The Catholic Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, has said "one could get the impression from some pundits that the principal problem with Irish education was Catholic schools. The facts tell us the opposite."
Speaking in a homily at the Chrism Mass in Dublin's Pro-Cathedral on Thursday, Archbishop Martin continued: "I am in favour of a plurality in patronage of schools which respects the wishes of parents of different faith convictions. But let us be clear. It is parents who choose Catholic schools. They want to send their children to Catholic schools.
"Our Catholic schools have been welcoming to people of different cultural and religious backgrounds who come to them, not as some second-best option, but precisely for the values that come from the Catholic identity of our schools."
He said "we have extraordinary teachers, proud to make our Catholic schools real places of educational excellence".
Yesterday Archbishop Martin led an estimated 1,500 people, some for part of the way, in a Way of the Cross procession from the Wellington monument to the Papal Cross in Dublin's Phoenix Park.
He was accompanied by the papal nuncio, Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto, and the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Cllr Vincent Jackson. The procession was organised by the Communion and Liberation lay group.
In his reflections en route, Archbishop Martin said "the pressure on Christians today is to conform, to lie low, not to rock the boat, the keep one's innermost religious sentiments to oneself, not to stand out. But the Christian is called to be the sign not of conformism but of contradiction.
"We need a church which has no fear of challenging superficiality and hypocrisy, a church which can confront untruth in its own life, a church which witnesses to the truth of Jesus Christ who died so that we can live our lives in all their authenticity."
He said that "being an office-holder or exercising a ministry in the church is sadly not always an indication of real fidelity to Jesus. The minister is not just the teacher, but in the first place a disciple, a humble listener to the Word and to the witness of faith of those entrusted to his care."
Speaking to The Irish Times later on recent political events, he said "patient negotiation is an extremely important thing. Patience is one of the attributes of God." He called on politicians to build up communities that can prosper together and noted that "Northern Ireland is an entity of its own, politically, culturally, socially, and we have to respect that."