The 1916 Rising has been commemorated by President Mary McAleese and political leaders at Arbour Hill in Dublin.
Speaking at the annual State ceremony to mark the Rising, the Bishop of Down and Connor said there are no instant solutions to the growth in public distrust in institutions such as the Church, the Government, banks and the media.
Dr Noel Treanor said the contagion of distrust is corrosive of hope which is a vital element of a nation.
President McAleese and her husband Martin led the attendance at the mass in the Church of the Sacred Heart and Taoiseach Brian Cowen read one of the Lessons in Irish.
Among the Cabinet ministers present were Tánaiste Mary Coughlan, Éamon Ó Cuív, Mary Hanafin, Pat Carey, Tony Killeen, Noel Dempsey and Dermot Ahern. Leading Opposition deputies were also present, including Fine Gael leader Enda Kenny.
Two former Taoisigh were present, 90-year-old Liam Cosgrave and Albert Reynolds. Chief Justice John Murray and other senior judges also attended as well as relatives of the 1916 volunteers.
The acting Chief-of-Staff, Major General Dave Ashe, was one of 200 members of the Defence Forces participating. The Garda Commissioner, Fachtna Murphy, was also in attendance.
The Bishop of Down and Connor was chief celebrant of the mass along with army chaplains Monsignor Eoin Thynne and Fr Tom Tuohy. The Church of Ireland was represented by the Dean of Kildare, the Very Reverend Dr John Marsden.
Music was provided by John Sheahan and Eamonn Campbell of The Dubliners along with soloist Deirdre Ní Chinnéide, harpist Noreen O'Donoghue, Ceoladh Sheahan on the fiddle, and Mick O'Brien playing the uileann pipes.
In his sermon, Bishop Treanor referred to what he called 'cancerous growths' in the tissue of society now, which require radical surgery.
He highlighted a survey last week that indicated there was a surge of distrust in the Church, Government, banks, hospitals, and the media.
The bishop said there are no instant solutions to this distrust, which is 'corrosive of hope'. He called for public debate and courage to respond to what he called the 'contagion of distrust'.
After mass, President McAleese laid a wreath on behalf of the nation.
