Dear Editor, Bishop Kevin Doran’s intervention in support of Pope Francis over Amoris Laetitia (IC 15/12/2016) is encouraging, and surely to be welcomed by all parties, especially given how it would take particular effort to claim the bishop lacks either intelligence or orthodoxy. Ever since the synod process began in 2014, a vociferous online fringe…

Dear Editor, Fr Conor McDonough’s column of December 15 – ‘In praise of books at Christmas’ – reminded me of an older notebook in your paper where one Maolsheachlann O’Ceallaigh wondered about what middle ground there is between, say, introductory books on St Thomas Aquinas and scholarly articles on the Angelic Doctor (‘Beyond Catholicism 101’…

Dear Editor, Derry’s Bishop Donal McKeown seems to be showing far more common sense on Brexit’s reality (‘New Brexit report on Ireland asks crucial questions – Derry bishop’ IC 15/12/2016) than do Britain’s parliamentary members and lords. In welcoming the Lords’ report on Brexit’s possible impacts on Northern Ireland, the bishop rightly says he is…

Dear Editor, I was pleasantly surprised to read in your paper of December 15 that almost 40% of people in the Republic of Ireland plan to see Pope Francis when he visits Ireland. With curiosity likely to increase over the next two years, I would expect the 11% who are undecided to come to think…

Dear Editor, It seems, to judge by your letters page and comment online in recent months, that there is a depressing determination among otherwise informed and faithful Catholics to turn their backs on the modern world. Perhaps the three most dramatic and obvious illustrations of this have been Catholic support for the Brexit vote in…

Dear Editor, Your correspondent Declan Cooney (Letters IC 01/12/2016) took Fr Gerry O’Hanlon to task for bemoaning the election of the Republican candidate as President of the USA. In doing so he repeated the “there was no other alternative [to Hilary Clinton]” argument which has already been trotted out – and refuted – ad nauseum.  There…

Dear Editor,  In a culture of ignorance or indifference to the mystery of Jesus Christ may I suggest some reflections inspired by God’s communication with us, beginning with the call of Abraham to become the father of the Jewish chosen people, God’s inspiration of messengers/prophets to go among the people and to begin writing the…

Dear Editor, There isn’t much joy manifested in Greg Daly’s experience at the AGM of the Association of Catholic Priests as outlined in his article ‘Priests at risk: problems and practicalities’ (IC 24/11/16). Considering that many of these problems are caused by a lack of vocations to the priesthood it is surprising that no mention…

Dear Editor, In 2017 or 2018, we can expect to have a referendum on repealing the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution (or the rights of the unborn). While there is an opinion that abortion is acceptable in exceptional circumstances, the questions foremost in my mind must be the following: Why is it an indictable offence…

Dear Editor, Like many, I see no theoretical reason for celibacy in the case of secular priests. However, given the low salaries paid, how are the costs of a priest’s wife and family to be met let alone the problem of increasing the scale of property owned by the diocese or parish in order to…