A chara, - Not for the first time, Breda O'Brien brings a badly needed sense of balance to the debate on the role of the churches in education, health and other areas (Opinion, November 19th).
She rightly upbraids Liz O Donnell for using All Hallows as a symbol for the Catholic Hierarchy and goes on to illustrate how the PD TD's confusion about the history and current role of All Hallows is symptomatic of her general lack of awareness of the debate going on within the Churches on their role in education and other areas of public life.
If a public representative of Liz O'Donnell's stature chooses to launch a diatribe against the Catholic Church or any other institution the least one would expect is that it be on an informed basis.
It is disappointing to see public representatives jumping on the popular bandwagon of Church-bashing without giving due credit to the enormous contribution which so many good and dedicated priests, religious, pastors and lay people of all religious denominations have made, in a wide variety of human activities, both at home and abroad over many years.
In commenting on the dreadful abuses that have taken place in the past, politicians as well as media people ought to be careful not to undermine or discredit the values and convictions that inspired the vast majority of religious people in their unstinting devotion to their fellow human beings, particularly the poor and marginalised.
We are unlikely, however, to receive witness to such commitment from Ms O'Donnell's political party, whose marriage to the Ibec agenda of profit and acquisitiveness is more than symbolic. - Yours, etc,
MICHAEL MADIGAN, Foxrock, Dublin 18.