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The recent declaration by Church of Ireland Archbishop of
Dublin, the Rev. Dr. John Neill, that his Church has been
“compromised very seriously” in the past by its
links with the Orange Order, is a reflection on the fact that
the Archbishop has never served in a pastoral capacity in
Northern Ireland, writes an Orange Standard correspondent.
It is unlikely that the Archbishop’s views will be
shared by most of his clerical colleagues in Northern Ireland,
and certainly not by the overwhelming majority of the laity.
From its earliest day, the Orange Order in Ireland has enjoyed
the support of influential elements of the Church of Ireland.
Down the years many clergy, including a number of bishops,
have been Orangemen, and a large percentage of rank-and-file
Orangemen have been members of the Church of Ireland.
Many traditional Orange services, including the most famous,
at Drumcree, are held in Church of Ireland churches, and it
is fair to say that in every case the brethren are welcomed
by the clergy and laity.
Dr. Neill claimed that his Church had been compromised very
seriously in the past in Northern Ireland, through its links,
“apparent rather than actual” with the Orange Order.
Dr. Neill, in an article in a magazine, said this was “very
unfortunate and very damaging to us in the Republic.”
He also said he had “very little sympathy” for
the way the Drumcree parades issue was not handled “more
firmly” in the mid-1990s.
The Archbishop admitted he had never served in Northern
Ireland, and would not have the sensitivity of local people,
regarding parades.
Dr. Neill is entitled to his views, and he is a clergyman
held in the highest respect, but it is fair to say that his
comments underline the wide gulf in thinking which often occurs
between Protestants in the Republic and Northern Ireland.
The Church of Ireland is a cross-border church, like the
other main Protestant denominations, Presbyterian and Methodist,
and it can be termed a “broad church” in the true
sense of the term.
The embarrassment on the part of some Church of Ireland
people in the Republic over the parades issue is understandable,
given the tiny percentage of Protestants which now live in
the Republic – less than five per cent.
Republican and nationalist propaganda has demonised the
Orange Order, and this has undoubtedly put pressure on Protestants
in the Republic to distance themselves from their Northern
Ireland co-religionists on such matters.
But Ulster Protestants, including those in Monaghan, Cavan
and Donegal, are entitled to make their stand for what they
believe in, and to make their case for belonging to the Orange
Order.
The courageous stand of the rector of Drumcree, the Rev.
John Pickering is one which will strike a more sympathetic
chord with Orange brethren, and one suspects, the vast majority
of Church of Ireland folk, rather than the criticism of Dr.
John Neill.
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