On 7 September, Bishop Martin Hayes of Kilmore, Episcopal Coordinator for Laudato Si’/Laudate Deum, and a member of the Laudato Si’ Working Group (LSWG) of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference, was invited to speak in Kinsale, Co Cork, as part of the current Season of Creation celebrations. In his presentation, Bishop Hayes highlighted the main theme of Laudato Si’,…
Jonah McKeown Letter from Rome Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, OP, archbishop of Vienna, said in a recent interview with a French Catholic magazine that in the face of rising secularisation and the growth of Islam in many historically Christian nations, Catholics should “trust in the work of grace” and remember that the Church is “an expert…
The Book of Iona: An Anthology edited by Robert Crawford (Polygon / Birlinn, £12.99) The remote island of Iona has a special place in the memories and affections of thousands of people in Scotland and Ireland. In my own case, I still recall, so very distinctly it is like a dream, my first visit to the…
The acclaimed Irish spiritual writer of the twentieth century, Blessed Columba Marmion, once wrote in a letter to a missionary nun in the tropics: “All that God does for us proceeds from His mercy. God builds an eternal monument to His mercy in Heaven. The stones of this monument are the miserable who draw down…
The pilgrimage of the relics of St Bernadette continues to attract significant numbers across Ireland, with a recent stop providing parishioners in the dioceses of Limerick and Killaloe the opportunity to venerate the relics. Many traveled from across the country, drawn by the chance to engage in prayer, reflection, and personal devotion to the saint.…
Several years ago, at a time when the national news was much fixated on a high-profile case of sexual harassment, I asked three women colleagues: “what constitutes sexual harassment? What’s the line here that may not be crossed? What’s innocent behavior and what’s harassment?” They answered to this effect. It’s not so much a question…
The lengths a ruthless man is willing to go to in order to protect his job is explored with searing authenticity in Anand Tucker’s The Critic (15), a gothic tale of blackmail, bribery and clandestine assignations set in post-Oscar Wilde, post-Jazz Age London. Jimmy Erskine (Ian McKellen) is a theatre reviewer. His secret lifestyle (he’s…
Q: I was married in a non-Catholic wedding ceremony, then divorced years later civilly. Once I became Catholic and wanted to marry again, I got an annulment of the first marriage. My non-Catholic friends and relatives said this was a Catholic cop out to get around Jesus’ prohibition against divorce, by saying that the first marriage ‘never happened’. Could you comment?…
The Sunday Gospel Wis 2:12, 17-20 Ps 54:3-4, 5, 6 and 8 Jas 3:16—4:3 Mk 9:30-37 The lives of the saints reveal the many trials and persecutions that the holiest men and women encounter from within or from outside the Church. We learn that some saints who founded religious orders were even rejected by the…
In the modern media landscape that is so fragmented it is rare to find a programme that draws huge numbers, but we got one last week. Yes, it was the much-anticipated Harris v Trump the US Debate (Sky News, Wednesday) – too early in the morning. It was a sign of its significance that it…
Brandon Scott
Peter Costello
Renata Milán Morales
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Aubrey Malone
Brendan O’Regan