Mags Gargan speaks to the Director of the Palestrina Choir “He who sings prays twice,” is the often quoted line from St Augustine, and this would be the experience of Blanaid Murphy, after nearly 15 years at the helm of the Palestrina Choir. “Sacred music gives you a glimpse of something beyond yourself, a window…

Darragh McGann Like any audience, a priest has to know his congregation when delivering a homily, writes Darragh McGann For as long as I can remember I have heard people saying that Mass is boring, as an explanation or an excuse for not attending. I was an altar server for eight years and would often…

It’s not until something goes wrong or breaks that we realise how much we miss it. This week everything in our house seemed to be giving up the ghost: the heating packed in with a worst case scenario of some sort of expansion tank having burst; we failed our NCT and, disaster of all disasters…

Mags Gargan speaks to the Diocesan Pastoral Coordinator in Ossory If anyone is qualified to take the pulse of the Church on the ground in Ireland, it would be someone in Gemma Mulligan’s position. As Diocesan Pastoral Coordinator, the core part of her job is to visit parishes in the Diocese of Ossory on a…

Mags Gargan looks at simple recommendations for parents to keep children safer online Cyberbullying has been described as the “child-protection issue of our time” and it can be very difficult for parents to walk the fine line between allowing their children access to the benefits of the internet while protecting them from the dangers. In…

Michelle Manley Michelle Manley describes the work of Dublin’s new Youth Evangelisation Team The Archdiocese of Dublin has established a new Youth Evangelisation Team, tasked with faith outreach to teenagers and young adults. The central hub for this exciting new venture is right in the heart of Dublin in St Paul’s Church at Arran Quay…

Mags Gargan reports from a public lecture tackling some common cancer myths and the dangers they present to the public “Your body is a Ferrari car,” says Dr Robert O’Connor. “It is an unique asset, the most valuable thing you will ever have in your lifetime, and like a Ferrari, if it’s kept in good…

When Antoinette Moynihan speaks to First Communion school children about Jesus in the Eucharist, she opens the door of the monstrance and peers through it at them. “They can see me. I tell them ‘Jesus is looking through the monstrance and He can see you’.” After explaining Eucharistic adoration, she brings them to the church…

Wendy Grace describes the challenges of the smoothest stage of pregnancy The second trimester starts from the 14th week of pregnancy and continues until the 27th week.  During this time your baby will grow a lot, increasing in size from around 10cm to over 30cm. With your first trimester behind you, that morning (or should…

Bríd O’Meara Bríd O’Meara from Aware talks about how to build emotional resilience Resilience is a key factor in life, and something which we can all work to develop and enhance, according to Bríd O’Meara, Director of Services with Aware. “Resilience can be considered an ongoing process in life, rather than something you have or…