Former Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has urged fellow politicians to resist the temptation to demonise the Church [1] and ignore the huge contribution of Catholic education to society.
Mr Flanagan said that citizens owed priests and religious a huge debt of gratitude for their tireless commitment, especially when the State lacked the will to be more hands-on in education or other areas of society.
“Too often nowadays it’s popular – or almost fashionable – to knock the Catholic Church, to dismiss the Catholic Church.
“Undoubtedly its [the Church’s] role in the education in our country has been substantial and still remains significant,” He said.