Don’t get me wrong, I like having the psychology and values of Irish Catholicism in the 21st century. Thou shalt not lie, is right up there for me. Along with the liberation theology I learnt from priests at sixth form college – the thing you truly want to do being the most moral, the most rational and the happiest choice, all in one. When you get it right in your head.
But my mum and dad were trapped in the fear and repression of a harsh dogma of control through guilt and blind obedience to a code. They were in reverence not so much to God but to the power of a church establishment and the egos of the priest.
They tried to pass that on. They believed that if they didn’t their children would be lost in a vacuum filled by the predatory evil of a corrupt society. And there’s truth in that. But that meant feeling bad about who you are. We were nothings. Worms. Taught to bow our head to a greater authority.
The worst aspect for adolescence was the condemnation of sexuality, the sin. Even worse than the sin of pride and thinking you know best. It wasn’t just homosexuality – which meant an instant trip to hell – but all sexuality.
So you felt bad and wrong for being horny. And being horny is perfectly normal and natural for every human being. That’s how we reproduce. And there’s a certain amount of gay sex in the animal kingdom, including human beings, which is also perfectly normal. It is human.
Eventually even the pope came round to that opinion, much to the chagrin of various right wing clergy. “Persons with homosexual tendencies are children of God. God loves them.” Pope Francis 2023.
My Nan wouldn’t have liked that when she was alive. She thought the word “gay” had been ruined by homosexuals as it used to be a lovely word to describe happiness before they took it. But, love her as I did for her kindness to her grandchildren, she also said “too many darkies on the bus” which we took as reflection of how a former mill worker might think in the 1970s. Afraid of a different skin colour. Old school.
Then it turns out that the Catholic church was covering up for active padeophile priests, moving on instead of informing the police. Letting them abuse knowingly. Obviously the holy priests were not speaking the word of God directly from God after all. How could they be holy when the church had proven to have evil practices. Child abuse.
Obviously you could write a book on all this and here we are on a quick blog.
All I can say is that my parents passed on the wrong kind of guilt. The Spanish Inquisition was a torture regime which would have lead to asylum seekers running away in 2025. To escape the religious dictatorship. That’s something worth holding Catholic guilt for.
Like the British Empire’s death camps in Kenya or calculated mass starvations of large populations. These are the things we should never overlook. Embedded evil in religious institutions, religious dictatorships and hidden within the secrecy of religious neworks and homes. It’s impossible to deny its existence.
Human beings all over the world torture, rape, abuse, sex traffic, hide money on offshore accounts, campaign to encourage race hate or deny climate change science. We’re not nice and yes, religious values do provide us with guidelines, self control, justice – UK law is based on this. Democracy and freedom, kindness and tolerance, useful work, these are the values I truly believe in. No doubt they come from traditions and morality.
In contrast, I consider my parents view to be stunted by fear and the power of the church. I’m glad to have shaken much of it off. Liberated by social progress. Altough I still like being a Catholic and thinking like one, watching Ireland play on the TV, singing traditional Irish songs, telling stories.
When I meet fervent religious people in 2025 I feel slightly concerned and slightly bored but not intolerant. The glazed look in their eyes, the self-hypnosis glory-trip, be they Born Again Christians or strict Muslims. I’m not deeply interested. I’ve been there myself though so I can’t judge. Prayer, visualisation, music, spreading love, finding inner magic, it does give us meaning and comfort.
With my British Muslim friends and the strict response to drinking a beer in a pub as evil is something I try to ignore. Because drinking a pint in a pub is a tradition I enjoy. It can be friendly, sociable, relaxing and a place to truly be yourself. And no, I’m not an alcoholic thanks.
In my head I’m thinking..for an Irish Catholic a pint of stout is God’s gift. Surely. But you know, it’s better to smile and stay friends.
Mike Kneafsey Guitar 