an open letter to the nuns and priests of ireland
Dear sisters and brothers.
Tony O'Reilly, Ireland's richest man, will be shuffling off this mortal coil soon.
I mean he'll be dying.
He's getting old.
And he's due a rest.
As are we.
When O'Reilly finally goes croakies you will be contacted by your bishop.
Your Bishop will wheeze and blow, and spew a thousand abysmal cliches, before finally coming to his point. He will say something like this:
"Tony O'Reilly has gone to his eternal reward... Captain of industry... Ireland's richest man... Great ambassador for our country... Proprietor of Independent Newspapers... All a myth about him being anti Catholic... We want a big turnout at his funeral... Church must be well represented... I want you all to go along..."
Sisters and brothers when your bishop suggests you attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral I want you to reply to him thusly.
Look him in the eye.
Then gently but firmly, say...
"No."
Your bishop will wheeze and blow some more.
Speak your truth to him.
If you agree with me in my assessment of Tony O'Reilly and his newspaper group, say something akin to the following:
"Bishop, I will not be attending the funeral of Tony O'Reilly. I believe Tony O'Reilly's newspapers, especially the Irish Independent, the Evening Herald, the Sunday World and the Sunday Independent, are responsible for the single greatest coarsening of culture, public life, and private morals, in the history of the Irish nation. I believe Tony O'Reilly and his newspaper group, in conjunction with media groups O'Reilly doesn't own such as the Irish Times and the broadcaster RTE, I believe all of these, all of these cosmic mediocrities, I believe they have one and all colluded in trahaising Ireland and her 1500 year tradition of faith. I believe that Tony O'Reilly's newspapers and journalists are virulently anti Catholic and grotesquely anti Christian. In addition, I have been told that Tony O'Reilly has some sort of involvement with the production of several tabloid papers including the Daily Star whose editor Ger Colleran famously claimed on national television that children had been abused in every Catholic church presbytery in Ireland. What a brave fellow Colleran must be. And by brave I mean scum. Bishop, with all due respect, I am holding Tony O'Reilly accountable for the low rent cowardly sleazoid calumnies of his low rent cowardly sleazoid employees. I am holding him responsible for the phone sex lines published in the Daily Star which I believe contribute to the disruption of adolescent and adult sexualities in general, and the derangement of male sexualities in particular. I am suggesting to you Bishop that the phone sex lines published in the Daily Star are a direct link in the chain of evil which causes sex abuse. Let me be quite clear about my opinions on this point. What has the Catholic church done for Ireland? It is my opinion that for 1500 years the Catholic church has brought enlightenment, spirituality, civilisation and the truth to Ireland. What has the Daily Star done for Ireland? I would contend that the sum total of the Daily Star's contribution to Irish life has been to introduce us to the intellectual delights of Bossy Mistress, Wayward Teen, and Naughty Student. The great Ger Colleran should hang his head in shame... I am holding Tony O'Reilly responsible not just for this crud and Colleran's mendacious cretinism, but also for the arrant anti Catholic manipulation of the news that I believe his newspapers have perpetrated over the past thirty years. I am holding him accountable for everything his newspapers have done to our society. I am holding him responsible for the manner in which his newspapers reported sex abuse. No I'm not suggesting they told a single lie. I'm just suggesting they ignored ninety nine point nine nine percent of the truth. Sex abuse existed throughout modern society. But it seemed as if the cases involving clerical people were always reported while the vast majority of cases occurring in families at the hands of relatives, were simply ignored. It seems to me that an artificial notion was fostered by this style of reportage that sex abuse was caused by a dysfunction in Christian culture. Why on earth would any newspaper knowing full well that most sex abuse cases were happening in the domestic settting of family homes, knowing full well that sex abuse in non Catholic countries such as India and Thailand was off the scale, why I ask you, why would newspapers deliberately create the impression that the preponderence of sex abuse cases happened at the hands of clerical people? Were some sex abuse cases more important than others? Were some sex abuse victims more important than others? Were 0.01 percent of cases in Ireland more important than 99.99 percent of cases? Surely if we talk of more important victims, those would be the