Eugene Duffy should we take the sacraments out of the schools? asks Eugene Duffy The role of religion and the time allocated to it in the primary school curriculum continues to be a point of controversy in many quarters. At the Government level, the Minister, Mr Richard Bruton, continues the approach of his predecessors in attempting to…
Brendan O’Reilly The process of admitting new Catholics to the Church is centred on forming disciples writes Brendan O’Reilly Infant baptism in the Church has been practised since apostolic times and prior to 1972 if an adult sought baptism the ritual used was the Rite of Infant Baptism. Such adult baptisms were often celebrated privately,…
Casey Schmauder Casey Schmauder meets former IRA bomber Shane O’Doherty who turned to God while in prison Sitting down to a pot of tea and a blueberry muffin, Shane O’Doherty says, “I work at a shelter just around the corner, so this is where I come prior to starting my 12-hour night shift.” Shane has…
Just days after the far-right French presidential candidate Marine le Pen said the Church “interferes in everything except what it should really be concerned with”, France’s bishops have issued reflections on the presidential election. The bishops’ reflections were published within hours of the announcement that Emmanuel Macron, founder of the centre-left En Marche! Movement and…
The Devil is behind the hatred driving the persecution of Christians around the world, Pope Francis has said. Speaking at a prayer service in Rome’s Basilica of St Bartholomew, which has been dedicated to the New Martyrs since 2000, the Pope reflected on the Gospel in which Jesus said, “If the world hates you, remember…
Two of the three young shepherd children who in 1917 saw the apparitions of Our Lady in Fatima will be canonised when Pope Francis visits the Portuguese town on May 13, the Pope has said. During an ordinary public consistory in the Vatican, the Pontiff announced the canonisation of a total of 35 people, most…
Dear Editor, In recent weeks The Irish Catholic has featured fascinating interviews with the American apologist-philosopher Dr William Lane Craig (IC 30/03/2017) and with Jonny Somerville (IC 13/04/2017), the key figure behind an ambitious new series of films intended for youth evangelisation. As I understand it, Dr Craig visited several Irish cities while he was…
Dr Louise Jane Clarke As a psychologist, I encourage all parents to be mindful of their health to prevent stress and burnout. Although being a new parent is a wonderful experience for many, it can leave some parents vulnerable to exhaustion and feeling overwhelmed. However, finding time to take care of yourself is crucial to preventing parental burnout as…
World Without End, by Thomas Keating OCSO and Joseph Boyle, with Lucette Verboven (Bloomsbury, £10.99) The author, a Trappist monk of the community at St Benedict’s Monastery in Snowmass, Colorado, is already well known as a spiritual writer. His earlier books, Open Mind, Open Heart and The Mystery of Christ are familiar to many. He…
The Catholic Mom’s Prayer Companion. A Book of Daily Devotion, edited by Lisa Hendey and Sarah A. Reinhard (Ave Maria Press, $16.95; available online) There cannot be these days a more harassed set of people than the Catholic mothers of the world. This book is as the title suggests, of North American origin. That said…