Irish Catholics Say That They Want Married Priests

A new survey has laid bare the massive disconnect between the Catholic Church and members of its flock in Ireland.

Commissioned by the Catholic Priests Association, the study showed that Irish

Catholics want priests to be allowed to marry, an end to clerical celibacy and women to be ordained.

Three quarters of those surveyed said the church's teachings on matters of sexuality had "no relevance" to them or their families.

The survey shows that Ireland still has one of the highest weekly mass attendances in Europe with 35%.

Yet the one thousand people surveyed, who all described themselves as Catholic, clearly believe that the church's hierarchy is increasingly out of touch with their lives.

The main findings of the survey included:

• 87 per cent of Irish Catholics believe priests should be allowed marry;
• 77 per cent believe there should be women priests;
• 72 per cent believe older, married, men should be allowed become priests;
• 46 per cent "disagree strongly" with the church's teaching on homosexuality while just 5 per cent "agree strongly";
• 87 per cent believe divorced and/or separated people in a second stable relationship should be allowed to take Communion; and,
• 55% of respondents said they believed bishops should serve a fixed term - as opposed to the current arrangement where they remain in the role until the age of 75.

The survey also revealed that most catholics believed the church in Ireland is too subservient to Rome, and that the voice of lay people is not listened to enough.

There were also criticisms of recent changes to the Catholic Missal, with Catholics preferring the old wordings.

The Association of Catholic Priests said the survey results reflected what priests had been hearing from their parishioners.

Father Sean McDonagh, a member of the leadership team of the Association of Catholic Priests, said that the survey "confirms that those who are advocating for change in the church are not a tiny minority, but are, in fact, at the heart of the church."

He said Irish Catholics are "crying out for change and do not want the church to go backward, but to move forward and change."

In a statement, the country's bishops said: "The recent Apostolic Visitation highlighted the need for a new focus on the dignity and role of all the faithful and for deeper formation in the faith.

"The results of this survey confirm the importance of all in the Church taking up this task in a spirit of communion and sharing the good news of the Gospel in a rapidly changing social and cultural environment in Ireland today."

The survey findings are expected to be discussed at the 'Towards an Assembly of the Irish Catholic Church' conference on May 7th next at the Regency Hotel in Dublin.

They come amid increasingly poor relations between Ireland's Catholics and the church's leadership in Rome.

Last week, an Irish priest was effectively silenced by the Vatican when the religious magazine for which he wrote a monthly column was ordered not to publish any more of his articles.