victims who suffered the most. The 99.99 percent of victims I mean. Surely the newspapers should have made it clear that the vast majority of cases of sex abuse in Ireland were occurring in the home, that is in the family setting. Surely by allowing the notion to be propagated that sex abuse was mainly carried out by religious people, surely they have committed the most appalling and egregious crime. The precise crime of which they continuously accuse the Bishops. That is to say, they have covered up sex abuse. By not reporting its true nature and extent, they were themselves effectively covering it up. If Tony O'Reilly's newspapers are guilty, as I believe they are, of pursuing a flagrantly anti Catholic agenda at the expense of the truth in these and other matters, then Bishop, I intend, without judging Tony O'Reilly's immortal soul, to nonetheless express my dissent, my distrust and my disdain for what he is and has been in Irish public life. You will understand the depths of my feelings in this matter. I am going to remain true to my own beliefs by not attending his funeral. Your Reverence, I am holding Tony O'Reilly responsible for the atheistic life styles and pornographic behaviours which I believe his hedonistic publications have fostered and promoted among young people. Yes. At a time when those same young people were never more desperately in need of the saving light of Jesus, I believe his newspapers have plunged them into the most appalling darkness. With all due respect to Your Reverence, I say again. I will not be attending this funeral. And no Bishop. Don't talk to me about Tony O'Reilly's ownership of the twee little magazine Ireland's Own. Ireland's Own is not really pro Catholic. In fact I consider its anodyne insincere insipidly inane attempts to pose as a pro Catholic magazine, I consider these impostures I tell you, to be more invidious than the bigoted stylings of his other publications. Thank you Bishop. Would you like a cup of tea?"That's the way to do it sisters and brothers.
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly's employee Ian O'Doherty falsely malignly and maliciously claimed that the Catholic church was a paedophile ring in an article published in the Irish Independent.
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly is in partnership with British porn baron Richard Desmond to publish The Star.
(Yes the same tabloid newspaper edited by Ger Colleran who crassly, dishonestly, deceitfully and opprobriously claimed on national television that children were screaming for help in every Catholic church presbytery in Ireland. That same Daily Star is half owned by a porn baron. Ger Collaran works for a porn baron. Tony O'Reilly is in partnership with a porn baron. You couldn't make it up.)
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly's employee John Cooney recently called for a boycott of the sacraments.
Remind your bishop that when the numbers of men enrolling for the priesthood shot up in August, Tony O'Reilly's newspapers and the Irish Times suggested people were only joining the priesthood to escape the recession.
Remind your bishop of these things and then ask him does he seriously expect any believing Christian to attend the funeral of this odious anti Catholic bigot.
If your bishop issues you an instruction to attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral, you should then appeal directly to the Pope in Rome.
The Pope is a good man.
He will hear you out. I don't think that under any circumstances the Pope will permit your bishop to force you to attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral.
Hang in there sisters and brothers.
We're winning.
Sincerely.
James Healy
PS: You might politely suggest to your bishop that he himself should consider NOT attending Tony O'Reilly's funeral either. A lot of these bishops are beaten men. But who knows. Maybe an odd one is still a Christian.
Tony O'Reilly, Ireland's richest man, will be shuffling off this mortal coil soon.
I mean he'll be dying.
He's getting old.
And he's due a rest.
As are we.
When O'Reilly finally goes croakies you will be contacted by your bishop.
Your Bishop will wheeze and blow, and spew a thousand abysmal cliches, before finally coming to his point. He will say something like this:
"Tony O'Reilly has gone to his eternal reward... Captain of industry... Ireland's richest man... Great ambassador for our country... Proprietor of Independent Newspapers... All a myth about him being anti Catholic... We want a big turnout at his funeral... Church must be well represented... I want you all to go along..."
Sisters and brothers when your bishop suggests you attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral I want you to reply to him thusly.
Look him in the eye.
Then gently but firmly, say...
"No."
Your bishop will wheeze and blow some more.
Speak your truth to him.
