Sir, – As well as being clear on nomination requirements for candidates (Letters, July 12th) the Constitution of Ireland also sets out clearly the oath which must be taken by the successful candidate on taking office. And it’s a religious oath.
Can we be sure that our next aspiring president will be able to take this oath without compromising their integrity? A significant number of people in our once mono-cultural society are now non-religious and quite open about it.
I well remember some years ago attending a meeting with the Labour Party in Leinster House where I was part of the Humanist Association delegation. We were greeted by one of the TDs with the reassuring words that “you needn’t be afraid of us, we’re all atheists”.
Isn’t it time we had a Constitution that reflects our society as it is now and not how it supposedly was all those years ago in the eyes of de Valera and McQuaid? – Yours, etc,
RM Block
BRIAN WHITESIDE,
Monkstown,
Co Dublin.
