Bishop speaks of McAleese's conviction and deep faith
The new Bishop of Ossory has said that Mary McAleese’s comments on misogyny in the Church are the product of her “conviction and a deep faith”.
At a Voices of Faith conference in Rome last week the former Irish President called the Catholic Church “one of the last great bastions of misogyny”. Speaking after his episcopal ordination in Kilkenny, Bishop Dermot Farrell (pictured) said he was reminded of a quip by Cardinal Newman that the Church would be a very strange place without the laity. “It would probably be an even stranger place without women,” Bishop Farrell said. However, retired Maynooth theologian Fr Vincent Twomey criticised Dr McAleese on RTE’s Marian Finucane Show, calling her views “over the top”.
On International Women’s Day, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin described Dr McAleese’s challenge to the internal culture of the Church as “brutally stark”. “Some may find it unpleasant or unwelcome. I must accept the challenge with the humility of one who recognises her alienation,” he said. Meanwhile, a Co Mayo priest, Fr Kevin Hegarty, in a letter to The Irish Times, urged Catholics who agree with Dr McAleese’s “forensic dissection of misogyny in the Catholic Church” to show solidarity with her by absenting themselves from the Chrism Masses celebrated in cathedrals during Holy week.
Concern at Saudi curbs on Christian worship
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, during a private visit by the crown prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman to Lambeth Palace, expressed concern about the limits placed on Christian worship in Saudi Arabia and the humanitarian crisis in Yemen. In what Lambeth Palace described as a “cordial and honest conversation”, Archbishop Welby “asked that all that is possible be done to alleviate the suffering of civilian populations and to seek an end to the conflict.”
Over the hour-long meeting, which took place during an official Saudi visit to London, the archbishop also highlighted the importance for leaders of all faiths of supporting freedom of religion or belief, drawing on the experience of the UK.
The archbishop and crown prince viewed a selection of early Christian, Muslim and Jewish texts from the Lambeth Palace library collection, as well as the Birmingham Qur’an manuscript, on view for the first time outside Birmingham.
Former bishop denies safeguarding blunders
The former Anglican Bishop of Lewes, Wallace Benn, has denied responsibility for a series of safeguarding blunders during his tenure, as he gave evidence to the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA).
The three-week hearing is examining the Diocese of Chichester, where there have been multiple allegations of sexual abuse and numerous investigations and reviews.
Benn, who was bishop from 1997 to 2012, said it was not his understanding that he had been responsible for reporting concerns to the police. He also accused a person who was the diocesan safeguarding adviser for three years from 2007 of having an “aggressive” manner and of giving “the impression of nitpicking”. The Archbishop of Canterbury is due to appear before the inquiry on 21 March.
Church hall plastic ban
Catholic parishioners in March, Cambridgeshire, have banned the use of disposable plastic in their refurbished hall. The Parish Priest of Our Lady of Good Counsel, Fr Paul Maddison, said: “It was felt that since there is a large quantity of cutlery, crockery and glasses in the kitchen, people who hire the hall should not be using disposable items, then sending their waste to landfill. Terms and conditions of hire will be amended to reflect this decision.”
Myanmar Rohingya 'forgotten' by media
Bishop John Arnold of Salford has said the media seem to have largely forgotten the plight of the Rohingya of Myanmar who have fled to Bangladesh as a result of persecution. On his return from a week-long visit to Bangladesh with the Catholic aid charity Cafod, Bishop Arnold said that “survival is the immediate challenge” for the refugees. The trip had been good, despite the awful realities, he said. “The Rohingya crisis dominates the work of all the agencies, and it is good to see Cafod in partnership with some life-saving programmes. Its presence is clearly appreciated by its partners,” he added.
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