After the Spanish parliament debated on February 17 a controversial bill proposed by far-right party Vox to ban the burqa and niqab in public spaces, a leading Spanish archbishop has said the burqa discriminates against women while he also called for mutual respect among religious groups. Speaking to Crux, Archbishop Joan Planellas of Tarragona said…
“Above all, I urge you never to close yourselves off: Don’t be afraid to talk to others, even about your fatigue and your crises,” Pope Leo said to Rome’s priests in a February 19 meeting with clergy of the Roman diocese. During the meeting in the Paul VI Hall at the Vatican, the Holy Father…
A breakaway Catholic traditionalist group rejected the Vatican’s offer of talks, suggesting a collision course with Pope Leo XIV over its planned consecrations of new bishops without his consent. In a letter to the Vatican’s doctrine chief, the Society of St Pius X said the Holy See’s threat of sanctions and schism if it goes…
The Edict of Milan, issued in February 313 by Constantine the Great and Licinius, stands as one of the most decisive turning points in Christian history. By granting religious tolerance throughout the Roman Empire and restoring confiscated Christian property, the edict transformed Christianity from a persecuted minority faith into a legally recognised religion. Its impact…
Easter in Disguise: The 2026 Lent Book, by Liz Dodd (Bloomsbury, £10.99 / €12.99) This is an unusual book, partly because of the experiences of the author, partly by what she tries to pass on to her readers from those experiences. Author Liz Dodd was born in Oxford. She took a degree in theology…
El Generalísimo Franco: Power, Violence and the Quest for Greatness, by Giles Tremlett (Bloomsbury, £30 / €35.00) Giles Tremlett, who lives in Spain, has a deep understanding of that country’s past. He is the author of a remarkable account of the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War. Here, however, moving on in time,…
Unsurprisingly, quite a few Lent related items featured in the media last week. The News in Depth (EWTN, Friday) covered Pope Leo’s Lenten Message, with its striking call for a worthy type of abstinence – refraining “from words that offend and hurt.” He called for a “disarming” of language, “avoiding harsh words and rash judgement.”…
Q: I think the Catholic Church’s Lenten discipline is kind of a joke. Specifically, Friday abstinence really isn’t that tough since most people aren’t going to suffer if they can’t have meat for one day a week. Why doesn’t the Church require something more demanding, like omitting all animal products on days of penance, or…
Head, neck, torso bent in a curve like the bend of a river. Grasping rail. I am looking up at the spectacular dome of St Peter’s Basilica. Awe-inspiring. Vertigo-inducing. No wonder Shakespeare said that human beings are little less than gods. The Bard may have exaggerated when it comes to the rest of us, but…
Two Middle-Aged Ladies in Andalusia, by Penelope Chetwode (Eland Publishing, £14.99 / €17.50) This is the time of the year when we find so many people we wish to contact or speak to have “gone to Spain”. Indeed, the whole Irish people seems to have lost their hearts to Spain. But their Spain is as…
Peter Costello
Brendan O’Regan