The Journal
July 28, 2011
http://www.thejournal.ie/heil-herr-kenny-parish-priest-compares-taoiseach-to-hitler-188175-Jul2011/
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| Taoiseach Enda Kenny |
ENDA KENNY HAS been compared to Adolf Hitler in a Mass bulletin issued by a parish priest.
The weekend parish newsletter in Togher, Co Louth was responding to the Taoiseach's stinging criticisms of the Vatican last week. In an article headlined "Heil Herr Kenny!" Fr Thomas Daly wrote: "The last European leader to make such a blistering attack on the Pope was the ruthless German dictator Adolf Hitler."
According to the Drogheda Independent, it also suggested there was now a "No Pope here" policy in Ireland and compared it to loyalist areas in the North, adding: "Perhaps we might try and find a way to build new bridges with the "Shankhill Road people" (sic).
A 'No Pope Here' sign on the Dáil gates would definitely be a draw for Shankhill Road people and marchers from Portadown!
The article has drawn criticism in the local area. One resident told reporter Michelle O'Keeffe for the Irish Times: "Everybody in the area is talking about it. It is a bit much comparing the leader of Ireland to Hitler – the article went too far."
However, Fr Daly yesterday told the Irish Daily Star (print edition) that the "Heil Herr Kenny" headline had been misinterpreted. "I regret the headline and the misunderstandings that might have arisen out of it," he said. "I am not comparing Enda Kenny to Hitler."
He added that he fully supports the child protection measures recommended in the Cloyne Report.
Enda Kenny told the Irish Daily Mirror (print edition): "I think that priest's comment does not deserve the dignity of a comment from me."
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