Dear Editor, I note with surprise and dismay the recent statement of the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) on the Eighth Amendment. On first reading, it appears that what bothers the ACP is that laity are involved in articulating the pro-life message to Mass-goers – a curiously inconsistent position for an association which garners much…

Dear Editor, I read new figures which suggest a small decrease in national homelessness (IC 03/05/18). The statistics from the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government showed that 9,681 people accessed State-funded emergency homelessness accommodation in March, down slightly to 9,807 in February. It’s wonderful that this number has decreased, but it is still…

Dear Editor, Following your reports in recent weeks in relation to the forthcoming referendum on the Eighth Amendment we wish to make clear the position of the Society of St Vincent de Paul as an organisation. As on previous occasions, where there have been referenda or elections, the Society of St Vincent de Paul will…

Dear Editor, Marie Collins’ recommendation that clerics who have misled Pope Francis around abuse and cover-up in Chile should be removed from office (IC 19/4/2018) makes perfect sense. At this stage, it is hard to see how anything else could constitute a genuine commitment to the cause of zero tolerance in the field of child…

Dear Editor, For many years I was a member of the Society of St Vincent de Paul. I was shocked to read the article which said that the society will adopt no stance in the referendum on the Eighth Amendment, and will offer no advice to its members, regarding their decision on how to vote…

Dear Editor, The stalwarts of the prolife movement continue the fight for life on many frontlines these days and yet we still don’t see the big picture. I heard a discussion the other day which made me jump; it was not focused on the numbers aborted or the horrifying array of methods or the blindness…

Dear Editor, Every baptised person has a duty to proclaim the kerygma, the Good News of the Gospel. God Himself commanded us: “Always be prepared to give an answer to anyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that we have, but to do it with gentleness and care” (1 Pet 3:15).…

Dear Editor, I am a young Catholic woman in her twenties, and I am writing to challenge the assumption that the Church is a misogynistic institution. The Oxford dictionary defines a misogynist as “a person who dislikes, despises, or is strongly prejudiced against women”. For some, the Church is misogynistic because it does not ordain…

Dear Editor, I was surprised to read in your paper how the censured Fr Tony Flannery has criticised Archbishop Diarmuid Martin for doing “little or nothing” to bring about change in the Church (IC 15/3/2018). Granted, there aren’t many who would describe the Archdiocese of Dublin as an especially dynamic place, but even allowing for…

Dear Editor, I am commenting on the recent resignation of Bishop McAreavey because of his having been criticised for offering the funeral Mass for a priest who, according to the secular media, was “a known paedophile”. Paedophilia is an abomination before God. The trauma caused to victims – physical, psychological, spiritual and social – is incalculable, often resulting…