The landscape remains grim for those hoping to tie the knot with what remains of 2021, writes Jason Osborne Come Monday, 50 guests will be allowed to attend weddings, but indoor receptions will remain capped at six guests while 15 will be permitted for outdoor celebrations. It’s been alluded to that numbers for receptions will…
There is a real danger the Blessed Sacrament will be treated as if it were a magical instrument rather than the sacramental sign it is, writes Fr Fergus Ryan OP The Covid-19 pandemic has been a huge challenge for everyone. It has equally been an opportunity to develop new skills, especially in IT and online communications.…
The pause caused by coronavirus restrictions might be a moment to look again at how we celebrate important rites of passage in the Faith, writes Chai Brady The Government advice that Confirmation and First Holy Communion ceremonies should not be part of the plans when parishes re-open for public worship of May 10 creates quite…
We are witnessing an irrational demand for the endless purging of sin from the body politic, writes Kingsley Jones If you are reading this then you are concerned about ‘wokism’, about the fact that the tone of our political and social disagreements is growing ever more strident, that we seem to be on the verge…
Political parties determined to promote their ‘progressive credentials’ are intent on stoking fears of an imaginary Catholic threat to their vision of a secular Ireland, writes David Mullins From 2012 to 2017 the decision to relocate the National Maternity Hospital at Holles Street to a site on the Elm Park campus of St Vincent’s Hospital…
Chimeras are moving out of the stories and into the world with the latest scientific advances but they appear no less monstrous, writes Jason Osborne Chimeras once stalked the landscape of legend and myth. In Greek mythology they were one of the more famous kinds of monster, composed of the parts of more than one…
Letter from Rome Perhaps no one was as startled this week when a 46-year-old woman was placed under house arrest for aggravated theft from a small church in the far southern Italian province of Reggio Calabria as the woman herself. Her name hasn’t been released by Italy’s military police, who made the arrest, but they…
As the Catholic Church in different countries begins various synodal processes, the conference of Latin American bishops could not stay behind, and has launched its own Ecclesial Assembly. Pastoral plan “Did you know that our Latin American Church is calling together the 377 million Catholics in 46 countries of the continent to discern a joint…
Imagine a young couple intoxicated with each other in the early stages of love. Imagine a religious neophyte in love with God, praying ecstatically. Imagine an idealistic young person working tirelessly with the poor, enflamed with a thirst for justice. Are this young couple really in love with each other? Is that religious neophyte really…
Notebook As our parishes prepare again for the return to public worship, albeit in a limited format, we are thankful for this progress and the opportunity it affords us to gather as communities of faith. Truly we will celebrate that togetherness and rebuild, week by week, on the strong foundation that remains at the heart…
Chai Brady
John L. Allen Jr.
Fr Ronald Rolheiser