Church authorities in Ireland were criticised yesterday by Ireland's latest MBE and chairman of the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation as being "more a part of the problem than of the solution" to the island's problems.
Colin William Murphy made the observation after being presented with his award by the British ambassador in Dublin yesterday. It intrigued him that such a situation should persist in light of gospel teaching and the suffering of people on this island.
In a short address after the ceremony, he said that "in January 1975 the Belfast Telegraph quoted me thus: 'Generally, church authorities have disappointed me and civil authorities have encouraged me.' Now, 31 years later, I still feel the same! In my experience, many Christians tend to be more a part of the problem than of the solution."
Mr Murphy, who is also co-ordinator of the Glencree Churches Programme, was awarded the MBE by Britain's Queen Elizabeth "in recognition of over 30 years of dedication to reconciliation in Ireland".
As the British ambassador Stewart Eldon said, in presenting the award, Glencree "is the only organisation in the Irish Republic specialising in post-conflict reconciliation, particularly in relation to the Northern Ireland peace process." He continued: "Without Colin's drive and commitment, the centre would not have survived its recurrent financial crises in the 1980s."
Mr Murphy was born in Belfast in 1936 and has lived in Dublin since the early 1970s.
Speaking to The Irish Times, he said he didn't think the Irish churches were addressing the situation in Ireland, where "reconciliation, forgiveness, redemption, mercy" were concerned. They were "not showing these values in a positive way", opting instead for "pious pronouncements".
