Two arson attacks on priests’ houses and a bomb scare at Mass in March have highlighted a worrying trend in Ireland – the small but steady rise in anti-Catholic attacks. Over the past decade we have seen a proliferation of vandalism against statues and churches, as well as robberies and assaults on priests. Not all these incidents point directly to anti-Catholicism, but they all speak of a culture that does not respect the Church and its sacred mission, and in many cases of an enmity that is deep, nasty and, if our European neighbours are anything to go by, is going to get worse.