Martial law in the southern Philippines and security forces’ clashes with a local terrorist group made a mockery of Independence Day celebrations, a bishop based in the Philippines said. “As long as there is martial law and unrest in Marawi City, the ‘independence’ of our nation is a farce,” said Bishop Arturo Bastes of Sorsogon.…
There’s a popular notion which suggests that it can be helpful to compare every century of Christianity’s existence to one year of life. That would make Christianity 21 years old, a young 21, grown-up enough to exhibit a basic maturity but still far from a finished product. How insightful is this notion? That’s a complex…
I was at an anti-natal class where the mid-wife was discussing breastfeeding. She asked the room of expectant parents why they thought breastfeeding levels are so low in Ireland. Immediately one of the dads piped up with “because of the Catholic Church”. The midwife replied, “Ah now, the Catholic Church has its faults but we…
Dear Editor, Your front page story last week (08/06/2017) about Bríd Smith’s comments that the Church should be thrown in the “dustbin”, depressed me more than anything else. I have gone past the stage of anger and outrage, at how easy and popularly acceptable it has become to attack the Catholic Church. I would imagine…
Ever since the election results were confirmed, we Brits have been speaking a lot of ancient Greek. For a start, there’s the hubris of the prime minister, Theresa May, in calling an election to secure a strong, stable government to better negotiate with Brussels, only to find herself weak and wobbly in a hung parliament,…
Here’s a papal pop quiz: When’s the last time you can remember a Pope openly demanding that all the priests of a specific diocese, whether they currently live there or not, write him a personal letter within 30 days pledging their loyalty, and threatening them with suspension if they don’t comply? If your answer is…
What does the end of the world look like? Matthew, Luke, Timothy and the Book of Revelations all address this question in the Bible. Hollywood answers it with movies like World War Z, Deep Impact and I am Legend. Novelists portray this era in The Road, Z for Zachariah and Children of Men. For me the closest I have ever seen to…
The acidification of oceans will have drastic environmental consequences, speakers told a UN conference last week. Over 3,500 people representing countries, UN agencies and non-governmental organisations attended the conference on sustainable development. Cardinal Peter Turkson from Ghana said that effective regulations to safeguard the world’s oceans are being blocked by “those who are profiting most…
Pope Francis discussed natural disasters, refugees and jobs with the Italian president last week. With recent earthquakes causing havoc in central Italy and large amounts of refugees entering the country from the Middle East the Italian administration have been under intense pressure. There has also been a scramble to create jobs, especially for young people.…
Pope Francis has defended the right of women to participate in social, economic and political life in all levels of society. The Pope was speaking to members, consultors and guests of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, which was holding its plenary assembly in Rome last week. Participants discussed the role of women in teaching…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Mags Gargan
Austen Ivereigh
John L. Allen Jr.