Letters to the Editor: Reducing waiting lists for learner drivers
A relaxation of rules should reduce the waiting times for driving tests.
I am a learner driver and two things the Road Safety Authority should think about doing — if they want to reduce the waiting lists for learner drivers — are:
- Bring back the way they used to do it: Get applicants to do a medical and eyesight test and bring the reports in to get a licence.
- If candidates have missed out by a small margin on their driving tests they should still let them pass their test.
That should reduce the waiting times for driving tests.
While a lot of people have been critical of the Covid-19 level 5 restriction on attending Mass, scant attention has been paid to the manner in which the Sabbath itself has lost much of its distinctive identity.
This seems extremely sad as the cyclical nature of Sunday is an integral component of the week and pivotal to its widely accepted structure.
While the intangible feeling associated with Sunday persists, much of the tranquillity and uniqueness of the day have been ruined by modern customs and practices.
For instance, most urban thoroughfares and shopping centres are invariably buzzing with lots of shoppers on Sunday afternoons. This type of hustle and bustle seems inappropriate and over-commercialised.
It is clear that people have allowed themselves to be inveigled into a way of life, which has resulted in Sunday being absorbed into the structure of the working week.
While decrees regarding the need to observe the ‘holiness of the Sabbath Day’ have been embedded in religious doctrine, it would be wise for all of us to observe such a dictate regardless of our beliefs or scepticisms.
These places of worship, are, in fact, invariably peaceful and can be ideal sites for reflective meditation.
Such practices are undoubtedly reenergising and comforting and are helpful to those who are stressed by the expectations and competitiveness of many modern workplaces.
These tranquil, peaceful havens are open to all community members who are welcome to use them as they wish.
While those who remain loyal to their faith will welcome the resumption of religious services, it seems fair to suggest that the preservation of our local churches and the distinctiveness of the Sabbath should be of paramount concern to all.
The universe seems to be in a state of crisis fuelled by fear of the pandemic, corporate greed, racism, overdependence on technology, and such like.
Taking time out to attend Mass or the service of one’s choice, or simply choosing to visit one’s local church, when convenient, could lead to enhanced personal health, happiness and tolerance.
It is all too easy to forget that life is short and unpredictable, as we have all witnessed during the last 12 months.
I would like to pay tribute to a Dublin-born priest, Fr Padraig Ó Saoraí (or Patrick Seery), who I knew for more than 20 years through his advocacy for animal protection causes.
He served in a number of posts in his native county before moving to Athy, Co Kildare. Unfortunately I lost contact with him and only recently learned that he died in 2018; he was in his mid-90s.
Throughout his career Fr Ó Saoraí was famed for his sermons. They were stylistic masterpieces, reflecting his scriptural scholarship and avid reading of world literature, especially the classics.
He would typically begin in a humdrum, easy-going tone, as if indulging a set routine or initiating a casual chat, but his presentation would then take an unexpected turn to captivate Mass-goers and guarantee their undivided attention.
His voice had a sonorous allure, and his tallness, combined with his somewhat gaunt complexion, gave him an ascetic demeanor redolent of a man of God from another age.
Other clerics admitted to studying his method of delivery in an effort to brush up on their own preaching.
It drew the plaudits of compassionate people from all over Ireland and abroad and, inevitably, the barbs of those involved in various forms of animal cruelty, whether legal or prohibited.
Side by side with his calling to serve God he felt he was in some way also “called” to speak out on behalf of the millions of creatures in our world that suffer untold misery, much of it inflicted by humans.
As a teenager, he’d never pass an injured bird or animal, or if he saw someone beating a donkey or horse he’d try to reason with them, pointing out that this was one of God’s creatures and deserved to be treated as such.
His interventions might elicit scorn or hostility, but occasionally his message hit home and the perpetrator agreed to re-think his errant behavior.
Reading , the young Padraig discovered that many of them had a special place in their hearts for the animals.
In particular he was inspired by the example of St Francis of Assisi, who regarded the “lesser beings” as his brothers and sisters and decried any ill-treatment of them.
