Dear Editor, During the summer each year there are church gate collections throughout the country for Fianna Fáil and Fine Gael. There was a time when both of these parties had much in common with Church teaching, but that day is long since gone. I am not aware of any other country where political parties…

Dear Editor, Recently, the debate concerning married clergy and ordained women resurfaced. It is argued that we should discuss both as a potential means of resolving our priest shortage problem. Firstly, there continues to be a shortage of pastors in Christian denominations that permit both, suggesting that this route is not the answer. Secondly, as…

Dear Editor, I agree with Mary O’Byrne (IC Letters 25/06/2015) that Amnesty International is no longer a human rights defender. It has lost its founding values and is now a champion and campaigner for abortion in Ireland. Amnesty has damaged the reputation of Ireland, and is no longer worthy of public support by Irish people…

Dear Editor, I am delighted that Pope Francis’ encyclical, Laudato Si on climate change and care of the environment has got a positive response in Ireland. Hopefully, his call for action will be followed up at national and international level. However, caring for the environment must also involve care for human beings. As the Pope…

Dear Editor, We would do well to heed Fr Vincent Twomey on the results of the marriage referendum, (IC 18/06/2015) but more significant than the results was the manner in which the ‘yes’ campaign was conducted. It was professional, well-organised and as we know extremely effective.  However it was characterised by a marked absence of…

Dear Editor, I gather from reading the letters page in the paper that people are bending over backwards so as not to give offence to gay people. But surely if we love homosexuals and lesbians, our brothers and sisters in Christ, it should not be regarded as offensive to point out to them the moral…

Dear Editor, I simply cannot believe Paul Keenan’s remarks on Medjugorje (IC 02/07/2015)! He says: “To focus solely on questions of veracity around what is taking place at Medjugorje is to miss completely just what is taking place.” I should have thought that “questions of veracity” – that is, whether Our Lady is or is…

Dear Editor, Dr Eamonn Conway’s reflection (IC 25/06/2015) on the tragic circumstances at Berkeley was perfect in its encapsulating of the current malaise concerning the expression of faith, especially that of the Catholic variety. That it took Enda Kenny the day after to even mention that dirty word, prayer, illustrates this!   While society is…

Dear Editor, Notwithstanding the euphoria following the marriage referendum result on May 22, and the approval of this expressed by some writers in your letters page, and leaving aside specifically religious considerations, I believe any truly objective observer of the debate which preceded the vote would agree that the result was a victory for emotion…

Dear Editor, The recent statement from Amnesty International, as reported in the national media, seems to be calling for the legalisation of human abortion in the Irish Constitution. This is, in my view, contrary to the aims, role and missions of Amnesty i.e. to protect and support the human rights of the people, especially members…