The Catholic Church should not be afraid of crisis; through crisis, it will grow and spring new life, according to Dominican Fr Timothy Radcliffe. “If you look at human beings, we grow up through crisis,” said the 73-year-old English theologian. “It’s our way. And so, we believe, I believe, it’s the fate of the Church…we…
One of the great contradictions of parenthood is that you, at once, want your children to acquire knowledge, and you want to protect them from knowledge. After all, protecting children’s innocence means deliberately keeping certain types of knowledge from them. Ever since the Garden of Eden, we have equated increased knowledge with paradise lost. We…
Personal Profile Kilmore’s new Director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry has his fair share of challenges in a world in which many young people are increasingly moving away from the Church, but he is determined to give them a reason to stay. Francis Keaney (29) will be spearheading initiatives that aim to encourage…
Ways to go Beyond and why they Work by Rupert Sheldrake (Coronet, £20.00/€23.00) Christopher Moriarty In his preface, Rupert Sheldrake introduces himself as a research worker who is making a substantial contribution to the human knowledge that he calls “mundane”. He means the facts relating to our material world, which can be ascertained by…
Green Fingers March – this month – has a very appropriate name, growth in the garden goes from an almost stand still to quick march now that spring is here. March in the garden is the month for rose pruning. Weather dependant mid-March is ideal but if it is very cold, leave it until…
Mainly about Books by the Books Editor It has long amazed me the amount of abuse that creationists and many evangelicals heap upon the head of Charles Darwin. Much of what is said is simply wrongheaded, or relies on over simplistic interpretations of the Book of Genesis (one of the most challenging books of the Bible…
The Notebook Fr Bernard Healy “There are hundreds of churches in Rome, why on earth would you want to visit a Mormon temple?” A fair question from a fellow-priest, but the consecration of a Mormon temple on the outskirts of Rome offered a rare opportunity, because once a temple is consecrated, only Mormons in…
Penal Times bishop voted Laois ‘all time great’ An 18th-Century bishop has been voted the greatest Laois person of all time. Bishop Daniel Delany won 89% of the final vote in the Leinster Express poll. Born in 1747, Fr Delaney trained for the priesthood in France where he was ordained in 1770. Returning to Ireland in 1776, he began Sunday schools the…
You’d be mad not to trad! For those in the family who like dance and music, check out the Kilkenny Tradfast which will see some of the country’s world-famous acts taking to the stage while also showcasing the best of local talent in the city’s theatres, pubs and public spaces. The highlights include the first…
Dear Editor, Archbishop Eamon Martin’s appeal that the issue of abuse not be treated as a political football within the Church (IC 21/2/2019) is a powerful and wise call, and one that urgently needs to be heard. Too often over recent decades have advocates of married and women priests treated the abuse crisis as an…
Chai Brady
Paul Gargan
Peter Costello