“PEACE is the fruit of solidarity... Solidarity is not a feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so many people, both near and far. On the contrary, it is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good; that is to say, to the good of all and of each individual, because we are all really responsible for all.” (St Pope John Paul II, On Social Concern, Sollicitudo rei Socialis, no 38) December 30 1987).
The Pope’s teaching on solidarity and Blessed Martin Luther King jnr’s teaching on The Beloved Community provides a beautiful vision for a new Ireland. And, lest we forget, John Paul II also taught – in the words of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace – “Peace is founded not only on human rights but also on respect for the rights of peoples, in particular the right to independence”. (Page 69 #157).
How many Catholic Bishops in Ireland and Britain passed on that teaching?
In the same section, the Compendium states: “The Magisterium points out the international law ‘rests upon equal respect for states, for each peoples’ right to self-determination and for their free cooperation in view of the higher common good of humanity’.”
And the King Center explains: “Dr King’s Beloved Community is a global vision, in which all people can share in the wealth of the earth. In the Beloved Community, poverty, hunger, and homelessness will not be tolerated because international standards of human decency will not allow it. Racism and all forms of discrimination, bigotry, and prejudice will be replaced by an all-inclusive spirit of sisterhood and brotherhood.”
This is the spirit of the internet “One Ireland Petition” launched by the Irish National Caucus: “Ireland, too, has the right to be One Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
As of March 11, this splendid petition has been signed by more than 26,300 caring and dedicated people – and the number will keep growing and growing.
The guiding principle of the petition is, of course, solidarity, which St Pope John Paul II raised to a virtue. And the petition embodies the four values of the just society: Truth, Justice, Love, and Freedom, all incorporated in The Beloved Community for all of Ireland, north, south, east, and west.
Please sign the petition —https://www.change.org/IrelandOneNation
As always, it is the regular people of Ireland who have led the way in signing. As far as I know – and I’ve received hundreds of questions about this – only one MP in the north, and one TD in the south have signed.
Fr Sean McManus
President
Irish National Caucus
Washington, DC 20003-0849
Let’s make devolution work for us – we can do it
THERE are not too many advantages in getting older other than memories, primarily all the mistakes. One doesn’t remember much of the positives.
I remember three destructive and pointless IRA campaigns, I remember innumerable fruitless demonstrations of unionist anger.
And still we demonstrate our inability to act sensibly, progressively and respectfully.
Our main politicians’ aspirations are driven by two opposing views of a bright and wonderful future.
Neither of which spell out how they achieve mixing oil with water.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland still remains at the bottom of various leagues, such as education, health, productivity.
We as a society must give our politicians encouragement to move forward, we must stop the continuous holding back of decisions and actions. We must stop the naysayers dominating our lives.
We have another opportunity (imposed on us by outsiders, Brexit was largely England’s vote) to take the bull by the horns and make the new Boris Johnson rules work for us.
We are told that devolution helps make smaller units move more swiftly, economically and progressively.
Let us do it – and we can do it.
Tom Ekin
Belfast BT1
Varadkar is demonstrating double standards over border poll
IS the tánaiste not showing double standards when he insists that northern nationalists secure the agreement of unionists before they seek a border poll on a possible united Ireland?
As taoiseach Mr Varadkar recently negotiated the Northern Irish protocol, creating a trade border between the north and Britain.
And he did so without the agreement of the same unionists.
Neither he nor his British counterpart even bothered consulting them.
Mr Varadkar felt (and presumably still feels) justified in his actions because the majority on this island supported the protocol.
On the question of a border poll, nobody is suggesting the unionists should be ignored in the conversations and input surrounding it. Quite the contrary.
However, the tánaiste is proposing a continued unionist veto on this island’s future in aeternum.
How undemocratic that proposal is.
Billy Fitzpatrick
Dublin 6
