Structural Funds Ireland

Posted on December 28, 2011 by Admin
Structural Funds Ireland

Structural Funds Ireland

When I was growing up, a priest was a respected figure and even feared by some parishioners. He was a man you could go to for advice and you wouldn't dare miss Sunday mass. Nor confession for that matter, even if you had to make up the sins just to have something to say!

My mother would invite him in for tea and scones and he went to all the football matches. Cheering everyone on. Always in the thick of things. Looked up to by everyone. One lad I was talking to recently had lost his mother at a very young age and the parish priest came to the house every night to make sure the family were okay and the nuns brought the family on outings and made sure they were never stuck for shoes, food or clothing.

Traditional Beliefs and Practices

In my grandparents' time, you had to fast before getting Holy Communion. You'd faint with the hunger by the time you got home. In old traditional Ireland, pictures of the Sacred Heart of Jesus could be seen hanging on every wall, along with crucifix crosses, rosary beads and many more such holy relics. We were a devout nation, with hope in our hearts and tremendous faith. Steadfast in our beliefs and values.

Catholic Ireland Today

Sadlly, tragic, turbulent times have shaken the very core of the Catholic Church's foundations. There are no words to describe the emotional torture children have experienced at the hands of the church. This formidable institution once respected and revered by so many. The sex abuse report that emerged in 2009 giving a detailed account of the repeated physical abuse inflicted on young children is crippling the very foundations of the Catholic Church, yet its clergy refuse to see the wood for the trees.

Pope Benedict is in denial. He offers his humble apologies to the victims, then shuffles the wrongdoers off to different parishes, instead of getting to the root of the problem, perhaps addressing the whole issue of celibacy and changing the structure of Catholicism altogether. Archbishops, bishops and priests alike struggle to cope with the onslaught of attack from the public. The nun and priesthood are falling considerably in numbers as no one wants to become immersed in a scandal.

Catholic Ethos in Ireland Today

Times have changed so much. Now, we look upon the priests with open suspicion and some with abhorrence. Watching their every move. No one wants to trust their child with them anymore. One such example, was a young boy who remained in the church after mass, he went up to the priest to ask him something, his father came in and saw his son talking to the priest and demanded sharply, "What are you doing talking to my son?" ( immediately jumping to the wrong conclusion ) The countless sex scandals committed by the clergy have shaped our way of thinking for the worst. There is no way of getting away from the fear, mistrust and anger.