MASS FOR JUSTICE & PEACE
Milwaukee Irish Fest 2007

Sermon by
Cardinal Seán Brady

My dear friends in Jesus Christ,
It’s a pleasure to be with you this morning. We come together to give thanks to God for all his blessings but especially for the success of this year’s Irish Fest. As Archbishop of Armagh, it is an honour to be here as part of this celebration of all things Irish. It has been a spectacular event. I congratulate all those who organised it and wish you continued success for future festivals.

When I was growing up on the family farm in County Cavan, the name MILWAUKEE was already well known to me. It was the name of the mower, with which with we cut the grass. This grass made the hay, which fed the animals, which kept the family alive. All of this took place during the summer holidays, a time of great peace and care free enjoyment. It was a time when I really appreciated the joy of living on the land.

What a joy then to discover that the original meaning of the name Milwaukee is ‘a rich and fertile land, abounding in rivers and lakes.’ Looking around this beautiful place I can understand why. It not only reminds of my childhood but also words of the Psalm: ‘fresh and green are the pastures where he gives me repose, near restful waters he leads me, to revive my drooping spirit’. I can think of no more appropriate place to celebrate the things of Ireland, with its lakes and glens, its fields and mountains and – of course – its forty shades of green!

Ireland too is a beautiful place. I hope that many of you in future years will come and visit. The link with our relatives of Irish descent in the United States has been a critical part of Ireland’s success in recent years. I thank all of you who have kept those links alive. I also thank you this morning for ensuring that this Mass for Justice and Peace is the highlight of the Irish Fest celebrations. There is no more urgent task in our world today, than to build the structures of justice. There is no more pressing need than to find the way to peace – peace of mind, peace of heart, peace of soul – social, political and economic peace on an international scale.

And the good news I bring to you from Ireland today, is that such a peace is indeed possible. As many of you know, for centuries Ireland has been marked by conflicts over history, resources, power, land, identity, culture and religion. These are the fault lines around which all the conflicts of our world take place today. But in recent years we in Ireland have discovered how to set aside our centuries old conflict and create a better way. It is not a finished work – there are many challenges ahead – but with the disposal of paramilitary weapons by the IRA and the creation of a power-sharing government in Belfast in recent months, a real and substantial peace is emerging among us.

In the second reading the author tells us, ‘We are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us… persevere in running the race that lies before us…’. We thank God today for those many witnesses who have persevered in the difficult work of justice and peace. I am thinking of people like Senator George Mitchell who brokered the peace in Ireland. I am thinking of those many peace-makers throughout the world and especially in the USA, who continue to work for peace in Ireland and across the world. I am also thinking here of that great crowd of witnesses who persevered in the faith when they came to Milwaukee at the time when the Diocese was founded in 1843. At first the Catholics came, mainly from Germany and then, after the Great Famine of 1847-48, from Ireland. Later the Italians and the Poles followed of course.

Wherever they came from, they all met opposition – fierce opposition – in the form of segregation, isolation and misrepresentation. This was an opposition sponsored by various groups such as the infamous ‘know-nothings’ and the ‘nativists’. It was an opposition that was confronted and eventually overcome by a Church that became well organised. It established parishes, schools and Catholic societies. These are the same parishes, schools and Catholic organisations that you continue to support so generously today. It was a Church that eventually, through a vigorous and informed Catholic press, succeeded in making Catholics respectable in the eyes of the public.

These heroic witnesses from your past remind us that the work for justice and peace can bear fruit. Things can change for the better. We also have the powerful witness of St. Patrick. As you will recall, he was kidnapped and cruelly dragged to our shores at the tender age of sixteen. After a number of years he escaped back to his family, only to return among us again as a great missionary, fired up by the call of the Gospel. Like Jesus, how he wished that fire of love would blaze in the hearts of the Irish people. And when, like Patrick, you are consumed by the love of God – all things are possible! He made peace with the people who had once held him captive. He forgave those who maligned him in his mission. He persevered to the end in following Christ’s call.

Another group of who persevered in following Christ’s call, another great cloud of witnesses set before us, are your fore fathers and mothers of generations back who set sail for this great land of freedom and hope. The first Catholics that came to this region from Ireland probably didn’t have a lot by way of formal religious education. One thing they did have was a strong and tender love of the Mother of Christ – the most loving and beloved of all women. They came from an Ireland where, due to the penal laws, their parents didn’t have the opportunity to go to Mass often. So the Rosary was their favourite form of prayer and devotion. They learned to love God and neighbour by meditating on the love and charity of Christ’s mother. Mary, who loved Jesus most, suffered more than all others on Calvary. In that immense suffering Mary learned compassion and shared compassion with others.

This compassionate love, this ability to feel and respect the needs of others, shown to us by Mary, is the road to the peace of Christ – to the civilization of love – of which Pope Benedict speaks so eloquently in his first encyclical Deus Caritas Est.

In our Gospel today, Jesus is impatient to see this civilisation of love take root among us. The fire which he seeks to bring to the earth is the fire of the Holy Spirit, the consuming fire of selfless, transforming love.

Of course Jesus has now suffered his passion and his saving death. He has triumphed over death and returned to the Father and from there he has sent his Holy Spirit – the Spirit of the Risen Christ. Because all this has happened, each one of us is now faced with the choice. Do we allow the fire of the love of the Spirit of the Risen Christ to be lit in our hearts or do we not? That is where the division comes in – some people will welcome that Spirit of Love – others will reject it. For, if we believe in Jesus Christ, and in his teaching, well there can be no room for prevarication. Each one of us has our responsibility to act in accordance with the grace of the Holy Spirit offered to us. And when we accept that grace, when the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit take hold among us – the gifts and fruits of love, joy, understanding, patience, perseverance – then peace can take hold more rapidly than we ever thought possible.

