The practice of selling pre-signed Mass cards raises questions.
Bishop Colm O'Reilly, of Ardagh and Clonmacnoise, has warned people in the diocese not to buy pre-paid Mass cards. Allegations have been made that some pre-paid cards on sale carry the forged signatures of dead priests. Pre-signed Mass cards are sold in a wide variety of outlets around Ireland.
Bishop Colm O'Reilly's opinion of pre-paid Mass cards is echoed by Fr Brian Flynn, parish priest of Kilmacow in County Kilkenny.
Waterford florist Ray Jacques gets his pre-signed Mass cards from a printing facility in the midlands. When a pre-signed card is sold,
We take the name of the deceased person, we put that onto a sheet and that’s taken back to someplace by the person who sells us the cards.
The Book Centre in Waterford has never sold pre-signed Mass cards. In recent times non-religious sympathy cards have become more popular.
One Book Centre customer is sceptical about the authenticity of pre-paid Mass cards as she has no way of knowing is the signature is genuine.
Another woman feels pre-signed Mass cards are impersonal,
I don’t think it looks nice to see a name, that you probably don’t know who signed it.
People wishing to give a Mass card should have one signed in person by a priest known to them. The recommended contribution to have a priest to sign a card is 3-10 euro.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 25 August 2003. The reporter is Damien Tiernan.
