Father Donnelly’s position

Press, 20 May 1980, Page 18

Father Donnelly’s position

Sir, — Dr Gieser (“The Press,” May 19) emphasises that children must be given the self-confidence to say "No” to unwelcome sexual overtures if society is successfully to combat childabuse. Where would an older child find such support and confidence? As a parent and one who has not forgotten what it is like to be a child, I would send it ,to a Father Donnelly rather than to a Patricia Bartlett or to any of your Monday’s correspondents on this subject. He would help it resist, not from terror of morally leprous contagion, but from dignity and inner strength that must also allow it to say “yes” with its eyes open. He would warn and inform without dismaying, since our schools are largely prevented from doing _ so. Only science and spiritual self-knowledge can guide us here, not traditionalist moralisings from miasmas of man’s miserable past. — Yours, etc., B. P. LILBURN. May 19, 1980.

Sir, — Since Vatican 11, modernists have coined the phrase, the institutional church, for those who still keep the laws of centuries and the natural law. The result has been that Catholics are confused; some are frightened to be old-fashion-ed. When bishops believe sp much in collegiality that each becomes his own pope, the case of Father Donnelly becomes one for his own bishop to decide; Catholics, complaining about his delay, are called “strident.” If one can liken the case to one of surgery, one must see that the limb, Father Donnelly, must be amputated to stop the gangrene killing the body. Of course, if the bishops are modernists. and agree secretly with Father Donnelly, he would not be amputated, if the members of the body were not complaining of pain and saw their body dying. — Yours, etc V. H. ANDERSON. May 17, 1980. Sir, — Once upon a time, a man was appointed coach of a rugby team. For a while, he did well, but then he began introducing things that were foreign to rugby. Eventually he said to the team: “Rugby’s a silly, antiquated game. I’m going to

teach you to play soccer.” So he changed the shape of the ball and of the goalposts, he marked the ground out differently and he altered all the rules. And the committee of the rugby club rose up in great anger, and said: “You can no longer be coach of this team.” And all the people who had never played rugby in their lives, and seldom even been spectators, cried tumultuously, “Unfair! Unfair!” -—Yours, etc., J. P. EDGAR. May 18, 1980.