Church must reach out to help young people

I think many families in Ireland would take offence at Fr McGillicuddy’s comments (Letters, June 13).

He suggests that it is a lack of faith that has led to many of the social problems dominating Irish modern life today, and that parents can prevent these by ensuring that their children abide by the Christian ethos.

He suggests that only the families that don’t practise their faith are affected by drug and alcohol abuse, teenage pregnancy, the widespread transmission of STIs, and suicide among young people.

While he is probably correct in noting that Irish people are not as devout as previous generations, it is naive to assume that the social problems I have just outlined can be directly addressed by regular church attendance and prayers. Low self-esteem, peer pressure and lack of communication between family members are just a few of the ways in which young lives are affected by the issues above.

Religion can be a wonderful sanctuary for us all, but the Church has to reach out to help young people instead of saying their lack of faith is the root of the problem.

Olivia Hegarty

Skibbereen

Co Cork