The Irish Hospice Foundation is providing information and resources on supporting people through grief in the workplace, writes Jason Osborne Grief is a terrible thing. Writing more succinctly about it than I can, C.S. Lewis said that no one ever told him that it felt so much like fear: “I am not afraid, but the sensation…
Personal Profile Sr Stephanie O’Brien IBVM traces her vocation to her days as a schoolgirl in a Loreto school in Cavan. Two missionary sisters heading to India gave a talk to Sr Stephanie’s class, saying that they were going to “sacrifice their life to save the world”. “This little 12-year-old wanted to do the same,”…
The news cycle seems more doom and gloom than ever, and it’s important to figure out how to deal with it, writes Jason Osborne Lent seems timelier than ever this year. The great season of repentance and refocus comes as war erupts closer to home for us in Europe than it has in a long…
Personal Profile Michelle Ward’s faith wasn’t always as strong as it is now, but God has always spoken to her through the relationships in her life. Speaking to The Irish Catholic newspaper, Mrs Ward says that she grew up with a mother who was very strong in her faith, and it was how this faith…
Willpower is a major fuel in the spiritual life, and it will come in handy during Lent, writes Jason Osborne Lent has begun, and our spiritual resolutions are hopefully made. As discussed last week in this column, Lent is the perfect opportunity to refocus on the goal of life: God. Unfortunately for us, however, it’s…
Personal Profile Fr John Harris OP was set on the path to the priesthood from the age of seven, and hasn’t looked back since. Elected last year as the provincial for the Dominicans in Ireland, he sees his task as being to encourage his brethren to preach the Gospel. “My vocation story is very boring,”…
Lent is the ultimate time for re-focusing on the most important things in life, writes Jason Osborne Life is a hectic thing. Work, family, hobbies and many, many other things vie for our attention and demand our efforts day in, day out. These are all very good things, of course, but none of them are…
Personal Profile Charlotte Gormley’s faith is grounded in her experience of well-run youth retreats. Having been raised in a Catholic family, retreats during her teenage years reinvigorated her faith. Now, having taken on the role of faith formation co-ordinator for the parishes of Banagher and Claudy, she hopes to give back what she has received.…
The role of Ordinary Time and the seasons in the Church year are often overlooked, but they have much to teach us, writes Jason Osborne We find ourselves a couple of weeks out from Lent yet, and smack in the middle of Ordinary Time in the Liturgical calendar. I think most of us are guilty…
Personal Profile Recently ordained as a permanent deacon for service in Clogher diocese, husband and father Paul Flynn is another bridge over the perceived ‘gap’ between the Church and the world. The ordination taking place earlier this month in St Michael’s Church, Enniskillen, it was just the latest, major step on Deacon Flynn’s faith journey…
Ruadhán Jones