THE Rector of Drumcree, the Rev John Pickering, yesterday opposed a call by the Church of Ireland General Synod for a report to be conducted on possible sectarianism in the church.
Calling on delegates to pray for himself, his wife, his family and his parish "as we face into July", be said he felt that an investigation into ways in which the church might be "accommodating to sectarianism" could throw up more problems than anyone thought.
Calling for the motion to be defeated, he offered to put down one of his own for next year reading "that this synod of the Church of Ireland opposes sectarianism."
He said the church should not be blackened because of the events at Drumcree last year - "or Drumcree church either". The standoff took place on the public road after service, "separate from the service and church," he said.
He told his critics they needed to be in his shoes. "It is very different when you live in Drumcree and are present on five days and nights not knowing what the outcome will be."
But there never was any question of the British army firing on the crowd, he said. He knew, as he had spent some time on the army side as well.
Mr Harry Andersen, a member of the select vestry at Drumcree, said many leaders of the Orange and Masonic orders were "decent, upright people." Also opposing the motion, while opposing sectarianism, he said committees never solved anything.
He was glad to hear Dr Eames include in his condemnation of sectarian murders the killing of Constable Darren Bradshaw at the weekend. "For far too long we have not regarded the killing of policemen and soldiers as sectarian," he said.
Proposing the motion, Archdeacon Alan Harper of Con nor said that sectarianism affected "society throughout the island of Ireland." It was not unique to the Church of Ireland. "Indeed it may well be that other ecclesial bodies are worse riddled than is our church."
His concern, however, was for the Church of Ireland to put its own house in order, "for the unity of our church is endangered, its standing nationally and internationally is demeaned and its witness continually compromised when we appear to accommodate to, or temporise with, sectarianism."
He wished the synod to do two things: first to flag its opposition in principle to sectarianism; and second to acknowledge "that in fact as a church we have acted in sectarian ways and are affected by sectarian attitudes."
They must, he said, "try to rid ourselves of this gross infection of our church and community life."
Seconding the motion, Archdeacon Gregor McCamley of Down said the church had to take action "at all levels" to make explicitly clear that it was in no way accommodating of sectarianism.
He believed it necessary that, in circumstances, bishops should be given some constitutional authority over the use of church buildings.
The message for the church in Ireland today should be as it is for the church in South Africa. There they are succeeding because "they have made God their religion, not religion their God," he said.
. The motion passed at yesterday's sitting of the Church of Ireland synod read as follows:
"That this Synod affirms that the Church of Ireland is opposed to Sectarianism and requests that Standing Committees initiate an examination of Church Life at all levels to identify ways in which the Church may be deemed to be accommodating to sectarianism and as a means of combatting sectarianism to promote at all levels of Church life tolerance, dialogue, co-operation and mutual respect between the Churches and in society, to identify and recommend specific actions towards this end and to report progress in the matter to the meeting of General Synod 1998."
