In the Name of the Most Holy Trinity: Religious Anachronisms and the Need for a Secular Constitution
[2010] COLR 56
ABSTRACT
This article critically analyses the religious references of the Irish Constitution, with particular focus on the effect these references have in relation to equality. It briefly examines the background to their inclusion in the text and, while conceding that this inclusion was both understandable and inevitable in 1937, argues that a secular Constitution would be more appropriate in the increasingly diverse Ireland of today. The article looks at various leading opinions and commentaries on the topic, as well as adding the author’s own views, proposing that amendment or deletion of these religious references would be beneficial in the interest of equality.
By BRIAN O’REILLY