Elise Harris While many in conservative camps of the Church feared sweeping changes to the structure and function of the Synod of Bishops following the tumultuous 2014-2015 gatherings on the family, Pope Francis largely upheld the current process. Critics who have been frustrated at the current process, however, might also be disappointed that no…
“Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.” Abraham speaks these words to a soul in Hell in the famous parable of the Rich Man and…
Dear Editor, In response to Colm Fitzpatrick’s article ‘National seminary sees lowest student intake ever’ (IC 13/9/2018), I would argue that while the figures may indeed be low there is much to be positive about. While smaller numbers are cause for consideration and deliberation, so too were the vast numbers who entered the seminaries of…
For those who participated in events surrounding the World Meeting of Families or the Papal visit, feelings of joy will continue to warm their hearts. Whether it was in the intensive preparations that took place in the dioceses around the country, the pastoral congress in the RDS or events led by Pope Francis this was…
The Notebook Fr Vincent Sherlock For 21 years I have had the chance to spend a few weeks each year in a parish in the diocese of Rockville Centre, New York – two years in one and the past 19 in another. It seems strange perhaps to combine holidays with working in a parish…
Every now and again, a novel, a movie or a television programme becomes a major conversational theme, enjoying a wave of fashion and acclaim. Such a book is Sally Rooney’s Normal People – a contender for the prestigious Booker Prize, and the novel that is a “must-read” if you want to keep up with the…
Popes Benedict and Francis’ failure to impose sanctions on then-Cardinal McCarrick was understandable, writes Austen Ivereigh Whatever your view of Archbishop Viganò now — a prophet raised up by God to purify the leadership of the Church, or a vengeful and mendacious official driven by ideology — the question of what Popes did or…
The View Saturday night last saw a great turn out at the fourth annual pro-life dinner, Ceiliuradh Cois Life, organised by Senator Ronan Mullen and the Pro Life Campaign. Over 750 people gathered together for food and music and to hear former Taoiseach John Bruton speak. In some ways, it was a difficult gathering…
Francis is no bringer of ‘doctrinal apocalypse’, writes David Quinn Pope Francis does not represent the doctrinal apocalypse as some conservatives seem to think. I say that as someone who is himself a conservative and therefore would be quick to ring the alarm bells if I thought a Pope was about to water down…
“Woe to chastity that is not practiced out of love, but woe to love that excludes chastity.” These are the words of Benoit Standaert, a Benedictine monk, and they can, I believe, be profitably read in our culture today where to the detriment of everyone, the sexually active and vowed celibates alike, sexuality and chastity…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Michael Kelly
Mary Kenny
Austen Ivereigh
Maria Steen
David Quinn