“We are living at a moment of opportunity,” said Archbishop Francis Duffy during his installation as Bishop of Killala on April 26. “Structures and processes may change, but the mission remains constant: to proclaim the Good News of the risen Lord.” In his homily, delivered at St Muredach’s Cathedral in Ballina, Co. Mayo during the…
Celebrating Vocations Sunday on April 22, Chair of the Bishops’ Council for Vocations Bishop Alphonsus Cullinan prayed for vocations to the priesthood while delivering his homily. Reflecting on a recent trip to Medjugorje in which accompanied transition year students, he shared how he was “struck by the beautiful relationship the young people have with their…
‘Faith in a time of anxiety’ is a journey from fear to faith, writes Fr Chris Hayden Illiness; death; bereavement; uncertainty; worries about loved ones; wars and rumours of wars; economic and housing instability; energy shortage; disruption to health services; climate change; environmental degradation; terrorism, bio-terrorism and cyber-terrorism; the disruptions and perils of AI; memory…
Maybe I am simply getting grumpier with age, but I find myself increasingly exasperated by the constant comparisons between young people today and how they ‘used to be’. According to this narrative, they are distracted by mobile phones, shaped by influencers, dulled by streaming, addicted to gaming, captive to algorithms, morally adrift, socially awkward, unable…
In light of a recent law legalising assisted suicide in New York, Catholic bishops urged Catholics to make end-of-life decisions prayerfully and with guidance from the Church. The updated pamphlet, “Now and at the Hour of Our Death,” is designed “to simply explain the moral principles of Catholic teaching with regard to end-of-life decision-making and…
When Bishop Donal was appointed auxiliary bishop in Down and Connor, a brother priest joked: “How the hell did you slip through?” He still laughs at the memory. Bishop Donal, the son of a watchmaker, is conscious that his time as Bishop of Derry is coming to a close. He formally resigned on April 12…
Our gender defines us. Men fight in trenches while women engage in different types of struggles in civilian life. Which is the stronger sex? Is it the military person or the homemaker? Brain or brawn? Adolf Hitler or Eva Braun? We often hear taunts about the British being “the old enemy” but Ireland never had…
As Pope Leo XIV pushed back against what he has described as an inaccurate narrative surrounding his first trip to Africa, missionaries working across the continent say the journey reflects something far more fundamental than political debate. “There has been a certain narrative that has not been accurate in all its aspects,” the Pope told…
Up then father and no more negligence!” This was Catherine of Siena’s plea to Pope Gregory XI in one of many letters, urging him toward courageous reform. April 29 marked the feast day of this remarkable woman, who was born in 1347 and died in 1380 at just 33 years of age. In 1970 she…
No Church is an Island: 175 Years of St John the Evangelist, Sandymount, Dublin, by Alyson Gavin Lysaght & Shabnam Vasisht (€20.00; to purchase contact the church office at sandynount@dublin.anglican.org) This is a book which those who already have Dr Ian Milne’s history of St Bartholomew’s, Clyde Road, will like to have, as it fills out more…
Martina Purdy
Aubrey Malone
Peter Costello