In Ireland we have seen this. The heroes of the peace process are those who, like Mary, have suffered and deepened their faith through their suffering. Because of their suffering, they are compassionate people – people who have learned through their own suffering to be sensitive to the sufferings of others.

I think of the example of a lady in my own diocese whose three sons were shot dead many years ago. They were not engaged in violence and now their mother prays often for those who shot her sons.
Tragically the opposite is also true. Some people choose to remain locked in isolation and fear. They put their trust in domination and threats. They look for safety and security in physical might. They put their hopes in one day defeating or controlling their opponents.

Of course this can become an almost unbreakable cycle. The search for military security generates further suspicion and fear. That is why it is always easier to talk your way into conflict than work your way out it. The question of who was right and who was wrong, what started the conflict and what the original issues were, becomes ever more confused in the fog of violence and revenge.

We desire peace from the depths of our hearts. But what kind of peace do we want? Peace is not the just the absence of war. It is not just a question of trade-offs such as “I will scratch your back if you will scratch mine”. It is not simply the maintenance of a balance of power between enemies. The peace of Christ is built on a correct understanding of the human person. It is basically a matter of truth and integrity. It is a matter of ‘I will do this because it is the right and true and loving thing to do; not for what I am going to get out of it’. The peace of Christ is built on justice and charity – on what is the right and loving thing to do.

Unfortunately, the link between justice and charity is often missing. It is too often missing from the purely secular and political view of conflict resolution. Of course politicians must, and do, call for fair play for their own constituency. There is absolutely no risk to their elected base in that. But that is not enough. That on its own will never deliver lasting peace. The courageous and loving thing is to call for mutual respect and understanding. We also have to appeal for compromise and forgiveness. We have to rise above our fears, our ignorance and our sectarianism. To do this we need to build relationships across the many divides in our society and in our world. We need to recognise the rights of the other side. All of this draws us well beyond the limits of self-interest towards the possibility of a shared future.

What can help to break this sometimes seemingly endless cycle of violence – a constant appeal for prayers for peace. The constant appeal to all that is best within the culture of those involved in the conflict. The appeal is to go back to our shared humanity and to remember that we do, in fact, depend on each other for so much.

In the Irish context, this creation of a culture of peace was critical. It arose from the shared Christian values of the Catholic and Protestant communities. Brave ambassadors for peace, both lay and clerical, crossed over the community divide. They did so often at great risk to themselves. They were trying to understand the other side through dialogue. They wanted to build trust and dispel suspicion. This culture was best illustrated by what I see as the real heroes of the Northern Ireland conflict. I am talking about the many, many totally innocent people who, in the midst of great tragedy and pain, issued heroic words of forgiveness.

I think of Gordon Wilson who lost his daughter in the Enniskillen Poppy Day bombing appealing to those responsible to desist. I think of Michael McGoldrick, whose son, Michael Jnr, was shot as he went about his taxi driving business appealing at the graveside for those in conflict to throw their hatred and their bitterness into the grave with his dead son. They appealed for no vengeance, no retaliation, no reprisals, towards those who had so cruelly harmed them. They echoed in our time, for our day, the words of the prophet Jeremiah “I myself know the plans I have for you, a plan of peace and not of war, to give you a future full of hope”.

The world stands today at a decisive crossroads. Some may wish to sensationalize the situation. They do so by speaking of a clash of civilisations. Others refer ominously to a final conflict between the great ideologies of the planet. I prefer to stick by Jeremiah’s description – a future full of hope. I believe we are at a moment of great opportunity, not of destruction. Nevertheless, a stark choice lies ahead –
Do we choose the things that build trust and reduce fear?
Do we opt for policies that deepen anger and increase suspicion?

One thing appears certain. The future for all of us is going to be global. The critical question is: Will it be a future of global solidarity or of global competition, a future of global compassion or of global aggression? That is the kind of question that will bring about the division of which Jesus spoke. In a world of finite resources, the answer to this question will determine the kind of peace that will follow – the peace of God or the illusory peace which the world brings.

However, I have the impression that something important is lacking right now in the international efforts at conflict resolution. Perhaps it is the shared understanding of peace. I mean an understanding that would be rooted in the values and beliefs of the three great traditional religions, Judaism, Islamic and Christianity. I believe that such a shared vision is not only possible but essential. Each tradition has much that is valuable to offer to it. Producing this vision and committing ourselves to living it, is a compelling priority. It is compelling because the future of our world depends upon it.

We need to agree an understanding of what that plan of peace might involve. We must give our wholehearted commitment to ensuring that the vision becomes a reality. Perhaps the United Nations could have a role in facilitating this dialogue between the faith traditions of the world and developing a vision for peace. I think this was part of the thinking of Pope John Paul II when he established the Inter-Religious Day of Prayer for Peace initiative. As Christians, Jews and Muslim, this is the greatest glory we could give to God and the greatest witness we could give to those who do not believe”.

The search for this peace will require our perseverance as we learned in Ireland. Like young Jeremiah, thrown into the well, the struggle for justice and peace will always suffer many setbacks along the way. But let us remember that those same people who threw Jeremiah into the well, eventually had a change of heart.

It is for that reason I say to you that while there are obviously many challenges facing our world today, there are more reasons to hope. In the words of the famous Wisconsin poet of the 19th century, David Fletcher Hunton, written as the gazed upon the beauty of this Lake Michigan beside us,

This is a grand prophetic time!
It gives us hope for joys sublime,.
Within a fairer, bright clime,
Where shadows are unknown!

Or in the words of the Irish mother to her fearful children as they left their beloved homeland for the promise of this great land:

Believe in hope because God is in your future
He will not let you down.

Perhaps your own forefathers shared those sentiments as they too left to come to this place. Believe in hope because God is in your future. He will not let you down.
Thank you and thank God that He is with us and will be with us to end of time.

