Lent has almost run its course. Palm Sunday approaches and, on its heels, Holy Week. This is intended to be the highpoint of the Church’s liturgy; the recalling of those sacred events of more than two thousand years ago. We will journey with Jesus into Jerusalem on a donkey’s back, see him betrayed, we will…
Professor Diarmaid Ferriter – probably the most influential historian in Ireland – has called for a “truth commission” to investigate the circumstances of Irish adoption practices in the past. He estimates that up to 20,000 Irish people may have been affected by historic illegal birth registrations, and this should be now be fully investigated by…
The View It increasingly seems that the stories that should most inspire us, the lives that are illuminated with courage and love, are becoming the least often heard. Sometimes, that’s a deliberate ploy, especially when the profound courage of families who carry and love their baby with a life-limiting condition are ignored by the media. But in the past few months,…
Whether the review of abortion legislation is window-dressing or serious remains to be seen writes David Quinn The operation of Ireland’s abortion law is under review. It was introduced in January 2019, following the referendum of the previous year. In the first two years of its operation, the law resulted in the loss of more…
Carol Glatz Protecting the human rights of people fleeing from or caught up in conflict zones must be as big a priority as providing them with basic material needs, said the leader of an international anti-trafficking network. People facing a humanitarian crisis need material assistance and they need experts committed to protecting their human rights,…
Forty years ago, Philip Rieff wrote a book entitled The Triumph of the Therapeutic. In essence, he argued that today in the Western world so many people need psychological therapy mainly because our family structure has grown weak and many community structures have broken down. He contends that in societies where there are still strong…
It’s nearly 25 years since I spent a year in Chicago, studying liturgy. It was a great opportunity for me, mind-blowing and perspective-enhancing. I got to understand how the US works, but I also learned about what makes Ireland unique, something you can only appreciate from outside it. I stayed at St Bernadette Parish on…
EU diplomats have been told by Sinn Féin that Europe must prepare for the reunification of Ireland – and that the EU must take the same encouraging attitude to Irish unity as it did to the reunification of Germany. “Our European partners must be energetic and proactive in advocating for Irish unity at every opportunity,”…
Shannon Campbell The View It is not uncommon to hear people say, “I’m spiritual, not religious.” The reasons for the trend are many and varied, ranging from disillusionment with organised religion, to boredom – even laziness. According to one pre-coronavirus study, 69% of Irish people identify as Catholic, but only 34% go to church regularly.…
We are called to be more energised Christians with a stronger pastoral and missionary sense, writes David Quinn Most parishes are now holding meetings, or gatherings, to consider the future of the Church ahead of a Synod in Rome next year. In its own words, the purpose of that synod is “not to produce documents,…
Mary Kenny
David Quinn
Fr Ronald Rolheiser