Irish priest slams commercialisation of Holy Communion

Irish priest Fr Paddy O'Kane says that a child's First Communion has been commercialised - photo by trevor mcbride

An Irish priest launched a scathing attack on the commercialisation of a child’s First Holy Communion.

Fr Paddy O’Kane believes that over the years parents have allowed one of Christianity’s major rites of passage to become ‘an orgy of materialism with miniature brides’.

He said: “Perhaps [it] is a harmless tradition keeping them in a club which for all its flaws, they’d rather remain part of. Or they don’t want their child singled out as different. Or they just want to throw a party.

“Then it’s reduced to an orgy of sentimentality and materialism with miniature brides and bouncy castles and bursting bank accounts.”

He did admit that this didn’t apply to all parents and for many it was both ‘a natural expression of their Catholic identity and a meaningful spiritual celebration’.

Father O’Kane has spent five months on pastoral sabbatical in the USA, but returned to his Ballymagroarty parish in Co Derry in 2017.

He wrote to the parents of many children who were preparing to receive their First Communion. He reminded them that when having their children baptised, they had made a commitment to bring their children up in the Catholic faith.

He said: “Simply put, you must bring him or her back to Mass again every weekend after his or her First Communion.”

In 2015, Fr O’Kane revealed that after 121 children made their First Communion, only 20 returned to mass the following week.


More popular articles and videos

The real life mystery of what Maureen O’Hara whispered to make John Wayne look so shocked





Meghan Markle can trace her family tree back to Ireland




Matt Damon winning hearts and minds with charm assault on Ireland





Cork trio showcase Irish dancing in all its glory




Action hero Tom Cruise was once attacked by an old man in a Kerry pub





Celebrate with the top 10 Irish recipes

Liam Neeson speaks about his late wife in emotional interview





Dating site explains why Irish men make wonderful husband material





How to become an Irish citizen




Billy Connolly says public should ignore politicians and listen to comedians




Take a look inside Hollywood star Saoirse Ronan’s stunning Irish home




Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling