The first thing to be noticed about the survey is the relatively high number of people who said they are going to church once a week or more. It comes in at almost one in four people. The reason that is a surprise is because other polls in recent times have indicated that the number…
It is long overdue to tackle the false prophets, writes Mike Lewis On Tuesday, May 7, the Vatican Press Office announced that a press conference will be held on May 17 where the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith (DDF) will present a new document containing provisions for discerning the authenticity of claimed apparitions…
When it comes to private companies receiving state funding, surely one of the first things the Government should insist on is a cost-benefit analysis. Sadly, the opposite is happening when it comes to assisting couples struggling to conceive. Last September the Government introduced a state subsidy for IVF for eligible couples. Since then around 500…
When I was a teenager – maybe about 16 – a friend and I decided to follow a fad of “decadence”. We weren’t all that sure what “decadence” was, but we knew it had little to do with normal life in our then cosy village of Sandymount in Dublin. But teenagers soon find out about…
Alan Whelan The recent International Catholic GRACE Report pointed out that 35% of Irish Catholic school teachers do not believe in God and that only 48% of Catholic Religious Education teachers attend weekly Mass. Meanwhile there is the Dublin Archdiocese decision of a very few years ago that sacramental preparation should be more firmly placed…
Last week ‘Associated Press’ highlighted the polarising shift that is taking place across Catholic America in which younger Catholics are opting for more traditional liturgies and practices than their older counterparts. It reported that younger cohorts of committed Catholics consider the Vatican II generation to have exchanged “the promise of eternal salvation [with] guitar Masses,…
People should be conscious of the dangers “both economic wise leading to unemployment and the moral issues” connected to artificialiIntelligence, or AI, according to Catholic leaders in Nigeria. Bishop Felix Femi Ajakaye of Ekiti on Sunday told leaders in the country to avoid legislation that would give AI the power to hurt the welfare of…
Fr Shay Cullen During a meeting of top cabinet members, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. expressed shock and dismay. He was very disturbed about the prevalence of online sexual abuse and exploitation of small children as young as three years old. This is due to the inaction of the telecommunications corporations that defy the law (RA…
I was led down the garden path the other day – at Knock Shrine of all places! There’s a new Creation Walk about to be launched on May 25. It’s a celebration of God’s grandeur, 30 signposts, each marked living word. It begins with The Birth of the Cosmos 13.8 billion years ago and the…
Notebook This is the season for First Holy Communion ceremonies. Important, and sadly often misunderstood occasions, they have the potential for so much good. I enjoy them. Through the years I have had some very memorable moments. I remember my own First Holy Communion Day but, oddly enough, not as much about the Mass or…
David Quinn
Wendy Grace
Mary Kenny
Martina Purdy