Prayers & Protests

Pope Francis visited Ireland for the first time in August 2018 for the World Meeting of Families. This story, Prayers & Protests, focuses on the protest surrounding the papal visit and those who turned out to welcome the pope. ! The Pope visited a changed Ireland compared to the last time a Pope visited the country in 1979. In 1979 homosexuality was a crime, Ireland’s current prime minister is gay. It was decriminalised in 1993 and in 2015 Ireland became the first country in the world to allow same-sex marriage through a referendum. In 1979 abortion was illegal and on 25 May 2018 the Irish people voted by 66.4% to 33.6% to legalise abortion. Divorce was also illegal in 1979 and in 1995 Ireland voted by referendum to allow divorce. In 1979 around 88% of the Irish population attend mass on a weekly basis, the 2016 Census showed that that to be 41.3% of the population. The Catholic Church used to wield great power in Ireland but has seen a steep decline in influence, vocations and mass attendance due to the series of child sexual abuse scandals and the exploitation of women in mother and baby homes.