Nettuno is an Italian coastal town about seventy kilometres south of Rome. I often travel there by train on my days off to walk the beach and pray. Nettuno is famous for a huge Military Cemetery where thousands of soldiers are buried who were killed during the Second World War in January 1944 when Allied…
In St Peter’s Square in Rome, the great colonnades of Bernini begin at either side of the Basilica and wrap around most of the square’s perimeter. In the mind of the architects, the body of the basilica was designed to symbolise the body of Christ, the dome symbolised Christ the head of the Church and…
This week, our focus is not on one particular saint but on several – seventeen in fact – Irish men and women, lay and clerical, who were put to death for their Catholic faith between 1579 and 1654. They were beatified by Pope St John Paul II in 1992 and their feast day is celebrated…
On June 11 each year, the Church celebrates the feast of St Barnabas who is identified in Scripture as ‘the son of encouragement’. It is one of the highest compliments to be paid – to be known and remembered as someone who gave encouragement to others. The first mention of Barnabas in Scripture comes in…
There are many examples in Scripture of people elected by God to fulfil a special mission that involved them moving away from home. Abraham was asked by God to trust Him, to leave his homeland and travel towards a destiny known as ‘the promised land’ (cf. Gen 12:1ff). Moses was chosen by God to lead…
It seems like a huge understatement to say that we are living in uncertain times as a Church here in Ireland. Every parish, every religious community and every diocese across the country is grappling with social and ecclesial change that is happening at a faster rate than we can process. Despite our best efforts to…
Here in Vatican City where I live in Rome, St Peter’s Basilica is about fifty metres from my front door. I try to visit it most days to pray and go to the tombs of the popes, especially the recent ones, who are buried there. One grave that keeps drawing me to it to pray…
On May 22 each year, the Church celebrates the feast day of St Rita of Cascia. She is the patron saint of desperate situations and difficult marriages. From the story of her life, it is easy to see why. Rita was born near Cascia in Italy into a noble family in 1381. From a young…
The Anglican bishop N.T. Wright once contrasted the preaching of the Gospel by St Paul and his own efforts to do the same. “When Paul preached the Gospel, they tried to stone him. When I preach the Gospel, kind ladies make me tea!” Here he was pointing to the contrast between the effect of preaching…
To be a committed Christian today requires us to face danger. This is certainly true in places like Nigeria and other parts of the world where persecution is a real possibility with regular attacks taking place on places of worship and where Christians gather. But there is another sense, closer to home, where our faith…