Catholics and nationalists in Northern Ireland "need to understand the uncertainty and apprehension of their Protestant neighbours so far as the future is concerned," the Church of Ireland Primate, Archbishop Robin Eames, said in London last night.
"Perceptions become realities in Northern Ireland in an instant. The perceptions of many in the Protestant community is that their ethos, their political aspiration and their stability as a community is being eroded by over-attention on the part of government to demands from republicanism," he said.
"There is a perception that demand after demand is being granted with little or no evidence that the position of traditional unionism is being protected. That perception surfaces from time to time but it is vivid and real. The fact is that Sinn Féin commands a majority political position within the Northern nationalist community.
"To Protestant eyes this fact calls for a clear and honest understanding of their perception. It also substantiates their longing to see a complete end to paramilitary threat or pressure from within the republican community."
He also warned that "the current stalemate in the political process is leaving a dangerous vacuum which permits apprehension and instability to flourish. It must reach a conclusion sooner rather than later for the good of both communities."
Dr Eames was speaking in the Faith and Identity series of lectures at St Ethelburga's Centre for Reconciliation and Peace in London to which his Catholic counterpart, Archbishop Seán Brady, contributed on May 5th.
The archbishop said Dr Brady's "words of integrity and vision were appreciated far beyond St Ethelburga's". He recalled that Archbishop Brady appealed for people in Northern Ireland to go "a further step".
"I would add to that call these words: people need to try harder to understand how and why others believe what they do. It is a Christian imperative to reach out to others but it is equally a Gospel demand that we see through other eyes as well as our own," he said.
"Equally to see the situation through other eyes demands that political Protestantism understands the reason for years of perceptions by nationalists that they had no real input to their experiences of government. Protestants today are experiencing the inevitable emotions of the changes brought about by alterations to the balance of political power. As with reconciliation itself readjustment takes time. But Roman Catholic alienation for years was a reality Protestants must accept.
"Today the political peace process has brought new recognition, new power and new opportunities for those who felt that alienation. It calls for sensitivity by them. In truth a major step forward calls for even more than understanding of each other's fears. It calls for forgiveness and the open understanding we have all contributed to the fears of others," he said.
