By any reckoning, the reception to honour the elevation of Cardinal Desmond Connell to the highest position in the Catholic Church in Ireland should have been a joyous, if formal, occasion for Church and State. It is a signal achievement for any Irishman, most notably an Archbishop of Dublin, to become cardinal for the first time since the foundation of the State. It is fitting, notwithstanding the frequent tensions between church and State over the years, that the Government should host a civic reception to mark Dr Connell's elevation in the State Apartments in Dublin Castle.
The sense of celebration and honour - clearly intended by the decision to host such a reception - was marred, however, by the renewed controversy surrounding the marital status of the Taoiseach, Mr Ahern, and his constant partner, Ms Celia Larkin. The debate generated by churchmen of various denominations and members of the general public has centred ostensibly around the wording of the official invitation: "The Taoiseach, Mr Bertie Ahern, TD and Ms Celia Larkin request the pleasure of the company of . . . "
The Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, the Very Rev Robert MacCarthy, suggested that the format was intended to put Ms Larkin "on a quasi-marital basis". He declined the invitation "on principle". Fr Arthur O'Neill, administrator of St Andrew's parish, Westland Row, said that the co-hosting of the official reception by Ms Larkin was a great embarrassment for the Cardinal. Fr Oliver Rafferty, professor of ecclesiastical history at Maynooth, offered the understatement that Ms Larkin was not the wife of the Taoiseach "and it is a slightly odd state of affairs".
The latest diplomatic encounter between church and State reflects no great credit on either party. It could have been avoided with a little more tact. It creates embarrassment all round. Those who move in official State circles will know, however, that it is normal procedure for a Taoiseach and his wife to co-host a Government reception. The Taoiseach has adopted the same protocol for himself and his partner.
There are many people in this State - and a great number in Fianna Fail - who are offended by the Taoiseach's elevation of Ms Larkin to the public position of "first lady". There are those, like the Dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, who believe that the head of government is constitutionally bound to support the institution of marriage. But there are many others with broken marriages, like the Taoiseach, who will not contemplate divorce because it is against Catholic teaching. There is right on both sides of the argument.
Cardinal Connell challenged the new protocol last night when he insisted that the Catholic Church had "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". That is his entitlement.
Mr Ahern admitted publicly on the day he became leader of Fianna Fail, in 1994, that he was separated from his wife and that Ms Larkin was his partner. Later he became Taoiseach. His married predecessor, Mr Charles Haughey, had a private mistress for 27 years. Mr Ahern's situation at a human, and political, level is not ideal but no-one can accuse him of being a hypocrite.