My First Holy Communion Keepsake Journal created by Avril O’Reilly (Lulu, available through Amazon, ISBN 978-1326480103 (girls), 978-1326542863 (boys), €20.00) With a “Special Record of first Holy Communion” Avril O’Reilly has had a delightful notion. She has prepared a keepsake of first Communion for girls. “This book,” she explains, “is designed to keep all the Communion…
Dear Pope Francis: The Pope Answers Letters from Children Around the World by Pope Francis in conversation with Antonio Spadaro SJ (Messenger Publications / Jesuits in Ireland, €14.99) It is not unusual for recent Popes to be associated with books for children. We had, for instance, a rather charming book about Pope Benedict’s cat – cats…
“At times of immense darkness and pain, the mission of people of faith is to keep the rumour of God alive”, writes Editor Michael Kelly Late on Sunday evening – Palm Sunday – news of the almost unspeakable tragedy that occurred in Buncrana, Co. Donegal began to emerge. What started out as a Sunday outing…
Staff reporter Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin has urged Irish Catholics to consider joining him in a Christian solidarity pilgrimage to the Holy Land later this year. As all eyes look to Jerusalem this Holy Week, the archbishop has urged people to think of the tiny Christian community in the region known as the ‘living…
As Jesus is being crucified he utters these words: “Forgive them, they know not what they do.” It is not easy to say these words and it is perhaps even more difficult to grasp them in their depth. What does it mean, really mean, to understand and forgive a violent action against you? There are…
Green Fingers “From sweet April showers, do spring May flowers,” said Thomas Tusser. We might get hail, sleet or snow, but ideally what we need now is warm showers and sunshine to get things really moving fast. If you are growing rhododendrons, azaleas or camellias on acid soil they will benefit from a general purpose…
Cathal Barry takes a look at who receives and who administers the Sacrament of the Sick The Church teaches that Anointing of the Sick “is not a sacrament for those only who are at the point of death”. “Hence, as soon as anyone of the faithful begins to be in danger of death from sickness…
An iconic image of Our Lady begins a nationwide tour this week that will see stops in every diocese in Ireland. The ‘Pilgrim Icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help’, which was blessed yesterday by Pope Francis, was due to arrive in Dublin airport this morning (Thursday). The icon, newly written in Poland, is to…
“Jesus has, indeed, broken through the barrier of death to new life, and where he has gone, we will follow”, writes Fr Martin Delaney At the heart of the Easter story is a most extraordinary idea. The incomprehensible notion that someone dies but comes to new life. This claim has then led to a belief…
Zootropolis (PG) As we stand on the cusp of a new era in American politics – Donald Trump putting up walls to combat foreign forces and Hilary Clinton trying to break them down to embrace them – along comes an animated film about that very subject. Taking as its lift-off point the fact that modern…
Peter Costello
Michael Kelly
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Paul Gargan
Cathal Barry
Greg Daly
Aubrey Malone