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Deplorable! That's the only way to describe the recent attacks
on churches in Bloomfield and Ballygomartin Road.
Things have reached a sorry state when two Protestant churches
- St. Donard's in East Belfast, and Ballygomartin Presbyterian
- can be attacked in broad daylight by young people.
These were not sectarian attacks, so that means that youngsters
whose families are probably proud to call themselves Protestant,
indulged in throwing slates and missiles at these two churches
when services were being held.
That's a terrible indictment of how behaviour has deteriorated
in Northern Ireland, and there is a huge onus on society,
including the parents of young children to do everything possible
to keep them out of trouble.
Not so many years ago the very concept of churches of any
denomination being attacked would have been considered unthinkable.
Going back to the time of the 'Depression' in the 1930s,
when there was grinding poverty in Belfast and provincial
towns, people respected places of worship.
Today, we hear talk of youngsters being 'bored', whatever
that means. Northern Ireland is an awful lot more prosperous
than in any previous era, there are community centres, and
most young people have access to computers and to television.
No, that excuse will not do, because as recent as the 1950s,
there was real hardship in Ulster, and young people would
have considered a day at the seaside or a trip to some other
Northern Ireland town as being one of the highlights of the
year.
The real reason for the deterioration lies in the lack of
respect so apparent among many young people. They don't show
respect for teachers in school, or for clergy and ministers.
It isn't just the young people out of control who are to
blame. That lies mainly with a society that loosened or removed
many of the great bulwarks of family and the wider society
when it opened public house and places of entertainment on
Sundays, and legalised many dubious practices.
Today, many parents do not meet their obligations to their
children - obligations made when children are baptised and
christened. It is no longer standard practice for children
to be sent to Sunday School or become members of young organisations
like the Boy's Brigade or Boy Scouts.
In our own Orange organisation, many dedicated men and women
give outstanding service to the Junior Orange Order. However,
they could do much more if the numbers were as they were some
decades ago, and it is surely time for parents to encourage
their offspring to join the Junior Orange and similar youth
organisations.
Sadly, it will take a real effort on the part of all concerned
people to turn things round.
The police have a responsibility too, and it was disappointing
to read that the PSNI response to the Bloomfield incident
was not as quick as it could have been.
But the real onus lies on parents, and one can only hope
that they take on board the message that it is time to bring
their children to church and Sunday school, and to keep an
eye on their leisure activities, and make it their business
to see that they are not causing trouble.
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