eChurch Christian Blog

I suspect most folk have already come across the headlines covering the recent Al Hutchinson’s report on the IRA Claudy bomb.

As this potentially involved a Catholic priest (Fr James Chesney) the headlines are predictably sensationalist and replete with terms such as Catholic Church Cover-up and Catholic Church Conspiracy.

In truth I know nothing about this incident, I wasn’t even born when it happened, so I’m going to hand over firstly to the Church Mouse:

News from the inquiry into the Claudy bombing in Northern Ireland in 1972 by the Police Ombudsman has been dominated by the question of whether there was a cover up by the Catholic Church.  Mouse simply cannot see how this stacks up at all.

The question has arisen as a result of the transfer of Fr James Chesney out of Northern Ireland and into the Republic, whilst he was suspected of involvement in the bombing.

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And secondly to the Catholic News Agency:

Two bishops responded Tuesday to claims that a Catholic priest was never questioned for his suspected role in a Northern Ireland bombing during the 1970s. The prelates remarked that the suspicions are “shocking” and commented that the case should have been properly investigated during the priest’s lifetime.

On July 31, 1972 a triple car bombing killed nine, including an eight-year-old girl, and injured 30 in the village of Claudy. Among those who died were five Catholics and four Protestants.

The Irish Republican Army (IRA) never claimed responsibility for the attacks, the Daily Telegraph reports. The bombers had allegedly tried to make warning calls but telephone lines were down from earlier bomb damage.

Fr. James Chesney, reported to be an IRA sympathizer, was suspected of planning the attack. He was later transferred to a parish in the Republic of Ireland outside of the United Kingdom’s jurisdiction.

The priest died of cancer in 1980 at the age of 46 and was never questioned by police.

Al Hutchinson, the Northern Ireland police ombudsman, recently issued a report which charged that a Royal Union Constabulary (RUC) official refused a detective’s request to arrest the cleric. The same official asked whether the matter could be raised within the Church hierarchy.

Hutchinson found that when the Church was informed about “the level of concerns others had” about Fr. Chesney, officials challenged the priest about his alleged activities “which he denied.”

“In the course of this enquiry the Police Ombudsman’s investigation found no evidence of any criminal intent on the part of any Church official,” stated the report.

Archbishop of Armagh Cardinal Seán Brady and Bishop of Derry Séamus Hegarty issued a joint statement Tuesday on the investigation. They accepted the ombudsman’s findings and conclusions.

“All known material in the possession of the Catholic Church has been made available to the Ombudsman,” the statement said.

“This case should have been properly investigated and resolved during Father Chesney’s lifetime. If there was sufficient evidence to link him to criminal activity, he should have been arrested and questioned at the earliest opportunity, like anyone else. We agree with the Police Ombudsman that the fact this did not happen failed those who were murdered, injured and bereaved in the bombings.”

According to the prelates, the Catholic Church was “constant” in its condemnation of the violence during the conflict known as the “Troubles.”

“The Catholic Church did not engage in a cover-up of this matter,” Cardinal Brady and Bishop Hegarty wrote. They noted that the Church was approached by the then-Secretary of State at the instigation of senior members of the RUC.

According to the bishops, the actions of Cardinal William Conway or any other Church authority did not prevent the possibility of the future arrest and questioning of Fr. Chesney, as the priest was known to have regularly traveled across the border.

“Fr. Chesney is dead and, as a suspect in the Claudy bombing, he is beyond the justice of earthly courts,” the bishops’ statement continued, saying that the bereaved and injured “deserve to know the truth.”

Urging that the “human cost of this atrocity” be remembered, Cardinal Brady and Bishop Hegarty assured the bombing victims of their prayers.

“It is only with honesty and bravery that we as a community can address these painful issues and do our best to ensure that the dreadful lessons of the past are learned and never repeated,” the bishops’ statement concluded.

This is a cross-post by Bishop Nick Baines (with kind permission) which I personally found really positive and encouraging:

Being neighbourly

Bit of an odd-sounding title, isn’t it? But, it’s the title given to an initiative being explored at present by the Church of England and the Government. Slipped on to the Church of England website the other day (wisely not trumpeted as it is ‘work in progress’), it shows some entrepreneurial spirit on behalf of the Church in testing out the reality of David Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ notion. After all, being a ‘good neighbour’ is what Jesus told his people to be.

