Courtney McGrailDear Editor, We would do well to heed Fr Vincent Twomey on the results of the marriage referendum, (IC 18/06/2015) but more significant than the results was the manner in which the ‘yes’ campaign was conducted. It was professional, well-organised and as we know extremely effective. However it was characterised by a marked absence of…
Month: July 2015
Caring for gay brothers and sisters
Dear Editor, I gather from reading the letters page in the paper that people are bending over backwards so as not to give offence to gay people. But surely if we love homosexuals and lesbians, our brothers and sisters in Christ, it should not be regarded as offensive to point out to them the moral…
Definitive judgment is needed on Medjugorje
Dear Editor, I simply cannot believe Paul Keenan’s remarks on Medjugorje (IC 02/07/2015)! He says: “To focus solely on questions of veracity around what is taking place at Medjugorje is to miss completely just what is taking place.” I should have thought that “questions of veracity” – that is, whether Our Lady is or is…
Berkeley tragedy shows need for prayer
Dear Editor, Dr Eamonn Conway’s reflection (IC 25/06/2015) on the tragic circumstances at Berkeley was perfect in its encapsulating of the current malaise concerning the expression of faith, especially that of the Catholic variety. That it took Enda Kenny the day after to even mention that dirty word, prayer, illustrates this! While society is…
Vote a victory of emotion over reason
Dear Editor, Notwithstanding the euphoria following the marriage referendum result on May 22, and the approval of this expressed by some writers in your letters page, and leaving aside specifically religious considerations, I believe any truly objective observer of the debate which preceded the vote would agree that the result was a victory for emotion…
The value and power of ritual
Fr Ronald RolheiserToday we no longer understand the value and power of ritual. This is more than an individual failing. It’s the cultural air we breathe. In the words of Robert L. Moore, we’ve gone “ritually tone-deaf”. The effects of this can be seen everywhere. Allow me to give two examples. First, we see this today in…
Top five summer foods
Cathal BarryThe summer is an excellent time to make the most of the abundance of fresh, delicious and healthy food choices available to us. Many of summer’s fruits and vegetables are brimming with bonus health benefits. Here are a few that will leave your taste bud’s tingling: Corn Sweet corn is the ideal accompaniment to a…
Like All Ireland multiplied by 60
Killian Barrett explains what makes him continually go to World Youth Day
Strawberry and elderflower mousse
Erin FoxEvery summer I look forward to making elderflower cordial. Elderflower is best picked on a sunny day, but we had so many dull and drizzly days last month that I had little opportunity to pick any. As soon as the sun peeped out from behind the clouds, I legged it out of the house with…
The God of our desires
What lies deepest inside authentic faith is the truth that God is the object of all human desire, no matter how earthy and unholy that desire might seem at times. This implies that everything we desire is contained in God. We see this expressed in the Psalms, which tell us that God is the object…