Personal Profile Hannah Harn From growing up in Limerick to leading the conversation in applied spirituality, the path of one Jesuit priest carried him through the Chilean military regime and guided him through his ongoing commitment to social justice service in the modern world. Dr Michael O’Sullivan, Director of the Spirituality Institute for Research and…
Orders ‘test waters’ through coffee shop cooperation
A coffee shop set up with the support of over a dozen different Catholic groups offers a model of outreach and co-operation which could be vital for the Church going forward, organisers say. Brew132 on Cork’s Washington Street aims to provide a place where students on their way to and from college might be exposed…
Vatican Roundup
Pope Francis to celebrate Holy Thursday with prisoners Pope Francis will celebrate the Holy Thursday Mass of the Lord’s Supper with prisoners in Velletri, about 36 miles south of Rome. The Pope will celebrate the Mass and the foot-washing ritual at the Velletri Correctional Facility on April 18, the Vatican announced last week. The late-afternoon visit will include a meeting with prisoners,…
Family News and Events
Who let the dogs out? A pet-friendly family fun day will take place on Sunday April 21 in Corkagh Park, Clondalkin in Dublin from 12-3pm. With invitations open to the whole family, including your four-legged friends, there will be a dog friendly walk and free Easter egg hunt on the day. Husky Rescue Ireland (HRI)…
Mouth-watering treats line up with the stars of music
Pat O’Kelly ‘Treat’, meaning something that gives great pleasure, seems to be out of fashion but I am reminded of it recently in three programmes at the National Concert Hall, which I consider merit the accolade. The first comes from the period-instrument Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE) conducted by Budapest-born pianist András…
Step away from the fickleness of the modern mob
The Notebook Fr Conor McDonough There’s a strange paradox at the heart of modern celebrity culture. On the one hand, thanks to Instagram, celebrities are the object of unprecedented interest, love, envy and devotion. Pop stars and influencers all have their ‘fandoms’, hordes of utterly devoted fans who spend large parts of their free…
Diaconate shows times have changed
Dear Editor, Dr Phyllis Zagano’s article on the female diaconate (IC 4/4/2019) invites some very serious questions, not just about the prospect of ordaining women as deacons but about the purpose of male deacons. If we are honest about this, it seems indisputable that there were indeed women deacons in the early Church, with confusion…
Archbishop wins defamation suit after being called ‘Peruvian Juan Barros’
Lucien Chauvin A Peruvian archbishop has won a defamation suit against a local journalist in a long-running case involving alleged cover-up in an abuse scandal. A court in Piura, on the northern coast, ruled late on April 8 in favour of Archbishop Jose Eguren Anselmi of Piura in the suit against journalist Pedro Salinas.…
Bishops say no-fault divorce in U.K. undermines marriage from outset
The introduction of “no-fault” divorces in the United Kingdom will undermine marriages from the outset, the Catholic bishops of England and Wales have said. In the first major overhaul of U.K. divorce law for 50 years, the British government announced on April 9 that it would allow couples to split up simply by filing a…
Pray with courage, Pope says in morning homily
Christians must be courageous when praying to God and not simply repeat prayers “like a parrot”, Pope Francis has said. “In common parlance, people use an expression that I really like when they have a goal: ‘I put it all on the line’. In intercessory prayers, this also applies: ‘I put it all on the…










