Dear Editor, A USA lady bravely faced applause when she declared she sleeps with Bill Clinton every Christmas. She brought to mind people having a similar ‘durable relationship’ with our very own Taoisigh. All of this gains fresh relevance as our Government asks us to vote in a referendum, March 8. They say existing definition of…
It’s probably the wrong thing to say, but I really enjoyed the State funeral of the late John Bruton, RIP. It was an occasion of deep sadness for his family and I did pray for them during the Mass, but I was also moved by the rituals of Church and State, so beautifully executed for…
The Hollywood mogul, Sam Goldwyn, coined many amusing quotations still in currency – his way of declining an invitation was “Include me out!” He most famously set a maxim for our age when he suggested that public attention is always helpful – “Any publicity is good publicity.” It doesn’t turn out to be true in…
It came as a shock to many loyal customers when Veritas announced it is winding down by the end of the year, closing its seven stores nationwide and its three warehouses. The news is a big blow for its 80 staff, as well many Catholics who turned to it for religious books, gifts and educational…
It is as if the Govt doesn’t really care about marriage, writes David Quinn The referendums on the family and on care are closing in fast. They are to take place on Friday, March 8. There has not been much of a debate so far, not compared with the 2015 referendum on marriage, much less…
Instead of trying to ‘fix’ young men, maybe it’s time we gave them a break and listened to them, writes Michael Kelly Back in the innocent days of the 1990s, when there were only two sexes, US-based relationship counsellor John Gray wrote a best-selling book to try to help couples understand one another better and…
No progress has been made on substantive areas of disability rights, writes Dualta Roughneen On Wednesday January 24 this year, the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Disability Matters launched its report, ‘Towards harmonisation of national legislation with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’. The findings are stark. It is as if…
Over the weekend, Pope Francis announced the dates for the second round of the synod later this year. Bishops, clergy, religious and laity will descend on Rome from October 2 to 27 to consider once more how we can foster a co-responsible Church. ‘Co-responsible’ is a word that reeks of business-ese, but it points to…
Fr Raphael Gallagher There will be a lot of opportunities to vote in the coming 12 months. Dates for Constitutional amendments, local elections, European parliament are already set in place. Dáil and Seanad elections are at most a year away. There are many issues to think through when we vote. One question worth considering at…
Dear Editor, In the upcoming referendums we are being asked to delete reference to the ‘home’ and to hand over to the courts a hot potato, that of redefining the ‘family’; as they interpret the phrase “other durable relationships”. The human rights implications of cutting our understanding of family adrift from being founded upon marriage…
Mary Kenny
Ruadhán Jones
David Quinn
Michael Kelly