If you agree with me in my assessment of Tony O'Reilly and his newspaper group, say something akin to the following:
"Bishop, I will not be attending the funeral of Tony O'Reilly. I believe Tony O'Reilly's newspapers, especially the Irish Independent, the Evening Herald, the Sunday World and the Sunday Independent, are responsible for the single greatest coarsening of culture, public life, and private morals, in the history of the Irish nation. I believe Tony O'Reilly and his newspaper group, in conjunction with media groups O'Reilly doesn't own such as the Irish Times and the broadcaster RTE, I believe all of these, all of these cosmic mediocrities, I believe they have one and all colluded in trahaising Ireland and her 1500 year tradition of faith. I believe that Tony O'Reilly's newspapers and journalists are virulently anti Catholic and grotesquely anti Christian. In addition, I have been told that Tony O'Reilly has some sort of involvement with the production of several tabloid papers including the Daily Star whose editor Ger Colleran famously claimed on national television that children had been abused in every Catholic church presbytery in Ireland. What a brave fellow Colleran must be. And by brave I mean scum. Bishop, with all due respect, I am holding Tony O'Reilly accountable for the low rent cowardly sleazoid calumnies of his low rent cowardly sleazoid employees. I am holding him responsible for the phone sex lines published in the Daily Star which I believe contribute to the disruption of adolescent and adult sexualities in general, and the derangement of male sexualities in particular. I am suggesting to you Bishop that the phone sex lines published in the Daily Star are a direct link in the chain of evil which causes sex abuse. Let me be quite clear about my opinions on this point. What has the Catholic church done for Ireland? It is my opinion that for 1500 years the Catholic church has brought enlightenment, spirituality, civilisation and the truth to Ireland. What has the Daily Star done for Ireland? I would contend that the sum total of the Daily Star's contribution to Irish life has been to introduce us to the intellectual delights of Bossy Mistress, Wayward Teen, and Naughty Student. The great Ger Colleran should hang his head in shame... I am holding Tony O'Reilly responsible not just for this crud and Colleran's mendacious cretinism, but also for the arrant anti Catholic manipulation of the news that I believe his newspapers have perpetrated over the past thirty years. I am holding him accountable for everything his newspapers have done to our society. I am holding him responsible for the manner in which his newspapers reported sex abuse. No I'm not suggesting they told a single lie. I'm just suggesting they ignored ninety nine point nine nine percent of the truth. Sex abuse existed throughout modern society. But it seemed as if the cases involving clerical people were always reported while the vast majority of cases occurring in families at the hands of relatives, were simply ignored. It seems to me that an artificial notion was fostered by this style of reportage that sex abuse was caused by a dysfunction in Christian culture. Why on earth would any newspaper knowing full well that most sex abuse cases were happening in the domestic settting of family homes, knowing full well that sex abuse in non Catholic countries such as India and Thailand was off the scale, why I ask you, why would newspapers deliberately create the impression that the preponderence of sex abuse cases happened at the hands of clerical people? Were some sex abuse cases more important than others? Were some sex abuse victims more important than others? Were 0.01 percent of cases in Ireland more important than 99.99 percent of cases? Surely if we talk of more important victims, those would be the victims who suffered the most. The 99.99 percent of victims I mean. Surely the newspapers should have made it clear that the vast majority of cases of sex abuse in Ireland were occurring in the home, that is in the family setting. Surely by allowing the notion to be propagated that sex abuse was mainly carried out by religious people, surely they have committed the most appalling and egregious crime. The precise crime of which they continuously accuse the Bishops. That is to say, they have covered up sex abuse. By not reporting its true nature and extent, they were themselves effectively covering it up. If Tony O'Reilly's newspapers are guilty, as I believe they are, of pursuing a flagrantly anti Catholic agenda at the expense of the truth in these and other matters, then Bishop, I intend, without judging Tony O'Reilly's immortal soul, to nonetheless express my dissent, my distrust and my disdain for what he is and has been in Irish public life. You will understand the depths of my feelings in this matter. I am going to remain true to my own beliefs by not attending his funeral. Your Reverence, I am holding Tony O'Reilly responsible for the atheistic life styles and pornographic behaviours which I believe his hedonistic publications have fostered and promoted among young people. Yes. At a time when those same young people were never more desperately in need of the saving light of Jesus, I believe his newspapers have plunged them into the most appalling darkness. With all due respect to Your Reverence, I say again. I will not be attending this funeral. And no Bishop. Don't talk to me about Tony O'Reilly's ownership of the twee little magazine Ireland's Own. Ireland's Own is not really pro Catholic. In fact I consider its anodyne insincere insipidly inane attempts to pose as a pro Catholic magazine, I consider these impostures I tell you, to be more invidious than the bigoted stylings of his other publications. Thank you Bishop. Would you like a cup of tea?"That's the way to do it sisters and brothers.
