Thoughts from Black '47 songster

Subject: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: paddymac
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:26 PM

Those Mudcatters with an interest in celtic rock will likely be familiar with the group "Black "47". What follows came to me from a friend who is a big fan of that group. It's a fascinating bit from the mind and pen of Larry Kirwin, driving force and lyricist behind the group. I post it here because I believe many of you would have an interest in Larry's view.

Slan!

"I'm in Wexford, now, visiting my Father. I also took the opportunity to do a solo gig at the local Arts Centre. My visit coincided with the Wexford Opera Festival. Soft November nights with an occasional gentle rain, but more often clear skies with a waxing glancing moon gazing down on an old town sparkling with energy and an exultant joy in itself. It was great to run into old friends but, for me, this town is forever full of ghosts -rarely oppressive - just bittersweet with regret and a silent roiling memory. I love to walk the narrow streets late at night, always in the company of their whispers, their soft step behind you and an occasional chuckle as the wind from the tips of their fingers brushes your hair. Old loves, lost friends and fond relatives joshing with coweled monks, Cromwellian soldiers and Home Rule elders for your attention.

One morning, however, I was invited down to the Talbot Hotel to meet some people from the Ardoyne area of Belfast. This was a delegation of the parents of young children who are being harassed daily on their way to school by Loyalists from a neighboring council estate. Their graphic account of the insults and abuse inflicted on the children (not to mention the occasional tossed bomb) made you wonder that this kind of conduct is tolerated in any civilized country, let alone one that claims to be Christian.

It caused me to reflect on the cold egocentric nature of fundamentalism. It also forced me to confront the fact that until the ugly "secret" of Protestant sectarianism is hauled back out from under the carpet and exposed to the light of day, there will be no peace in the North of Ireland. This is, by no means, a politically correct point of view right now: we are all supposed to be putting the past firmly behind us and moving on to a new future in Ireland. And please don't think this is coming from some Catholic hardliner - we have bigots in our ranks too; but, to be fair, they are few and generally ostracized by the community. I have no doubt, also, that our Orange and Protestant brethren in the North have quite justifiable qualms about having anything to do with the Catholic Church - its positions on mixed marriages was scandalous, its continuing head-in-the-sand attitude towards contraception is hardly enlightened, and its imperial and imperious stance towards other religions is ill-designed to gain it friends. But the Catholic Church is a waning power in modern Ireland. The people might still have an affection for it, but are hardly beholden to it any more. The Catholic theocracy that I grew up with and even embraced, as a boy, is gone. And good riddance. It may have had a surplus of certitude but was never renowned for its charity or forgiveness. The modern Irish Catholic Church now inhabits a changed landscape and has, for the most part, adapted to it. The priests, that I know, tend to be caring friends and compassionate social workers as much as spiritual advisers. The day of the bishop threatening all and sundry with his crozier is long gone.

Why then this awful hatred for Catholics in certain sections of Unionist/Protestant society in the North? What causes a Christian to throw bombs at 7 year old girls and call them whores? What kind of religious mind-set sanctions this and, even more to the point, what kind of religious leader does not outright condemn this behavior? I've heard all the usual excuses: retaliation, provocation and that the Unionist/Protestant people of North Belfast suffer from a siege mentality as the expanding Nationalist/Catholic population surrounds them. But none of these reasons goes even part of the way towards explaining this particular Northern Irish pathological hatred of Catholics and Catholicism. And yet, before we move forward, this sore must be exposed to the light of day and be either lanced or given time to heal. If not, it will only come back to haunt us, and the cycle of violence will continue to curse and maim future generations.

What is it with fundamentalists that they have such a belief in the righteousness of their God? And make no mistake about it, it is "their" God. It's definitely not the God of the great majority of the rest of us who try to cobble together some system of belief that gets us through the night; and this, despite the fact that there appears to be only the slightest circumstantial evidence to suggest that there is indeed a God(s). And what is Faith? Is it something divinely granted or merely the fodder of self-deluding fools? That's the eternal question, especially when lying awake at four o'clock in the troubled morning. But as the world breaks down into two great camps of insistent fundamentalism and all the rest of us inadequately wrestling with mortality, it's a question that will have to be faced both in Belfast and Kabul. And despite all the efforts for co-existence in the North of Ireland, there will be no peace until fundamentalists come to terms with the fact that a belief system which causes you to hate other religions is no religion at all.

