Churchmen asked to speak 'with charity'

The Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin, the Very Rev John Paterson, has said "careless words" by leaders of the Christian churches in Dublin "cause deep hurt". He prayed that such leaders would speak "with firm belief yet with the charity of Christ."

In his introduction to the 61st citizenship service of prayer for Dublin and the world in the cathedral yesterday, he said: "The Christian churches of this city must as ever be in our prayers as we seek for them the guidance of the Holy Spirit. We pray that their leaders will always speak with firm belief, yet with the charity of Christ.

"A mutual talent for sharing received faith can be a sign of openness, of maturity, of the ability of friend to make dialogue with friend. Careless words cause deep hurt. They give joy only to those who are increasingly sceptical of any faith," he said.

On other matters, the Dean told the congregation they had gathered to thank God "for his loving care of Dublin and its people", and he pleaded: "Let us freely share our land with brothers and sisters of other faiths who have come to live among us, respecting their beliefs and their culture as in turn we ask them to respect ours."

He said they would pray also for "the ray of hope that has been the peace process" and "that all in Northern Ireland, without loss of any ultimate ambition or ultimate conviction, may work together to create a parity of esteem."

They would pray too for those who died in the US on September 11th, as well as those caught up in conflicts in Afghanistan, the Middle East and elsewhere.

"For Christians, the first response to unhealed running sores ought not to be a resort to warfare: rather, an attempt to create peace with justice, and a sharing of our resources with the poorer nations of the world," he said.