The 'choice' not to practice religion is a myth in Irish education

There is a striking irony in how Irish people discuss America’s freefall into theocracy, undergirded by a rise in Christian nationalism — we treat it like fascism, while blithely ignoring our own almost entirely doctrinal education system

You might say: 'I’m not religious, but we’re doing the Communion for the grandparents and the big day out.' File picture

When I moved my family back to Ireland last summer after years in the United States, I expected the reverse culture shock to involve horizontal rain or my lost ability to engage in small talk. 

Instead, it happened as soon as I started thinking about school enrolment. I returned to an Ireland that looks, on the surface, inclusive and forward-looking: the creche my daughter attends is a microcosm of a diverse Ireland.