THE GOVERNMENT decision to close Ireland’s Embassy to the Holy See has been described as “strange” by Catholic Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin.
It was indicative of a view that saw religion as belonging to the private sphere, he said.
Speaking to a meeting of parish councils in Dublin’s Regency Hotel last Tuesday night, he said: “Societies like our own where faith and the Christian life once flourished and faith communities were strong are now undergoing a far-reaching transformation.”
He said the “reality of God” was slowly being eclipsed and people were living their lives “as if God does not exist. It is not so much an atmosphere of hostility towards faith but an attitude of indifference or one which tolerates a presence for God in the private lives of individuals but much less within the realities of our society.”
He felt that “underlying the recent decision of the Government to close the Irish Embassy to the Holy See one can find something of this mentality in which the function of diplomacy is reduced to what is quantifiable in economic terms as if somehow spiritual matters did not belong to the real world."
“It is equally strange that the decision was made at a time in which in general there has been a growing awareness in international diplomatic circles of the importance of the factor of religion in an understanding of international security and peaceful coexistence among people.”
He added: “Some who felt that religion was destined to be relegated to the purely private sphere are surprised by the fact that religion has come back to centre stage in international relations."
“This is not just about a surge in forms of fundamentalism. Faith is not just part of the problem; religion is so central in the life and mentality of many that it cannot but be part of the solution to central problems of international relations today.”
Dublin’s Catholic Youth Care which works with marginalised young people in the city, is to hold a prayer service on Dún Laoghaire pier today (Sunday) as part of preparations for next year’s Eucharistic Congress.