Dear Editor,
Congratulations on Sarah MacDonald's stimulating and disturbing article on the artist Dony MacManus in Feb's Word magazine. The story that emerges is a very sad reflection indeed on the attitude of the art establishment and on the regime prevailing in the College of Art. The mentality of the latter appears almost neo-Stalinist in effect. The even more worrying aspect is the apparent ‘brain washing’ of the college's students to toe a particular line. Unfortunately, this kind of poisonous mob rule/consensus is all too typical of many Western third level institutions. They have largely rejected the riches of the Christian tradition, at the behest of a spurious ideology based largely on a false notion of personal freedom. The inevitable outcome is Tracey Emin's unmade bed, and Chris Ofili's yob art. It reflects very well indeed on Dony MacManus that he was able to survive this treatment and, it appears, eventually thrive on the adversity.
Eric Conway by email

Dear Editor,
I am not much in agreement with the comments in the column From the Pew (Feb Word). I am a priest and have served in many countries, including the US, Australia, Argentina, Chile and now in Spain. Certainly lay participation in parishes is far more developed in South America. I am not sure that in general there is a lingering clericalism. A parish is defined in Canon Law as a community of faithful under a priest as its proper pastor and obviously the bishop. As Cardinal Newman observed, the clergy without the laity would be pretty ridiculous. In these days it seems to me that priests who are unwilling to involve as many lay people as possible in the various aspects of parish life are rare. These lay people also need formation, which is generally organized by the diocese or at the level of deaneries. There is also the danger of a kind of reverse clericalism. Then there is also factionalism and conflicts so that the priest has to involve himself in conflict resolution. Then, the problem is not just a problem of the priest being shy, lacking in identity, lack of training or support but of the laity being unwilling to do anything in their parish for fear of being considered "holy joes". Others attempt to make their involvement in the parish a means of achieving a quota of power.
Places like Ireland and Spain have a lot to learn from Latin American countries in all of this.
Thomas J. Hennigan, Spain

Dear Editor,
It is with great disappointment that I write to cancel my subscription. The reason is the column ‘Lest We Forget’ by Colm Scully (Feb Word). Can you please tell me where the Christian message of forgiveness is? You could fill the magazine with the atrocities carried out by both sides, feeding the everlasting hatred that is required by perpetrators on both sides. Surely your magazine should extol the power of the Holy Spirit in healing and forgiveness. Yes, a heading ‘lest we forget and forgive’ may well have been tough but it just may have triggered the road to recovery, rather than continuing the spiral of pain and hurt.
William Houlihan, Co Wexford



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