THE CHURCH IN IRELAND
in 2007
A presentation by
CARDINAL Seán Brady
MILWAUKEE IRISH FEST 2007

Ladies and Gentlemen:
Thank you for your warm welcome. It is a great honour to be here as part of Milwaukee Irish Fest 2007. I would like to express my particular thanks to the Committee, to Fr Michael Maher and Jane Anderson for their invitation to be here and their very generous assistance in making all the preparations for my visit. Thanks also to Archbishop Dolan for his warm welcome and hospitality. I am honoured that you could be here this evening and that we will be concelebrating the Mass for Justice and Peace tomorrow.
I don’t think I have ever come across such a wide-ranging celebration of all that is best in Irish culture: music, dance, poetry, history, politics, art, literature and so much more – a truly outstanding programme of events. As an Irish man it makes we very proud to be here. Comhghairdeas agus go raibh mile maith agaibh go leir.

The festival itself, the Féile an Phobail, has a long and cherished place in Irish culture. At the heart of it is the joy of being with others. You cannot have a festival on your own! Irish people love to celebrate life with others. Whether in the Parish or the Ceili Mor, in the pub or at the football field, we have a strong tradition of getting together to enjoy the pleasure of each other’s company. Perhaps this is why our well known Patron Saint, Saint Patrick, was so successful in converting us with the shamrock. The idea of a God who was a community of persons living in what the Greek Fathers of the time called perichoresis – a circle of eternal dance – would have had an inevitable attraction to the Irish temperament! I don’t know if you knew that we were also the first to invent Karaoke – or the sing along – except we called it the ‘come-all yee’, songs written so that everyone could join in – whether you could sing or not! I am sure you heard at least a few of them over the last four days!

It seems that this reputation of the Irish as a people with a strong sense of community is not just the stuff of myth and legend! In 2005, the Intelligence Unit of the Economist magazine undertook a ‘Quality of Life’ survey. I covered the 111 most developed countries of the world. The survey combined data on incomes, health, unemployment, climate, political stability, job security, gender equality and what the magazine calls “freedom, family and community life.” To the surprise of many, it was Ireland which emerged with a top score of 8.33, well ahead of second-place Switzerland. The U.S. slipped to 13th place in the survey. Some big economies fared quite badly. China was in the lower half of the league at 60th, while Russia scraped in toward the bottom at 105th. The U.K. ranked the lowest out of the E.U. in terms of overall quality of life, chiefly due to the high rates of social and family breakdown recorded in official statistics.

What is worthy of note is the reason given by the report for Ireland’s success. “Ireland wins,” the survey said, “because it successfully combines the most desirable elements of the new (including the fourth highest gross domestic product per head in the world, low unemployment, political liberties etc.) with the preservation of certain cozy elements of the old, such as stable family and community life.”

There are echoes here of something I read about Milwaukee on an internet tourist site: ‘The city,’ it said, ‘is unique in the way it continues to blend the old and the new.’ There are also echoes of the parable in which Our Lord compares the Kingdom of God to the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old!’ (Mt 13:52).

It is certainly within this tension between old and new that the Catholic Church in Ireland, North & South, finds itself. Ireland is in the throws of a rapid transition between old and new at so may levels: economic, cultural, political, social and of course religious.

I thought the best way to proceed this evening is to describe some of the key elements of this transition in quite broad terms and then I am happy to take questions along with my two Colleagues here, Fr John Quinn and Fr John O’Donnell.

Together we have many years experience of priestly ministry and so together we would be happy to fill in some of the details about what is of most interest to you during the questions.
The first major axis of transition in Irish society in recent years, I would suggest, has been what I would describe as – ‘The erosion of external authority’;

The attitude to Polticians, Gardai, Financial Institutions, the Church and other traditional sources of social and moral authority in Ireland has changed dramatically in recent years.
This was a result, in part, of the multitude of investigations, many of them still ongoing, in to how these institutions had managed their affairs.

Nothing has yet emerged to replace the cohesion and stablity that these institutions once brought.
They have been partly replaced by the ‘authority’ and influence of the ‘mass media’ – the commentariat!
Though there may be signs that they too are losing their easy grip – people are becoming more cynical about the motives of the media. Afer all, the bottom line for the media is circulation and audience figures rather than the good of society. This may take time though.

In terms of the Church, the impact of the last thirty years has been particularly dramatic, no doubt because its role in society, at both religious and secular levels had been so comprehensive.
The Catholic Church in Ireland had always been characterised by a high level of religious practice, unique in Europe. A sense of Christian faith was woven into the Irish psyche. It even manifested itself in the day to day expressions of the Irish language which came as second nature to us. The authority of the Church was unquestionned. Bishops, priests and religious were treated with great reverence and respect. Too much revenece and respect! Polticians and the media would have been slow to go against the position of the Church on a given issue.

All of this has changed dramatically in the last thirty years and increasingly so in the last decade. The seeds of it were already evident in the challenges to the position of the Church in key public votes on social and moral issues in the 70’s and 80’s. The slow decline in the very high rates of weekly Mass attendance, the trauma and scandal around revelations of clerical child sexual abuse accelerated this process dramatically in 1990’s.

While at the beginning of the 1970’s weekly Mass attendance would have been as high as 90%, now it would be closer to 50% (though it is worth bearing in mind that this is still high by European standards) and vocations to the priesthood and religious life have fallen dramatically in the same period (though there are still more priests in Ireland than there were during the famine or the penal times). Major restructuring of Parishes is imminent in many Dioceses.

In this sense it may be accurate to say that in Ireland there is a crisis in religion. If we take religion as a body of doctrine and a system of practice, then we see the decline.

For this reason it is a time of great challenge for the Church and but also of great opporunity for the Church. There are also many signs of hope! I will come to these at the end.

