Bishops civil war on marriage

Catholic couples dreaming of a church white wedding may also have to get legally married in a second, separate civil ceremony after Bishop Leo O’Reilly warned of the possible fall-out from the yes vote in the Marriage Equality Referendum.
In his first interview since the historic referendum result, the Bishop of Kilmore cautioned that he does not know if he and other Catholic priests will be able to continue to act as solemnisers for the civil aspect of church marriages once legislation is enacted giving effect to same sex marriages.
Bishop Leo O’Reilly expressed his views at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference in Maynooth, which began last Thursday afternoon and ended on Thursday.
“I don’t know whether as a priest and a bishop, whether I can be a witness to the Christian understanding of marriage if I continue to be a civil solemniser. I could be interpreted as agreeing with the kind of civil understanding of marriage that there is now,” said Bishop O’Reilly.

He made the comments in an exclusive interview with the Celt at last weekend’s launch of the new Kilmore Diocesan Pastoral Plan 2015-2020, following Mass in St Ninnidh’s Church, Derrylin, last Sunday.
The main topic for discussion at the three-day bishops’ summer conference by the 28 prelates is the fall-out from the marriage equality referendum and how the Church should proceed.
If the bishops ultimately decide to withdraw from the civil aspect of the ceremony, it would mean that couples would not be legally married following a traditional white church wedding. Catholic priests dominate the 5,461 people on the solemnisers’ register, with just 107 civil registrars.
Last week Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin said that, speaking personally, he would be slow to withdraw clergy from the role.
But two years ago in their submission to the Constitutional Convention’s debate on same-sex marriage, the country’s Catholic bishops said: “Any change to the definition of marriage would create great difficulties and in the light of this, if there were two totally different definitions of marriage, the Church could no longer carry out the civil element.”
Speaking at the weekend Bishop O’Reilly said that there are consequences and implications from the passing of the same sex referendum, which are not altogether clear at this stage.
“There have been statements made by politicians that there is nothing to worry about. I’m not inclined to pay much attention to those unless they are written and signed,” he said.
“For example, I am a solemniser of civil marriage as a priest. If I am asked to officiate at a wedding of two people who are not Catholics, I say 'No, I’m sorry I can’t do that, I only do Catholic weddings.’ We are assured that is all right, that there is no problem with that, but I would like to see it written down in law.
“I think it is probably only a matter of time until two men or two women decide, 'I want to get married. We are both Catholics. We would like to get married in the church like every other Catholic. Why can’t we?’
“Where do we [the priests] stand then? If we refuse to do that, can we be accused of discrimination and of breaking the law?” asked Bishop O’Reilly.

Disappointment
While expressing his “disappointment” at the referendum result in which 62% voted in favour of same sex marriages, he said that it isn’t a question of “sour grapes” on the part of the Catholic Church.
“We don’t want to make it awkward for anybody. But I think the Church’s understanding of marriage and the understanding of marriage generally speaking to this point was very, very clear and very, very well understood, clearly defined. Now it is different. You can’t pretend that it is the same as it was, so, I think Catholics need to understand that,” explained the bishop.
“My biggest disappointment in this matter, this referendum and indeed in the whole abortion thing before that, is the failure of the government, and the political parties generally, to recognise the freedom of conscience. I think that is a fundamental value in democracy and I think there is a very great danger that freedom of conscience as a value is being lost.
“That is serious because people paid dearly to exercise their freedom of conscience in various situations. In Germany, in the last war, people died rather than co-operate. Now, people are still free to die to protect their conscience in this country but you should not have to do that in what claims to be a democratic society,” said Bishop O’Reilly.

Family
“I think it was over simplified. It [the referendum] was presented as an equality issue. It wasn’t even dealing with the article of the constitution that deals with equality. It was dealing with the article that deals with the family, so it was a family issue. It’s not just that it was lost sight of, I think there was a very deliberate campaign not to let that surface,” he continued.
“It is a family issue - it will affect families and it will affect children.”
On the issue of Catholic teachers in Catholic schools, Bishop O’Reilly added: “I think we have to try to continue hold onto our understanding of marriage and to teach it to our children and that may pose problems in schools now. The parishes still put a good bit of money into them, but schools are largely State funded.
“I fear that they [catholic teachers] will be expected to teach, if not in Religion class, in Civics or some other class, that gay marriage is okay. It will be legal now but I don’t think it is up to Catholic schools and Catholic teachers to be teaching that to children because it is contrary to what we believe,” said Bishop O’Reilly.

For a full report from the launch of the new Kilmore Diocesan Pastoral Plan 2015-2020, see next Wednesday's issue.