Cathal BarryLGBT organisation shared an advertisement for a pro-abortion meeting at a local hotel organised by Galway Pro-Choice.
The Society Saint Vincent de Paul (SVP) has refused to say whether it stands over its €45,000 donation to an LGBT support group in Galway after the group’s relationship with pro-abortion campaigners came to light.
A spokesman for the SVP told The Irish Catholic that the decision to provide a three-year grant toward a gay resource centre in the city was made “purely on the basis of need in the Galway area.
“Providing the grant in Galway does not signify any other motive. Nothing further should be implied,” he said.
The SVP grant has provoked controversy after The Irish Catholic revealed last week that the Bishop of Galway, Martin Drennan, was seeking an explanation from the charity. The LGBT group’s links to the campaign for abortion is set to cause further dismay.
In a post on Facebook last year, the LGBT organisation shared an advertisement for a pro-abortion meeting at a local hotel organised by Galway Pro-Choice.
Galway diocesan spokesman Fr Diarmuid Hogan confirmed to this newspaper that Bishop Drennan had received correspondence from the SVP regarding the donation and would engage in “further dialogue with the society on the matter”.
Historical
links
However, while the SVP has acknowledged “strong historical links” to the Church, the society has insisted “there is no regulation of SVP by the Hierarchy and there appears to be no canonical statutes which apply to the society in Ireland.
“At an international level, there is a close relationship between the international Confederation of the Society of St Vincent de Paul and the hierarchy of the Catholic Church.
“This applies also in Ireland where the SVP has strong and valued relationships with the clergy throughout the country,” the spokesman said.
The SVP is listed in the Pontifical Council for the Laity’s directory as an international association of the faithful, and membership of the society is open to anyone who can adopt its ethos.
The society, which was founded in France in 1833 by Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, draws its inspiration and energy from the Gospels and Catholic social teaching and attempts to live the core values through an action oriented programme, working directly with people in need, the spokesman said.