It is indeed regrettable, as Archbishop Walton Empey has said, that what should be a joyful occasion for Irish Catholics - Dr Desmond Connell's elevation to the College of Cardinals - has been marked by acrimony and controversy. Not for the first time, words from Dr Connell have had the effect of causing hurt to other Christians and bewilderment among those who would wish him - and his church - well.
There are some members of his flock who will be pleased that in speaking as he has on participation in the Eucharist, Dr Connell has affirmed Roman Catholic teaching and the unique authority, as they see it, of their own church. Dr Connell said in a Sunday Business Post interview that the Church of Ireland is failing to respect the "faith and obligations" of Catholics in inviting them to share in Communion.
But it is likely many more Catholics will be saddened - and even angry - that the cardinal-designate missed a significant opportunity, in a lengthy interview, to undo some of the hurt he caused three years ago by describing it as a "sham" for them to receive Communion in a reformed church. Those who are old enough to have experienced the joyful uplift of ecumenical sentiment which followed Vatican II, will be especially affected.
The paradoxical aspect of this, as Dr Connell receives the red hat, will be the further distancing of ordinary Catholics from the leadership of their church. His elevation testifies to the extent to which he is close to the hearts of those who lead thinking and who shape policy in the Vatican. But the Vatican is either unaware of, or is unmoved by, the extent to which Dr Connell is seen as confirming the church in Ireland as an institution which is inwardly-focused, self-justifying and too often out of touch on the issues which face its members as they seek to live their lives in the faith.
In the past, Dr Connell has sought clumsily to blame the messenger when his remarks have led to controversy. He has alleged that the media have misunderstood or misrepresented what he intended to say. Those allegations did not stand up to scrutiny in the past. Nor could they be advanced in this case. He had the opportunity of an extensive newspaper interview without the pressures which can arise, for example, in a live broadcast. He cannot have failed to anticipate that his interviewer, Kieron Wood, might wish to revisit the controversy over his comments when the President, Mrs McAleese, took communion at Christ Church.
In fairness, the diocesan spokesman, Ronan Mullen, has not suggested any failure on the part of The Sunday Business Post to represent accurately what Dr Connell said. There was no acrimony in Dr Connell's "contextualised, clear and honest statement of faith", he said. In other words, Dr Connell stands over what he said. The cardinal-elect is known as a man of gentle manner and charitable disposition. But it cannot be that a person of his academic background and training is unable to use language with accuracy and precision. How unfortunate then, that in the week he travels to Rome, he should deliver himself of sentiments which effectively disparage fellow-Christians in Dublin and in Ireland. His assertion that he had a toothache and was not "up to form" on the day of the interview is risible.