The second axis of change I would describe as the challenge of ‘Peace and Prosperity’:

First of all let me say a little about the Peace Process In the North:

You will no doubt be aware of the dramatic and positive developments in the search for peace in Northern Ireland in recent months. I hope to speak a little more about it during my sermon tomorrow. But suffice to say for the present that the speed with which peace and stability has taken root has been remarkable. All the evidence is that the new Power-sharing Assembly at Stormont in Belfast is working very well. People are taken aback at how well former adverseries such as Ian Paisley and Martin McGuinness are working together in the common interest.

As some of you will know I had my own historic meeting with Doctor Paisley only a few months ago. It was a very positive experience. We discovered that we shared the same views on many social issues including poverty, the importance of marriage and the family, the right to religious freedom, to faith based education and so on. It was another example of how much is to be gained from simply meeting with others. Patient dialogue, developing mutual understanding was one of the keys to finding peace in Northern Ireland.

We have also had the quiestest marching season for many years. Just last week the British Army officially ended what was known as ‘Operation Banner’. This was the name for the British Army’s role in Northern Ireland since the start of the Troubles in 1969.

The tourist figures for Northern Ireland have risen dramatically this year. We should not be surprised – it is a very beautiful place. I hope that many of you will come and visit. It was the support of others from outside, especially those like yourselves with an interest in the Irish situation which made a critical difference in the search for peace.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support for the Irish peace process. For your prayers and for the active engagement of so many US citizens and political representatives in supporting initiatives for peace. You too deserve not only the credit for what has been achieved but also the gratitude of people like myself and others who now enjoy a whole new atmosphere of peace and stability in Northern Ireland.

I would also like to take this opportunity to commend the Irish Government for establishing an intiative on International Conflict Resolution by which the lessons of the NI peace process can be shared across the world.

You can actually feel the better atmosphere around cities like Belfast and Derry. You can really sense the new optimism.

What we now need to do is build on the peace. We need to address the legacy of the past, particularly in terms of the legacy of poverty. Northern Ireland remains one of the most deprived parts of Europe because of the legacy of conflict. Yet it has one of the most highly qualified workforces and one of the best infrastructures to support development of any part of Ireland or the UK. I hope that many of you will encourage US companies and entrepeneurs to invest in Northern Ireland. I call on the British Government to provide further incentives to such investment, including bringing Corporation Tax into line with the rate in the South of Ireland.

Northern Ireland is part of the good news of modern Ireland. I believe that there are many lessons about making peace there which can contribute to the search for peace in other parts of the world. You may wish to ask me more about this during the questions!

Now let me say a litte about the growth of prosperity in the South:

Ireland, as the Economist ‘Quality of Life’ survey suggests, has experienced unprecedented economic growth in the last twenty years. This is fantastic and very welcome achievement for a country that for too long was marked by economic emigration, not least to the United States. We should thank God for this prosperity and its manifold benefits. I am confident that, despite the normal ups and down of economic fortune, Ireland will continue to be one of the most prosperous countries of the world because its prosperity is rooted in the great talent of its young people and in the standard of our education.

This present prosperity has certainly lifted the burden of hopeless impoverishment from many families. It has provided and enhanced social services to the public and fuelled much investment on infrastructure. We now see Irish people displaying talents of enterprise and business acumen quite unsuspected a generation ago. We have also experience the benefits of increased economic migration into Ireland of people from across the expanded European Union. It is estimated that there are over 300,000 workers in Ireland who have come from Poland in the last ten years. That is very sizeable when one considers that we have a population of 4 million. Other migrant and ethnic groups are also increasing rapidly in number making Ireland much more ethnically diverse.

One of the many benefits of this increased migration is that many of the new Irish who have come to our shares come with a very strong faith commitment. In many of our inner city Parishes it is the new migrant communities who have brought new life to the faith of these parishes.

However, for all the benefits of our new found prosperity, there is a real danger that we are becoming intoxicated with it and with the confidence it instills that there is more of the same ahead. It is the ideal atmosphere. Prophets of doom will not get a hearing. We currently have a young generation which has not had to cope with hardship or with any downturn on their life expectations.

And this brings me to the third axis.

The third axis of change I would describe as ‘The new challenges to old values’:
Along with increased prosperity, have come new challenges to the very values which the Economist ‘Quality of Life’ survey suggested gave us the highest score – the values of family and community.

While it would be wrong to exaggerate it, there is growing concern about evidence of a gradual breakdown in social cohesion. This comes from a cultural shift from emphasis on community and family to an emphasis on the happiness of the individual, particularly of the individual as a consumer. It is also tied up with a notion of freedom of the individual without reference to our responsibility to the common good that is so prevalent in Western culture at the moment.

Some of the evidence of this gradual breakdown in social cohesion is the dramatic increase in the levels of violent crime, including the number of murders committed on an annual basis. There is also evidence of increasing use of illegal drugs and with it has come the phenomenon of gangland killings, something largely unknown in Ireland’s past.

In addition to to increasing use of illegal drugs, you will not be surprised to know that our young people have some of the highest levels of alcohol addiction in Europe. There is a dangerous and alarming culture of binge drinking in which it is assumed by so many young people that you cannot go out and enjoy yourself for the evening without getting drunk!

I am conscious that Milwaukee is known for its association with some of the biggest beer brewing companies in the world. I hope you forgive me for taking this opportunity for saying that I do not believe that companies producing alcohol and making huge profits from it, whether in Ireland or the US, are doing enough to promote responsible drinking or to provide support for those trying to recover from addiction!
One other factor which is undermining the values of family and community is the phenomeon of ‘Time Poverty’. To keep up with the consumer demands associated with our new levels of prosperity, people now have to have two incomes in the home, have to travel further and for longer to get to work and have less time to spend with family or doing ‘community’ based activities. All of this is adding to the stress and pressure of life. People may have more, but there is a danger that they may not have time to enjoy it.

It may be that underlying the prosperity, what should be the gains in quality of life and happiness are being lost to stress and the pressure of consumerism! At its most serious, this can lead to a despair about the effort needed to keep up with others, to buy a home (Ireland has some of the highest house prices in the world). It can lead to increasing social isolation, the breakdown of community.

