An RTE presenter showed his anti-Catholic bias a couple of days ago in a programme about a prayerful witness held by five Franciscans of the Renewal outside a family planning clinic. The Limerick Leader heads its article Monk's protest angers women. The article is generous enough to observe that Mr Duffy (the presenter) was "audibly angry" and reports a couple of the indignant and furious interventions in the radio phone-in.
Five Franciscan Friars stood outside the Limerick Family Planning clinic on Mallow Street and prayed. That's it really, but in modern Ireland this is enough to "arouse ire", "anger women" and so on. One of the main offences seems to be what children in school call "giving me funny looks" when they can't find anything else with which to to accuse their enemies.
One caller got her chance to protest at the "intimidation" of the Friars praying, how insulted she was and how "completely misguided" they were. Fr Charles tried to respond, starting off "We live in a beautiful society and..." but he was interrupted by "Are you just going to give me your rhetoric and dogma?" which shows perhaps that it didn't really matter much what he actually had to say.
As so often on such set-up programmes, Fr Charles was facing opposition not only from the hectoring angry callers but also by the presenter who said at one point:
Do you think young women in turmoil would turn to five bearded men wearing funny clothes on the side of a street when they have no indication who they are?That's really amateurish. Over here, anti-Catholic bias is much more polished. You set up the opposition who get a free ride with no difficult questions and then ask all the difficult questions of the priest/pro-lifer/concerned Christian in a concerned and meaningful voice. That way the ordinary viewer or listener thinks that the programme is "balanced."
The Franciscans of the Renewal chose to go and live in one of the more notorious areas of Limerick which had been in the news because of gang feuds and related shootings. Here is a quotation from one report:
The road where the friars live was in the front line of Moyross’ gang violence; a killing occurred within yards of where we talked – there had been no Christmas celebrations in 2006. Last Christmas (2007) 500 people came to celebrate at the live crib. Visitors from outside Moyross – from outside Limerick – came. A busload of handicapped kids came to join in the festivities. Local people put up Christmas lights, brought in provisions and “borrowed” the live animals.When it comes to poverty, an ascetical life and commitment to prayer, these men "walk the walk."
They are popular among the ordinary people of the Moyross estate but they have offended the guardians of the dogmas of the new Ireland by quietly praying outside a family planning clinic. The venom directed against them speaks volumes.
14 comments:
May Our Lord bless them while others heap scorn.
God protect them!
Fr, What has happened to the "Blogs I enjoy" thingy?
They are a very powerful witness in Moyross and also in Derry (or Londonderry, if you prefer). I attended a Mass celebrated by Fr Sylvester (on the right of the photo) and was moved by the reverence and recollection he displayed. Then a friend from Limerick told me that Fr Sylvester has been learning to celebrate the EF! The whole community is a wondeful blessing for us in Ireland.
Casual but vicious anti-Catholic prejudice is getting more endemic here too. The cartoon in today's Times shows a priest hearing Silvio Berlusconi's confession and scolding him for consorting with under age girls. He concludes by saying "Now boys, that would be a different matter".
We live in a culture where this sort of thing is thought acceptable.
Way to go Fr. Charles! I know Fr. Charles and most likely the only "funny look" they got was one of peace, love, and inner joy. Maybe the people of Limerick have forgotten what that looks like. Please pray for the Friars as they continue to be witnesses of Christ's Love in this world!
Very good post. Thanks Fr. The CFRs joined us lots during the 40 Days for Life last September.
Five Franciscan Friars stood outside the Limerick Family Planning clinic on Mallow Street and prayed.
Perhaps if the Friars also prayed outside of a pub or a betting parlor they would have gotten a better reception.
God Bless them! Thank God for the selfless work they do. These are Fr Benedict Groeschel's soldiers for Christ and may God have mercy and convert the souls who would show them such disrespect.
I have had the good fortune to meet quite a few of the greyfriars. They have always struck me as great witnesses to the Faith and to the religious life. They appear so often to be truly radiating with joy and charity. I'm sure they must have their bad days as well, but I could hardly think of a better and less offensive bunch of people to be holding a peaceful and prayerful protest outside a family planning clinic.
I love Father's reply to the question of why they are not protesting outside places like Boots, 'who sell condoms, and provide the morning-after pill.
"We're not happy about that either," the priest said, adding that it was "a good idea" which he would submit to the Brothers.'
Keep the ideas coming, Duffy!
Joe Duffy is what over here we would colloquially call a thundering gobsh*te. His radio show is the preserve of cranks and crackpots.
Joe Duffy is of course another of the former 1970s student lefties. He does actually have a genuine working class background, in contrast to most of the privileged mamma's boys (and girls) who comprise our current media hierarchs, who expect their pronounciamenti to be accorded every bit of the profound respect the Bishops used to command in the "unenlightened old days". He's now happily ensconced in the bosom of the establishment and earning in the region of £300-£400,000 a year subsidised by the extortionate licence fee for the national broadcaster.
A familiar story to many in the UK, I know. In fact he's just a more vulgar version of the original BBC/ITV/Channel 4 etc. tintype. The Irish media is supine before the UK model, and many of them harbour great desires to be taken seriously by the likes of the BBC, the Grauniad and other such founts of Holy Writ and approved thinking.
The friar in the middle is Br. Seraphim, the first French friar in the community. He's now in Bradford (near me), and we're very lucky to have such a rag-tag bunch of Jesus' misfits in the diocese. If you ever meet the Bradford friars, you'll know what I mean.
Sorry to be the one dissenting voice here folks but I am a Catholic who has nothing but the upmost respect for the work the monks have done in my hometown of Limerick but on this occasion I think they were wrong.
A family planning clinic is not an easy place for a girl to go (and it's normally a girl going there on her own because of a mistake or something having gone wrong the night before) but it is the responsible thing to do and being faced down by this 'prayerful protest' makes doing the responsible thing all the more difficult.
I acknowledge that they were just standing there praying and didn't use physical force. But the appearance of five bearded monks standing at the door of the place which you're ashamed to be seen entering in the first place makes this very difficult but correct choice all the more difficult. And that's the point, it's the correct and responsible choice.
The Friars also said that 'all contraception is a licence for casual sex'. I'm sorry but that's absolutely nonsense. I've been in two very committed relationships in my entire life and in both we used contraception and were entirely devoted to each other for many years.
Having said that, I have no problem with two people having casual sex if that's what they both choose to do. As long as they're hurting nobody and having fun, it's none of my busines. And it's none of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal's business either.
Hope this gets printed and the reason for my being the only dissenting voice isn't because it's only the supportive comments that get approved.
Bearded men wearing funny clothes
To Patrick,
Patrick, with all charity in my heart, you can't say you are Truly Catholic and not conform to the magisterial teachings of the Catholic church. It's not like what we can pick and choose which parts we want to listen to and obey. Our culture has it dead wrong with regards to the sexual sphere and look what we have as a result? More broken relationships; more children born out of wedlock; higher abortion rates. Going to these family planning clinics does young girls no favors. It leAds to a life of promiscuity not chastity as our church teaches. Also after a mistake as you call it Patrick, getting a morning after pill can cause an abortion after fertilization may have occurred so this is not tbe answer,
The church is very wise in her teaching about living chastely and not contracepting.
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