The World Meeting of Families is a time when Ireland will be at the “centre of the world” and is an opportunity for organisers to highlight climate change issues, the Secretary General of the world’s largest Catholic Charity has said. Michel Roy of Caritas Internationalis – a worldwide confederation of over 165 Caritas organisations –…
Medical Matters Cancer is estimated to affect up to one in two people in their lifetime in Ireland, where it currently accounts for about 30% of all deaths. Indeed, the number of new cases of cancer is steadily rising on the back of an ageing population with about 40,000 diagnoses being made last year.…
The Bishop of Dromore tells Martin O’Brien about ‘missed opportunities’ to expose appalling crimes During my long stint producing BBC Radio Ulster’s Sunday Sequence, dominated by the apparently unending clerical sex abuse scandals, one bishop was more available than any other to come on the radio to face the music. That bishop demonstrated then…
A book to last a lifetime As Mother’s Day looms closer and closer, finding the perfect gift can be a real challenge. However, a visit to the National Museum of Ireland Country Life in Castlebar next month will make your decision-making much easier, as it is providing the opportunity for you and your mother to…
Fr Pat Ahern, founding member of Siamsa Tire, the National Folk Theatre established in 1973, was honoured by Kerry County Council this Monday for his important contributions to the arts in Ireland spanning over four decades. A native of Moyvane, Fr Ahern, was artistic director of the theatre until 1997, and also took part in broadcasting…
The Notebook It’s often noted that St John Paul II canonised more saints than all of his predecessors combined, but too often forgotten is that on the February day five years ago when he announced his resignation, Pope Benedict XVI authorised the canonisation of more saints than his Polish predecessor had ever done. The…
We’re well used to TV dramas scheduled for one episode per week, and in these days of box set binging (even if the ‘box’ is often virtual) it’s a nice kind of anticipation. Last week, however, ITV ran the new drama Trauma for three nights in a row. Tense and intriguing, with several unlikely plot…
Personal profile Colm Fitzpatrick learns about the power of the homily Although homilies at Mass can sometimes sound repetitive or even boring, one Capuchin priest is offering helpful tips on how to make the homily more interesting and thought-provoking. Cork-born Fr Silvester O’Flynn is well known for his reflections on the three cycles of…
Children’s Corner Displays of incredible strength have been a form of entertainment for centuries, whereby performers attempt to lift or endure the force of extremely heavy weights. Usually known as ‘strongmen’, these performers would dazzle crowds with their incredible feats, and would compete with one another to show their uniqueness. One strongman was Pierre…
There’s been a lot of debate in English Catholic journalism over the last week or two about a Cambridge lecture by Chicago’s Cardinal Blase Cupich. The lecture itself, ‘Pope Francis’ revolution of mercy: Amoris Laetitia as a new paradigm of Catholicism’, conducted under the auspices of the Von Hügel Institute for Critical Catholic Inquiry, can…
Chai Brady
Dr Kevin McCarroll
Martin O'Brien
Greg Daly
Brendan O’Regan
Colm Fitzpatrick