Confession must be at the heart of the Year of Mercy, writes David Quinn We are now into the second month of the Year of Mercy begun by Pope Francis before Christmas. It is a Jubilee Year and the Pope has urged Catholics to “live mercy”. To this extent we have been urged to practice…
Cathal Barry examines whether a priest’s character should influence the Mass The Irish are well known for their larger than life personalities and priests from these parts are no exception. The personality of the celebrant is a prominent element in the celebration of the liturgy, especially the Mass, particularly since the Second Vatican Council. To…
Jews in France are leading a new exodus, writes Paul Keenan When one speaks of ‘mass migration’ in Europe, it is a near certainty that the term prompts visions of desperate Syrians moving into the continent via its open southern shores. Yet, today, there is another dramatic wave of migration taking place, less noted, but…
In the winter of 2009 I made a retreat in Craig Lodge, a house of prayer in the Highlands of Scotland. As we journeyed up through the highlands we were listening to a CD I had brought for the journey, Harmony by The Priests. We were listening to the words of the Te Deum and…
At the end of every Roman Catholic liturgy, there is an invitation given to the people to receive a blessing. That invitation is worded this way: “Bow your heads and pray for God’s blessing.” The idea behind that, obviously, is that a blessing can only truly be received in reverence, in humility, with head bowed,…
“It is in the interpretation of individual situations that there is scope for more generosity and more compassion”, writes Nuala O’Loan One of the things which has impressed itself upon me recently is the extent to which the Church in which I grew up has changed so much. That Church was manifestly different from the…
Ireland has to answer to international organisations overwhelmingly secularist and ‘liberal’ in their outlook, writes David Quinn The bishops will have to starting preparing themselves for a possible referendum on schools within the lifetime of the next government. The distinct possibility of such a referendum was flagged at an appearance by Ireland before the UN…
Fr Micheál Mac Gréil SJ Urban areas are being industrialised at the expense of many parishes and communities, writes Fr Micheál Mac Gréil SJ The growing concern of the relative deprivation of many communities in the West of Ireland is timely and I welcome the highlighting of the current crisis in last week’s edition of…
Fr Liam Power Fr Liam Power addresses some criticism of the Church’s pre-marriage course A charge that is sometimes – unfairly – made against Accord, the Catholic marriage care service, is that the pre-marriage preparation course is too ‘horizontal’ and therefore, by implication, not ‘vertical’ enough. As Priest-Director of Accord in the Waterford Centre serving…
Eilis Humphreys Faith schools empower students with an understanding of the spiritual dimension of life, writes Eilis Humphreys We are living in a world that is changing too fast to be easily understood and that poses a challenge to everybody in the coming years not least those involved in our schools. There has been much…
David Quinn
Cathal Barry
Paul Keenan
Nuala O’Loan