Perhaps the most tragic evidence that something fundamental is changing in terms of the ‘Quality of Life’ in Irish society, is the unprecendented levels of suicide, notably among the young. The reasons for this tragic increase in suicides is complex and needs further detailed analysis. However, it is difficult to believe that is not connected, at least to some extent, by the move away from those values which give meaning and purpose to life beyond the material. It is a real warning sign, along with the increase in violent crime, in alcohol and drug abuse, that any cosy assumption that our wealth will bring us a better quality of life is unfounded.

Other critical issues including the increasing between the rich and the poor. It is one thing to achieve prosperity. It is another thing to ensure that it is distributed fairly!

Similarly, while the new ethnic and cultural diveristy of Ireland brings with it many benefits, many people find living with such diversity a real challenge. Trajically Ireland, north and South, is not without its quota of hate crimes based on ethnicity and country of origin!

The Economist survey tells us what the Church, through the message of the Gospel, has always held was true, that we need wealth with values that challenge us and draw us into community, if we are to find happiness.

We need to avoid the danger of a shift to superficiality in Irish life and culture and to value those things which bring depth and meaning to our lives such as family, faith, friendship and community. These too are worthy of our investment!

And this brings me to the fourth and final axis.

The fourth and final axis I would describe as ‘Signs of Hope for the New Millennium’;
Some of these I have mentioned already, including the developments in the peace process in the North, the faith brought by many of the new migrant communities and the welcome benefits of increased prosperity.

A number of others, however, are worthy of mention:

– The new Church-state dialogue.

– The efforts to deal with the past in Northern Ireland – the efforts to move beyond political agreement into the deeper and more Christian concepts of reconciliation and the healing of memory – Commission established to do this – work of NICCOSA.

– Level of joint work between the Churches, not least because of need to work together for Peace in Northern Ireland – IICM, Four Church leaders etc.

In terms of the many signs of hope within our own Church:

We think of the Society of St. Vincent De Paul, with its 10,000 volunteers, 900 Conferences, 132 shops for very inexpensive clothes and its 920 housing units.

We think of the work of ACCORD, the Catholic Marriage Advisory Service and find that most people do a pre-marriage course before getting married.

We think of the renewal in growth of the Pioneer Total Abstinence Association and the Legion of Mary.
The Church also continues to make a huge contribution to Education and Health. Much of Ireland’s economic success has been due to the quality of our education system in which the Church plays a key part.

The Church also has a key role in developing many community facilities and events in terms of sport, recreation and charitable activities.

There are increasing numbers of local prayer groups, scripture meetings, the development of programmes of Family Ministry and Adult Faith development.

A recent Government survey on ‘Active Citizenship’ acknowledges that it is the Church and sporting organisations which are contributing most to building a sense of community at the local level. Bearing in mind the Economist surveys link between quality of life and values of family and community, this influence of the Church on social cohesion is a critical factor in ensuring that quality of life into the future.
First Confession, First Communion and Confirmation continue to be very big events. One of the most popular events is Cemetary Sunday.

I heard recently of a group of over 1000 young people attending a weekend retreat at our National Marian Shrine in Knock, Co. Mayo. Many young people enthusiastically volunteer as helpers to the sick on Diocesan Pilgraimges to Lourdes.

Ø We also have increasing numbers of lay people who are qualified in the study of theology at University level and large numbers of young people applying to do theology.

Ø Compared to thirty years ago we have so many more lay people actively involved in various ways in their local Parish – on Pastoral Councils, Finance Committees, as lay readers, extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist, catechists and so on.

Ø In short, there are many signs that the seeds of future growth of the faith are firmly taking root in the new Ireland. The exact shape and direction of that growth may not yet be clear but its presence is without doubt.

Ø Elements of the media give the impression that the Church is dying. In the words of Tom Sawyer, I would reply that ‘All rumours of our death are greatly exaggerated!’

Ø Perhaps somoetimes we forget that our greatest strength is that we have the answer to the deepest questions of peoples lives: who am I? why am I here? What ought I to do? What will happen to me when I die? These questions have not gone away and lurk behind the façade of what often appear to be contented but actually quitre stress filled Irish lives. I am always mindful myself amidst the challenges of change in Ireland of those powerful words of St. Peter – ‘Lord to whom shall we go, you have the message of eternal life’. Young people in Irleand, as elsewhere, have a very global sense. These also have a sense of the fragility of the planet in terms of Global Warming and the nuclear threat. They have a moral sense of the need for solidarity and a passion for Justice. This is deep soil in which the Gospel, presented and lived with confidence and conviction can take root.

There is clear evidence to my mind that many people are getting tired of the emptiness and stress of a life built predominantly on secular and consumerist values.

It may be smaller Church in future but it may also be a more authentic one – ironically, a smaller but more authentic Church may have more influence, more impact because of the integrity of its witness.

Conclusion: Drawing our future treasure from what is both old and new!

So, perhaps the best way to summarise the overall situation of the Church in Ireland at at the moment is in the words of Charles Dickens – ‘It was the best of times and the worst of times’. We have unprecedented properity, the Celtic Tiger, and we have unprecedented political stability in Northern Ireland. All of this is really good news, a solid foundation for a better future. But just as the darnel can grow up alongside the wheat, it is clear from what I have described that many new challenges also lie ahead.

The fundamental challenge in my view is for modern Ireland to retain the balance between the best of the old and the best of the new. This includes taking steps to build community and support for marriage and the family. It requires moving to a new maturity in public and media debate, where the importance of faith in the lives of so many Irish people, including many of the new Irish, is given due recognition and respect by the new forces of Irish culture.

