Serious, informed public debate and the fostering of courageous leadership were required in response to the dilution of trust in Ireland’s institutions, Bishop of Down and Connor Dr Noel Treanor said today.
Speaking at the annual State commemorative Mass at Arbour Hill in honour of the leaders of the 1916 Rising, Dr Treanor said that despite many improvements in the life of the nation and people, a "shortfall" persisted in various sectors and "cancerous growths in the tissue of society now also require radical surgery".
"Not even a full week ago, we read survey statistics in The Irish Times indicating the surge in the growth of distrust in the Church, Government, Banks, Hospitals, the Media.
"Our country does not stand alone in this regard. Commentators in other European countries, in France and Germany for example, refer to the crisis of trust in the institutions of society, to the 'Misstrauensgesellschaft'.
"We know all too well the contagion of distrust and how corrosive it is of hope, another vital and spiritual element in the social capital of a people and nation.
"How do we respond to such distrust, to the anger it generates and to its erosion of hope: how are we to respond as a people, as institutions led and animated by citizens, and as a nation?
"How are we to respond as Christians and members of Christ's Church to the dilution of trust in the Church as a result of the scandals arising from the sexual abuse of children and vulnerable persons and its cover-up?
"Evidently there are no instant solutions. Serious, informed public debate must be pursued on the basis of renewal steps already taken. Civil society and intermediate organisations must encourage and foster courageous leadership," Bishop Treanor said.
President Mary McAleese laid a wreath at the graves of the 1916 leaders. Taoiseach Brian Cowen and other senior ministers were among the attendance.
