Irish people have become obsessed by greed, gossip and shopping, a conference was told today.
Fr Harry Bohan - founder of the Céifin Centre - said that consumer values had replaced moral values in "Celtic Tiger Ireland", and he called for a modern debate on the issue within families, schools and workplaces.
Opening the ninth annual Céifin conference in Clare, Fr Bohan warned that a lack of community spirit now threatened the survival of a caring and respectful society.
Fr Bohan, who is parish priest of Sixmilebridge, Co Clare, and director of pastoral planning in the Diocese of Killaloe, founded Ceifin in 1998 to encourage a debate on values in society.
He told the conference in Ennis: "There is a growing concern that modern Ireland is cash rich and culturally poor. Commercial and market values now dominate as instanced by 24-hour, seven-day-a-week shopping."
"We live in a harsh climate in which gossip and controversy are so much more newsworthy than real news and especially good news, and people forget what their real values are.
"There is no doubt that without a strong sense of community human beings will wilt and begin to die or destroy one another. Community and community values are the foundation of human society. They mean the survival of the species."
Fr Bohan pointed to new problems such as family and community breakdown, high crime rates, low level of civic responsibility and the lack of appreciation for heritage and the environment.
Irish and international speakers at the two-day Ceifin conference will discuss topics like multiculturalism, crime and family values.
PA