Sir, - As a member of the Church of Ireland and a lowly sinner I am deeply insulted by comments made by highly-placed Roman Catholic clergy on the taking of Communion in my church. These comments clearly show that the only "sham" perpetrated is the illusion of ecumenical involvement by Catholicism over the years. It also shows that this is lip-service, an affectation designed to lull the Protestant minority into the fallacy of equality.
In the 1960s, members of my maternal family who were the progeny of a mixed marriage stood outside St Mary's Cathedral in Limerick while my grandfather's funeral service took place inside, in fear of hell and damnation if they crossed the threshold. Our President has taken a giant step towards confronting this theology of intimidation.
If the alternative is an ecumenism of patronisation, then give me schism any day. - Yours, etc.,
Samuel Walsh,
Cloonlara, Co Clare.