France on trial: The case of Marshal Pétain, by Julian Jackson (Allan Lane, £25.00/€29.50) Marshal Philippe Pétain, head of the collaborationist Vichy regime in France during World War II, was put on trial for treason at the end of the war in 1945. It was essentially a show trial, ordered by the provisional government newly installed…
Fredrick Nzwili Two weeks after the military seized power in Gabon, a Catholic priest there said ordinary people feel more secure and hopeful, even as some analysts warn of a “contagious coup pandemic” in the former French colonies in West and Central Africa. On September 4, General Brice Oligui Nguema was sworn in as the…
Fr Stephen Ward is Derry’s newest priest following his ordination to the priesthood in Christ the King in Omagh, Co. Tyrone by Bishop McKeown, September 10. The eldest of two children, Fr Ward was born to Patricia and the late Paul Ward, of Killyclogher, Co Tyrone. In January, at Fr Ward’s ordination to the Diaconate…
A Christian legal group has filed a petition with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) on behalf of Nicaraguan Bishop Rolando Álvarez, who is serving a prison sentence under the regime of President Daniel Ortega for criticising the dictatorship’s human rights violations. Bishop Álvarez, the bishop of Matagalpa, began serving a 26-year, four-month prison…
Irish Prison Service honoured by Pieta House for promoting mental-health The Irish Prison Service has become the first public or private employer to be awarded the prestigious Amber Flag by Pieta House for its work in promoting mental well-being. This recognition highlights the Service’s commitment to fostering mental well-being and creating a supportive environment for…
Donal McMahon It’s strange but in all my years of reading at Mass I had never read the psalm for Trinity Sunday (Year A) until this year, on June 4. In case the choir wasn’t there to sing it, I studied it at home. I saw immediately how different it was from the usual…
As the saying goes, tempus fugit and with the arrival of September a new season has begun for a number of musical institutions not least the National Concert Hall, National Symphony Orchestra, Irish Chamber Orchestra and Music for Galway among a plethora of others. The NSO’s 2023/24 events got under way on September 9 with…
Sacred Space: The Prayerbook (Messenger Publications, €14.95/£12.95) A sure sign that the year is beginning to draw to an end is the early appearance of Sacred Space: The Prayerbook, the manual derived from the astonishing, globally popular online prayer site. This book has been appearing for many years and is always a sure-fire option for many as…
After meeting with a Chinese official in Beijing to discuss paths toward peace in Ukraine and ensuring grain exports from the country, Pope Francis’ special envoy is expected to return to Moscow, Russia’s foreign minister said. “The efforts of the Vatican, whose envoy is going to visit once again, are continuing,” Sergey Lavrov, Russia’s foreign…
Jem Sullivan Is 55:6-9 Ps 145:2-3, 8-9, 17-18 Phil 1:20c-24, 27a Mt 20:1-16a The paradox we encounter in Gospel parables is meant to open us up to a deeper understanding of who God is and who we are in relationship to God. To unpack the deeper meaning of the parable takes time, reflection and silence.…
Peter Costello