The institutions that were a very common feature of Irish life for such a long time, and in which many abuses took place, are indelibly associated in the public mind with the Catholic Church. This is understandable to a certain degree because they ran so many of them, chiefly the industrial schools, the mother and…

In 1918, when Britain and Ireland were still politically conjoined, the vote was finally extended to women. Yet it was initially restricted to women over 30 years of age who were property owners. The male politicians who still held the reins were nervous of the ‘flapper’ element among younger women: fearful that those under thirty…

With First Communion and Confirmation season in full swing, the Education Nation podcast is turning its attention to the primary sector for a while. Next week’s guest is Seamus Mulconry, CEO of the Catholic Primary School Managers Association. This week, in the first of our ‘focus on primary education’ series, the spotlight falls on someone…

Dublin Zoo found itself in hot water last week following the launch of its ‘All Things Irish Takeover’ campaign to celebrate Mother’s Day and St Patrick’s Day. The source of the controversy was Dublin Zoo’s decision to feature a male drag artist in their Mother’s Day promotion. The image of a bearded man in a…

Fashions in baby names can be revealing. The CSO has an online facility where you can check the popularity of various baby names, although it only goes back to 1964. Patrick was the second most popular boy’s name in 1964, and stayed in the top three until 1974, and in the top five until 1990.…

For the retention and restoration of the faith in this city, no place contributed so much as the blessed District of Hannahstown. To its hills in times of persecution, our people rushed for safety. Its secluded spots supplied their places of worship, and its homes and caves gave protection to the priests who braved all…

In a few days, Taoiseach Micheal Martin is due to meet President Donald Trump in the White House. It will almost certainly take place on St Patrick’s Day itself, although last year that was not the case. Maybe the current global tumult will derail things. I managed to get into the White House myself years…

As Ireland becomes some kind of strange hybrid Catholic/post-Catholic/secular/New Age society which none of us fully understands, the Church finds itself affected in all sorts of ways, not least what happens at big events like baptisms, First Holy Communion, Confirmation, weddings, and funerals. It is at these events that lots of post-Catholics, cultural Catholics, ‘bouncy…

After more than thirty years working in Catholic education I have learned not to be alarmed easily by legislative change. Education is constantly evolving. Policies change. Language adapts. Governments revise frameworks. But every so often, a development occurs that points to something much deeper than routine reform. It signals a change in first principles. Last…