One of the strangest and least well-known events in European history happened 807 years ago this summer, in the year 1212. This was an era of fierce religious fervour and piety across Europe. The third crusade, which had ended 20 years earlier in 1192, had seen King Richard the Lionheart of England and King Philip…
Category: Comment & Analysis
Wisely sticking to a tried and tested path
The View 2019 is the 50th anniversary of the outbreak of the Troubles, while the centenary of the formation of Northern Ireland and partition fast approaches, against the backdrop of a looming hard or no-deal Brexit, all of which provide a lot to think about. Few will dispute that nationalists today are in a…
The mixed legacy of the 60s Hippie Movement
Woodstock wasn’t all peace and light, writes David Quinn It’s now 50 years since the high point of the 1960s counter-culture, namely the huge music festival that took place at Woodstock in New York state in mid-August 1969. It featured some of the biggest music acts of the day. Organisers originally estimated it would…
Are ‘bad companions’ to blame for a prince’s downfall?
‘Bad companions’ – how often did I hear that expression in my schooldays. Warnings came from many quarters, including our catechism text, that ‘bad companions’ could lead us astray. Parents and guardians were often on the lookout for ‘bad companions’. I was discouraged from a friendship with a girl a couple of years older because…
Catholic schools in Scottish capital face ‘serious threat to identity’– diocese
Letter from Scotland A motion to remove the voting rights of religious representatives on education boards is “a serious threat to the identity” of Catholic schools in the Scottish capital, according to a spokesperson of the Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh. Scottish law mandates that three religious representatives serve on each school board.…
Sri Lankan cardinal calls probes into Easter attack ‘biased’
Sri Lanka’s top Catholic has called for an independent inquiry into a series of bombings that shook the country on Easter Sunday, saying investigations conducted until now have been swayed by political interests. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, the archbishop of Colombo, said that for Sri Lankans, a parliamentary probe into the attacks “is biased because it…
Imagining grace
Imagine this: a man, entirely careless of all moral and spiritual affairs, lives his life in utter selfishness, pleasure his only pursuit. He lives the high life, never prays, never goes to church, has numerous sexual affairs, and has no concern for anyone but himself. After a long life of this, he’s diagnosed with a…
Lessons in truth, joy and love from the Angelic Doctor
Notebook I was at a social event recently with some high-powered academics. I mentioned at a certain point that a lot of my research and teaching centres on the theology of St Thomas Aquinas, and half the group gave me a blank look: “Who?” I’m sure the readers of The Irish Catholic don’t need…
We owe a lot to the dear little cow
I had my first hip replacement surgery when I was in my 40s – the youngest person in the hospital to have had that particular operation. It arose from a congenital joint defect I’d been born with, but had gone undetected, except for an increasing limp through my adult years. I was warned that a second…
Be careful, you-know-who is watching
I have a confession to make: I once voted for Fine Gael. There, I said it. It is a long time since I have seen the error of my ways, but the events of the past week provide yet another depressing reminder of that party’s insistence upon stifling conformity. The President of Young Fine Gael (YFG),…