It seems to me that there should be energetic campaigns to increase knowledge about septicaemia, writes Mary Kenny Sepsis, or septicaemia, is recognised as a real and present threat to health in Britain – where some 37,000 people a year die from the infection. To its credit, the London Daily Mail has been running a…
Rewriting the rules on sexual consent
“Duh! is one reaction” to sexual activities requiring consent, writes Mary Kenny There have been some mixed reactions to the news that Trinity College Dublin is planning to subject their students to “sexual consent workshops”. The object is to teach those Freshers – mainly men, evidently – that it’s not acceptable to engage in sexual…
Are we baddies now?
Unfortunately it is the turn of the Catholics to be portrayed as the ‘creepy…smarmy’ baddies, writes Mary Kenny I remember some years ago seeing a cartoon depicting a Native American father and son, both wearing the head-dress of the Navajo (or Sioux) people. They were sitting in front of a cinema showing a movie depicting…
The secret of happiness is being content with your lot
“Contentment, I think, is a gift and an occasion for gratitude”, writes Mary Kenny What is the secret of happiness? Many books have been written in its pursuit. My Edwardian mother-in-law used to say “disposition”, and this may well be a key. Alexander Pope said as much in his Essay on Man, comparing a rich…
Does self-esteem deter teenage suicide?
“it’s a sense of grittiness that you need to get through life, not just confidence in yourself”, writes Mary Kenny Psychologists these days are constantly called on to help inspire self-esteem and a sense of self-worth in growing children – David Coleman, the clinical psychologist, is in regular demand to advise parents, teachers and guardians…
Ordinations – does rarity bring increased appreciation?
“perhaps the fact that ordinations are now rarer make them more valued”, contemplates Mary Kenny Two new priests recently ordained in Galway were photographed all smiles after their ordination ceremony on the Feast of the Epiphany. Fr John O’Halloran is 38 and Fr Michael King is 39 and their stories attracted interest because they had…
Charlie Hebdo marks anniversary with anti-religious cartoon
“Just because you are free to offend doesn’t mean you must offend at all times”, writes Mary Kenny It’s just been a year – on January 7 – since the terrifying, and wicked, Charlie Hebdo shootings in Paris, when two Muslim brothers, Chérif and Said Kouachi, opened fire at the French satirical magazine’s office, killing…
Which of us is the pagan society now?
“Irish leaders…seem to strive to avoid underlining faith’s role in Christmas traditions” unlike our English neighbours, writes Mary Kenny
Why I’m choosing an austere Christmas this year
“I don’t want to be worrying about when to put on the Brussels sprouts: I want to have time and space to think about one of the important issues of our time – refugees”, writes Mary Kenny
Don’t forget that the 1916 proclamation began ‘in the name of God…’
“the truth about 1916 is that it was an event deeply imbued with Christian and Catholic values, symbols, iconography and beliefs”, writes Mary Kenny