I believe that there are increasing signs that the secular project in Ireland has failed. It has failed to bring the happiness it promised or the answers to the really important questions of people’s lives. I also believe that the inherent beauty and depth of the Catholic faith and the timeless message and example of its founder, is once again appealing to the hearts and minds of many, not least the young.

has been its ability to hold together the best of the old and of the new. The Church, which draws from the Scriptures a treasure which is both old and new, has an indepensible part to play in maintaining this quality of life.

In this regard the words of your own President Theodore Rosevelt, whose name is forever linked to this city, have a timely relevance for the people of Ireland, indeed of the world:

‘In this actual world a churchless community, a community where people have abandoned and scoffed at or ignored their religious, is a community on rapid downgrade…. The person who does not in some way connect with some active, working Church, misses many opportunities for helping his neighbours, and therefore, incidentally, for helping himself.’
Thank you for your attention.

THE CHURCH AND CONFLICT –
HOW TO BECOME A PART OF THE SOLUTION.
LESSONS LEARNED FROM NORTHERN IRELAND
ADDRESS BY
CARDINAL SEÁN BRADY
WELLINGTON PARK HOTEL, BELFAST
SATURDAY 23 SEPTEMBER 2006
INTRODUCTION

Your Excellency Bishop Schwarz, my brother Bishops, Members of the Justice and Peace Commissions of Europe, distinguished guests;

Recently I came across a poem by a young Church of Ireland Rector working here in Belfast. In it he reflects on his sense of a new common understanding emerging among the peoples of the world and he writes: ‘Friends from another land, have taught me much… to grow, through prayer and praise, to better days”.

I also welcome all of you, most cordially, my friends from other lands. Many of you have taught me much about the Church and conflict. Your courageous testimony and heroic example in the face of conflict and oppression have inspired us here in Ireland to grow and progress hopefully to better days.

In spite of the weather, the presence here of so many friends from other lands is a great encouragement for all of us who work, in the name of Jesus Christ, for better days in Ireland.

I want to thank you most sincerely for your decision to come here to Belfast for this General Assembly. As the stories you have heard and the people you have met over these few days will testify, this is an important city for those who wish learn about the urgent challenge of reconciliation and the things that make for peace. Belfast is a city of contrasts, of people of humour and generosity, of welcome and warmth. Yet it is a city which bears within its terraced streets and fine public buildings, a legacy of violence and pain which continues to dim its dreams and its possibility of becoming one of the most vibrant and welcoming cities of Europe. Your decision to be with us, motivated by your Christian vision of justice and peace, gives us fresh heart to make that dream a reality.

THE POSITIVE ROLE OF THE CHURCHES

This is where my reflection on ‘The Church and Conflict – Lessons learned from Northern Ireland’ begins. With the simple conviction that in Jesus Christ we can make all things new.

THE BASIS OF TRUE PEACE

All things are made through, and in, the Word of God. They are a real reflection of God. We are called to see our own intrinsic goodness and to recognise that same goodness and lovableness in all other human beings as well. If we see all of creation as a gift of God and a reflection of God, then it is our privilege, and our duty, to preserve the harmony and right order, which comes from God. When we begin to appreciate that in all things we are sustained by the love of God in creation, this realisation makes for peace. And I think the Churches can become part of the solution by proclaiming that message loud and clear.

As the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church puts it: “Before being God’s gift to man and a human project in conformity with the divine plan, peace is in the first place a basic attribute of God” (488). Nevertheless, peace always remains a human project and those who commit themselves to that project as peacemakers are called ‘blessed’ by the Lord.

However, nowadays people are too often encouraged to see themselves as essentially consumers and producers and in competition with one another. In fact, nowadays many people need opponents, if not enemies, for their own sense of identity. Conflict and confrontation characterise so much of life that, as a result, hostility, anger and envy of others often intensify. However, it seems to me that those who see themselves as children of God and brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ have to reject such attitudes and their destructive consequences for real peacemakers promote partnership not conflict, genuine peacemakers support friendship not confrontation. Authentic peacemakers build peace not war.

One of the common mistakes made by people outside of Northern Ireland, including many British and Irish politicians, is to believe that the conflict here is essentially a conflict of religion, of competing Christian traditions resolutely intolerant of one another and vying for dominance. This is a convenient but inaccurate presentation.

As with all conflicts across the world, the situation in Northern Ireland is the result of a complex mixture of history and politics, of culture and identity, of tensions over land and resources, of fear of those who are different and ultimately, of the need for each of us to belong.

This is why your decision to come to Northern Ireland is so important. Far from being the main protagonists of the conflict in Northern Ireland, the main Christian traditions here, represented in part by our esteemed panel, have played a critical part in building the culture of peace and tolerance which is slowly taking root in our land. In the words of one Unionist politician recently;

…without the Churches, for all their faults… the period of
the Troubles would have been much worse. Although the ‘two
communities’ are now highly segregated in terms of where
they live, work or go to school, on the whole there is
probably still more civility between them than there would
have been without the presence of the Churches.

While it is not a religious conflict – it is a sectarian conflict in the sense of sectarianism understood as hostility or suspicion directed against those who belong to a different religious denomination. However, there are those who would wish the Christian Churches, with their greater understanding of the peace that is not of this world, to provide a stronger and more enthusiastic leadership in the search for peace and reconciliation. They urge the followers of Christ to resist the temptation to be held captive by fear, ignorance or sectarianism. We are often reminded of the Call of God to the ministry of reconciliation. To the making of peace, to the seeking of the unity willed by Christ so that the world might believe. We ignore this call at our peril.

I believe that Northern Ireland, despite all the set backs and problems which remain, is fundamentally a story of hope. It is also, I believe, a story from which other parts of the world, indeed even the so-called ‘international war on terrorism’ can learn.

THE SCOURGE OF VIOLENCE

Perhaps the first lesson to be learnt from Northern Ireland is that violence is a scourge! It can never be the basis of peace. Violence may sometimes achieve domination over others or their community but it cannot win that community’s participation or consent. As the Compendium puts it: “Peace and violence cannot dwell together. Where there is violence God cannot be present”.

