In the Name of the Father, and of the Son: Marriage Equality and the Catholic Church in Ireland

Abstract: This thesis will use the final Marriage Equality Referendum debate which took place on the Irish national broadcaster RTÉ in May 2015 and analyse the No campaign’s willingness to be associated with the Catholic Church through discourse and framing analysis. This qualitative study aspires to ascertain the salience of the Catholic Church to the Irish electorate in areas of moral-social policy in Ireland. It will be found that substantial Catholic identification and high levels of religiosity does not necessitate influence of the Church over the electorate.