The liturgies of Holy Week invite us to engage with the words, actions and experiences that constituted Jesus’s way to the Father writes Fr Tony Nye SJ We are people of the Way, an ancient term for the first Christians which is found in the Acts of the Apostles. Jesus showed us that way throughout…
Faith in art One of the starkest images around the funeral rites for Pope Benedict XVI was the moment when his mortal remains were transferred from his residence at the Mater Ecclesia Monastery within the grounds of Vatican City State to the majestic St Peter’s Basilica. His cortege entered the basilica through a door that…
Saint of the week The life of this great servant of God appeared to be merely the unfolding and an ever-stronger exemplification of the virtues which he received in holy baptism. Born in 1390 of wealthy and devout parents at Valladolid in Spain, he lost his father at an early age; but he himself became…
Lorene Hanley Duquin Today, parishioners are expected to feel a true sense of ownership in their parish. That means looking at your parish as more than just a place where you go to Mass. A parish can be a sacred place where the human and the divine meet, where people of all ages grow in…
Renowned performer Andrea Bocelli invites us to join him on a unique pilgrimage, writes Andrew Petiprin In recent years, the Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli has enjoyed international success while frequently offering traditional Christian songs to a mass audience. Blind since the age of 12 and experiencing significant success as a singer while only in his…
As our Lenten journey edges towards Holy Week, Sr Anouska Robinson-Biggin FCJ identifies three invitations in the Triduum In the final days of Lent, the liturgies of Holy Week issue each of us with an invitation to ‘be with’ Jesus in a special way. This time, described by Pope Francis as “the heart of the…
Bishop Robert Reed Perhaps you’re like me – I just love Christmas and though the liturgical calendar moves on as it must, I’m always sad to see it go. Like the reformed Ebenezer Scrooge, I try to hang on to it for as long as I can – the birth of the humble baby, told…
Faith in Film When A Hidden Life came out in 2019 from maverick American filmmaker Terrence Malick, it was greeted with almost unquestioning adulation. The film promised to tell the story of Blessed Franz Jagerstätter, an Austrian who was executed by the Nazis for refusing conscription. The Austrian farmer is a martyr of the Church,…
Saint of the Week A week on from the feast of one of Ireland’s three patron saints – St Patrick – we have the feast day of one of his heirs, St Macartan. The first bishop of Clogher diocese, he became known as St Patrick’s “Threin Fhir”, or “Strong Man”, both for his dedication to…
The Apostle to the Irish has influence far beyond these shores, writes Fr Emílio Bortolini Neto St Patrick and Ireland are deeply connected. You can’t think of one without being reminded of the other. Although he wasn’t Irish, after he came to Ireland, the country would never be the same. Patrick, an arrogant young man…
Michael Kelly