Sir, – The major flaw in Ian Paisley’s psyche, leading in turn to his deathly, divisive agenda, whatever his latter-day sainthood, is characteristic of all religious fundamentalists – a misguided, destructive belief in having an exclusive grip on the truth; that, absurdly, one has a divine mandate, heaven forbid!
History is ill-served if this dehumanising force is airbrushed by dint of political correctness or not speaking ill of the dead. – Yours, etc,
OWEN MORTON,
Station Road,
Sutton,
Dublin 13.
Sir, – There was absolutely nothing of the Nazarene in this man. It is only when he became first minister, ie achieving power, that he had his Damascus moment. Blessed are the true peacemakers – Gandhi, King, et al – for they walk with the angels. – Yours, etc,
DERRY O’BRIEN,
Fernwood,
Doughcloyne,
Cork.
Sir, – No, nay, never, no, nay, never no more. – Yours, etc,
KEVIN O’SULLIVAN,
Ballyraine Park
Letterkenny
Co Donegal.
Sir, – Fintan O'Toole ("Paisley: a firebrand who learned to compromise", September 13th) has captured the essence of the man and all he embodied, including his change of heart when his lust for power overcame his religious convictions! Thank you, Fintan, for allowing me to read and move on. – Yours, etc,
PJ MADDEN,
Elderwood Road,
Palmerstown,
Dublin 20.
A chara, – I never knew that the Rev Dr Ian Paisley's middle names were Richard Kyle, until your editorial of September 13th ("From firebrand to peacemaker"). The initials of his forenames lend themselves to an acronym that is rather apt for a man who got under the skins of so many. I'll spell it out, lest I be accused of being obscure – IRK!
May the “big fella” rest in peace. – Is mise,
Rev PATRICK G BURKE,
Castlecomer,
Co Kilkenny.
Sir, – The widespread, though not universal, praise for Ian Paisley – his warmth, humour, ultimate willingness to compromise – from politicians of all hues gives the impression that they, ultimately, are more impressed by the persona and skills of one of their own than they are by the suffering, sometimes intentional, they have caused people at large.
They form a self-congratulatary, insulated clique more inclined to listen to one another than they are to the rest of us. – Yours, etc,
EOIN DILLON,
Ceannt Fort,
Mount Brown,
Dublin 8.
Sir, – Despite Ian Paisley’s political “conversion” during the last decade of his life, the fact remains that throughout the previous several decades of his involvement in front-line politics in Northern Ireland he was a zealous bigot.
His oratory continually encouraged violence and his actions always opposed political progress.
His “no surrender” philosophy helped to prolong the killings on this island and handicapped any efforts towards ending the political stalemate between the Catholic and Protestant communities.
It was Paisley who played an integral role in bringing down the Sunningdale Agreement (through the loyalist-led Workers’ Strike in 1974). It was Paisley who opposed Irish governments’ legitimate role in finding a solution to the Troubles (for instance, in his opposition to the Anglo-Irish Agreement of 1985). And it was Paisley who refused to wholeheartedly endorse the Good Friday agreement of 1998 (even though the peoples of both the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland voted in favour of this agreement via a referendum on either side of the border).
Yes, during the last years of his life Paisley did agree to power-sharing with the once despised Sinn Féin/IRA, as he himself described Martin McGuinness and his motley crew. However, this does not absolve him from his past actions.
While he may never have had actual blood on his hands, his bigoted deeds and words will forever stain his legacy. – Yours, etc,
Dr STEPHEN KELLY,
Department of History
and Politics,
Liverpool Hope University,
Hope Park,
Liverpool.
Sir, – Will the pretending finally stop? Ian Paisley “the peacemaker, the statesman, the man of principle, the man who said yes, the big man”. Ian Paisley was bigoted, sectarian, ignorant, rude and very dangerous. When civil rights marchers asked for basic civil rights, the “great man” met them with a mob. His life was dedicated to intolerance, the stirring up of hatred, and his rights were the only rights that mattered.
Then when the winds of change finally came, his ego made him the peacemaker. A peacemaker does what is right for the greater good of all, not himself. John Hume is a peacemaker; Paisley was just a pathetic opportunist. – Yours, etc,
JOHN WALL,
Upper Dargle Road,
Bray,
Co Wicklow.
Sir, – On the passing of Ian Paisley I am reminded of the phrase, if the God you worship hates the same people you do, then maybe your God is of your own creation. – Yours, etc,
DERMOT O’ROURKE,
Westbury Drive,
Lucan,
Dublin 22.