Church cannot stay in a time warp in conveying message

The Sunday Telegraph recently carried a shock headline on its front page which read "Church Supports Marriage". That this was even considered newsworthy is in itself astounding but so remote from the lives of ordinary British citizens is the Anglican Church believed to be that its condemnation of the moral behaviour of a politician was regarded as headline material.

A similar concern exists now in Ireland that religious belief and practice are becoming increasingly remote from the concerns of the public, a view confirmed by the recent Prime Time MRBI opinion poll which showed a drop in weekly Mass attendance to 60 per cent, especially among those under the age of 35. On the positive side, however, some 82 per cent considered religion important in their lives.

The most interesting aspect of this survey is the discrepancy between Mass attendance and the role of religion in daily life. It should lead to a critical examination of why the traditional rituals of the Catholic Church, of which Mass attendance is the clearest marker, do not meet the spiritual needs of its flock.

It is possible that it is content with a personal creed, although without direction such unfocused spirituality is nothing more than a comfort blanket and inevitably will be morally relativistic and based on "whatever is right now". If "lapsed" church-goers are satisfied with this introverted and personalised morality then we can expect New Age centres or Isis temples or worse still, indifference to flourish.

I do not accept that the spirituality of most Irish people is of the vague "let's be nice to each other" school of thought but believe it is rooted firmly in our traditional Christianity even though many now feel remote from it. The capacity to tap into the goodwill which manifestly exists towards the Catholic Church is now a priority if the decline in church practice is to be halted.

True, many disagree with church teaching on a range of issues but these doubts have existed since the 1960s, yet the exit from church practice is a very recent phenomenon. The clerical scandals which have befallen the Irish Catholic Church have been blamed but these probably only accelerated a trend in a people already feeling let down by its church. These scandals almost certainly emasculated a church Hierarchy already suffering from a poor press and lacking credibility, thereby preventing it from taking remedial action at the time. Undoubtedly church attendance would have fallen even if there had been no scandals as we become increasingly hostile and rebellious towards all institutions, of which the Catholic Church has been the most pertinent historically. In spite of this "natural" attrition, some significant part has also been contributed by the local church itself. However, a distinction must be made between those aspects of belief and practice which are not amenable to rapid change, if at all, and local practices which are open to major overhaul. Included in the former are those teachings raised in the Prime Time opinion poll.

Many rightly argue that fashion and opinion polls should not determine church teaching and point to the travails of the Anglican Church in Britain which, as Janet Daly in the Daily Telegraph recently argued, is widely believed to be "an arm of the counselling industry". Indeed, the churches which are expanding most are those of Evangelical orientation and not those with a broadly liberal viewpoint.

However, the Catholic Church in Ireland can do much to overcome the frustration of Catholics which is driving them away to cults or to nothing - a frustration courageously articulated by Finola Bruton recently and directed both at the church and the laity. Why, for instance, are lay people not allowed deliver the homily at Sunday Mass?

It should be apparent to bishops that individuals have particular strengths and weaknesses. Yet, among priests who are otherwise excellent pastorally, there is no let-out for the poor preacher, a problem which afflicts them in large numbers. A recent document from Rome confirmed the practice of excluding lay people from this participation, unfortunately ignoring the reality of the person in the pew who is untouched by the sermon and regards it as providing the opportunity to plan the week's meals.

There are few more uplifting experiences than listening to sacred music well performed, yet the Mass-going public is expected to feel prayerful whilst subjected to the noise of a thin choir unable to reach the high notes. The use of Taize-style singing at Mass has been immensely popular especially among young people yet priests remain reticent about introducing it.

For others, the Novenas, previously called Missions, have the capacity to fill churches yet parishes seldom hold them in spite of lay enthusiasm for them. The booster effect on spiritual morale could be immense. The content of the religion curriculum in schools is now so vague as to be almost invisible, yet it is from this ephemeral base that religious education is being "taught".

The church in Ireland, through fear of the media, seems incapable of communicating its positive aspects.

Towns that are reaping the benefits of the Celtic Tiger are building churches which are packed with involved congregations on Sundays yet the impression of a decaying faith, confined to middle-aged women, is constantly being conveyed. Across Europe the number of seminarians has increased in the last 20 years from 27,000 to 29,00, yet we focus narrowly on ourselves and fail to see the bigger, brighter picture.

Christ built and expanded his tiny church through the assistance of ordinary men and women. So, too, at the end of the 20th century His message will be conveyed afresh by the people in the pews. As the 21st century beckons has any bishop asked "How would Christ have promoted His message to a 21st century audience?"?

Should not consideration at least be given to employing modern advertising and marketing techniques to reach the masses? Is His word not worth conveying as assiduously as the benefits of the latest shaving cream? The Catholic Church remains in a technological time warp, using Old Testament techniques to address a 21st century audience. The people in the pews know that the pulpit can co-exist with the satellite.

Patricia Casey is professor of psychiatry at the Mater Hospital/UCD