If there is genuine public demand for something politicians will hear ordinary members of the public raise it, writes David Quinn
David Quinn
How the new Government deals with social issues will be crucial
The Programme for Government provides plenty of challenges, writes David Quinn
The Church must keep just war theory
Pacifism only works when everyone adopts it, writes David Quinn
Good versus evil battles based on religious roots
Game of Thrones’ nihilism does not work because we need stories to have a just ending or moral purpose, writes David Quinn President Barack Obama is a fan. He got to watch the first episode of the new season ahead of almost anyone else. That, I suppose, is one of the perks of being the…
Pope wants Europe to rethink refugee policy
We have a responsibility to ease the burden on countries that are immediate neighbours to war-torn regions, writes David Quinn Europe is currently embroiled in the greatest refugee crisis since the Second World War. It has been precipitated by the collapse of authority in Libya, and in large parts of Iraq and, of course, by…
New Exhortation must now be implemented
Bishops must answer Pope’s challenge on sex education, writes David Quinn Amoris Laetitia is a long and complex document with many parts dealing with diverse topics, but all relating in the end to the family, the Church’s concept of the family and how people can be led, sometimes bit by bit, to see the wisdom…
Ireland’s faith being airbrushed from history
President Higgins’ view of post-independence Ireland is a caricature, writes David Quinn How should we remember 1916? What does justice to all the different strands of the Easter Rising? President Michael D. Higgins has spoken of the need for “ethical remembering”, by which he means a form of remembering that takes account of all the…
Muslims must act against extremists
It is not good enough to simply say ‘Islam is a religion of peace’, writes David Quinn Is Islam really a ‘religion of peace’ as some of its defenders insist? So many acts of terrorism today are being carried out by followers of Islam. Yes, they are extremists. Yes, their version of Islam may be…
Politics in Ireland has fragmented, like religion
Faith in anything, once lost, is not easily restored, writes David Quinn Lately I’ve taken to calling myself a ‘lapsed’ or a ‘non-practicing’ Fine Gaeler. You might be the same, or else you might be a lapsed Fianna Fáil supporter who perhaps returned to the party at the recent election or maybe opted for one…
Our schools need official Catholic RSE programme
It’s time the bishops commissioned a Catholic version of the sex education programme, writes David Quinn Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) has been part of primary and secondary school education for many years now. As is the case with other parts of the school curriculum, there seems to be wide variation between schools in terms…