Fr Conor McDonough OP Among the books on my shelves, one of my favourites is Ernest Klein’s two-volume Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. It doesn’t offer definitions of words, but shows their roots in other languages and periods. So the entry for the word ‘diamond’ traces it back to a Middle English word which…
“We’ve become so used to Catholicism being the dominant culture, it no longer is”, writes Michael Kelly We’ve been talking about crisis in the Church in Ireland for so long it runs the risk of becoming a vicious circle of negativity. Paradoxically, the need to face up to the piercing urgency of Church reform and…
US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made waves this week with a blistering statement about reports that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad had used chemical weapons in a recent attack on a rebel stronghold, calling it “brutal, unabashed barbarism.” Tillerson’s rhetoric raised eyebrows, given that just last week, during a visit to Turkey, Tillerson had said…
Kerry diocese celebrates Ceiliúradh na nOg Over 350 students, representing 14 post-primary schools from throughout the diocese, attended the Ceiliúradh na nÓg celebration day in the Brandon Hotel in Tralee, Co. Kerry. The students presented their projects which they carried out over the academic year. The purpose of Ceiliúradh na nÓg is to develop the…
Fr Paddy Moran CSSp To understand the passion of Christ is to understand the human journey, writes Fr Paddy Moran CSSp As a missionary I had the great privilege to work for 11 years in Ethiopia. I spent a number of those years working with prisoners in Arba Minch prison. Arba Minch is a town…
Greg Daly meets the man behind a film series helping young adults wrestle with Christianity Dublin’s Gonzaga College might seem an unlikely place for the launch of an evangelical video series produced by the historically Protestant and highly dynamic Scripture Union (SU) group, but according to Jonny Somerville, presenter of NUA, it made perfect sense.…
Over 1,000 young people, who are currently participating or have received the Pope John Paul II Award in the last ten years, gathered at Knock Shrine on April 5 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the award. When the award was launched in Derry in 2006 by the Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Giuseppe Lazarotto, it was…
Religion would be a second-class subject if new proposals take effect, writes Fr Eamonn Conway The latest proposal from the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA) will make it very difficult for patrons and boards of management of Catholic primary schools to fulfill their legal and statutory obligation to uphold their schools’ ethos. The…
Martin O’Brien meets a remarkable sister with a thirst for justice The first thing that strikes you about Sr Majella McCarron, a pioneering advocate for justice and peace within her congregation, is that she is no shrinking violet. Sr Majella, a sprightly, feisty 77-year-old who hails from Derrylin, Co. Fermanagh, is happy to talk for…
Fr Paul Farren (second right) with Pope John Paul II Award participants from the Diocese of Derry who performed a Passion Play in St Eugene’s Cathedral in Derry at the weekend.
Michael Kelly
John L. Allen Jr.
Courtney McGrail
Greg Daly
Mags Gargan
Martin O'Brien