Mags GarganDáil support for an all-party motion backing calls for a public inquiry into the Ballymurphy Massacre has offered hope to the families that the truth may finally come out. Following a meeting with the families of the 11 civilians killed by the 1st battalion, Parachute Regiment of the British Army in Ballymurphy, Belfast in 1971,…
Month: July 2015
Priests warn that rural Ireland is ‘dying on its feet’
Courtney McGrailPeople urged to make neglect election issue
A contemporary poet fit to stand beside Yeats
Confronting Shadows: An Introduction to the Poetry of Thomas Kinsella by David Lynch (New Island, €24.99)
The divided loyalties of John Mitchel
Between Two Flags: John Mitchel and Jenny Verner by Anthony G. Russell (Merrion Press, €19.99pb/ €65.00hb)
PLC launches volunteer pledge initiative
The Pro Life Campaign (PLC) has launched a new ‘Volunteer Pledge’ initiative which they say will act as a “pivotal step in the push back against those trying to bring about a referendum to repeal the 8th Amendment”. The initiative involves a commitment of no more than 2-3 hours per month for pro-life supporters throughout the…
Nepalese Church seeks freedom
The Church in Nepal has urged that the preamble to the country’s new constitution should include the word ‘secular’ in order to ensure religious freedom. Responding to Hindu nationalist calls that the constitution should establish a ‘Hindu Nation’, the Apostolic Vicariate has also asked Nepal’s major parties that Christianity be listed, along with Hinduism, Buddhism…
Improving your skin condition
Cathal BarryLooking after your skin is vitally important. Skin is the body’s largest organ and provides a thin, yet highly effective, barrier to billions of health threats that could make you sick. Your skin plays a vital role in your overall health too. It regulates body temperature, stores energy and provides sensation through touch. Neglecting to…
The healing place of silence
Fr Ronald RolheiserA recent book, by Robyn Cadwallander, The Anchoress, tells the story of young woman, Sarah, who chooses to shut herself off from the world and lives as an Anchoress (like Julian of Norwich). It’s not an easy life and she soon finds herself struggling with her choice. Her confessor is a young, inexperienced, monk named…
Maynooth claim ‘choir of the world’ title
Dr John O'Keeffe (Department of Music, Maynooth University), Prof. Chris Morris (Department of Music, Maynooth University) and the Maynooth University Chamber Choir pictured at the St Patrick’s College campus after becoming the first Irish choir to lift the coveted Pavarotti Trophy as ‘choir of the world’ at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod in Llangollen, North…
Church must learn from young who have walked away – Fr Peter McVerry
Jesuit campaigner Fr Peter McVerry has warned that young people who are “disinterested” in the Church are the “prophets of today” and should not be blamed for “straying”. Speaking at this year’s SMA Summer School in Newry, Fr McVerry said that young people telling the Church that there is “something fundamentally wrong” with its message…