Irish Christendom must feel the gates of Hell should open up and swallow it alive!
Fundamentalists, evangelicals and traditionalists need to act fast, otherwise
'Christian' will become a very dirty word.
Irish Christians have been hit with a double whammy. Any glimmer of hope that the
Irish Catholic bishops could regain their once impregnable hold on Southern
society was blown apart with the demolishing words of tough-talking Taoiseach
Enda Kenny.
Referring to the shocking Cloyne Report which exposed how allegations of clerical
abuse were covered up by the Catholic Church, King Kenny slammed the Vatican as
being dominated by elitism, dysfunction, disconnection and narcissism.
Given the seemingly unbreakable bond between church and state in the Republic, I
never thought I would live to see a Taoiseach rip the reputation of the Irish
Catholic hierarchy to shreds.
Kenny's language would have sat snugly in many of the North's Christian
fundamentalist pulpits, and Eamonn de Valera who founded the South's church and
state partnership must be spinning in his grave.
It may take generations for the Church to rebuild credibility and trust with its
flocks across the island, especially if the Dail and Stormont unleash more
Cloyne-style inquiries.
But Christian fundamentalists – most of whom can be found in Northern Protestant
churches – have an even bigger crisis to overcome because of the Norwegian
massacre by killer Anders Behring Breivik.
Nutball Breivik had boasted of being a Christian fundamentalist, with links to
the racist Far Right.
Just as Islamic fundamentalists have become tarnished by the violent actions of
suicide bombers, so too, has Breivik's slaughter of the innocent blackened the
image of those who call themselves Christian fundamentalists.
The Irish gay and lesbian community has suffered from homophobia; the growing
muslim community has faced the horrors of Islamophobia.
There is the real danger a new hate crime will enter society's policing
vocabulary – Christophobia.
Christian fundamentalists have already found themselves isolated because of their
moralising on gay rights, civil partnerships, gay clergy and the role of women in
churches.
The hypocrisy of this fundamentalist position was exposed after it emerged former
MP Iris Robinson – the wife of First Minister, Peter – had a teenage lover. This
was unearthed after she slammed homosexuality on live radio.
Christian fundamentalists may be forced into the closet as worshippers who call
themselves 'born again', 'saved' or 'evangelical' find themselves verbally and
physically abused in public.
Society can be cruel with its stereotypes. During the Troubles, there were many
who believed all Catholics supported the IRA, and that all Protestants backed the
UVF and UDA.
And just as such stereotyping has been to blame for those who think all gay
people are paedophiles and all muslims are suicide bombers, so too will the
Norwegian massacre brand every Christian as a potential mass murderer.
Christians need a reality check. They must first decommission the word
'fundamentalist'.
Irish Christians need to set aside their theological differences and work
together on a common forum as to how they will make the teachings of Christ
relevant to an increasingly secular Ireland.
The long-term fallout from Breivik's madness could see many clerics who describe
themselves as 'fundamentalist' being jailed for controversial sermons.
On that day, Irish pulpits will no longer be viewed as platforms for freedom of
religious speech.
