TP O'Mahony: Whatever its aberrations, Catholicism kept society together

The decay of the Church as the main structuring force of Irish society saw the growth of a selfish individualism that stands in the way of reform today, writes TP O'Mahony

Knock, 1979: Pope John Paul II's visit to Ireland was a very different event than it would be today. Picture: Tim Graham/Getty Images

STANDS Ireland where it did? The Shakespearean idiom is borrowed from Macbeth, with Macduff’s question (about Scotland in the play) eliciting this response from Ross, his fellow knight: “Alas, poor country, almost afraid to know thyself.”

Is this where we’re at? Who are we now? In the Ireland of the 1950s, when I was growing up, these questions were much easier to answer. It was an Ireland at the centre of which stood three great institutions: The Catholic Church, the Gaelic Athletic Association, and the Irish Press.