wfn.org | Irish Methodist Church Vandalized

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS" by SUSAN PEEK on Aug. 11, 1991 at 13:58 Eastern,
about FULL TEXT RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (3097 notes).

Note 3094 by UMNS on Aug. 1, 1996 at 16:07 Eastern (4351 characters).

SEARCH: sectarian, violence, peace, Ireland, vandalism,
Protestant, Catholic

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

CONTACT:  Ralph E. Baker                          380(10-71){3094}
          Nashville, Tenn. (615) 742-5470             Aug. 1, 1996

Sectarian attack on Methodist Church
occurs in Northern Ireland

by Kathleen LaCamera*

          OMAGH, Northern Ireland (UMNS) -- A Methodist church in
a primarily Catholic area of Northern Ireland has been attacked in
a new and unsettling wave of sectarian violence in the region.  
     During a two week period in July, the Omagh Methodist Church
suffered an estimated $15,000 worth of damage in two separate
incidents when attackers broke windows and set off incendiary
devices inside the church.
     The Rev. Peter Good described the effect of the rampage as
"wanton" and "excessive" with 80 percent of the church's windows
destroyed and much of the interior of the building vandalized.
However, he was quick to add that on the same night that his
church was damaged, other churches, businesses and homes in Omagh
were targeted for attack also. "The whole town suffered," Good
said sadly.
     Much of the current tension and violence has been blamed on
what is known as the annual "marching season." During the months
of July and August hard-line Protestant groups hold a number of
parades throughout Northern Ireland. Most of the parades are
deliberately routed through Catholic areas. 
     Many people in these neighborhoods find the marches
provocative and intimidating. Protestants defend their right to
march citing the marches and the parade routes themselves as a
part of Northern Ireland Protestant tradition dating back hundreds
of years.
     This year, tension is running especially high in the wake of
a major stand-off in the Northern Ireland town of Drumcree between
Loyalist marchers and police in early July. After refusing to
allow marchers to parade through a Catholic area, police reversed
their decision and permitted a group of Protestants through.
Feeling betrayed by the police and frustrated at being able to do
nothing to keep marchers out, angry Catholics lashed out. Violence
and protest erupted throughout the region -- the likes of which
had not been seen in many years.
     "I think that we have to say we are still a very divided
community at many levels," said Good. "Not only at the level of
those committing the violence, but at the level of professional
people. People who might have felt themselves in the center of
this conflict now have felt themselves pushed toward the
extremes."
     Clergy in Omagh, including the local Catholic priest,
publicly expressed support for the Methodists and condemned the
violence perpetrated against them. Father Michael Keveney said he
was shocked to see what had happened and took an offering in his
congregation to help the Methodists with repairs. "Keveney was
very brave to speak out against those [Catholics] who were
responsible for the damage," said Good.
     The president of the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Rev.
Kenneth Best, appealed for "calm and restraint" during this time
of heightened tension. He also called on all in positions of
authority and leadership to choose their words carefully so that
no one takes the law into their own hands.
     With over a month to go in this year's marching season, Good
says people in Omagh feel helpless and vulnerable. The Omagh
congregation is so concerned about the escalating violence that
they will not begin repairs to the church until the season
finishes at the end of August. He adds that unless there is some
compromise about the marches between the two sides "we are in for
a terrible time."
     Both Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland continue
to express frustration with the slow progress of peace talks
between the British and Irish governments. According to Good, no
matter what the official pace of the peace process, in Omagh the
churches are now closer than ever before. And, he concludes, in "a
choice between despair and hope, we chose hope."
                              #  #  #
     * LaCamera is a United Methodist News Service correspondent
based in Europe.

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