Madam, - In an otherwise excellent article by Anne Dempsey (Life Features, March 21st) some parts of my interview were left out. As a result Pentecostal churches were linked in a way that may have given the impression they were a problem.
I had described the positive development of the setting-up of the Evangelical Alliance last May. This represents a broad spectrum of evangelical opinion in Ireland and is made up of members of the historic Protestant denominations and Catholic evangelicals. It also draws in newer Evangelical churches and a number of Pentecostal Churches. They engage together to reflect on a number of issues, including politics and culture, from an evangelical perspective.
My concern, rather, was with some groups with a pentecostal theology which espouse a prosperity theology (Health and Wealth), and have been brought to the attention of Dialogue Ireland. People in some of these churches have reported serious psychological, financial and spiritual abuse. Unlike the evangelical groups mentioned above, these groups are not accountable to any outside authority.
Having said that, my main point was that we are not so much these days looking at cults, but at "cultism" - the phenomenon of abuse that can arise in any group, church, political group or sports club.
The protection of the citizen is very important; hence my attempts to raise the issue with the Taoiseach. A centre linked to a third-level institute providing research and information to the public would be a godsend to those who often experience a total lack of awareness of their plight.
Finally, DI is a full member of FECRIS, and not FECRUS. This is a Europe-wide body, which tries to respond to the unsettling issues around "cultist new religious movements". - Yours, etc.,
MIKE GARDE, (Field worker), Dialogue Ireland, Lower Abbey Street, Dublin 1.