View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Cork Open Research Archive Title The lived experience of Irish diocesan priests. A qualitative study of clerical identity, obedience and celibacy. Author(s) Weafer, John A. Publication date 2013 Original citation Weafer, J. A. 2013. The lived experience of Irish diocesan priests. A qualitative study of clerical identity, obedience and celibacy. DSocSc Thesis, University College Cork. Type of publication Doctoral thesis Link to publisher's http://library.ucc.ie/record=b2073889 version Access to the full text of the published version may require a subscription. Rights © 2013, John A. Weafer http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/ Item downloaded http://hdl.handle.net/10468/1108 from Downloaded on 2017-02-12T13:12:37Z The Lived Experience of Irish Diocesan Priests. A Qualitative Study of Clerical Identity, Obedience and Celibacy. John A. Weafer A thesis submitted for the award of Doctor of Social Science to the National University of Ireland, at the School of Applied Social Studies, National University of Ireland, Cork Submission Date: May 2013 Supervisor: Dr Máire Leane Head of School: Professor Fred Powell Student Number: 107220183 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page List of Tables ………………………………………………………………… (iv) List of Figures ………………………………………………………………... (iv) Declaration …………………………………………………………………... (v) Abstract ……………………………………………………………………… (vi) Acknowledgements..….……………..……………………………………….. (vii) CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION AND RATIONALE. ….……………… 1 1.1 Aim of the Study. 1.2 Background. 1.3 Definition and Scope of Diocesan Priesthood. 1.4 Study Rationale. 1.5 Structure of Thesis. CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY ……………………............................... 18 2.1 Introduction. 2.2 Appropriateness of a Qualitative Research Methodology. 2.3 The Interview. 2.4 The Sample. 2.5 The Analysis. 2.6 Ethical Procedures. 2.7 Concluding Comment. CHAPTER THREE: THEORISING PRIESTHOOD ……............................... 31 3.1 Introduction. 3.2 Bourdieu’s Concepts of Habitus, Field and Capital. 3.3 Agency and Structure. 3.4 Rules of Access. 3.5 Discussion. CHAPTER FOUR: THE CHANGING SOCIO-RELIGIOUS LANDSCAPE OF IRELAND, 1962-2012………………........ 47 4.1 Introduction 4.2 Social and Religious Change in 1960s Ireland. 4.3 The Disillusioned Decades, 1970-1989. 4.4 The Turbulent Years of Celtic Tiger Ireland, 1990-2012. 4.5 A Church in Crisis? 4.6 Discussion. i CHAPTER FIVE: A THEMATIC AND CHRONOLOGICAL PROFILE OF THE IRISH DIOCESAN PRIEST 1962-2012.…………… 81 5.1 Introduction. 5.2 Identity. 5.3 Clerical Obedience. 5.4 Celibacy. 5.5 Fifty Years of Irish Diocesan Priesthood, 1962-2012 5.6 Discussion. CHAPTER SIX: EVOLVING CLERICAL IDENTITIES. ………….……… 141 6.1 Introduction. 6.2 How Pre-Vatican II Priests Understand their Priesthood. 6.3 How Vatican II Priests Understand their Priesthood. 6.4 How Post-Vatican II Priests Understand their Priesthood. 6.5 A Crisis of Identity in Priesthood? 6.6 Discussion. CHAPTER SEVEN: THE POLITICS OF CLERICAL OBEDIENCE ………180 7.1 Introduction. 7.2 How Pre-Vatican II Priests Understand and Experience Obedience. 7.3 How Vatican II Priests Understand and Experience Obedience. 7.4 How Post-Vatican Priests Understand and Experience Obedience. 7.5 Discussion. CHAPTER EIGHT: THE CELIBACY CONTINUUM……………………… 226 8.1 Introduction. 8.2 How do Irish Diocesan Priests Understand and Experience Mandatory Celibacy? 8.3 The Gay Celibate. 8.4 Priests’ Support Networks. 8.5 Discussion. CHAPTER NINE: IRISH DIOCESAN PRIESTHOOD, 1962-2012..……… 259 9.1 Introduction. 9.2 Evolving Identities of Diocesan Priesthood. 9.3 Negotiating Priesthood in the Church. 9.4 The Celibate Priest. 9.5 A Crisis of Priestly Identity? 9.6 Concluding Comment. ii APPENDICES: …………………………………………………………………… 275 Appendix A: Statistical Profile of Irish Diocesan Priests. Appendix B: Letters of Introduction to Research Participants. Appendix C: Topic Guides for Priests and Former Priests. Appendix D: Selected Data on Religious Belief and Practice in Ireland. BIBLIOGRAPHY iii LIST OF TABLES Table 1.1 General Statistics of the Irish Catholic Church 2006. Table 1.2 Deployment of Diocesan Priests in Ireland, 1970-2005 Table 2.1 Emerging Themes and Sub-Themes Table 4.1 Frequency of Mass Attendance, Republic of Ireland, 1970-1989 Table 5.1 The Cultic and Servant-Leader Models of Priesthood. Table 5.2 Qualities of an Ideal Priest, Ireland, 1974-1984. LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1.1 The Hierarchical Structure of the Catholic Church 2012. Figure 4.1 The Irish Catholic Continuum 2012. iv DECLARATION I certify that this thesis which I now submit for examination for the award of Doctor of Social Science, is entirely my own work and has not been taken from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work. This thesis was prepared according to the regulations for postgraduate study by University College Cork and has not been submitted in whole or in part for