Lauretta Brown When I mention to priests and religious that I am reading one spiritual classic a month this year, I often immediately get the advice not to read The Dark Night of the Soul by St John of the Cross. I have obligingly avoided that intimidating work, but when one Carmelite encouraged me to…
Alan Whelan The recent International Catholic GRACE Report pointed out that 35% of Irish Catholic school teachers do not believe in God and that only 48% of Catholic Religious Education teachers attend weekly Mass. Meanwhile there is the Dublin Archdiocese decision of a very few years ago that sacramental preparation should be more firmly placed…
Silvio Cuéllar Over a decade ago, my wife Becky and I decided to cut our cable service and go without television. It was a drastic decision at the time, but one that helped our children learn many skills, such as playing instruments, painting and developing their talents at a young age. We made that decision…
Effie Caldarola One morning, I was half-listening to America’s National Public Radio as I quickly prepared for an appointment. Into the shower, grab the coffee, find the toothbrush and in the midst of this, bits and pieces of the day’s news. Then, ‘StoryCorps’ was playing. An independent nonprofit, StoryCorps exists to let people tell their…
Fr Shay Cullen During a meeting of top cabinet members, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed shock and dismay. He was very disturbed about the prevalence of online sexual abuse and exploitation of small children as young as three years old. This is due to the inaction of the telecommunications corporations that defy the law (RA…
Letter from Florence Micheal Sanfey A leading art expert friend of mine – speaking with a degree of Roman hauteur – declared that while she sometimes needed to be in Venice, she didn’t need to be in Florence. Quite frankly she just didn’t seem to like Florence very much, if at all. Scrambling for examples…
Dear Editor, Listening to the Gospel the other morning I was struck by the words “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me before you” (John 15:18). These words struck a chord with me because the previous day I was accused of lacking compassion by opposing assisted dying as a compassionate response to…
Sr Anne Marie Walsh SOLT We tend to like a lot of things. The more we like something, the more attached we can become to it. This can be good, bad, or indifferent. Being attached to our families, our spouses, our children, etc., is a good thing so long as it is a healthy attachment…
Dr Catherine McCormack My first observation on the GRACE project’s reports is the worrying number of stakeholders who report that they received no training for their roles in Catholic schools; and of those who received training, generally it was once-off or less often than yearly. Also concerning is the fact that of those who received…
Elizabeth Scalia In discussing the removal or transfer of a pastor, Canon 1752 reads, “… prae oculis habita salute animarum, quae in Ecclesia suprema semper lex esse debet”, in English, “… keeping in mind the salvation of souls, which must always be the supreme law of the Church”. The phrase resonates so deeply with me…