Personal Profile For those outside the Faith, the idea that confession may draw you into Catholicism will seem counter intuitive – let alone that it can be joyful or freeing. But that’s just what it was for Anita Sheahan, who now does faith outreach for St Mary’s Dominicans in Cork. Though she grew up in…

As has been commented on endlessly, the most recent lockdown has left many of us sitting at home, twiddling our thumbs. The first lockdown was greeted with some measure of determination and grit, and people made the best of things by picking up new hobbies and skills, trying their hands at cooking, gardening, a musical…

Personal Profile A generation of philosophers, sociologists, and public intellectuals wrote off religion, declaring that we were moving into a secular age where faith would be redundant. But as Dr Michael Kirwan SJ, new director of the Loyola Institute in Trinity College Dublin (TCD), points out, this hasn’t happened. In fact, Dr Kirwan explains, many…

Wrapping up properly is the key to wrapping up warmly, writes Jason Osborne It may seem like a moot point but keeping warm is absolutely vital in the depths of winter. Working in an outdoors shop for a couple of months upon finishing college, I remember being told about the particular difficulties both Ireland and…

Personal Profile The lockdown has hit everyone hard, some more than others. For Fearghal O’Muineachain, the virus has cut into a pastime that is something of a passion – visiting churches. Since the age of 15, Fearghal has visited more than 1,100 Catholic churches, cathedrals and Abbey’s in Ireland, as well as a handful of…

Attempting to follow in Our Lady’s footsteps, Sarah Deegan places the utmost emphasis on our common foundation as children of God, whether it’s in her work as a secondary school teacher or in her work with the Legion of Mary. Her faith is wrapped up in the Legion, with her parents being strong proponents of…

While Irish cuisine can seem simple or plain, it is nothing if not hearty. Colcannon, Irish stew, chowder and potatoes of all kinds – they’re hearty, filling and rely on a limited selection of ingredients. I read recently the account a nun gave of her childhood in the West of Ireland in the early 1900s.…

Long nights and isolation leave many of us distressed, writes Ruadhán Jones For many Christmas is an oasis of festive feeling, warmth and celebration in the depths of winter. This may feel especially the case this year when on top of long nights and miserable weather we have a pandemic to cope with! The constant…

Personal Profile Finding yourself working on the cutting edge, in an industry that has existed for the blink of an eye, Tom Rochfort acknowledges the role both God and community play in keeping you grounded. In his life, he manages to hold working in IT and faith in God balanced. He told The Irish Catholic…

The ‘O Antiphons’ are one final burst of Advent before Christmas, writes Ruadhán Jones Today marks the beginning of the final octave of Advent, the last eight days before Christmas. Today also marks the beginning of the ‘O Antiphons’, a series of antiphons which lasts until December 23. These ancient antiphons have been sung in…