In his autobiography, Eric Clapton, the famed rock and blues artist, shares very candidly about his long struggle with an addiction to alcohol. At one point in his life, he admitted his addiction and entered a rehab clinic, but he didn’t take his problem as seriously as was warranted. Returning to England after his stint…
It’s fairly fashionable now for people to describe themselves as “spiritual not religious”, but what does it mean when they say that? It certainly signifies an aversion to being called ‘religious’. To be ‘religious’ has connotations of being a ‘Holy Joe’, or of being ‘dogmatic’, or being regimented and of being unwilling to think for…
The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are expecting their third child. I was glad to see that even in the hardened atmosphere of news outlets around the world, the impending arrival of a new baby in the royal household is still portrayed as a ‘good news’ story. But it also got me thinking about what…
I didn’t hear George Hook’s radio comments about rape which have caused such a storm of controversy, so I won’t comment on the specifics of what he said. You have to hear something live, pick up voice tone, register and context, to form a judgement on a sensitive subject. On the general topic, it always…
If proof were needed that all the world loves a baby, the announcement that Kate and William are expecting their third provides full evidence. Globally, the third baby for the Cambridges has been front-page news. And significantly, although Kate is only “a few weeks” pregnant, the media is already treating the royal infant as a…
Fr William Dailey CSC and Jonathan Tiernan The parable of the talents, wherein the opportunity to take risks and invest in the gifts we have received is contrasted with the fearful failure to bury the treasure and hope for the best, speaks powerfully to the Church at all times, but perhaps particularly when we consider…
One hundred years ago, many opinion-leaders, including a number of Catholic and (mainly southern) Church of Ireland bishops, who, unusually for that time, issued a joint statement on the subject, regarded partition as unthinkable. Yet it happened, and took a hard form for the rest of the 20th Century. Then the peace process combined with…
A huge inquiry into child abuse at the hands of various institutions, both Church and secular, has been underway in Australia for some time now. It is taking place under the auspices of a body called the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. Despite the fact that it is investigating a range…
David Mullins Dr Rhona Mahony is Master of Dublin’s National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street. She is a vocal critic of the Eighth Amendment to the Irish Constitution which protects the right to life of unborn children. She has spoken frequently about how the amendment affects her work and the work of other medics dealing…
Considering how important a subject education is, it’s interesting to observe that relatively little national attention was paid to The Sunday Times list of top 100 Irish schools, just published. Could this be because it is glaringly evident that Catholic schools continually emerge as the gold standard in educational attainment? Take the Salerno Jesus and…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
David Quinn
Maria Steen
Mary Kenny
Dr Martin Mansergh