“Is it true that people in Ireland may no longer have turf fires?” asked my cousin, who has lived in England for some years. Yes, I said, that was how things were going, ever since Eamon Ryan introduced the Solid Fuel Regulations Act in October this year. Peat, we are told, pollutes the atmosphere, and…
The View At the end of November, Pope Francis suggested a two-minute daily practice of examining one’s conscience. This catechesis, delivered at his Wednesday general audience, is part of a series that began on September 7, focusing on Ignatian discernment. The Wednesday audience is often a vehicle for essential themes for Pope Francis, just like…
by Lilia Kovalyk A religious journalist based in Lviv, reflects on her experience of reporting in war time The war has turned Ukrainian journalists into inventors. We all understood Russia would attack, but no one wanted to believe this. Before the war began, in the editorial office of Religious Information Service of Ukraine (RISU), we…
Dear Editor, I have been watching the World Cup, I dare say. Whenever the time comes around every four years, I become quite invested. It is a time when the world’s best footballers come together and millions of people from multiple nations get behind their country’s finest sportsmen. Admittedly it was a terrible decision by…
2022 has been dominated by the dreadful war in Ukraine. Russia and its leaders have isolated themselves in the eyes of the world. As this year draws to a close, I want to share a true story from that part of the world which both highlights a painful reality and also captures something beautiful from…
Editor’s Comment The pre-Enlightenment era is often viewed as a time of rigid conformism and a lack of liberty compared to our own day. People point to the traditional formula error non habet ius (error has no rights) and shake their head confidently assuring themselves that we live in a better time when people are…
I’m rather ashamed of an episode of my life that has recently come to mind, but I think it’s instructive. I was in my early twenties, and, in an effort to break into journalism, I was working as a secretary for The Guardian in London, previously called the Manchester Guardian. Society today has more sympathy…
The View It’s become a recurring theme, as inevitable now as the manufactured row about the Angelus on the radio or a Crucifix being displayed in a hospital. Every year, along with the resurrection of the dreary fuss about Christmas songs, we are subjected to an annual dose of whinging about ditching the word Christmas because…
On the cusp of celebrations to mark the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement, the number of people taking their own life is on the rise, writes Michael Kelly It’s a startling and sobering fact that since the signing of the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, more people in the North have died at…
Criticisms of the over-dominance of the Church are valid, but they are also simplistic, writes David Quinn What was to become the Irish Republic marked its 100th birthday on Tuesday, but it has not been marked by big celebrations and perhaps that is partly because it wasn’t at the time either. The nascent Free State…
Mary Kenny
Michael Kelly
David Quinn