Real Catholic Tv: Irish 'Catholics'

[_Abyssinia]

Real Catholic Tv Video on ‘Irish Catholics.’ The decline of the Church is perhaps felt nowhere more acutely than in Ireland. Once a model of holiness and apostolic zeal, its downfall is a serious wakeup call for The Church in America and other countries.

youtube.com/watch?v=SaGj1rJdPKo&feature=feedu

 

[Celticnovice]

The Republic used to have some of the highest Sunday attendance. The Irish never say die though, and they will find their way back

 

[maritain]

If the Catholic Church in Ireland was powerful it was only because the people *wanted *the Church to be powerful. Or rather the Church didn’t have power (in any temporal sense) so much as the force of public opinion. Being a profoundly popular religion, the Church in Ireland largely reflected the expectations and values of the society in which it operated. That meant in 1950s Ireland the Church was paternalistic, self-assured and venerated — pretty much a reflection of what people wanted at the time.

 

[Iotaunum]

Well, being an Irishman myself, I can vouch for the decline of Catholicism here in Ireland. You know, the last seminary which is now closed down was teaching things not remotely Catholic and against the teachings of the Catholic Church. You can tell the diference when talking/discussing the faith with those who were taught in the 40’s and 50’s and say those trained in the 80’s. I guess this is true to an extent everywhere, but here it is acutely felt by the laity and indeed it is reflected in their own attitude towards the faith.

Another problem with the Irish is that they tend somehow to be drawn to every false apparition under the sun. I am not saying everyone is like this, I certainly am not, but Ireland seems to be a magnet at present for “seers” from all over the world who wish to deceive and take money from mostly middle aged and elderly Irish women who are seeking something supernatural for one reason or another. I need not describe how this leads to a general loss of faith/direction.

 

[maritain]

Iotaunum, Maynooth is not closed down!

 

[Crusading_Canuk]

I recall hearing a phrase from a fellow monarchist (and Catholic), and it was along the lines of “first man rejects his God, then his king, then his father”. Ireland was a great bastion of Catholicism for well over 1000 years, during this time Ireland was also a monarchy (or group of independent kingdoms). All three of those acts are blatantly against the natural law, and are thus highly intertwined. Ireland rose up to form a republic, and only a few years later see what’s happened? They imposed a form of government based on Enlightenment values and their culture has suffered as a result.

 

[maritain]

Crusading Cunack, that is utterly implausible. The decline in the Church in Ireland goes back to the 60s and has nothing to do with political influences, but a *lot *to do with the drastic changes in the Church in that decade (not all as a result of Vatican II), changing social mores and a newly prosperous economy. These young people know nothing about Catholicism because they weren’t taught it properly in the schools. If you were to interview young Catholics in the UK, Belgium, Spain or Australia (all ‘monarchies’) you’d get a very similar result (it’d probably be even worse).

 

[laszlo]

Is it not possible that Ireland was hit by the general secularization later than the rest of the European countries?

My quick search for numbers show that in Ireland still 20% attend Masses regularly (the same as in the US) as it is opposed to less than 15% European average.

Does anyone have detailed number? Number of priest per population, number of ordinations and so on.

The US example shows that the concentrated attack in the name of sexual abuse sake the Church for about 4 years, followed by a recovery. In Ireland the attack was recent.

 

[Lujack]

I recall hearing a phrase from a fellow monarchist (and Catholic), and it was along the lines of “first man rejects his God, then his king, then his father”. Ireland was a great bastion of Catholicism for well over 1000 years, during this time Ireland was also a monarchy (or group of independent kingdoms). All three of those acts are blatantly against the natural law, and are thus highly intertwined. Ireland rose up to form a republic, and only a few years later see what’s happened? They imposed a form of government based on Enlightenment values and their culture has suffered as a result.

Considering that the Constitution of the Irish Republic specifically reserved a special place for the Catholic Church, and that it was for many years the British Crown that tried to oppress the Church and its faithful, this seems rather far-fetched.