“That the bishops and the nuncio don’t want to engage in
a structured way with the ACP (Association of Catholic Priests) is
symbolic of a church adrift, a church stuck, a church in denial, a
church with 26 kingdoms, an Irish church on a parallel path to that
which Pope Francis speaks about, an Irish church attached and addicted
to an ecclesial vision that is at variance to what Pope Francis is
trying to build.” (Redemptorist Fr. Gerry O’Connor)
Irish priests’ ever-increasing workload is threatening to
turn this aging, demoralized and declining group into
‘sacrament-dispensing machines’ who find pastoral work less and less
satisfying, a co-founder of Ireland’s Association of Catholic Priests
has warned.