“So an organisation that institutionally hates catholics and catholicism and therefore bans catholics from being members is a shining beacon of inclusivity and not at all hateful?”

The Orange Order is not about institutionally hating catholics, if you knew anything about it you should know that. Many orange men have more friends within the catholic community than their own. The image that you are seeing is one which is protrayed by members from certain parts of the country which call themselves protestants but never set their foot through the door of a church.

The opening prayer at meetings “deliver those members of the church of rome and other non-reformed faiths from error and false doctrine”. In otherwords the orange order is trying to reach out to catholics and others of the non-reformed faith to try and get them to understand the reformed faith and convert them from their ways. Does that sound like an instituiton who “hates catholics?” To me, that sounds more like an organisation who is trying to reach out to catholics.

Surely you can’t expect the orange order to admit catholics seeing that it is a based on the reformed faith, which the catholic church is not. Thats liking expecting the catholic church to admit protestant priests etc, unless they change their religon it is the same fundamental idea.

This may sound secterian but its strange that DaithiO himself is saying that the orange order is secterian, surely this also make him to a secterian bigot for not having a little tolerance for the other sides traditions.

Generally tho, a very interesting development in Magherafelt, a change in the times maybe but doesn’t mean that its good either. If people have gone off the DUP its probable that they won’t all flood back to vote UUP. May end up with a large percentage who just stay at home which is not good for the unionist side.

http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/csc/reports/rituals3.htm

You cannot even be anything but a Romanist to get a job or become head of State at the Vatican State! Surely that is a case for the Equality Commission.

I respect traditions and feel their quirks should be respected cause God knows I have plenty of my own, but I just CANT understand why otherwise rational and intelligent people view the current crop of royals as their moral or intellectual superiors! I’m not trying to be rude, but I’d love an orangeman to explain to me why he views himself as inferior to prince Charles.

Moneymore will be more fun anyway

Because it wasn’t in the ROI

FYU – u have no idea how patronising that sounds !!! Why not use peasants instead of workers ?

Perhaps those were the days before the orange order used loyalist paramilitaries to lead them on parades as was the case with a lodge & band in the mini 12th parade in East Belfast last evening

http://www.whitewelldefendersfb.com/inmemory.html

I don’t know what relevance a 10 year old article written by a unionist about an orangeman has to do with the price of coal, especially when Bradford urged the British to do a deal with the unionist terrorists running the uwc strike (secret meeting with uvf chief of staff, Ken Gibson)in 74 & defended the desision to deny’ one man one vote’ earlier.

I presume the article is by unionist Roy Bradford.

considering the author had no issues dealing with loyalist terrorists, take it with a pinch of salt fyu.

OK, but Paisley and other Free P OO members were given a hard time by the UUP upper and middle class LOL’s of the early 60′s.
Of course when Paisley formed the DUP there were many of his followers who were black balled by the OO and dismissed over numerous petty misdemeanours, one being overdue in your dues.

When Lord Mayor (kinahan) he continued to strike the open-minded, cross-community note which in the Sixties had brought about an attempt – unsuccessful – to have him expelled from the Orange Order when he attended a Catholic wedding and funeral.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qn4158/is_19970527/ai_n14111953

That article also carries another interesting statement, wonder what the OO bashers think about this…

there was a large contingent of Roman Catholic workers and Kinahan was always delighted to relate how they turned out to cheer him as, on 12 July, he walked with his lodge to the “field”. Such tolerant scenes were common in the days before Sinn Fein dominated the parades issue

” bet you wont frind the Free P’s on that list ”

Never said you did find the Free P’s on it. It was highlighting your timing “1960′s” and thus purported cause and effect were wrong as the timings were out of sync.

MS

It’s all in Ed Moloney/Andy Pollak’s book.

“Ian Paisley was once a member of the Shankill Road Lodge of the Orange Order and a lodge chaplain, but he resigned from the Order when the County Grand Lodge refused to expel Sir Robin Kinahan for attending a funeral service in a Roman Catholic chapel.”

Don’t know how robust that is.