Sir, – Prof Dermot Keogh’s article (Opinion, August 29th) brilliantly pointed out that our Taoiseach’s speech was both ill thought through and lacked diplomatic nuance. It is easy to blame a far-flung institution in Rome for the sexual abuse committed by clerics in Ireland, but neither canon law nor the archaic practices of the church are the causes of such abuse. Our country is currently in need of friends and Mr Kenny’s speech has irresponsibly alienated a political force that could have acted as an ally. In making it, the Taoiseach put temporary popularity at home ahead of the long-term interests of the State. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Prof Dermot Keogh’s careful and informed analysis of the circumstances surrounding Enda Kenny’s Vatican broadside reminded me of a master watchmaker who discourses expertly on the intricate construction of a timekeeping mechanism but overlooks the fact that it is connected to an explosive device.
Mr Kenny’s speech gave official voice to the powerful feelings of anger, frustration and hostility aroused in so many Irish people by the behaviour of what seems to be a faceless, calculating Roman bureaucracy. Just as the Vatican pleaded “exceptional circumstances” when it waived the five-year rule in order to proceed with the beatification of Pope John Paul II, Mr Kenny could equally plead “exceptional circumstances” to explain his sudden and untypical disregard for the niceties of international diplomacy.
Paradoxically, his “intemperate outburst” may ultimately be seen to have defused rather than exacerbated a tense situation. It is far better that the people’s anger and hostility be properly directed at those distant figures in the church who have ultimate and overruling authority rather than towards that blameless majority in an ageing Catholic clergy who, in difficult and demoralising circumstances, continue to do their work quietly, diligently and patiently. – Yours, etc,
Sir, – Am I the only person who has been waiting for one of your correspondents to ask of Prof Dermot Keogh’s comment “it ought to be clear that the current conflict between the Holy See and the Government should not be allowed to deepen” – why? The concept that “the Holy See” is a “state” is a legal fiction, and that it has full diplomatic relations with real states is a nicety afforded to it, but not earned.
I would be interested to know what, if anything, Ireland would stand to lose by cutting its ties to the Vatican, and would be equally interested to know what benefit has accrued to the population of Ireland as a result of such ties. It’s not as if we have a balance of trade with it, and our citizens hardly need diplomatic facilities when visiting Vatican City. – Yours, etc,