Banal sermons and sometimes uninformed views from the pulpit made the church less credible before an increasingly educated Catholic laity, a leading theologian has said.
In an open letter to the Archbishop of Dublin, Dr Diarmuid Martin, Prof Enda McDonagh said "at this stage of women's alienation" from the church, a director for women and women's issues was "as essential" as child protection officers.
The letter, which is directed at the state of the church in the Dublin archdiocese, is published in the current edition of The Furrow. Father Enda McDonagh is the former Professor of Moral Theology at St Patrick's College, Maynooth.
On diocesan administration, he suggested that "a temporary cabinet of clergy, religious and laity could be established, for three years initially", to develop and implement spiritual, pastoral, intellectual and educational policies, as well as to take charge of diocesan finances. This "cabinet" might be appointed at first, then elected from appropriate constituencies, he said. All of which "should feed into a diocesan forum", as already announced for the diocese of Ossory, he said.
He said decline in Mass attendance and other sacramental participation suggested that "a determined and persistent revitalisation of liturgy and prayer" was necessary, as was more attention to "secular spirituality" through dialogue with science, technology and daily work.
He advised that "every bishop should spend up to a week in each parish outside the time of Confirmation, which should be administered by the parish priest at another time".
Bishops, priests, and other church leaders must set aside a couple of weeks every year for intensive study of scripture and theology, with regular study days throughout the year, he said.
"The real challenges to the Irish Church are in the areas of faith and theology as they face powerful social and cultural interrogation", while "in today's highly educated society the banal language and uninformed views displayed in pulpit and public statements make the Church increasingly incredible," he said.
The management of schools should be in the hands of trained lay people, "with small but serious participation by local clergy on an inter-church basis and more substantial participation by parents' representatives".