The character Trigger was a roadsweeper in “Only Fools and Horses” and when he was discussing how long he had his broom, he said: “Twenty years, that’s a very long time.”
“Yes,” replied Rodney. “Yes, well, it’s two decades.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” said Trigger, who went on the reveal that it was still the same broom – with 17 new heads and 14 new handles!
The years pass, or the decades whichever is longer, and we might think we’re still the same underneath. But society and its values and we as individuals need to change with it.
It’s almost 40 years since John Paul II became the first Pope to visit Ireland, and there’s much attention over the confirmation that one of his successors, Pope Francis will come here in August.
Like Trigger’s broom, today’s Pope may see a similar looking island, but it is a country whose numerous refits leave it a very different place. The Ireland of 2018 is a less religious, more modern, multi-cultural, secular society; although all the new handles and brushes haven’t always been a good fit at times.
When John Paul II visited in 1979, there were remarkable scenes with literally millions of people attending his events in a fervently religious country in which the Catholic Church had a massive influence. Huge numbers attended Mass every week, and in the mid-1980s the then Catholic Primate Cardinal Tomas O’Fiaich is said to have opined that if Ireland remained the last Christian country in Europe, a major factor was that it was largely rural and poor.
Remember that at the time of the last Papal visit in 1979, contraceptives were only available on prescription to married couples, homosexual sex was illegal and there was no divorce.
But by 1980, the Family Planning Act liberalised the sale of contraceptives, although it was to be the 1990s before same sex activity was decriminalised, divorce was approved at referendum in 1993 and following the recent introduction of same sex marriage, Ireland is now about the vote on an abortion amendment.
While all this social change was going on, the country saw the rapid economic growth of the Celtic Tiger, and one could perhaps be cynical and say that materialism saw a movement away from traditional religious values.
Not all change has been good. Homelessness, drug-related crime and families in poverty are major issues for the Ireland of today. I was particularly struck by a photo on Twitter posted by Irish Times journalist Conor Lally, with the comment: “Did u ever think u’d see this in #Dublin? Homeless people living in a tent in a city park; their baby’s buggy next to it. A baby living in a tent. In a park. In Dublin. When we stop seeing things like this; THEN tell us the country is in recovery.”
Ireland is a wonderful country with wonderful friendly go-ahead people, but it is also a complex place with modern issues. It’s not just the Church, however, that people feel disillusioned by; people feel let down by the banks and political institutions and appear to have little confidence in the establishment.
Perhaps, though, in the context of Papal visits, we now focus on 1979 and 2018 to bookmark changes in the attitudes of ordinary people towards the Church.
Much has been made of the sex abuse scandals within the Catholic Church which have emerged over years, and indeed are still emerging. One wonders sometimes if those in power ever learn about the need for openness as well as contrition and sympathy for victims. The present Pope seems to be an impressive figure with a genuine compassion for vulnerable people. But he presides over a church which is run by an all-powerful hierarchy which is often out of touch with the need for remorse.
Let us remember a few things, however. The church is the people, not the powerful senior Vatican officials or, indeed, any venerable figures living in palaces.
This very week, on Palm Sunday Pope Francis urged young people not to be silent and let their voices be heard, even in the face of corrupt or silent elders.
The people are sending strong messages, not least former president of Ireland, Mary McAleese who spoke at a Voices of Faith conference in Rome and described the Church as “an empire of misogyny” and she said: “Our voices stir the winds of change, so we must speak out.”
Many people are speaking out, but the question is will those in power listen? They should know that those voices will grow ever louder.
It is true that the numbers of people attending Mass in Ireland has dwindled dramatically. Even in 1990, more than 80 per cent of people in the Republic still attended Mass at least once a week. The most recent figure is just over 40 per cent.
It is important, however, to point out a few things. Firstly, more than 78 per cent of people in the country still identify as Catholic, and it is important to say that while many people have lost confidence in the institution and religiosity of the Church, they have not lost their faith in God’s love and mercy, and the desire to follow Christ.
And also, despite the publicity over the scandalous behaviour of many priests, there are many others who are respected for their dedication, compassion and fine work among the people day-in day-out.
The one thing, it would appear, that hasn’t changed since 1979 is that the Pope will not cross the Border to visit Northern Ireland. At least that seems to be the view at the moment. Which is a pity, because even north of the Border, much change has taken place and a visit would be welcomed by many Protestants. Not all, of course. We haven’t changed that much.
As a side issue, if we’re focusing on change in the south ahead of August, we should note that when it comes to comparing the two parts of the island, the southern part has moved considerably well ahead of the north in modernising as a pluralist society which welcomes diversity.
In any event, when the Pope does arrive in Dublin, he will find a much-changed country, one in which the secular State and the Church alike face many challenges.
Any church in any country is finding it difficult in a fast-moving world to achieve a balance between remaining relevant and staying faithful to principles which have stood the test of time. The Pope is, of course, still just a man albeit with an awesome responsibility of leadership.
He’s a different type of man to John Paul II and he’s coming to a very different country.
And he’ll know that despite the change that is all around, the mercy and forgiveness of Jesus Christ is “the same yesterday, today and forever.”