The first time I was eligible to vote was in the referendum on the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. Marking an ‘X’ in the box to endorse the peace accord only took a second, but it remains one of the proudest moments of my life. Growing up in the North, our lives were characterised by…
Notebook Every summer Dominican friars from various European countries visit our priories to work on their English. One thing that perplexes them is the apparently rude health of Catholic education here. How, despite centuries of persecution and recent decline, they ask, are there so many Catholic schools? And how is it that they are…
Dear Editor, Mary Kenny’s article ‘A little clarification please, Mrs McAleese’ (IC 29/08/19) reminds us all that Mrs McAleese “supported repeal’’, in her own words “with a heart and a half’’. This support for repeal and its drastic consequences was clearly more than a half-hearted and reluctant ‘Yes’ vote. Mrs McAleese’s own words indicate an…
The View As I write this, I am wondering what will happen next at Westminster. Parliament will be prorogued within about ten days. Prorogation means the end of a parliament. When we come back by October 14, we will have a speech by Queen Elizabeth II which will contain the government’s proposals for the coming…
The Pope’s appointees to the College of Cardinals reflect the diminished role of Ireland in an increasingly globalised Church, writes Michael Kelly For the first time in more than 40 years, Ireland will not have a vote in a Papal conclave if there were to be a vacancy of the Holy See. Since he…
Marie Cummins The mission of 40 Days for Life is to bring together the body of Christ in a spirit of unity during a focused 40 day campaign of prayer, fasting and peaceful witness, with the purpose of repentance, to seek God’s favour to turn hearts and minds from a culture of death to…
We must not allow legislation that would be used to target only one side, writes John McGuirk It was a bit of a mad week across the water, with Boris Johnson deciding as he did to suspend parliament so that it cannot vote to thwart his Brexit plan. The response to this decision was…
Recent events don’t support the notion, writes David Quinn The constant refrain is that Ireland is becoming a more ‘compassionate’ place. This notion needs to be robustly challenged. The best that can be said is that we have become more compassionate in some ways and worse in others. Last week, Co Louth was witness…
It is often said that the bias against ‘mixed marriages’ – between partners of different religions – was cruel, and that the Ne Temere decree of 1908 was destructive of community and familial relationships. Yet it would be illusionary to pretend that no conflicts arise when a couple have different religious backgrounds or convictions, and…
There is a growing risk that the health service may begin to consider cost-saving measures that free up urgently needed beds, writes Dr Norella Broderick Support for euthanasia in Western Europe is growing. The UK-based Guardian reported last month that 93% of the British public now support physician-assisted suicide in the case of terminal…
Michael Kelly
Nuala O’Loan
David Quinn
Mary Kenny