the three pronged devil's pitch fork

The present attempt to destroy the Catholic Church is notably different from the anti Catholic attacks of the past forty years in one respect.

Up to now we have become accustomed to various elements within the Judiciary and the media making it their business to seek the destruction of the Catholic Church.

But in the past their attacks were always two pronged.

It was always a conspiracy emanating from the Judiciary and articulated by the media.

Whether the object of the attacks was a campaign for abortion culture, contraceptive culture, the removal of the church from health and education, or simply the advocacy of permissive divorce legislation, the anti Catholic line of attack was usually devised by legal professionals and then propagandised through The Irish Times, Independent Newspapers and the State monopoly broadcaster RTE.

It was always a two pronged effort from shadowy figures in the legal profession and leftist commentators in the media.

The faceless Judicial power mongers were clearly in confederacy with the jeering sneering egomaniacal mouthpieces of Independent Newspapers, The Irish Times and RTE. 

Now the attack is no longer two pronged.

It is no longer just elements in the Judiciary and elements in the media seeking to subvert the Catholic Church.

The latest attack has for the first time been three pronged.

As well as attacks emanating from the Judiciary and the media, a third prong has been thrust against the Church.

The third prong is within the Church itself.

The third prong is Archbishop Diarmuid Martin.