of the Christian era.
"There is hope too in the recognition that embracing difference and diversity can intensify and deepen self-understanding. In all of this, the State is not indifferent," he said.
