Irish official rejects call for No vote on family amendment by bishops

LEICESTER, United Kingdom – A leading government official in Ireland has rejected claims by the Catholic bishops that proposed changes to the Constitution on family would weaken the incentive for young people to marry.

On March 8, Irish citizens will be asked to vote in two referendums to change the Constitution called the family amendment and the care amendment, would make changes to the text of Article 41 in the Constitution.

The current “woman in home” clause of the constitution says the Irish state will “endeavor to ensure that mothers shall not be obliged by economic necessity to engage in labor to the neglect of their duties in the home.”

Supporters of the change to the Constitution want to include a new Article 42B, which says the state “recognizes that the provision of care, by members of a family to one another by reason of the bonds that exist among them, gives to society a support without which the common good cannot be achieved, and shall strive to support such provision.”

On Feb. 25, the Irish bishops issued a statement saying they are concerned that the proposed Family amendment to the Constitution diminishes the unique importance of the relationship between marriage and family in the eyes of the government and society in Ireland “and is likely to lead to a weakening of the incentive for young people to marry.”

“The proposed amendment would have the effect of abolishing all reference to motherhood in the Constitution and leave unacknowledged the particular and incalculable societal contribution that mothers in the home have made and continue to make in Ireland,” the bishops write.

“The present constitutional wording does not in any way inhibit women from working or taking their proper place in social and public life. It does, however, respect the complementary and distinct qualities that arise naturally within the Family. The role of mothers should continue to be cherished in our Constitution,” the statement says.

However, the Minister for Public Expenditure said he believes the proposed changes to the Constitution “far from weakening anything within our government,” actually strengthens it.

“The changes that we are asking the country to consider with regard to our constitution, actually, for me strengthen and protect the relationships that are so important within our society and our country,” said Paschal Donohoe.

“Due to the way in which our Constitution is currently drafted, so many young girls and boys now who are born into family units that are not recognized by our constitution. That for me, it’s a matter of huge importance that we can update our Constitution so that its language and values reflect the diversity of modern Ireland,” he continued.

However, the bishops urged the public to vote No in the referendums.

“The family is acknowledged as the place where generosity, tenderness, forgiveness, stability, care, love and truth can best be taught and learned by children,” they say in their statement.

“We recognize, of course, that there are families in all our communities which are not founded on marriage. They form part of the reality of family life, which Pope Francis described as ‘a challenging mosaic made up of many different realities, with all their joys, hopes and problems’,” they said.

The bishops said they believe that the commitment of marriage contributes to the common good in a unique way, by bringing stability to the family and to society, and that it consequently deserves the protection of the Irish State currently guaranteed in the Constitution of Ireland.

“While ‘Marriage’ entails a public and legal commitment, the term ‘durable relationship’ is shrouded in legal uncertainty and is open to wide interpretation. It does not make sense that such an ambiguous reality would be considered ‘antecedent and superior to all positive law’ and acquire the same ‘inalienable and imprescriptible’ rights as those ascribed to the ‘family founded on marriage’. Various commentators have suggested that the term ‘durable relationship’ risks leading to unforeseen and unintended consequences,” their statement says.

The bishops claim the proposed amendment would have the effect of abolishing all reference to motherhood in the Constitution and “leave unacknowledged the particular and incalculable societal contribution that mothers in the home have made and continue to make in Ireland.”

An Irish Times poll shows 53 percent of the voters intended to vote ‘Yes’, with just 15 percent saying they planned to vote ‘No’. The rest were either undecided or did not intend to vote.

The Irish Republic has in recent years legalized both same-sex marriage and abortion, weakening the country’s historic ties to the Catholic Church.