Dear Editor, My congratulations on a magnificent 1916 supplement in the December 17 edition. While it is slightly invidious to suggest any one aspect of the uniformly excellent coverage for particular commendation, I think you are especially to be praised for acknowledging the diversity of opinions that existed, and still do, within the Church regarding…
Category: Opinion
Catholic ‘silent majority’ must speak up
Dear Editor, The so-called ‘silent majority’ will sleepwalk into a “post Catholic” (Ruairi Quinn quote) ‘liberalised’ Ireland unless they wake up and realise that they ARE a majority, and a majority that can make a huge difference to the direction Ireland is heading by letting their voices be heard. There is an election coming up…
Good advice on children and conflict
Dear Editor, I have been impressed in recent months with your new ‘Parenting Matters’ series by Dr Colm Humphries, but was especially moved by the most recent column, ‘Children are able to sense conflict without seeing it’ (IC 10/12/2015). Dr Humphries’ description of how we can instinctively pick up on things being wrong, even when…
Unborn not protected by UN
Dear Editor, The opening quotation in the UN’s explanatory document relating to the Bill of Human Rights is taken from Article 1 and reads as follows: “all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights…” This appears to mean that the UN believes that the unborn has no human rights whatsoever, let alone…
Congratulations on the 1916 Rising commemorative issue
Dear Editor, Congratulations on the quality of the commemorative 1916 Rising issue of the paper on December 17. I found it highly informative and many articles provided a new perspective on the events of the Rising. I particularly enjoyed the personal accounts from the Dublin archives, the Capuchin friars and the writings of the female…
Encountering God’s loving invitation this Christmas
“The challenge of Christmas is to allow ourselves to once again fall in love with the Christ child”, writes Editor Michael Kelly
Living the love of Christmas
“we are made for love… we are made to love”, writes Nuala O’Loan
Why I’m choosing an austere Christmas this year
“I don’t want to be worrying about when to put on the Brussels sprouts: I want to have time and space to think about one of the important issues of our time – refugees”, writes Mary Kenny
Worship of the Eucharist
Catholics express their faith in the real presence under the species of bread and wine, writes Cathal Barry
Connecting the crib and the cross
The Gospel stories about the birth of Jesus are not a simple retelling of the events that took place then, at the stable in Bethlehem. In his commentaries on the birth of Jesus, the renowned scripture scholar, Raymond Brown, highlights that these narratives were written long after Jesus had already been crucified and had risen…

Courtney McGrail
Michael Kelly
Nuala O’Loan
Mary Kenny
Cathal Barry
Fr Ronald Rolheiser