WMOF2018 Teresa Regan After a week of inclement weather, with further rain forecast it was certainly both promising and uplifting to see the morning mist rise over Tipperary Racecourse as preparations began for the Family Fun Day, organised by the Archdiocese of Cashel and Emly. In accord with the theme ‘We are family –…
Chai Brady discovers that Pope Francis has inspired Faith among inmates There is a ‘corridor of hope’ in Midlands Prison, lined with the artwork of the whole community, both those confined, and those working in the facility. The long hallway in Ireland’s largest prison was built to connect two new sections, Division E and…
Vital symbols of Ireland’s Catholic heritage are in danger of being lost, writes Susan Gately For over 60 years in the late 17th and early 18th Century Catholics in Ireland were severely persecuted under laws which effectively took away their rights to property, education, participation in civic life and most importantly, religion. Officially termed…
“Although I oppose abortion I think I’ll vote to repeal the Eighth Amendment. I’ll never choose abortion but I won’t stand in the way of others choosing it.” This is quite a common position being taken concerning the forthcoming referendum, even among Catholics and other Christians. Those holding this position sense that abortion is wrong but,…
How to defend the Faith without raising your voice: Conference Silence is not an option for Catholics in the public sphere, papal biographer Austen Ivereigh told a packed room in the Red Cow Hotel at this year’s The Irish Catholic national conference. Quoting Pope Francis’ observation that the cemetery is only place where there…
Colm Fitzpatrick speaks with pro-life voice Gavin Boyne Discussions concerning abortion can often lead to empty rhetoric rife with misleading information, but a new media initiative is providing a platform where Irish voters can learn the real facts about this issue, and hopefully share them with others. Our Future is an online resource for…
As referendum day approaches, Catholics will be told by all and sundry that they should vote according to their consciences. In a Western democratic society like Ireland, which values individual freedom and personal autonomy above all else, there is little difficulty in accepting the central role of ‘conscience’. Hardly anyone disagrees with that, because ultimately…
WMOF 2018 With just under four months to go until the opening of the World Meeting of Families 2018 in Dublin, the organising team has just announced another registration milestone with more than 17,000 people now registered for the Pastoral Congress which will take place in the RDS, Dublin from 22-24 August. Figures show…
WMOF 2018 Despite at times inclement weather, the Family Picnic Fun Day in Lough Key Forest Park last Sunday (April 22) was a winner. “One of the lovely things about the west of Ireland is that people are so used to the weather that they come out anyway, because [otherwise] you’d never come out,”…
The Church paved the way for the republican victory in Ireland’s 1918 general election, writes Gabriel Doherty As turning points in Irish history go, the ‘conscription crisis’ that enveloped Ireland a century ago in the spring of 1918 was perhaps second only to the Easter Rising in terms of its impact upon public sentiment…
Chai Brady
Susan Gately
Greg Daly
Colm Fitzpatrick