The View With all the media attention focusing on climate change targets and pension age, a less-discussed aspect of the recently agreed programme for government between Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and the Green Party is the commitment to legislate for exclusion zones around hospitals where abortions are now being performed. This isn’t exactly a new…
The View Last week, the BBC and other outlets carried a report that a school in Hull had apologised after pupils researched porn on the internet for homework set for its pupils. Children aged 11-14 had been asked to “define” topics such as “hardcore porn”, “soft porn”, “revenge porn” and “sexting”. A mother of…
The View At the beginning of Lent we heard the words: “Memento homo, quia pulvis es, et in pulverem reverteris.” Remember, man, that thou art dust, and unto dust thou shalt return. In the two months since then – has it really only been two months? – a tiny virus has brought the world to…
The View Pope Francis’ recent Urbi et Orbi address was the most poignant moment of his pontificate. There was something profoundly moving about the emptiness of St Peter’s Square. Next to a crucifix that witnessed the defeat of a plague in Rome in 1522, Christ’s Vicar stood alone in the rain and, in the…
The View With one election over, we await another: the Seanad election. Of the 60 seats in the senate, six are allocated to the university panel. The other 54 are filled by the Taoiseach’s nominees and those nominated by the Vocational Panels. The university panel electorate is small, at only 175,000 between Trinity and NUI.…
The View “All of us here today understand an eternal truth: every child is a precious and sacred gift from God. Together we must protect, cherish, and defend the dignity and the sanctity of every human life. “When we see the image of a baby in the womb, we glimpse the majesty of God’s creation.…
The View On Monday, the Church celebrates the great moment of the first revelation of the Messiah to all nations and peoples: the Epiphany. Traditionally considered even more theologically significant than the Nativity, this was the moment in time when Christ was revealed as not only a Messiah for God’s chosen people, but for…
The View While at Mass on the first Sunday in Advent, I was momentarily struck by the beauty of the sanctuary, and the vestments worn by the priest and deacons. The chasuble, a heavy silk damask with a background of indigo, was exquisitely embroidered with clouds of gold and silver thread. All around, my eyes…
The View How many angels can dance on the head of a pin? What (if you will pardon the pun) could be more pointless than debating a question like this? Why anyone could ever have wasted time in such an exercise is now – and for a long time has been – unfathomable to many.…
The View September is a month that means back to school for most families: new uniforms and bags are donned while the trees shed their leaves and the last of the summer sun wanes. It is an exciting time, full of expectation that the newness of a fresh start brings. It is, for Catholic parents…