Paschal Mooney (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

As a co-signatory of the motion, I wish to express my solidarity with my colleagues on all sides of the House. I will not go into a very long discourse on the merits or otherwise of having Pope Francis visit this Chamber and, by extension, visiting Ireland. However, it is important that we express an opinion. The fact that this motion is before the House and that the Seanad is passing a motion endorsing the recommendations also elevates the invitation to a much higher level than what would normally be the case if it was just coming through the CPP.

In the context of the impact Pope Francis is having in his short tenure, I looked up what were the top ten papal quotes. I will not quote all of the ten but some of them are relevant as to why I believe a man of his immense humanity and ability should come to Ireland. It is said that he is "making waves by challenging Catholic leaders to build a 'church for the poor', urging the hierarchy not to be 'obsessed' with a few hot-button issues and challenging 'trickle-down' economic theories." That alone is a reason that we should invite him. Of course, his most famous quote was that relating to his attitude towards homosexuality. What he actually said in an interview aboard the papal plane after World Youth Day in Brazil was "if someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?" I think that was an extraordinary statement coming from the Pope when one looks at the history of oppression experienced by those who are gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender down through the ages. He also said

A person once asked me, in a provocative manner, if I approved of homosexuality. I replied with another question: "Tell me: when God looks at a gay person, does he endorse the existence of this person with love, or reject and condemn this person?" We must always consider the person.

He also talks about the sanctity of human life, which is another reason to invite him because the vast majority of people in this country also value the sanctity of human life and he would, therefore, be coming to a society that would reflect his own views in that regard. He has said:

Just as the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" sets a clear limit in order to safeguard the value of human life, today we also have to say "thou shalt not" to an economy of exclusion and inequality. Such an economy kills. How can it be that it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is news when the stock market loses two points?

How apt but it also gives an insight into the humanity of this great man.

The changing nature of Irish society and, in some ways, the loosening of the bonds that existed between the Irish people and the Catholic Church as an institution is indicated by an interview conducted on behalf of major Jesuit journals around the world. In the interview, he said:

Instead of being just a church that welcomes and receives by keeping the doors open, let us try also to be a church that finds new roads, that is able to step outside itself and go to those who do not attend Mass, to those who have quit or are indifferent. The ones who quit sometimes do it for reasons that, if properly understood and assessed, can lead to a return. But that takes audacity and courage.

If one looks at even those selected quotes, it gives a very rare insight into the thinking of this man. He is thinking in a contemporary context that is much different from his predecessor. I believe they are as different as chalk and cheese and that Pope Benedict was a very conservative, dyed-in-the-wool orthodox Catholic. Senator Walsh was exploring Pope Francis's background in South America and the development of liberation theology. He has been influenced by all of that to an extraordinary extent - far more so than any European pope would have been, which must be a good thing.