Some of the students participating in the Emmanuel live musical event organised by the Archdiocese of Dublin sign the word for ‘love’ on stage at the Helix. Over 2,000 young people from schools all over Dublin, including St Mary's SchoolforDeafGirls, performed hymns with an orchestra over three days. Photo: John McElroy
Catholic college poised for boost
Staff Reporter One of the country’s leading Catholic colleges is poised for a boost in student numbers as a result of a major building development project. Mary Immaculate College, Limerick, is set to record a 16% rise in student numbers in the coming year bringing the student body to in excess of 3,500 in September 2015.…
Francis on faith
In his own words… “Faith is necessarily ecclesial; it is processed from within the body of Christ as a concrete communion of believers.” “Today more than ever, we need to be reminded of this bond between faith and truth, given the crisis of truth in our age.” “The light of faith is unique, since it…
The Pope’s reform agenda
With his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), Pope Francis finally made his real debut as papal author. The Pope had already published an encyclical, however, in the opening paragraphs of Lumen Fidei, he explained that the text was essentially the work of his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, to whose words Pope…
Francis the globetrotter
Pope Francis has become an active globetrotter over the past two years despite a perceived initial aversion to continuing the tradition of papal travel initiated by John Paul II and continued by Pope emeritus Benedict XVI. During 2013, Francis made just one journey abroad, to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for World Youth Day. He stepped…
Where does Pope Francis stand on same-sex marriage?
The Irish Catholic has asked an interdisciplinary team, which includes Prof. Eamonn Conway and Dr Rik Van Nieuwenhove, theologians at Mary Immaculate College University of Limerick, and Mr Patrick Treacy SC of Integritas, to consider and respond to the difficult questions we all face when deciding how to vote in the referendum.
Life’s Little Things
Last week my children and I were in the local toy shop when my youngest son saw a classmate shopping for video games with his dad. The shop assistant drew the dad’s attention to the fact that his nine-year-old son was purchasing a game with a 16-year-old age rating. Dad nodded rather distractedly and mumbled…
Leading the campaign to outlaw the death penalty
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Depression: The unfathomed fear
The Catholic Guide to Depression by Aaron Kheriaty MD, with Fr John Cihak (Sophia Institute Press, £12.94 print, £7.46 e-book)
Recent books in brief
Walking with Jesus: the Heart of the Christian Life by Pope Francis, edited by Giuliano Vigini (Dalton, Longman & Todd, 9.99) There is a Chinese saying “the longest journey begins with the first step”. The idea of the journey, or rather, the walk, is according to the editor of this book at the heart of…

Courtney McGrail