The blandness of Francis’ speeches in Ireland is mysterious, writes David Quinn   It is now one month since Pope Francis was in Ireland. If you were to conduct a poll and ask people what they remember about the visit, how would they respond? If you asked them what the Pope had to say, I…

A much-vaunted deal between the Vatican and communist China is eliciting pushback, writes Max Rosner   After years of intermittent talks, the Holy See and Chinese Communist Party have signed a provisional deal regarding the confirmation and appointment of bishops. Pope Francis has formally recognised seven bishops originally appointed by the communist authorities without Vatican…

During a two-week period in July our parish was faced with the reality of suicide three times. The magnificent summer sunshine somehow jarred with the dark clouds of sadness and despair which hovered over our frightened community. Two single men, one 58 the other 26, and then a young mother of four children whose youngest…

I – IF – an individual does something reprehensible at the age of 17, possibly under the influence of alcohol, does that bar that individual from the responsibility of public office for the rest of their life? Second question: if a person is accused of a reprehensible act, does that automatically make them guilty? Such are…

The View   Ireland has a proud record of environmental protection.  It is good to see the concern which enables the continued protection of pygmy stoats, red squirrels, otters, pine martens, badgers, hares, all bat and deer species, the Natterjack Toad and the Common Newt, almost all resident wild birds, the White-clawed Crayfish, the Freshwater…

Our Christian faith ultimately rests on Christ himself, writes David Quinn   The faith of many Catholics has suffered another battering recently because of the latest eruption of public anger over abuse scandals. In Germany, a report commissioned by the Catholic bishops there shows that over a 70-year period, more than 3,000 priests have been…

There is reason to speculate on how well prepared the Pope was for his Irish trip, writes Greg Daly   “It is not enough to turn the page. Life must be given anew.” This quote from Pope Francis headlined the La Civiltà Cattolica account last week of the August 25 meeting between the Pope and…

Francis is gambling with bishops’ conferences, but it’s probably the only card he has, writes Michael Kelly   Depending on where you stand on Pope Francis, his decision to call a summit of the heads of the world’s bishops’ conferences is either courageous or too little too late. It’s certainly unprecedented and the February meeting…