Referendum was obsessed with the Catholic Church

Dear Sir,

Your editorial on the referendum, like much media commentary, is totally obsessed with the role of the Catholic Church.

It seems to view the result purely in terms of a rebuke to that institution. However, if one looks at the actual conduct of the pre referendum discussions etc, it is noticeable that most of the opposition to abortion came from medical professionals.

Indeed, the vast majority of GPs have asserted, post referendum, that they still want nothing to do with what they regard as an unethical procedure.

It’s also of note that the majority of those debating on TV etc., against abortion, were primarily lay people. In addition, most of the Protestant Church’s, and non Christian religions also called for a no vote.

The Catholic Bishops did of course issue a pastoral letter, which was a very nuanced, reflective and respectful document, unlike much of the bullying rhetoric from the pro abortion lobby. I would suggest that to see the result purely in terms of a rebuke to the Catholic Church is a rather adolescent view of the outcome.

Surely the main loser is the unborn child ( we were all that child at one time). Your editorial also erroneously caricatures the Irish constitution of 1937. Justice Gérard Hogan has written extensively on this subject.

He has stated that for its time the constitution was a very progressive document. It was primarily drafted by John Hearne from the Dept of Foreign Affairs. Significant parts of it were based on the French constitution of 1848. It was used as the basis for the constitution of the new state of India.

Quite correctly it had strong elements of Catholic natural law theory. This was because the Catholic Bishops in Germany had intervened strongly in the elections of 1933, using such teaching.

They were successful to the extent that the two predominantly Catholic states of Bavaria and Rhineland/Westphalia voted overwhelmingly against the Nazis. Unfortunately, the non Catholic states voted overwhelmingly for the Nazis. Thank God for Church interference!!.

However, I believe you’re editorial is correct in that a significant number of people voted for abortion as a petulant act of anti Catholicism.

They were absolutely correct to be horrified by abuses in Catholic run institutions.

However, by voting for the obscenity of abortion they are no longer in any position to lecture anyone about abuse. They have forfeited their right to assume the moral high ground.

Yours, Eric Conway Navan