In one of the biggest pro-life demonstrations ever in Ireland, tens of thousands of people took to the streets of the capital to call for a ‘No’ vote in the upcoming abortion referendum. Demonstrators of all ages, from across Ireland, marched from Parnell Square to Merrion Square to advocate for the retention of the Eighth…
Contemporary topics about the Irish Church now revolve around questions about our declining priesthood, the efficacy of clergy formation, and the integral role of the laity. Although these discussions often begin and end at the armchair, the newly-appointed Bishop of Ossory is hoping to put his words into real action. Dr Dermot Farrell, who was…
Love Notes I am a single woman in my late 30s and I thought I would be married with a family by now. I had one serious relationship in my early 20s but it ended when he cheated on me. Since then I have been dating but is has never lasted more than a…
The St Patrick of popular lore was the creation of the 7th-Century Church, writes Thomas O’Loughlin Memory is our key both to the past and to our identity, and we are usually fairly certain about the overall architecture of the edifice known as ‘our story’. Turning to Patrick – a crucial figure in Irish…
The poet, Rumi, suggests that we live with a deep secret that sometimes we know, then not, and then know again. That’s a good description of faith. Faith isn’t something you nail down and possess once and for all. It goes this way: sometimes you walk on water and sometimes you sink like a stone.…
A Time of Our Lives: How We Grew Up From the 1940s to the 1960s by Gerald Rice (Order from A Time of Our Lives Ltd., 11 Mornington Green, Trim, Co. Meath; €10 + €2.95 p&p; e-mail: atimeofourlives@gmail.com) This is an unusual autobiography which will resonate with Gerald Rice’s contemporaries both in Ireland and the…
Dear Editor, I am commenting on the recent resignation of Bishop McAreavey because of his having been criticised for offering the funeral Mass for a priest who, according to the secular media, was “a known paedophile”. Paedophilia is an abomination before God. The trauma caused to victims – physical, psychological, spiritual and social – is incalculable, often resulting…
Fr Bernard Healy The Notebook Pope Francis has me worried! At a recent Public Audience he reminded preachers to prepare homilies well and told us that they “should not last more than 10 minutes, please”. Whatever conclusions my congregation might reach about how well-prepared my homilies are (I try, honestly!), long-windedness on a Sunday…
On Tuesday night of last week the Catholic Bishops made a significant intervention in the Eighth Amendment debate, issuing a humane and measured statement. On the Nine News (RTE 1) that night, Archbishop Eamon Martin expressed dismay that the right to life of unborn children could be “obliterated” from the Constitution. On Wednesday’s Morning Ireland…
TheWorld of Books by the books editor There is a striking phrase quoted in Dr Ian d’Alton’s review across the page. The author of the book in question takes on those who criticize Redmond for not holding to what Ronan Fanning characterized as ‘the nationalist delusion that the partition of Ireland was avoidable’. Meleady…
Chai Brady
Colm Fitzpatrick
Wendy Grace
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Brendan O’Regan
Peter Costello