Of course, it's true that there are many other problems in the North: some of us want a united Ireland, a socialist republic, a pluralist society, a real democracy, autonomy, union with Britain, you name it; but all of these aspirations are open to compromise and political settlement. On the other hand, sheer unadulterated hatred of another person's religion is beyond the pale of civility. It knows no compromise; after all it is sanctioned by "their" God and, thus, has no need to abide by any human considerations or standards. The time for ignoring sectarianism is over. Rather, it should be taken out of its mean streets and dusted down, examined, questioned, debated with. It still won't disappear overnight. There are politicians, some of them men of the Church, who use it for their own gain. But because it hides behind a mantle of religion, it has been allowed to fester and feed in upon itself for centuries. The time has come for it to be opened up to the light of God's beautiful day. Perhaps, in that way, it can make peace with itself and let the rest of us get on with our lives."

Larry Kirwan

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: katlaughing
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 06:58 PM

Stunning, so evocative. Thank you very much for sharing this with us.

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 10:49 PM

I am sincerely impressed. Speaks to the universe -

Steve

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: GUEST,chrisj
Date: 07 Nov 01 - 11:20 PM

A cry from the heart of a sincere man. Makes you wonder why we so seldom read or hear such sentiments in the 'mainstream' media.

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: paddymac
Date: 08 Nov 01 - 06:36 PM

I confess that I am surprised that this thread hasn't had more "hits" than it has. Could it really be that Larry has expressed himself so eloquently that nothing more need be said? Amen.

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: Áine
Date: 08 Nov 01 - 10:55 PM

Go hiontach ar fad, a chara chóir . . .

Thank you, paddymac, for sharing such a beautiful 'mirror of a soul' with us.

Le meas is grá, is mise Áine

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: Dicho (Frank Staplin)
Date: 09 Nov 01 - 12:23 AM

Kirwan's letter evokes a response in all of us who see the bigotry of the fundamentalists. I agree that the Catholic Church has made great strides in some areas, but there are church officers in my own community, including a bishop, who calls for excommunication of politicians who agree with a woman's right to choice and show tolerance for gays.

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: InOBU
Date: 09 Nov 01 - 06:44 AM

Larry is an old friend, back to his days with my other old friend Pierce Turner. When I next see him, I have to rib him with the question why such a thoughtful gentle mind writes such loud music! He and Pierce had a great band together, and two good bands apart. Pierce wrote the classic Wicklow Hills, which Christy Moore made famous to the rest of the world... I suppose the point of all this is only to say, Larry did say it all, didn't he?
Cheers the other Larry

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: MARINER
Date: 09 Nov 01 - 07:01 AM

Larry, as well as being a singer/ songwriter is also an accomplished playwright and author. One of his more popular plays "Liverpool Fantasy" is due out next month as a novel, keep an eye out for it. I think it will be available on line. His solo show in Wexford last week went down a storm, despite the fact that top Irish rock band Aslan were playing a few miles away at the same time. I just had an email from him this morning, he's back in N.Y. and gigging away already, straight off the plane.Watch out for him and Black 47. It's an experience you won't forget. You may remember him and Pierce Turner from "Turner and Kirwan of Wexford" or their other band "Major Thinkers". Larry also played with "Chill Faction" and both of them played and recorded with "an event" called "Copernicus"

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: GUEST
Date: 10 Nov 01 - 04:23 AM

And why not latch on to this thread to know the real truth of the Ardoyne childrens plight, Click here.

Slan Ard MhacHA.

html link fixed by mudelf ;-)

Subject: RE: BS: Thoughts from Black '47 songster
From: MARINER
Date: 10 Nov 01 - 08:48 AM

Paddymac, It's possible that you're right. Larry has left little else to be said. But I think his thoughts on the issue should be "flagged" somewhere so that it can be read by many more people.Any suggestions??, anybody Mariner