And he read of the Irish saints like Brigid and Kevin, who also exemplified compassion towards non-humans.
Throughout his training for the priesthood Padraig shared his vision of a world where animals fared better with his fellow students, eliciting a variety of responses, ranging from approval to shrugs of indifference.
But he felt that any discussion of the issue could only help the animals, however obliquely.
As a curate in Harold’s Cross in the 1970s he availed of the annual Feast of St Francis in October to address man’s relationship with the animal kingdom.
The Feast of St Blaize afforded another opportunity to broach the subject because, as he reminded, Blaize risked his life by freeing captive wild animals destined for the Roman coliseum.
He referred to the saint on one occasion as “possibly the world’s first hunt saboteur”. He officiated at animal blessings at Harold’s Cross.
Cats, dogs, pigeons, rabbits, and horses arrived in abundance, but also the odd hamster, turtle, or goldfish.
The blessings continued when he was appointed as Parish Priest of Ayrfield, a position he held from 1980 to 1997.
In the mid-1970s he co-founded a group called the Catholic Study Circle for Animal Welfare with actor Des Perry, who was well known for his role in RTÉ’s long running TV drama and his many acclaimed stage performances.
Des edited a newsletter produced by the group, and became a staunch supporter of Fr Ó Saoraí’s endeavors to highlight the plight of animals.
The group sought to make the Catholic Church’s teaching on animal cruelty more widely known.
Though he felt that the Church could be more outspoken on the issue, Fr Ó Saoraí emphasised that it had always been clear in its message that cruelty to animals was contrary to the Christian ethos, and he published quotes from a range of theologians, saints, and church scholars to reinforce this point.
Fr Ó Saoraí traversed the country to join protests against activities such as hare coursing, fox hunting, cruelty to greyhounds, and badger snaring.
From the mid-1970s right up to 2010 he journeyed to Clonmel in Co Tipperary to protest outside the annual National Coursing Festival.
Hail, rain, or snow, he’d arrive at Powerstown Park to register his opposition to the controversial practice.
In the early years Des Perry would be there too, and John Cowley, who played the part of Tom Riordan in the famed RTÉ rural drama series and was a prominent supporter of the Irish Council Against Blood Sports.
Among the coursing fans passing by Fr Ó Saoraí on their way in to see hares being hounded by dogs were Catholic priests like himself — but whose collars were partly or wholly concealed.
He always displayed his collar as he felt it would defeat the purpose of his presence on the picket line if people weren’t aware of his identity and profound disapproval of hare coursing.
He stood for hours on the quay in Waterford in 1984 protesting against the transportation of live animals on long sea journeys; he exhibited a badger snare outside the Department of Agriculture in 1992 to show how these shy nocturnal creatures are captured, and in June 1993 he stood for more than three hours outside Dáil Éireann with a placard as TDs inside debated Deputy Tony Gregory’s Bill to ban hare coursing.
Fr Ó Saoraí took part in numerous radio and TV debates on animal welfare, including two appearances.
After retiring as PP of Ayrfied in 1997 he moved to Athy where he carried on with his advocacy work until his health began to fail.
At Woodlands Nursing Home in Navan, Co Meath he receive postcards and letters from well-wishers until the day he departed this world on June 3, 2018.
I thought he deserved a tribute; this man who walked in the footsteps of St Francis.
Polling in this jurisdiction on the merits of a border poll is mixed. But the compass has turned significantly in the past 10 years. There is no point pretending otherwise.
As always, Irish political sentiment and ‘plans’ are affected by unforeseen ‘events’. The sea change in Scotland in favour of an independence referendum is a sight to behold.
Imagine an independent Scotland with its numerous deepwater ports. The navigational and logistical map for the Northern hemisphere is being inexorably changed by global warming.
The EU would probably welcome an independent Scotland into the fold in relatively short order. All of that would affect the politics of Northern Ireland in ways we can’t predict.
The only certainty is change. And things are changing fast.