an award in any other Institute or University. The work reported on in this thesis conforms to the principles and requirement of the University’s guidelines for ethics in research. The University has permission to keep, or to lend or to copy this thesis in whole or in part, on condition that any such use of the material of the thesis is duly acknowledged. Candidate Signature: _______________________ Date: ______________ v ABSTRACT The main aim of this thesis is to document and explore the lived experience of Irish diocesan priests and former priests, in order to explore the reality of diocesan priesthood in contemporary Ireland, and to investigate how, if at all, diocesan priesthood has changed in Ireland during the past fifty years. It sought to do this by interrogating the stories of thirty-three diocesan priests and former priests, and by placing their individual stories within the broader context of Irish society and the Catholic Church, during the fifty-year period, 1962–2012. The research focused on three core areas of priesthood – identity, obedience, and celibacy – and it addressed the following questions. First, how do Irish diocesan priests understand their priesthood and how has this understanding changed over time, if at all? I will argue that three paradigms of priesthood co-exist in the contemporary Irish Church, and that each of these models corresponds with a distinct period in contemporary Irish Church history. I will also demonstrate the existence of underlying similarities in the cultural practice of priesthood that transcend the different generations of priests. Second, how do Irish diocesan priests negotiate their priesthood within a large and complex institution? My study suggests that Irish diocesan priests are typically loyal and obedient. However, they are not necessarily subservient. Third, how do Irish diocesan priests understand and experience celibacy in their day-to-day lives? My study demonstrates that celibacy is typically understood and experienced along a continuum, ranging from total acceptance to total rejection, with most priests somewhere in between. Fourth, I will argue that while priests are experiencing many difficulties in their lives, there is insufficient evidence from the present study to indicate they are experiencing a crisis. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to express my sincere thanks to my supervisor, Dr. Máire Leane, for her encouragement and insightful direction in helping me complete this study on Irish diocesan priests. It was not an easy task but the journey was greatly assisted by her interest and patient wisdom. I would also like to thank Dr. Jacqui O’Riordan for her comments on a draft of the thesis. I would also like to thank Professor Alastair Christie, Dr. Claire Edwards and the staff of the School of Applied Social Studies in UCC, for their support throughout the programme. Finally, I would like to thank my family for their support and encouragement: my parents Maeve and Jack, my wife Anne Marie, and my children Siobhán, Daragh, and Orlagh. vii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION AND RATIONALE The Dublin priest is first and foremost a man of God.... Sometimes he gets support from the priests he works with, sometimes he doesn’t. He is deeply hurt by the scandals that have tarnished the reputation of the priesthood and by the way these scandals have been treated in the media. He is not greatly impressed by authority. He is critical of those that hold power in the Church… He wants to see a greater participation by the laity in the government of the Church…. He feels he is overworked…. He has to be constantly available to his parishioners. He finds it impossible to live up to the expectation of others. He feels the sting of celibacy. He worries about the future. And yet, he is on the whole a fulfilled and happy man (Forristal, 1997, pp.27-28).1 1.1 Aim of the Study The main aim of my research is to document and explore the lived experience of Irish diocesan priests2 and former priests, in order to explore the reality of diocesan priesthood in contemporary Ireland, and to investigate how, if at all, diocesan priesthood has changed in Ireland during the past fifty years. I have sought to do this by interrogating the stories of thirty-three priests and former priests (twenty-four diocesan priests and nine former diocesan priests), and by placing their individual stories within the broader context of Irish society and the Catholic Church, during the fifty-year period, 1962–2012. Stories are ‘interpretive devices through which people make sense of, understand and live their lives’ (Lawler, 2008, p.13). The research participants were facilitated to tell their stories of diocesan priesthood, using a narrative-style introduction, which 1 This quotation was taken from one of the few published empirical studies of diocesan priests in contemporary Ireland. The comment by Fr Des Forristal captures some of the key elements of diocesan priests’ lived experience in the contemporary Church.