Mike Lewis Cardinal Victor Manuel Fernández has a tough job. Ever since he took over as prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) in mid-September, the Argentine theologian has been working hard to be the doctrine chief that Pope Francis asked him to be. When Fernández was appointed in July,…
In simpler times, news was what you were given and you were happy for it. Today we can source news from anywhere while running the gauntlet of misinformation, disinformation and distortion. To avoid confusing people, what we’re told is that clear communication of factual information leads to clarity and doubts being dispelled. So why is…
Gretchen Crowe Our sweetest not-such-a-baby anymore turns 20 months old this month. Like any proud mama, I could write an entire column on John Francis’s adorable qualities, like his propensity to silly dance anytime he catches a whiff of a beat, or how he quacks at anything that has wings, including, lately, the angels in…
The Master of the Rotunda hospital has admitted he “can’t remember” the last time a pro-life protest took place outside the Dublin hospital. Prof. Seán Daly made the remarks when asked about the abortion zones legislation set to make pro-life protest illegal within 100 metres of facilities providing abortion. His comments appear to be at…
Failure of Catholic college’s dialogue process raises serious questions, writes Ruadhán Jones While most institutions were winding down over Christmas, teachers and staff at Mary Immaculate Catholic college received a bombshell announcement about MIC’s “historic” dialogue with University of Limerick (UL). In an email sent December 19, MIC President Eugene Wall admitted that after almost…
Sr Hosea Rupprecht The week before Christmas, I encountered airport crowds waiting to board their flights, but spilling out of the gate area and hampering the rest of us trying to get where we were going. I got stuck behind a guy dragging his bag but laser-focused on his phone. His bag kept hitting people…
A Gallup report titled Faith and Wellness has confirmed that religious people are more engaged in their communities, have more social support and enjoy more positive mentalities. The American analytics company found that there were five key factors of spirituality that have a beneficial impact on a person’s wellbeing: – Positive coping and a sense…
Irish men and women were among the top 10 visitors to the famous Camino de Santiago in 2023, as the Spanish pilgrimage saw record breaking visitor figures. Nearly half a million people from around the world hiked this historic route last year, according to statistics from the pilgrims’ office. Nearly 200,000 of the pilgrims were…
Jenna Marie Cooper Q: What is the Church currently teaching about the Real Presence in other denominations? I thought that at one time we recognised both the Lutherans and the Anglicans as having the Real Presence. Does that still hold true? Others? A: For context, let us recall that the Catholic teaching on the “real…
Every year it has been customary on these books pages to recall aspects of the accounts of the Nativity given in two of the Gospels. Each year, surprisingly enough, there always seems something new to say. This is as true this year as in all those earlier years; all 2,000 or so of them going…
Brandon Scott
Ruadhán Jones
Peter Costello