We know that morality preceded the Bible as it seems distinctly unlikely that murder, rape, theft etc were considered virtuous before Moses went wandering in the desert.
Buddah preached “love thy neighbour” 500 years before Jesus and believed in a universal moral code. Yet there are those who maintain that our moral compass is reliant on God’s instructions as adumbrated in the Bible.
Turlough Quinn (February 6) believes that moral relativism leads to a “confused conscience which blurs our sensitivity” to the extent that we are unable to distinguish between the life of a child and that of a chick.
He adduces this absurd and pejorative moral ambivalence with his deliberate juxtaposition of the proposed ban on culling chicks in France with that country’s abortion laws ignoring the reality that the proposed ban would have no more relevance in the abortion debate than the laws to protect our pets.
He abdicates any sense of consistency by applying this confused conscience to the perpetrators of our troubles-related killings forgetting that they were not driven by any moral relativism but rather a sectarianism grounded in an ambivalent moral code outlined in a discrepant holy book.
In July 1943, France guillotined Marie-Louise Giraud for assisting with the termination of pregnancies most of which were the result of rape by the occupying Nazis.
Could Mr Quinn advise what moral code in devoutly Catholic France rationalised this execution?
Was this the same moral code which allowed Mother Teresa at her Nobel prize ceremony to prioritise abortion as “the greatest evil in the world”, even ahead of genocide, nuclear annihilation or the starvation of millions caused by religious conflict in Africa?
Her words are capable of being understood in the context of the morality of the Ten Commandments. The first four have nothing to o with morality and more to do ith a jealous, spiteful deity orried that His name might be taken in vain.
The remaining “do nots”are no more than that which any sensible person would conceive in attempting to create a civilised society.
Whatever the source of our morals it is not from a holy book with origins in the desert myths of the Middle East.
DANNY TREACY
Ballyclare, Co Antrim
Fasting should come freely not by ecclesiastical obligation
When I first went to Jaffa, Israel to work as a chef for an Anglican guest house a different choice of breakfast was offered each morning of the week. One of the choices was homemade pancakes, or crepes, which had to be tossed in a very hot frying pan. Some of the volunteer workers from various countries assigned to this duty dreaded the ominous ‘pancake day’ as it often had its share of disasters, giving them the in-house nickname of ‘panic cakes’.
In the various hotel and catering establishments I have worked in over the years, even if they were secular, there was always the obligatory ‘Pancake Day’ or ‘Shrove Tuesday,’ even though the tradition is linked to the fasting of Lent that begins the following day on Ash Wednesday, observed by Protestant and Catholic denominations as a precursor to Easter. Today many folk celebrate this holiday without even realising its ecclesiastical connections. It was a day to use up eggs, milk and other rich foods before the 40-day fasting period.
This gave rise to the name ‘carnival’ coming from the Latin ‘carnem levare’ (to take away the flesh) and for others ‘Mardi Gras’ meaning ‘Fat Tuesday’.
I have never panicked making pancakes, but I do question whether Jesus would actually require this practice from anyone who chooses to follow Him? Certainly there were no such traditions in the early Church. Jesus fasted in the wilderness for us. We don’t need to do it ourselves. Fasting can come freely at any time of the year but not by ecclesiastical obligation. Besides, following Him and not religious traditions invented by men is the best recipe for success in my book.
COLIN NEVIN
Bangor, Co Down
Well done Mary Lou we are all proud of you
In the recent elections in the Republic you would wonder if anybody but the Sinn Féin brigade were out in such force in the lead up to it.
The unprecedented tsunami against Sinn Féin from northern unionists, media north/south, newspaper columnists, claimed that Sinn Féin was not fit for government.
We had never, never, never by Labour, Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael – where did we hear those shouts in the past? – RTÉ letting Sinn Féin at the last minute to enter the leaders’ debate and other northern politicians relentlessly coming at Sinn Féin from all angles.
But at the end of the day with only half the candidates that Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael put up they won the election because people can see through tsunamis against Sinn Féin. All credit to the Sinn Féin team. So well done Mary Lou, we’re all proud of you both north/south we know you’ll bring us through.
ALAN McKAY
Larne, Co Antrim