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly's employee Ian O'Doherty falsely malignly and maliciously claimed that the Catholic church was a paedophile ring in an article published in the Irish Independent.
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly is in partnership with British porn baron Richard Desmond to publish The Star.
(Yes the same tabloid newspaper edited by Ger Colleran who crassly, dishonestly, deceitfully and opprobriously claimed on national television that children were screaming for help in every Catholic church presbytery in Ireland. That same Daily Star is half owned by a porn baron. Ger Collaran works for a porn baron. Tony O'Reilly is in partnership with a porn baron. You couldn't make it up.)
Remind your bishop that Tony O'Reilly's employee John Cooney recently called for a boycott of the sacraments.
Remind your bishop that when the numbers of men enrolling for the priesthood shot up in August, Tony O'Reilly's newspapers and the Irish Times suggested people were only joining the priesthood to escape the recession.
Remind your bishop of these things and then ask him does he seriously expect any believing Christian to attend the funeral of this odious anti Catholic bigot.
If your bishop issues you an instruction to attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral, you should then appeal directly to the Pope in Rome.
The Pope is a good man.
He will hear you out. I don't think that under any circumstances the Pope will permit your bishop to force you to attend Tony O'Reilly's funeral.
Hang in there sisters and brothers.
We're winning.
Sincerely.
James Healy
PS: You might politely suggest to your bishop that he himself should consider NOT attending Tony O'Reilly's funeral either. A lot of these bishops are beaten men. But who knows. Maybe an odd one is still a Christian.
posted by heelers | 1:30 AM
8 Comments:
I'm sure he's an evil man.
The Lord forgives evil men.
I don't care if he's evil, deluded or simply the ultimate conformist. I would hazard he is the last of these. In a socialist age he would be socialist, in a communist age communist, in a Nazi age Nazi, in a Catholic age posing Catholic, in an atheistic mercantilist age presenting himself as the great business hero but reserving to himself the right to pose Catholic.
I don't care what he is.
I have no need to judge the state of his soul.
I just want the Irish people to get up off their knees, look him in they eye, and tell him: "We're not afraid of you. We do not worship you or your newspapers or your money. You are nothing to us."
Fair do's.
James - it is time for our bishops, priests, and sisters to start telling the truth about everything the Catholic Church teaches.
I know Jesus loves me so I don't need to hear some half-wit priest tell me that little fact on Sunday from the ambo. I want him to tell me the truth of my sins and hopefully shame me into being a better person. Shame and guilt are GOOD ...
Could I ask a HUGE favor?? I have ADD and when you go on a rant (I love your rants), I understand the no paragraph thing is supposed to mimic the racing of your mind but......it is close to impossible for me to read. Sometimes I have to copy and paste into Word.
I realize this is my problem and if you don't want to change your tactics I will understand and love just as much anyway ;-)
ooops - love you....
Adrienne, you are the first person ever to touch on the key to my style of writing.
At it's best it's meant to be a kind of flow.
In fact I call it the flow.
In the poems, when they're working, they're meant to read as a single sentence, no matter how long they are, but also as individual sentences and thoughts to be savoured.
As for the rants...
You're not the first person to identify the rant element!
Love you too.
James
Heelers, "the flow" means something far different in my part of the world. I have picked myself up from my desk where I was laughing....
MJ (still chortling at your expense)
Not Aunt Flo.
Oh lawsy me, this is some hip crowd!
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