As you will have witnessed so powerfully from your visits to different groups, working with the victims of violence, the use of violence, whether by the state or by paramilitary organisations, leaves an indelible mark on the memory and emotions of those whom it affects and sometimes of those who perpetrate it.

As the experience of Northern Ireland suggests, once the first act of violence is perpetrated, whether in defence or in aggression, the original reason for the use of violence is quickly lost sight of in the deadly cycle of violence, hatred, revenge and misunderstanding which almost inevitably follows. This is why promises of short wars or rapid revolutions are rarely realised.

A Presbyterian working party on Non-Violent action in the 1970’s listed the following causes of violence:
· Violence arises from fear and anxiety;
· Violence is intensified by the example of violence.

Our culture, including the media, finds it easier to focus on violent behaviour than on its opposite. But we need to support the proponents of peace and the examples in our world of non-violent alternatives to conflict. As the fall of the Berlin Wall and of the Iron Curtain remind us, bloodless revolutions are possible;
· Violence arises from social injustice.

Until genuine inequalities in the social, economic and political realm are addressed, peace will always be vulnerable to the righteous claim of every human being to be treated with justice. That includes the right to be treated with respect and parity of esteem. This is a basic biblical principle and a key lesson in the search for peace.

· Violence arises from people’s sense that they have no effective say in their own destiny.
One of the key lessons learnt in Northern Ireland is that strategies which promote the ability of people to participate in the political process, to articulate and organise around their legitimate concerns, are critical in building a culture of non-violence. In this regard I would just like to say that I welcome all recent initiatives directed at supporting the ability of the loyalist community to develop its social and political capacity. A confident unionism and a confident nationalism, are not mutually exclusive possibilities. What is of continuing concern, however, is the failure of certain paramilitary organisations to state clearly that they have accepted the principle of majority consent in the Good Friday Agreement and that, whatever happens in coming months in the political negotiations, they accept that the use of violence for political ends can never be justified. The failure to provide such reassurances is a matter of deep concern for many people at this time. This brings me to the final cause of violence identified by the Presbyterian Working Group on non-violence:

· The need for agreed, fair and accountable systems of law and order, based on the principles of human rights.

No society can achieve a stable peace without an effective system of law and order. Law and order is essential to the common good; it prevents any individual or group acting beyond the limits of their legitimate rights and affirms our interdependence as citizens of a shared political entity. The transition to a more equitable, balanced and accountable system of law and order here in Northern Ireland has been a slow but immensely significant and positive process. Some believe that much more needs to be done to ensure complete confidence in such a system. What is beyond question is that a lot has been done. However, commitment to the fair, impartial and accountable administration of law and order is an inseparable part of the administration of Government.

It is accepted that the tolerance of subversive or criminal activity is incompatible with responsibility for the administration or law and order. On the other hand, where reasonable assurances have been given that there is a commitment to support just and representative institutions of law and order, and where this is confirmed by all reasonable means, it is difficult to justify the absence of a system of devolved Government, especially of a system which does not have responsibility for the administration of policing and justice within its remit.

CURRENT SITUATION

Speaking about peace in Northern Ireland is like speaking about a glass that is half empty or half full, depending on your point of view. The peace we enjoy here at present has been described as an ‘unstable sort of peace’ but it is real peace, and we should be grateful. Looking at the glass that is half empty, we could think of the amount of organised paramilitary crime that still exists, the hold the paramilitary groups still have on some communities, and we could conclude that the absence of war is not the same as peace.

The cancer of bigotry and sectarianism still exists, a huge amount of work still needs to be done to heal old wounds and bring the parts of our divided community closer together. We could think of the devolved administration that has been suspended and the dangerous political vacuum that now exists, and the apathy, even cynicism, about politics generally.

Looking at the glass that is half full, we think of the number of organisations working hard to bring our fragmented society together and to restore dignity to those on the margins of society.

People are now under a lot less stress regarding the security situation. The ceasefires, the Belfast Agreement and the decommissioning of IRA arms, have made a huge difference. People feel a lot more secure, a lot more at ease. The latest IMC Report confirms that the glass is more than half full.

All of this has created the climate where, hopefully, more progress can take place. People can begin to talk to each other and work together and discuss with each other the future ahead as a shared future in a way that would not have been possible ten years ago.

Recently I attended a meeting of the Irish Inter-Church Committee. This is a Committee which represents the main Christian churches in Ireland. There we heard a most heartening analysis and presentation from the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister on the way forward. Even though the devolved administration is suspended some people are at work to chart the way forward which they describe as a ‘shared future’. How encouraging it was to hear that ‘shared future’ described as follows:

“The establishment, over time, of a normal, civic society, in which all individuals are considered as equals, where differences are resolved through dialogue in the public sphere and where all people are treated impartially. It is also a society where there is equality, respect for diversity and recognition of our inter-dependence”.

The speaker went on identify the key challenges that lay ahead and they were:
· Relationships (in other words, building up good community relationships)
· Dealing with the legacy of conflict and violence,
· Working towards reconciliation in a divided society
· Eliminating violence and poverty

I must say that I found this most encouraging but I repeat, politicians, civil servants, diplomats, cannot do this on their own. It will only happen if we all become like St. Francis, channels of peace and instruments of this shared future. It will only happen if we are all inspired to banish hatred from our own lives and to bring love, to replace injury with pardon and to build up trust by dispelling doubts and fears.

