Inés San Martín When she first heard that Pope Francis wanted her to write the meditations for the world’s most followed Way of the Cross ceremony, Italian Sr Eugenia Bonetti said she was “embarrassed” but soon realised that it could be a “great opportunity”. An opportunity “not for me, but for the many people who through…
Australia’s Catholic population fell by 2.7% between 2011 and 2016, but Catholics are more likely to have a higher education, according to an analysis of census data by the National Centre for Pastoral Research. Analysing statistics from the country’s 2016 census, the centre reported on April 4 in its ‘Social Profile of the Catholic Community…
My wife came in to my office with a sheepish look on her face. She said that my son’s friend had just called to the door, and had asked if he could go to the park to play. She confessed that she had said “yes” and that he was now gone – out into the…
Personal Profile Hannah Harn From growing up in Limerick to leading the conversation in applied spirituality, the path of one Jesuit priest carried him through the Chilean military regime and guided him through his ongoing commitment to social justice service in the modern world. Dr Michael O’Sullivan, Director of the Spirituality Institute for Research and…
A coffee shop set up with the support of over a dozen different Catholic groups offers a model of outreach and co-operation which could be vital for the Church going forward, organisers say. Brew132 on Cork’s Washington Street aims to provide a place where students on their way to and from college might be exposed…
Love Notes My fiancé and I are getting married in a few months, and while I had assumed we would have a joint bank account once we got married but he has an issue with this, where do we go from here? How we feel about money is decided by a lot of factors,…
Pope Francis to celebrate Holy Thursday with prisoners Pope Francis will celebrate the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper with prisoners in Velletri, about 36 miles south of Rome. The Pope will celebrate the Mass and the foot-washing ritual at the Velletri Correctional Facility on April 18, the Vatican announced last week. The late-afternoon visit will include a meeting with prisoners,…
When the Romans designed crucifixion as their means of capital punishment, they had more in mind than simply putting someone to death. They wanted to accomplish something else too, namely, to make this death a spectacle to serve as the ultimate deterrent so that anyone seeing it would think twice about committing the offense for…
Medical Matters Music has been used for millenia to raise our spirits. The ancient Greeks recognised that physical and mental well-being could be enhanced by music. Indeed, music was used to improve performance in athletes at the ancient Olympic games. Pythagorus believed that it could soothe ailments of the spirit, body and soul and…
One of the least endearing aspects of modern media culture is the cult of celebrities. Make ‘em dance, drop them on remote islands, pop them into quiz shows. It’s not the worst idea to send them on a pilgrimage. And so it was with Pilgrimage: Road to Rome (BBC 2) a new series that started…
Wendy Grace
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Dr Kevin McCarroll
Brendan O’Regan