Tony Flannery

Des Connell is dead, the emeritus Cardinal Archbishop of Dublin, and Primate of Ireland. A very distinguished title he had, but he paid a big price for it. The old saying, “Be careful what you wish for” might be applicable here. Not that I think Des particularly wanted titles and honours, but he was so much a servant of the institution that, when the call came, he was incable of standing back enough, or hadn’t any friends to advise him, and tell him that he was totally unsuited, by training, experience, personality, for the job the Church asked him to do.

At the Network of Reform Groups conference in Chicago last October, one group, of which I was a member, agreed to work together to produce a Charter of Fundamental Rights for all members of the Church.
Below is an outline of the goal we have set ourselves.
I would be more than happy to hear from anyone who might have some ideas on this fairly major topic.
Tony

Day by day the faithful in our Roman Catholic Church are experiencing the withholding of their fundamental rights by those who lead the church.

Listening to Noel Whelan yesterday (Saturday) on the News at One, talking about the High Court judgment on the Angela Kerins case, was refreshing.
In my view, the three High Court judges, in their judgment, failed to take into account one very serious, and also, I believe, very obvious reality. It is this: We now have some members of our Oireachtas who will do anything for publicity and self-promotion; and we have media outlets who will happily assist them in this project.