The Church of England is actively discussing with Government plans for a major extension to the pastoral work of parish churches, particularly in multi-religious neighbourhoods. These propose a variety of ways in which the recognised strengths of the Church of England can contribute to the flourishing of people in these neighbourhoods.  The Church Urban Fund with its 25 years of experience of supporting local communities in deprived urban areas, will oversee the programme.

Communities Secretary Eric Pickles and Baroness Warsi, Minister in the Cabinet Office, have affirmed the role of the Churches and Faith communities at the heart of local communities and have spoken positively of the unique contribution of the Church of England’s 20,000 local churches, schools and centres at the heart of every neighbourhood.

What is particularly significant about this is the recognition that the Church of England is committed to the thriving of all in our communities, not just those who ‘belong’ to the church. This is rooted in the theological assumption that the church is a means to an end and not the end in itself – the church is called to be a sign of the kingdom (presence) of God and to give its life to that end. We may fail a million times – and need to be recalled to that central vocation – but this remains our commitment.

The statement goes on:

The Church of England’s ethos as the national Church is to have a duty of care for all parishioners irrespective of their religious belief or none. A consequence of this has been its very substantial contribution to inter faith initiatives at local, regional and national levels and with all Faith communities.

The proposals have the strapline “Being Neighbourly” and could include new support for street and neighbourhood level initiatives; partnerships with national faith based and inter faith organisations and work with young adults.

The Church of England believe these proposals could be a significant affirmation of the contribution of faith communities to the ‘Big Society’.

This reinforces the point that what is often loosely called ‘establishment’ does not have to do with privilege and status, but with service, obligation and sacrificial commitment to our communities. And rather than whinge about the deficiencies of Cameron’s ‘Big Society’ (is it a con or a concept?) or the slowness of the Church of England as an institution in responding to a changing social scene, it attempts to get on and shape something for the future.

The Minister responsible, Eric Pickles, said:

For years, churches and other faith communities have been quietly making a huge difference day-in and day-out, to every single neighbourhood in the country – something that has not been sufficiently recognised by central Government. We can together build on the huge amount of experience faith groups have in getting out into the community. The Church of England’s proposals to extend their work with communities are very interesting and we are looking at them closely.”

The Church of England gets used to being knocked – often with good reason. This looks to me like a good reason for optimism and support. Detailed proposals are to be discussed in the autumn and we will watch this space to see what emerges in due course.

I’ve just noted an interesting five-part series over at the ConservativeHome blog written by Dr Martin Parsons and looking at the Christian community’s relationship with, and perceptions of, the Labour and Conservative parties.

Haven’t had the chance to read through all of it yet, but will link to them here for my benefit and for anyone else who might be interested:

Part 1 – Labour’s attack on Christian liberties

Part 2 – Conservative response to Labour’s attack on Christian liberties

Part 3 – The scale of the Christian voting community

Part 4 – Did we alienate Christian voters at the election?

Part 5 – What next in the Conservative Party’s relationship with Churchgoers?

I thought this to be an excellent piece on the UK, Islamism and politics:

Telegraph:

Over the past 10 days, like a submarine just below the surface, the outline has become visible of a massive Whitehall row, the outcome of which could be almost as important to our country as fixing the deficit.

The argument is about the influence that Islamism should have in the British state. Islamism should never, by the way, be confused with Islam. Islam is a religion, practised by millions of British citizens who have never sought to overthrow anything in their lives. Islamism is a revolutionary political doctrine, supported by a small minority of Muslims, whose aim is to overthrow secular democratic government and replace it with Islamic government.

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A brave guy indeed:

Human Events:

Nadim Gemayel is one man who has seen this script before. A Christian member of Lebanon’s Parliament, Gemayel has called for Hezbollah to disarm and for an immediate end to Iranian and Syrian meddling inside his country.

Such boldness can be deadly: Gemayel saw his father, former Lebanese President Bashir Gemayel, assassinated in 1982, and his cousin, Pierre, murdered in 2006—both men taken out by Syrian operatives. But as Gemayel told me recently in an exclusive interview for my new CBN show, Stakelbeck on Terror, he’s willing to brave any threats in order to preserve the culture, rights and dignity of Lebanon’s besieged Christian community.

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