Mysteries of de Valera’s Early Life

De Valera: Volume 1 Rise 1882-1932 by David McCullagh (Gill Books, €24.99) Joe Carroll   Apart from about eight full biographies of Eamon de Valera, there have been the hundreds if not thousands of articles and critiques covering his long life. What new is there to say? David McCullagh, who is a journalist with RTÉ…

Around the world

Bangladesh: People pray in front of the National Eid Prayer Ground in Dhaka. Pope Francis is due to meet representatives of the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees living in the country.

The Christmas retreat that welcomes all

Youth Space Youth 2000 has been one of the main faith-building events that I have been to, writes Ruairí Ben McClintock   Growing up my mother and father always encouraged me to love God. My mother used to read to us children’s Bible stories and my father prayed with us every night. Every Sunday we’d…

Looking for a Christmas to start, not to end

Notebook Fr Bernard Healy   At the start of November this year, various Facebook friends began posting images and messages stating that with Hallowe’en behind us, now was the time for Christmas songs and decorations. Christmas seems to start earlier each year, but the current fad seems to be for the Christmas Season to encompass…

Catholics
 do 
not 
understand 
Pope
–
Archbishop

Pope Francis is misunderstood by people both within the Church as well as by some outside it, Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has said. Speaking in St Mary’s Church on Dublin’s Haddington Road as part of the Patrick Finn lecture series, Archbishop Martin said the Pope’s example “inspires some and…upsets others and leaves them insecure”. “Curiously, the…