Until surprisingly recently the history of the Irish Catholic Church during the Northern Irish Troubles was written by Irish priests and bishops and was commemorative, rather than analytical. This study uses the Troubles as a case study to evaluate the role of the Catholic Church in mediating conflict.
During the Troubles, these priests and bishops often worked behind the scenes, acting as go-betweens for the British government and republican paramilitaries, to bring about a peaceful solution. However, this study also looks more broadly at the actions of the American, Irish and English Catholic Churches, as well as that of the Vatican, to uncover the full impact of the Church on the conflict. This critical analysis of previously neglected state, Irish, and English Catholic Church archival material changes our perspective on the role of a religious institution in a modern conflict.
Author(s): Margaret M. Scull
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Year: 2019
Language: English
Pages: 256
City: Oxford
Cover
The Catholic Church and the Northern Ireland Troubles, 1968–1998
Copyright
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
List of Figures
List of Abbreviations
Introduction: ‘Religion from Rome, Politics from Home’?
Sources and their Limitations
Historiography
Structure
1: ‘From Civil Rights to Armalites’
Civil Rights Movement
Clerical Legitimacy
The British Army
Internment
Bloody Sunday
Conclusion
2: ‘The Demands of Justice Must be Stated before the Words of Peace Find a Receptive Ground, 1972–1976’
Breakdown of the July 1972 Provisional IRA Ceasefire
Sectarian Murders
Growing Politicization of the Clergy
Internment
Conclusion
3: ‘The Men of Violence’, 1976–1981
1976–1978: The Blanket Protest
1978–1980: The ‘No Wash’ or ‘Dirty’ Protest
1980 Hunger Strike
1981 Hunger Strike
Conclusion
4: ‘To Remind Catholics that Support for the IRA and SF was not Compatible with Membership of the Catholic Church’, 1982–1990
The Church and Sinn Féin
New Ireland Forum and Report
Irish Prisoners in Britain
Concerted Peace Efforts
Remembrance Day/Enniskillen Bombing
Extradition
Republican Paramilitary Funerals
Funerals for Sectarian Killings
Death of the Cardinal
Conclusion
5: ‘Let history judge who was to blame’, 1990–1998
Declining Support for the Provisional IRA?
Community Relations
Peace Talks: Clergy as Intermediaries
Clerical Child Abuse
Increased Sectarian Attacks
Peace Process and the Good Friday Agreement
Conclusion
Conclusion: ‘The Church Needs to do a Reality Check’
APPENDIX: Important Figures
Fr Brian Brady (1927–1987)
Archbishop Sean Brady (b. 1939)
Fr Patrick ‘Pat’ Buckley* (b. 1952)
Sr Sarah Clarke (1920–2002)
Cardinal William Conway (1913–1977)
Fr Oliver Crilly
Cardinal Cahal Daly (1917–2009)
Bishop Edward ‘Eddie’ Daly* (1933–2016)
Bishop Neil Farren (1895–1980)
Mgr Denis Faul (1932–2006)
Fr Patrick Fell (1940–2011)
Fr Robert ‘Bobby’ Gilmore* (b. 1938)
Cardinal John Carmel Heenan (1905–1975)
Cardinal Basil Hume (1923–1999)
Fr Gerry McFlynn*
Archbishop John Charles McQuaid (1895–1973)
Fr Joseph ‘Joe’ McVeigh* (b. 1945)
Fr Anthony ‘Tony’ Mulvey (1926–2010)
Fr John Murphy (1929–2016)
Mgr Raymond Murray*
Sr (Mary) Genevieve O’Farrell (1923–2001)
Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich (1923–1990)
Bishop William Philbin (1907–1991)
Fr Alec Reid (1931–2013)
Fr Gerry Reynolds (1935–2015)
Dr Geraldine Smyth OP* (b. 1948)
Mgr Tom Toner (1936–2012)
Fr Desmond ‘Des’ Wilson* (b. 1925)
Archbishop Derek Worlock (1920–1996)
Bibliography
Government Archives
Church and Diocesan Archives
Derry Diocesan Archives (DeDA), Derry, United Kingdom
Dublin Diocesan Archives (DDA), Dublin, Republic of Ireland
Liverpool Archdiocesan Archives (LAA), Liverpool, United Kingdom
Other Archives
Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN), University of Ulster, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
Prisons Memory Archive (PMA), Queen’s University Belfast, United Kingdom
Interviews
Newspapers/Media Outlets
Booklets and Pamphlets
Journals and Magazines
Speeches
Memoirs/Diaries
Reports
Books
Journal Articles
Chapters in Books
Theses
Film
Audio Recording
Index
