The power of witness is central to the Christian faith. Thomas, the patron saint of doubting and literal-minded people, was rebuked: "Blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed" (St John's Gospel, 20 v.29).
One hesitates to mingle the sacred with the profane. Two suitably chosen clergymen, in the company of military experts from the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning, will bear witness to the destruction of instruments of evil. They are surely entitled to be believed, even where there is no trust whatever in the word of the IRA. The IRA has implicitly admitted the Rev Ian Paisley's remarks in Ballymena on November 27th, 2004, that "the IRA needs to be humiliated. And they need to wear their sackcloth and ashes, not in a backroom but openly" did not cause its refusal to allow photographs to be published when a new Executive is formed.
The IRA said in its statement: "This was never possible," presumably because it was aware of the propagandistic intent behind the demand. That position was copperfastened by misjudged remarks that caused widespread anger in the wider republican community. The peace process was never about humiliation, and could never have worked on that basis.
Paisley's motives are open to speculation. Ian Paisley jnr is credited with a hand in the text and the presence of television cameras. One interpretation is that it was to wreck any agreement before the Westminster elections. But it is possible that Paisley was trying to sell power-sharing to his followers.
David Trimble was often accused of not doing enough to sell the Good Friday agreement to unionists. His perfectly reasonable defence was that nationalists might not have liked the way he would have had to do that.
It is said that Paisley is determined not to have Lundy as his epitaph. His historical reputation is in little danger from that quarter. Future generations are more likely to question how he managed to achieve such prolonged ascendancy over the Protestant people of Northern Ireland, and the uses to which he put it. The verdict is still capable of sweeping revision if the final chapter is a constructive one.
To achieve a comprehensive settlement at this point, the governments did stipulate the publication of photographs. At Leeds Castle and afterwards, the judgment call was made that this was reasonable and necessary if the DUP was to sign up to an agreement, and that it might have been possible to secure IRA agreement at the very end.
If the governments were to have been forever deterred by negative responses from pursuing decommissioning and many other issues by different parties then the peace process would have stalled early on.
The publication of the main documents gives everyone an opportunity to reflect on the huge progress achieved, and also on how best to proceed in the light of the deadlock. They need to be read with the Joint Declaration of April 2003.
The achievements include: complete agreement on the operation of the institutions, with full DUP inclusion; the end of paramilitarism and security normalisation; and on a devolved policing which everyone will support. No one should be content to postpone progress for 12 months until after British elections and the marching season.
It is encouraging that the IRA confirmed nearly word for word what had been issued the previous day by the governments, barring the question of photographs, and that it has not withdrawn everything in the absence of agreement, unlike so often in the past.
It was equally encouraging to see Jeffrey Donaldson, standing beside Mitchel McLaughlin for an RTÉ interview, state that the DUP would stick by the compromises it had agreed. Despite many pressures, the governments also have the same duty to hold to what they have been prepared to offer.
The most contentious issue in our jurisdiction has been the projected release of the killers of Garda Jerry McCabe in the context of a comprehensive agreement and a verifiable end to all paramilitary activity.
Fine Gael's departure from bipartisanship on this sensitive matter is regrettable, as is the breaking of ranks by a few Government-party members. The united purpose of the Government is vital.
It is not true, as Sinn Féin has claimed, that the High Court and Supreme Court judged the McCabe killers to be "qualifying prisoners". The Government specifically excluded them, when presenting the Good Friday agreement, which is not part of domestic law. Under the Criminal Justice (Release of Prisoners) Act, 1998, it was for the Minister to specify qualifying prisoners.
This case has been persistently raised since 1998 by Sinn Féin. In a comprehensive negotiation, no one can prevent an issue being raised. If a party makes that issue a make-or-break one for them they should not be surprised if they pay a high price to achieve it. A high price has been paid to achieve decommissioning.
The price republicans have to pay for the release of the Castlerea prisoners is a complete closing down of IRA activities, not least in the South. The aggressive and unapologetic response of Aengus Ó Snodaigh TD to the conviction of one of his election workers of IRA membership over activity directed in part against fellow Oireachtas members and Ministers is the unacceptable face of southern Sinn Féin.
There has long been agreement in principle about clearing up the on-the-runs issue (OTRs) between mainly the British government and Sinn Féin, but also delays in implementing it. The institutionalisation of Northern representation in the Seanad has been in the public arena for six years, and stands on its merits without prejudice to any other aspect of Seanad reform.
The DUP and Sinn Féin need to be pressed to conclude, rather than play a self-indulgent blame game. Photographs are not essential to peace in Ireland. Leaving behind all paramilitary activity is.