Brendan O’Reilly The process of admitting new Catholics to the Church is centred on forming disciples writes Brendan O’Reilly Infant baptism in the Church has been practised since apostolic times and prior to 1972 if an adult sought baptism the ritual used was the Rite of Infant Baptism. Such adult baptisms were often celebrated privately,…

Casey Schmauder Casey Schmauder meets former IRA bomber Shane O’Doherty who turned to God while in prison Sitting down to a pot of tea and a blueberry muffin, Shane O’Doherty says, “I work at a shelter just around the corner, so this is where I come prior to starting my 12-hour night shift.” Shane has…

Greg Daly considers the recommendations of Ireland’s latest ‘Citizens’ Assembly’ If there remained any plausible claim that Ireland’s so-called ‘Citizens’ Assembly’ is a genuinely representative body, rather than, as Senator Michael McDowell put it last year “a ridiculous sham … convened on the basis of a polling company’s random sample of persons”, it was demolished…

Mary McCarthy, Eilis Costelloe and Kathleen Maher Mary McCarthy, Eilis Costelloe and Kathleen Maher share their experience as Year of Mercy volunteers Following an invitation from the Ossory Adult Faith Development team seeking volunteers for the Year of Mercy to assist pilgrims in Rome last year, we decided to take up the challenge and apply.…

Catholic leaders need to encourage young people in the community to seriously consider policing, PSNI Chief Constable George Hamilton tells Martin O’Brien “We might not have government but we still have the law, which is pretty important for policing, so all is not lost”, deadpans George Hamilton, Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern…

Martin O’Brien meets a remarkable sister with a thirst for justice The first thing that strikes you about Sr Majella McCarron, a pioneering advocate for justice and peace within her congregation, is that she is no shrinking violet. Sr Majella, a sprightly, feisty 77-year-old who hails from Derrylin, Co. Fermanagh, is happy to talk for…

Greg Daly meets the man behind a film series helping young adults wrestle with Christianity Dublin’s Gonzaga College might seem an unlikely place for the launch of an evangelical video series produced by the historically Protestant and highly dynamic Scripture Union (SU) group, but according to Jonny Somerville, presenter of NUA, it made perfect sense.…

Fr Paddy Moran CSSp To understand the passion of Christ is to understand the human journey, writes Fr Paddy Moran CSSp As a missionary I had the great privilege to work for 11 years in Ethiopia. I spent a number of those years working with prisoners in Arba Minch prison. Arba Minch is a town…

On the eve of his departure Archbishop Charles Brown sat down with Mags Gargan to reflect on his time as Papal Nuncio of Ireland Since arriving in Ireland in January 2012 as Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Charles Brown has become a very familiar face to Irish Catholics. He has travelled the length and breadth of this…

Even those who do not belong to the Church understand that Pope Francis wishes to set in place a real renewal of the Church and they wish him well. What inspires Pope Francis in his desire for renewal? There is a danger that each person would try to impose their own idea which may well…