A FRAGILE PEACE

The conflict here, like most recent conflicts elsewhere, has shown once more to everyone just how fragile peace is. Peace is a human project as well as being a gift of God. Preservation and consolidation of peace requires an act of commitment on the part of all. Peace can be ensured only by opening up new prospects of dialogue and encounter, new channels of forgiveness and reconciliation. The Rev Ruth Patterson, Director of Restoration Ministries has eloquently described her concept of reconciliation. “For me reconciliation has something to do with giving us back to each other or perhaps recognising for the first time the gift that we are to each other. To do this we need to cultivate a generosity of spirit, especially in listening, in building relationships across the many divides in our society, in going on our own inner journey of reconciliation, and in not despising the small gestures and actions that, taken and anointed by the Spirit, could turn this island upside down”.

The healing and reconciliation process that is called for everywhere is multi-faceted. Political and legal processes can definitely go a long distance. But there is, however, a growing awareness that these legal and political means can only do so much. In themselves they are not adequate to the task of healing and reconciling. Of course they can examine what happened in the past but they cannot heal memories. The law can punish the wrongdoers but it cannot bring about actual forgiveness. Social conditions can certainly facilitate reconciliation but they cannot guarantee it.

There is another dimension required and it is the spiritual dimension. Here Christians certainly have something unique to offer. The Good News, brought by Jesus Christ is, in itself, a story of healing and reconciliation. It is the story of the reconciling of the human family with God and of people among themselves. Jesus proclaimed, in deed and in word, the healing compassion of the Father. While it is God who initiates and brings about our reconciliation and brings our reconciliation to completion, God also gives us the privilege of sharing in the work. God makes us co-workers in the task of uniting all peoples as we journey towards the fullness of the Kingdom. It is for us to find the best way of sharing in the task.

A recently published report entitled The Irish Churches and Peace Education – An Overview and Evaluation was prepared by two university Colleges. It concluded that there is a continuing obligation for the Churches to be involved in peacemaking and educating for peace. It also concluded that the Churches are in a unique position to facilitate the development of a culture of peace. It found the Churches have the capacity and influence to make a major contribution in the move from a culture of violence towards a shared future. The Report obviously believes that the Church can become part of the solution and indicates how that can happen.

We need to find new ways of giving common witness to the peace of Christ which can transform the world. One of the aspects of my work in enjoy and benefit from most is my close working relationship with the leaders of the main Christian Churches and so many others at who are working together at a local level. We need new opportunities to express our interdependence, to work together on areas of mutual interest and concern – education, the challenge of secularism, the values of family and marriage, the Gospel of life, these are all areas where the Christian Church could work more closely together.

In the words of Nelson Mandela, ‘there is no easy road to freedom. We know well that none of us acting alone can achieve success. We must, therefore, act together as a united people for national reconciliation, for nation building, for the birth of a new world.’ This is what Christ desires of us.

PROMOTING SOLIDARITY

Northern Ireland and the island of Ireland are part of Europe. As the late lamented Pope John Paul II reminded the Council of European Bishops Conferences in 2000, “Europe is really not a closed or isolated territory. Europe has been built by expanding overseas and meeting other peoples, other cultures, other civilisations”. As the Apostolic Exhortation, published after the Second Synod on Europe stated: “Europe, all of Europe needs to be an open and a welcoming country”. Of course, one of the new phenomena of our times is the presence, on the island of Ireland, of so many immigrants from so many of your countries in our midst. I think of Poland, Lithuania, Portugal and Latvia in particular. We welcome them wholeheartedly. We appreciate their goodness, their many and diverse talents and their great willingness to work hard and to play their part in working for the common good of society. We, for our part, pledge to offer them pastoral care and to help them to get the justice, respect and protection to which they are entitled.

Their presence in our midst challenges us all to improve our ways of coping with diversity. That challenge may eventually prove providential in helping us deal with our traditional problems and divisions. We too must make our own, the firm conviction proposed in 1991 by Pope John Paul II in his encyclical letter Centesimus Annus that the market place needs to be appropriately controlled by the forces of society and by the State so as to guarantee that the basic needs of the whole of society are satisfied.

THE POWER OF PRAYER

Peace is a gift of God, a human project. But, first and foremost, peace is an attribute of God. Since we are made in the image and likeness of God we all desire to share in that peace, not just in the peace of eternity but we yearn to enjoy that peace here and now on this earth. So there goes up this constant litany of prayers and intercessions from the people of God to beg for this precious gift.

We have learned that here in Northern Ireland people have turned to ask the intercession of the saints, especially St. Francis to ask that they too may be made channels of peace. Here in Ireland the help of St. Oliver Plunkett has often been sought in the search for peace. During his ministry as Archbishop, St. Oliver worked tirelessly for peace. He finally paid the supreme price – when he was executed in Tyburn, London in 1681.

Another lesson which we have learned is that peace does indeed come dropping slow. Peace is in much patience as Thomas a Kempis said
St Oliver Plunkett endured all his trouble with great patience and proved himself an outstanding example of reconciliation by his forgiveness without exception of all and his pleading for forgiveness from all.

CONCLUSION

The time for healing wounds has come. The time to bridge the chasms that divide us has come. The moment to build is upon us. I hope that the coming weeks and months will see all those who have power to do so, commit themelves totally to a shared and positive future, by putting in place a local power-sharing Assembly which has full community support for the institutions of law and order. I hope that all those who can make this happen will consider carefully their responsibility to the greater good and the benefits of local accountability. I believe that the majority of people in Northern Ireland want to see such a process evolve and to see it soon. Perhaps then, Northern Ireland will be able to take its rightful place among the most generous, welcoming and hopeful places of the world.

My hope is that the children of the next generation will never have to suffer the fear and the pain which their parents suffered. I hope that we will seize the opportunity which now exists to build a peace – OK maybe not a perfect peace but a solid peace. I sincerely hope that we will be equal to the challenge and the opportunity that presents itself now, for history will judge us severely if we don’t.

I make my own the hope and prayer of Rev J B Armour of Ballymoney “that a race of Protestants will arise who will be happy to dwell in this land not under the protection of the Saxon nor by permission of the Celt but in virtue of the services they will render to a country they love and for whose welfare they pray”.

Thank you