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Watching rugby on Good Friday is wrong, says Limerick Friar
THE Franciscan Friars of Renewal in Moyross have urged those who plan to watch the Munster rugby team play on Good Friday to "think twice" about whether they consider themselves true Christians and re-assess their values.
Those who watch the clash against Leinster are "compromising their faith", one of the Friars has warned, stating that the game will be a test of a person's faith in God.
"We will be one more step away from Christian civilisation," said Brother Shawn O'Connor, who came to Limerick to help bring about "spiritual regeneration" in the city.
"If they consider themselves a Catholic they should think very deeply
about what they're going to do. It's indicative of who you put your trust in. They should step back and really consider what they believe," he said.
He said he has been disappointed and "saddened" by the local reaction to the controversy surrounding the date of the Magners League game in the past week.
However, Br Shawn said there are many residents in Moyross who will be
remembering the death of Christ on the cross in a more solemn way, on a
day which is traditionally a time of fasting and penance.
Many residents "are sad about it too and think it's wrong", according to the New York native who has previously worked in the Bronx and
London's East End.
The controversy, he said, is further proof that "that religion has been put aside" and that "we have really lost something; it's really tragic."
For him the controversy is not about whether alcohol is consumed on this religious date.
But he said the "bigger picture has been lost" and true Catholics would
spent that day, April 2, during Lent sacrificing something they love.
In this instance, he said that sacrifice should be watching rugby or
attending the game, which has been described as the new religion in Limerick.
"This is the most solemn day of the year and there is no greater thing you can do than to sacrifice something you really like.
"It is not a case of 'fitting my faith around this'. The other things
should fit around your faith," he said.
Br Shawn agreed that the younger generation has lost faith in the Church, and said: "That is not the fault of the people. The answer to
that is obvious in recent times."
He said all members of the Franciscan Friars in Moyross, who came to
the area from the United States three years ago, are in agreement on this issue. "It wouldn't even enter our minds," he said.
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Wednesday 08 February 2012
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