Sir, - In the face of "renewal", many wish to defend the good name of the late Archbishop John Charles McQuaid.
I was an immature student in Blackrock College while the accused was President. He was highly respected for his moral leadership.
What is my testimony worth? It is the warrant of personal witness, which I deem to be - with the passing years - superior to the inexact science of psychiatry. Furthermore, I owe it to my mother's memory to attest, here and now, to the all-embracing, immense, and instant charity of the gentle clean-hearted Holy Ghost Father.
Much later, as Archbishop of Dublin, Dr McQuaid was primarily responsible for clearing the reputations of four innocent prisoners executed during our tragic Civil War. This was Christian charity exemplified, and a healing process.
From the dawn of civilisation it has been the norm that a condemned man should have his accusers present. Today's "enlightenment" however, and defamation at a distance merely darken our vision; and slavery is ushered in.
The poet has written:
"Still through chaos,
Works on the ancient plan;
And two things have altered not,
Since first the world began;
The beauty of the wild green earth,
And the bravery of man."
Bravery and gentle charity are synonymous. They cannot, in the one person, be coeval with the abominable crime of child-molesting. - Yours, etc.,
Eoin O Maille, Fitzwilliam Place, Dublin 2.