Events in Northern Ireland have taken so many unexpected turns over the past 12 months that the idea of an Orange lodge being invited to take part in a St Patrick's Day parade does not seem quite as outlandish as it would have done at one stage. After all, if the DUP and Sinn Fein can share power, if Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness can accompany each other on goodwill trips to the United States and Brussels, and if a DUP Minister can attend a GAA fixture, why should Orange and Green not jointly celebrate the patron saint's day?
Although many of the March 17 parades have been imbued with a nationalist hue over the years of the troubles, St Patrick belongs to both sections of the community.
Protestant and Catholic traditions can lay equal claim to the man who brought Christianity to Ireland and the saint's day should be seen as an opportunity to promote reconciliation, rather than to foment division.
No doubt it was in this spirit that the organisers of the Downpatrick parade - which has always been notable for its principled ban on political flags - decided to extend an invitation to the local Orange lodge to participate - an invitation that was yesterday declined.
The Orange Order should have seen this as an opportunity to play to a wider audience, while the organisers were demonstrating that a St Patrick's parade could be a genuinely inclusive event. In this new era of equality, it was a timely gesture.
This proposal should have been warmly welcomed and actively pursued. If handled correctly and everyone's sensitivities accommodated, it could have been a win-win situation for the Order and the organisers, and one which sent a positive message around the world.
Such initiatives are very much in keeping with the One Small Step campaign which was launched four years ago. As its chairman, former rugby international Trevor Ringland, told a seminar in Belfast last night, we all need to take steps in our daily lives to change our attitudes towards other sections of the community and their cultures.
Mr Ringland's list includes reading a newspaper reflecting opposing views, watching a different sport or observing a cultural or religious event celebrated by the other section of the community.
In this context, Down Council is to be commended for breaking new ground, and the Order should have sought to facilitate this request. At a time when the Order is trying to widen the appeal of the Twelfth, this project could have been an inspiration.
As the five Protestant clergymen from north Belfast reminded us all earlier this week, sectarianism still casts a dark shadow over Northern Ireland. The way to break the grip of hatred is to encourage small but significant initiatives such as the one proposed in Downpatrick. St Patrick would surely have approved.
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