Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin North Central, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate from where Senator Katherine Zappone is coming. I am reminded of the G. K. Chesterton quote about Christianity, that it would be great if anybody bothered to try it.

Addressing amendments Nos. 4 and 11 to amendment No. 13 together, there is a weight of volumes setting out the belief systems of individual churches and other religious groups. There are theological and practice differences not just between but also within particular denominations. There is a line which we should not cross. The State should not, as a matter of principle, involve itself in seeking to define - even indirectly - what individual denominations do or do not hold central to their ethos. If we want to achieve a genuine separation of church and State - I share this objective with the Senators - we should not start with the State putting a mechanism in place to regulate how religious groups define what they believe in.