Opinion

How can President Trump be believed on anything, big or small?

Racism and sectarianism – the twin evils of this world.

This is the truth I have been proclaiming all my life.

It is, quite simply, another way of saying love of God and love of neighbour are the twin commandments, as explained and exemplified by Jesus Christ.

The twin evils – in effect and consequences – are the structural, institutionalised, political, economic and social way love of neighbour is denied. They are, as St Pope John Paul II, teaches the “structures of sin.” In the Ireland context and history, racism means anti-Irish and sectarianism means anti-Catholicism. In the US, of course, colour is the ‘social marker’. But the function of both racism and sectarianism is about one thing – excluding some from equality and power, whether they be  Blacks, Jews, Catholics, Muslims, immigrants, the poor etc.

Social justice is love of neighbour, organised and implemented in the neighbourhood (very apt word in this context), in the community, the country and in the world. And we know – at least we are supposed to believe – that without love of neighbour there is no love of God.

Has Donald Trump – at any time in his life, and particularly as president – ever given the slightest indication he represents these values? I know he claims to be opposed to abortion, but is that a principled moral stance or just cynical political expediency?

Indeed, it must be remembered that, in general, the white evangelical shift from having no position on abortion to the Catholic anti-abortion position was deeply cynical and about a right-wing power grab.

White evangelical Protestants generally ignored abortion until the late 1970s, even though the Supreme Court ruled on Roe v Wade on January 22 1973.

In fact, the news service of the Southern Baptist Convention welcomed the  Supreme Court ruling as advancing “religious liberty”. That was an obviously snide anti-Catholic attack as the Catholic Church was the only major Church truly opposed to abortion and, of course, all good white southern Baptists knew that “them Catholics did not believe in American freedoms” – one of the oldest anti-Catholic tropes. England’s two-fold gift to America, it must always be remembered, was slavery and vicious, mendacious anti-Catholicism.

Anti-Catholic evangelical leaders seized on the Catholic position on abortion not for moral reasons, but because “the anti-abortion crusade was more palatable than the religious right’s real motive – protecting segregated schools”, as one American expert puts it. In other words, they invented a ‘high purpose’ for the ignoble cause of segregation.

Now back to Trump’s claim to be concerned for human life. After all, it has been documented by the Washington Post that as president he has already made more than 25,000 false claims. So, how could he be believed on anything – big or small?

FR SEAN McMANUS


President, Irish National Caucus, Washington DC

There is no such thing as either a ‘conservative’ or ‘liberal’ Catholic

The remarks of Tom Kelly (November 9), typify what has effectively been an abandonment of all balance and objectivity by local, national and international media, in commentary and reporting on President Donald Trump.

The stereotyping Mr Kelly lists ‘conservative Catholics’ alongside, for example, ‘gun-toting rednecks’ and ‘anti-government militia’, as among the ‘believers’ in the ‘cult’ of Trump.

I have many good friends in the US who voted for Donald Trump. They are not ‘bigots’ or ‘racists’. Some of them voted for him, not because they admire him or approve of his obviously flawed character, but because they are worried about another more powerful form of despotism – the tyranny of the so-called ‘woke’ with their very selective ‘outrage’.

They have serious concerns about the dominance of the ‘left’ with their muting, pillorying and ‘cancelling’ of anyone who dares to reject their ideologies. It was not the supporters of Joe Biden who were being silenced on social media and generally held up to scorn and ridicule.

Furthermore, there is no such thing as either a ‘conservative’ or ‘liberal’ Catholic. There are only faithful Catholics. After that you have apostates and the lapsed.   

Many of the faithful Catholics and their fellow Christians, who voted for Donald Trump, did so because they could not countenance voting for the extreme pro-abortion policies of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.   

Millions of Americans saw no alternative but to vote Trump. There was no landslide for Joe Biden. If he and his advisers are serious about ‘healing and uniting’ America, they need to pay attention to the real concerns of almost half the nation.

FR PATRICK McCAFFERTY


Belfast BT12

Discourse needed to address serious interfaith deterioration

May I make a suggestion to President Macron of France following this latest murderous attack by fanatics purporting to represent the best interests of the Muslim religion. Invite all Imams operating within France and perhaps outside – include any other religious leaders who may wish to attend – and hold a comprehensive discourse to address this serious interfaith deterioration within the French community and prevent it from getting out of control. He could even be magnanimous and invite President Erdogan of Turkey to these discussions.

The fanatics seem to come from outside France, which may need a border check system upgrade, but what is really wanted is for the Imams to warn their followers against the hubris of taking the veneration of the Prophet in vain.

The Muslim religion is so much stronger and resilient than to be affected by cartoons or any other heresies, which definitely cannot influence either His supreme power or His true ability to forgive, which does not seem to exist with His worldwide followers. Once this disgraceful, but legal, lampooning of the Muslim religion receives no real response (the whole raison d’etre for doing so), it will fade away to just the occasional jibe, now and again.

EDWARD MURPHY


Ballycastle, Co Antrim

Differing opinions

Brian Wilson (November 3) contradicts Patrick Murphy who stated that de Valera took Ireland out of the Commonwealth. Mr Wilson says that it was John A Costello, a Fine Gael taoiseach, who in accordance with the ROI Act 1948, took them out of the Commonwealth. Although my letter (October 16) was to establish who took Ireland out of the Commonwealth, Brian Wilson says that de Valera failed to advance the 26 counties into a Church-free and modern state.

I would be interested in his opinion that during the same period Stormont were establishing a  Protestant parliament for a Protestant people.

SEAN O’LOUGHLIN


Belleek, Co Fermanagh