Sir, – The recent fluttering of vestments and canonicals in your columns (Rev Canon Michael Kennedy and Alan G Graham, October 28th) could well have emerged from an Anthony Trollope novel were it not for the fact that the matter discussed is not fictional but real and of considerable importance.
It would appear that these letters and indeed previous similar communications suggest that there is a major difference of opinion between the dean and some members of the chapter and board of the cathedral. It is unfortunate that these prejudices particularly those evident in Mr Graham’s letter should have surfaced here rather than being resolved in the bodies concerned.
I believe Mr Graham’s description of the dean as being “confused” and “responsible for a reduction in regular worshippers in the Cathedral” is gratuitously offensive and shows scant regard both for the dean and indeed the position he holds. I also feel it is presumptuous of Mr Graham to speak of the feelings of Church of Ireland members for the dean as if he personally had surveyed them to ascertain their regard for Dr McCarthy.
The dean may well have been unwise to send his letter to the presidential candidates but any such lack of wisdom is negligible in the context of the significance and importance of his proposal.
Why does the Church of Ireland need two cathedrals all to itself in Dublin? Should not a National Cathedral be for all the people of the nation? There are examples of Church of Ireland establishments where multi-denominational usage is now the norm. The chapel in Trinity College and that in the new hospital in Tallaght are but two examples. The chapel in the Rotunda Hospital is also used for both Church of Ireland and Roman Catholic services. The principle has been accepted and is in practice. Why not extend it as the dean proposes?
The resolution of this matter would seem to rest initially with the board and chapter of the cathedral. Were they to sit down, consider dispassionately in a Christian fashion the dean’s suggestion they would perhaps be able to bring forward proposals which could be considered and implemented in a wider ecumenical context. – Yours, etc,
Built by Catholics in 1191 and used by Catholics for Catholic worship for centuries, St Patrick’s was “confiscated” by the Church of Ireland in 1537. The same fate awaited all other Catholic cathedrals and most Catholic churches throughout the island, incidentally none of which have ever been returned.