Dear Editor, As awful the act that claimed the life of the martyr Fr Jacques Hamel in France must be the recognition that Christian persecution has finally been visited (returned) to Europe in the most savage of fashions. That which our Christian brothers and sisters have endured in Iraq, Syria, and Nigeria among other nations…
Dear Editor, How apt to see the photo of An Taoiseach, Enda Kenny, under the heading of ‘Disconnected Catholics may experience God’s reality at Knock’ (IC 21/07/2016). After all, while claiming to be a practicing Catholic he had the abortion bill passed in the Dail. Now by what stretch of the imagination can anyone claim…
Dear Editor, In the face of the horrors being perpetrated by ‘terrorists’, I must ask myself, “What can I do?” Whether I am old or young, poor or rich, I have been gifted with the possibility of doing something worthwhile in my lifetime. I know what it feels like to yearn to be loved and…
Dear Editor, It was with great sadness that the Padre Pio prayer groups noted the passing this year of the late Fr Michael Duggan CSSp of Whitestown, Kilmacthomas, Co Waterford Fr Michael became involved in the early years of the formation of the Irish prayer groups and was coordinator of the Padre Pio Prayer Groups…
Dear Editor, Can I commend you on your fascinating coverage of clerical salaries in your issue of July 21? It was extraordinary to see how much variance there was across the country, but even more extraordinary to see the variance in how dioceses cooperated with your efforts. The Diocese of Elphin, which publishes its clerical…
Dear Editor, The recent attempt by The Irish Catholic (21/07/2016) to survey priests’ incomes across Ireland should cause those who argue for married clergy to think again. With married priests would come clerical families, and it is hard to imagine priests – even with a spouse’s second income – supporting children on the income they…
Dear Editor, Mary Kenny, under the heading “Why we must change this fatal phrase” (IC 14/07/2016), reminded us of the writings of George Orwell, who said whoever controls the language controls the political power. Today, she says, we are presented with the hurtful, and harmful, phrase “fatal foetal abnormality”. She rightly criticises the use of…
Dear Editor, Mary Kenny hits the nail on the head when praising the peaceful, legal and constitutional paths of the Liberator, Daniel O’Connell (IC 21/07/2016). Her description of the scenes of blood running on the streets and heads on pikes along the roadsides which the young O’Connell saw during the French Revolution in 1789 is…
Dear Editor, There is a lot of discussion at present as to whether President Michael D. Higgins will – or indeed should – seek a second term as Uachtarán na hÉireann. Indeed, Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II is 16 years older than the President is now and shows no sign of slowing down. Pope Francis is…
Dear Editor, Paul Gracey (IC 14/07/2016) writes that describing the EU as a stable and accountable body is “like passing off a broken-down old Volkswagen as a Rolls Royce”. It’s an amusing image, but even if it were fair, it doesn’t for one moment tackle how post-Brexit Britain is preparing to embark on a journey…
Courtney McGrail