Dr Eames sets the terms for Orangemen at Drumcree

The Church of Ireland primate, Dr Robin Eames, has asked Portadown Orangemen to honour three pledges before they would be welcome at Sunday service in Drumcree church next year.

He also called for the establishment of a civic forum in Portadown to address the grievances of all the people there, and announced an initiative on Drumcree involving himself and senior clergy in the diocese.

The three pledges are: to avoid any action, before or after the service, which would diminish the sanctity of that worship; to obey the law of the land, both before and after the service; and to respect the integrity of the Church of Ireland in word and action, making no use of church property or its environs in any civil protest following the service.

At the diocesan synod in Armagh yesterday, Dr Eames said he had been told that the Orange Order at county level in Armagh had agreed to the pledges.

In a lengthy presidential address devoted mainly to Drumcree, Dr Eames said: "I uphold the right to march. I uphold the right to attend God's church. But these must be done peaceably and within the law."

With senior diocesan colleagues, he said, he would soon be inviting the rector of Drumcree, the parish's select vestry, representatives of the Orange Order and of the Garvaghy Road Residents' Coalition to a meeting "separately or collectively".

Representatives of the wider Church of Ireland and other interested parties might be included in the discussions later, if desired.

Dr Eames acknowledged the "wedges" Drumcree had driven between people in the church, and the "bewilderment, condemnation and frustration" to which it had led. But he rejected calls to ban the service, or prevent Orangemen from attending it.

"This is not the way of the Church of Ireland, which is a welcoming church whose doors are open to all. As archbishop I uphold that principle," he said to loud applause.

There was a similar reaction when he forcefully and repeatedly condemned the violence which had taken place at Drumcree in July and since. "Those scenes are utterly, completely, and totally unacceptable in any civilised society. They are most certainly totally unacceptable to the Church of Ireland."

However, he acknowledged that condemnation was not enough and urged members of the synod to "ask searching questions of ourselves and others".

He continued: "We in the Church of Ireland have a long and proud record of loyalty to our country and respect for law and order. How tragic it is that the name of one of our parishes now has worldwide connotations of disloyalty and lawlessness.

"We in the Church of Ireland have a long and proud record of service in the security forces. Many members of this diocese have paid the supreme sacrifice at the hands of republican terrorists because they were members of the RUC, the UDR and now the RIR (Royal Irish Regiment).

"It is shameful that abuse, insults, gunfire and bombs are directed against the security forces by so-called loyalists."

Total denunciation of the Orange Order because of what had happened at Drumcree did nothing "to help honest, decent members who need to make up their minds, and should be allowed [do so], on serious issues at this time," he said. "I encourage those members - speak up, make your voices of decency heard."

Addressing Church of Ireland members of the order, he said he knew that "while so many of you deplore the violence, in your heart of hearts you believe your rights are being denied.

"You feel that at present your community has given, given, given and given again, and that there must be a line in the sand.

"While you deplore violence you honestly believe that Protestantism is being attacked from many sides . . . you want peace - but you want the security that your beliefs and way of life will be protected in the future. But there are right ways and wrong ways to express a point of view. Aren't there?"

He spoke of the fear of church members in Portadown, some of whom had been threatened, intimidated, and forced to leave their homes.

Church members along the Border suffered "the triumphant display of tricolours, the presence of posters and slogans on walls of a party-republican nature" which were "not only offensive but threatening to Church of Ireland members in isolated areas".