A chara, - As we enter 1998, surely a sufficient time of exile and penance has passed for Bishop Casey. With mature reflection on the social and cultural history of recent years, should he not be recognised as one of the key factors on the road to the modern Western society we have now become?
The first key factor of the modern Ireland was the rise of U2 to world music domination. By staying in Ireland and becoming the biggest band in the world, U2 showed that Irish contemporary music culture could take its place at the top.
The second factor was the election of President Robinson. Our first female President graced the world stage and inspired and led us into a modern Ireland that now finds herself at the forefront of European culture with a booming economy outpacing our friends across the water.
Another key factor has to be the Bishop Casey phenomenon which took away the invincibility of the Church in Ireland and gave us the courage to press against closed doors that we were desperate to open. Terrible, unspoken wrongs had to come out. Bishop Casey played a unique part in enabling truths about his Church to be faced and a much-needed healing to take place. When history is written, he will have his place as an icon on the journey to the modern Ireland.
The latest key factor must be the international acclaim for Riverdance. This show reflects a confident modern Ireland, taking the traditional and mixing it with the contemporary to express a stylish, dynamic Irish culture of dance. Before it, most things traditional were "un-cool". After Riverdance, is any of our traditional culture not cool? Like the national soccer team, Riverdance celebrated our great culture of emigration with the talents of the new generation of our emigrants.
A scandal it may be for a Bishop to father a child but it is not a crime and does not justify eternal banishment from the homeland. Did Bishop Casey not expose the reality of the normal human sensual feelings that any priest must endure? He should be respectfully credited for his unique cultural contribution to the modern Ireland and welcomed back with dignity. - Yours, etc., Dez O'Neill,
Ladbroke Grove,
London W11.