Greed over limited resources is nothing but modern shorthand for what St Paul called self indulgence, said the Catholic Bishop of Ossory, the Most Reverend Séamus Freeman.In a sermon on the current turmoil in the financial markets, he said that there was a need to crucify such self indulgence if one were to follow Christ.
At the annual Red Mass to mark the start of the law term, at St Michan's Roman Catholic Church, Halston Street, Dublin, Bishop Freeman recalled that it was said after the Wall Street crash of 1929 it should never happen again.
But it has happened and will happen again, Bishop Freeman added.
He was addressing a congregation which included the Chief Justice, Mr Justice John L Murray; the Attorney General Paul Gallagher SC; the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland Sir Brian Kerr; and other representatives of the judiciary of Scotland, England, Wales and Norway. Several Supreme and High Court judges also attended.
It was also important to open mature dialogue about the fundamental values of our society such as love, peace, justice, truth and freedom and for this dialogue to be introduced at an early age, through family and school.
Dialogue, the new word for love, was needed to understand and to choose to affirm good while also explaining why what is wrong is wrong.
Meanwhile, another leading churchman told a Church of Ireland service that tighter and more transparent" regulation of the Irish banking sector was needed after the State guaranteed bank deposits. And he added the current turmoil in the financial markets signaled the end of what he called “raw capitalism”.
Speaking at St Michan's in Church Street on Monday, Fr Godfrey O'Donnell, the head of the Romanian Orthodox Church in Ireland, said the bailout was put in place with seemingly little regard for clear terms and conditions on the banks.
He said lawyers and others need to do better for the poor and voiceless in society, as he gave a homily at St Michan's Church of Ireland in Dublin at a service marking the opening of the new law term.
Fr O'Donnell added: "We seem to be living through the death throes of raw capitalism with its appalling greed, recklessness, lack of accountability and complete disregard for any ethical behaviour and the consequences of that for ordinary hardworking people's lives - especially the poor.
Remarking that the greedy suffer less during a recession, he said there is an obvious need to prioritise spending on health and education, for tighter regulation of the banks and for fair and just immigration procedures.
"If the capitalist system survives, it will need to show a strong appreciation for the notion of equality, responsibility, ethics, more open accessibility and accountability to redress its previous greed, lack of trust, the disappearance of ethical standards,'' he said.
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(Source: CNI)