Risen (12A) This elegiac re-enactment of the aftermath of the Resurrection in Judea in 33AD as experienced by a disaffected Roman soldier is in many ways reminiscent of Barabbas (1961), the story of the thief who reached a catharsis after believing he was responsible for the death of Jesus. The conversion of Clavius (Joseph Fiennes)…
Brendan O’Regan reflects on a ‘heart-breaking’ documentary focusing on innocent lives lost in the crossfire of rebellion and wonders whether it was in good taste to air a programme on Judas on Good Friday. I’m not convinced that it was a great idea for BBC 1 to put the focus on Judas for Good Friday,…
There has been renewed talk lately about fixing the date of Easter, rather than continuing with it as a moveable feast. This is the sort of idea that the appeals to both the tidy minded and the sort of person who believes that Sunday trading is good for the economy, however damaging yet another day…
Zootropolis (PG) As we stand on the cusp of a new era in American politics – Donald Trump putting up walls to combat foreign forces and Hilary Clinton trying to break them down to embrace them – along comes an animated film about that very subject. Taking as its lift-off point the fact that modern…
“Current trends dampen my enthusiasm for the 1916 commemorations, not least our worsening relationship with alcohol”, writes Brendan O’Regan Of all the 1916 related programmes, I was looking forward most to Insurrection, a repeat showing of RTÉ’s flagship programme from the 50th anniversary in 1966. Painstakingly restored from original video tape, it has been playing…
The Hurley Maker’s Son: A Memoir by Patrick Deeley (Doubleday Ireland, €17.99) J. Anthony Gaughan Patrick Deeley was born in a small farm near Loughrea, Co. Galway, in 1953. He was educated locally and attended St Patrick’s Teacher Training College in Drumcondra in Dublin. Subsequently he served as a principal in a primary school in Ballyfermot.…
My First Holy Communion Keepsake Journal created by Avril O’Reilly (Lulu, available through Amazon, ISBN 978-1326480103 (girls), 978-1326542863 (boys), €20.00) With a “Special Record of first Holy Communion” Avril O’Reilly has had a delightful notion. She has prepared a keepsake of first Communion for girls. “This book,” she explains, “is designed to keep all the Communion…
Dear Pope Francis: The Pope Answers Letters from Children Around the World by Pope Francis in conversation with Antonio Spadaro SJ (Messenger Publications / Jesuits in Ireland, €14.99) It is not unusual for recent Popes to be associated with books for children. We had, for instance, a rather charming book about Pope Benedict’s cat – cats…
I Follow St Patrick by Oliver St John Gogarty Oliver St John Gogarty, poet and surgeon, was a close associate of Arthur Griffith in Sinn Féin. He was appointed a senator in the first Senate of the Irish Free State. His memorable book, I Follow St Patrick, is an evocation of Ireland’s national saint through the places in…
Few topics have drawn as much attention online of late than Donald Trump’s seemingly inexorable path towards becoming the Republican candidate in next year’s US presidential election. What Catholics think of this isn’t entirely clear. A solid place to look for data on the subject is fivethirtyeight.com, where last month Catholic blogger Leah Libresco pointed…
Aubrey Malone
Brendan O’Regan
Peter Costello
Greg Daly