The overwhelming rejection of the Government’s recent family and care referendum shows the Irish people still hold a deep instinct for the family, the Apostolic Nuncio said.
Speaking at the annual general meeting of Family Solidarity, Archbishop Luis Mariano Montemayor said the vote revealed that political and cultural leaders “misread something essential” in Irish society.
“I never thought they were going to lose in that way,” he said of the Government’s proposals. “They neglected something at the core of the Irish people, the lived experience of family. People rose up and said: ‘No.’ It was a marvellous sign that there is life.”
The Nuncio said the results show Ireland’s strong attachment to family relationships even in an increasingly secular age. This, he argued, also reveals that the faith is still present at a deeper level. “Do you think the Irish have lost their faith?” he recalled being asked. “My spontaneous answer was: not at all. You have lost your devotion, yes, but not the faith.”
From this basis, Archbishop Montemayor said that the family must be understood as a living witness of Christian faith and love saying that joyful marriages rest on “fidelity, perseverance in faith, generosity in charity, and trust in trials.”
“When these values are present, they bring a profound joy,” he said. “Remove them, and we get unions that are fleeting, individualistic and selfish.”
In the end, he encouraged Catholics to present marriage positively: “Marriage is a risk, but life is a risk and a beautiful adventure. When rooted in Christ, it becomes a path to holiness and happiness.”
