Wednesday, July 20, 2011

"Ireland's Secular Revolution: The Waning Influence of the Catholic Church and the Future of Ireland's Blasphemy Law"


Kathryn A. O'Brien, Comment, Ireland's Secular Revolution: The Waning Influence of the Catholic Church and the Future of Ireland's Blasphemy Law, 18 Conn. J. Int'l L. 395 (2002)

O'Brien's article explores the influence of the Catholic Church in Ireland and discusses the legal status of blasphemy. For the latter, she notes that prior to the 1996 Corway case (in which the country's Supreme Court held that the constitutional reference to blasphemy could not be enforced in the absence of legislation), there had only been three known blasphemy prosecutions since 1703. Although recent events (the passage of a blasphemy statute) have dated the blasphemy discussion, the article does provide a brief overview of the subject in English history, European Union law, and the Corway decision. Other articles are more thorough on each of these subjects, so of more interest to most readers is the examination of events pointing to an increasingly secular society in Ireland. O'Brien discusses various provisions of the Irish Constitution referencing religion, and then notes that the country has become more liberal in areas like divorce (a 1995 referendum allowed it for the first time), gay and lesbian rights (homosexuality was decriminalized in 1993), and (to a lesser degree) abortion (judicially sanctioned in very rare circumstances). According to O'Brien, each of these trends occured despite strong opposition from the Catholic Church.

1 comment:

  1. Not to diminish the high crimes of the RCC but please examine the Jehovah's Witnesses who go door to door and come on our property.

    Jehovah's Witnesses pedophiles.

    Many court documents and news events prove that Jehovah's Witnesses require two witnesses when a child comes forward with allegations of molestation within the congregation. Such allegations have customarily been treated as sins instead of crimes and are only reported to authorities when it is required to do so by law, (which varies by state). It has also been shown that child molesters within the organization usually have not been identified to the congregation members or the public at large.
    These people engage in a door to door ministry, possibly exposing children to pedophiles.

    Although the Watchtower Bible Tract Society claims that known pedophiles are accompanied by a non-pedophile in such work, there is no law stating that such a practice must be followed.

    The Watchtower corporation has paid out millions in settlement money already.
    --
    Danny Haszard abuse victim
    dannyhaszard(dot)com

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