Papal visit to NI would not get ‘a negative reaction’ from Protestants, says DUP MP
A DUP MP has appeared to welcome Pope Francis’s possible visit to Northern Ireland next year, adding that it would “not get a negative reaction” from the Protestant community here.
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, who represents Lagan Valley, said he hoped a visit from the Pontiff would address the “moral issues of today”.
In an interview with the Irish Catholic, he said: “If Pope Francis decides to visit Northern Ireland as part of his visit to the island, I don’t think there will be a negative reaction from the Protestant community.
“There is a recognition Pope Francis is the head of the Catholic Church, that a very substantial portion of our population adheres to the Catholic Church.”
Sir Jeffrey went on the criticise the “secular debate” on moral issues in Northern Ireland.
“When we look at the moral issues of today, I am looking forward to seeing what Pope Francis has to say about those, because I think the debate has become very secular,” he said.
“I think that the liberal elements in our society have sought to dominate that debate and I think the church should have a clear voice on this.
“And it saddens me at times that the church leaders do not speak out enough and with the same unequivocal approach to those moral issues.
“So as a Protestant Presbyterian living in Northern Ireland, I look with interest to what the Pope has to say about the big moral issues of the 21st Century and what they mean on this island and in Northern Ireland.”
The statement comes as the clearest indication yet the DUP could welcome a visit by the Pope to Northern Ireland.
Last year, DUP leader and then First Minister Arlene Foster said that she would meet the Pope Francis if he were to visit Northern Ireland in his capacity as head of state of Vatican City, rather than the head of the Catholic Church.
The apparent softening on the prospect of a papal visit is a move away from the view of party founder Ian Paisley.
During a 1988 address of the European Parliament by John Paul II, Ian Paisley infamously heckled the pontiff and unfurled a poster declaring him to be the Anti-Christ.
The former First Minister also attended a protest in Scotland against Pope Benedict’s UK visit in 2010.
Pope Francis’s possible visit to the Republic could be controversial, with a referendum on whether to repeal the country’s ban on abortion in almost all circumstances to be held just a few weeks before the pontiff is expected to visit.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar told the Irish parliament last month that a national vote on whether to abolish the eighth amendment to the constitution, which gives a foetus the status of a citizen even in early pregnancy, would take place in summer 2018.
Under current law, a woman convicted of having an illegal termination in the Republic can face up to 14 years in prison. However, women are free to travel abroad for abortions, and thousands each year do so, mainly to England on the NHS.