Sir, – I wish to add my voice of protest to those condemning the nasty, bigoted cartoon you chose to publish (April 16th) featuring a group of priests outside a confessional. It was extremely offensive to Catholics and cruel and hurtful to priests; it demonstrates very clearly the anti-Catholic bias of your newspaper. In publishing this cartoon a line has been crossed and a new low has been reached. It is doubtful that this just slipped past the editor unnoticed, so quite clearly it is not just the cartoonist who is bigoted. An apology from the editor is the least we can expect. Yours, etc,
FR DONAL ROCHE,
St Patrick’s Parish,
Wicklow
Sir, – I am appalled at the cartoon by Martyn Turner which you published (April 16th). Its message is without justification or context right now. If you think this cheap shot is only hurtful to priests, think again. It displays a crassness and an attitude which I am very disappointed to find in the pages of The Irish Times . I suppose an apology would be out of the question? Yours , etc,
FRANK DALY,
Rathdown Park,
Terenure,
Dublin 6W
Sir, – I am disturbed but not suprised at the letters and comments condemning the Martyn Turner cartoon of April 16th. Some are upset because it wan’t funny (cartoon = funny), others because it was satirical on the subject of the seal of confession of the Catholic Church. The victim card is being flourished, even by the moderate champion Archbishop Diarmuid Martin. They all seem to miss the point of the cartoon. It simply states the official views and position of the Church itself. The reaction is to avoid comment on the subject itself and circle the wagons. I think we’ve seen this before, protect the institution and deny the reality. As for it being offensive? Satire is meant to be hard and to make people think afresh but it seems to have failed with these tunnel-visionists. Yours, etc,
PADDY McGARR.
Monread Close,
Naas
Sir, – Borrowing the words of Fathers Kenny and Curran, I wish to object in the strongest possible terms and register my absolute disgust and abhorrence at the removal from the Irish Times website of Martyn Turner’s cartoon of April 16th. Yours, etc,
MARK HAYDEN,
rue des Sables ,
Brussels
Sir, – I wish to register my disgust and abhorrence at Catholic priests’ unwillingness to break the seal of the confessional and report child abuse to the authorities. Is mise le meas,
MAIRÉAD CRUSHELL,
Newcastle Road,
Brighton,
Massachusetts,
USA
Sir, – I note the kerfuffle which is raging following the publication of Martyn Turner's cartoon. If ever a molehill has become a mountain this must be it. This is I believe a one-day wonder and we would be well advised to leave it alone. Silence may be the best policy and I would counsel caution. Calls for apologies from The Irish Times are in my view ill-considered and ill-advised. As a Catholic priest, I believe it is most unwise to draw an audience onto ground where we are vulnerable. Yours, etc,
FR IGGY O’DONOVAN,
O’Connell Street,
Limerick
See second editorial (this page).