Courtney McGrailAfter writing recently about the Battle of Verdun and the literature of the Great War, I decided that as the anniversary of the Somme would be well marked by State and media, no reference to it would be needed here. But my mind has been changed by the publication of Sir John Chilcot’s inquiry into…
Month: July 2016
Huge differences in priests’ pay across country
Cathal Barry
Parish clergy earn less than average earnings
The road to Krakow
Gerard Gallagher reflects on the importance of WYD and the “amazing events that have helped to shape a generation in faith”
Aspiring visions in Ireland before the Rising
Peter Costello
Conflicting Visions in a Turbulent Age 1900-1916 by Dr Éimear O’Connor and others (Crawford Art Gallery, Cork, €10.00)
Angels with sickles and God’s fury
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
There’s a haunting text in the Book of Revelations where poetic image, for all its beauty, can be dangerously misleading. The author there writes: “So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and cut the earth’s vintage. He threw it into the great winepress of God’s fury.” A fierce angel cleansing the world! God…
Peter McVerry Trust calls for compulsory purchases
The Peter McVerry trust has called for the compulsory purchase of vacant buildings in private ownership in order to tackle the housing crisis. Noting how Census 2016 has revealed 198,358 vacant units in Ireland, the trust’s Francis Doherty said if even a fraction of the 36,000 vacant units in the Dublin region were made available…
Sources of morality
It’s an error to judge the morality of human acts by considering only the intention that inspires them, writes Cathal Barry
All roads lead to Krakow
Peter Korchak gathers wristbands for World Youth Day pilgrims to use in Krakow for trading with other WYD participants. Some two million Catholic youths are expected to join Pope Francis in Poland for the July 26-31 faith festival. See Page 3. Photo: CNS
A moment for us all to treasure
Dear Editor, Text may be the substance of a newspaper but a picture is still worth a thousand words. So thank you for the beautiful photograph you published on page 2 last week (IC 14/7/16) of the newly-ordained Fr Conor McDonough OP giving First Holy Communion to his nephew, James, while his parents looked on.…
Government ditching of pre-nuptial law welcomed
A leading canon lawyer has welcomed the Government’s decision to ditch a new law that would have recognised pre-nuptial agreements for marrying couples. Fr John McKeever, administrator of the Armagh Regional Marriage Tribunal, warned that the introduction of pre-nuptial agreements would disfigure marriage. “It’s important that the truth about marriage is put out there in…