WMOF 2018 Family is the “strongest building block of society” according to Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli who been confirmed to sing at the Festival of Families in Croke Park on August 25. The event is a celebration of family life and is expected to be one of the highlights of the WMOF with Pope…
Building on the development of Church teaching against capital punishment, Pope Francis has ordered a revision of the Catechism of the Church to assert “the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person” and to commit the Church to working toward its abolition worldwide. The catechism’s…
Pilgrims travelling to see Pope Francis in the Phoenix Park this month should be careful travelling to and from the event and make use of public transport when possible, Killaloe’s bishop has said. Bishop Fintan Monahan said that on August 26, around 500,000 people are due to be in Dublin together for the World Meeting…
A Catholic bishop in the Philippines has expressed support for a government plan to rescue three Filipino migrant workers abducted in Libya last month. Bishop Rufino Santos, head of the Episcopal Commission on Migrants and Itinerant People, said he supports President Rodrigo Duterte’s proposal to send a frigate to help rescue the Filipinos. “Yes we support,”…
What Are We Doing Here? by Marilynne Robinson (Virago, £18.99) Patrick Claffey Born in 1943, Marilynne Robinson is a celebrated American novelist and essayist, a recipient of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2005, a National Humanities Medal and the Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction in 2016 – the year she was also named…
Commemoration by Heather Laird (Cork University Press, €9.95) Felix M. Larkin In Evelyn Conlon’s novel Not the Same Sky, one of the characters questions the purpose of memorials – and, by extension, the purpose of historical commemorations generally. She asks: “Are they to let us know? To make us accept? Or are they to make us weep?” In…
Returning to school is one of the biggest changes in your child’s life, writes Davis Clark As summer break draws to a close, it’s time to pull our attention away from the beach and focus on a very important event: the first day of school. Starting a new school year can be both a…
Faith in Jesus satisfies deeper hungers Doing God’s will means believing in Jesus and allowing love for him to translate into love for one’s neighbours, Pope Francis has said. The Gospel story of the multiplication of loaves demonstrates the concern Jesus showed for people’s daily physical needs, the Pope said, but the passages that follow show how “it is even…
Children’s Corner Davis Clark As we move deeper into summer, you may find yourself heading to the beach to catch a few rays before the season ends. While the ocean is certainly an opportunity to have fun, it can also provide the opportunity for learning. Playing with sand has always been a favourite activity…