THE four main church leaders in Ireland have appealed for careful, reflective public consideration of the report from the International Body on Decommissioning which is due this month.
The church leaders said in a New Year statement that society was at a defining moment and that in order to establish the trust necessary to find an acceptable political solution in Northern Ireland "leaps of faith" might be required.
People must reflect very carefully on the imminent report of the weapons decommissioning body, they said. "This will not be a time for ill judged or hastily conceived responses. All should measure their words and actions with restraint and sensitivity.
"We believe that our society is at a defining moment. The choice is clear are we going to step back and risk the terrible violence of the past?
"Or have we the courage to grasp the opportunity which presents itself by leaving aside the culture and methods of division and hatred and move forward with courage and conviction that those differences can be resolved through dialogue and agreement?"
The church leaders said that in the past year many people had acknowledged that new ways of thinking and acting were required to build on the momentum already achieved.
"The great challenge to Christians is to build peace. We pay tribute to, and recognise the contribution of, all who have worked for reconciliation for so long, as well as those who have brokered the ceasefires on both sides.
"We hope that 1996 can be a year when we can start genuinely to listen to each other and to enter into dialogue in an attempt to find a solution acceptable and agreeable to all. The establishment of trust, which is so important, may require leaps of faith but can be achieved through acts of generosity, forgiveness and repentance at many levels."
The statement was issued by Cardinal Cahal Daly, Archbishop Robin Eames, the Presbyterian Moderator, the Rev Dr John Ross, and the Methodist President, the Rev Christopher Walpole.
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