Personal Profile Fr Colm O’Mahony OSA wears many hats: vocations director for the Augustinians in Ireland; student master for the pre-novitiate; and prior and bursar of the Drogheda community. But it was always the call of community life that attracted him to the Augustinians, and his zeal for work ‘on the ground’ is constantly renewed…

Between the glare of summer sun and screen, our eyes may be taking a beating these days, writes Jason Osborne An old adage has it that the eyes are the window to the soul. Regardless of how much truth there is to that, there’s probably some sense in the intuition that they’re one of the…

Personal Profile Emmet Thompson’s connection with St Eugene’s Cathedral and the nearby Long Tower parish in Derry go all the way back to his childhood. It’s a connection he has maintained through his work as pastoral co-ordinator for the two parishes, a role that was of great importance over lockdown, as Mr Thompson was heavily…

Living Laudato Si’ “To restore nature, we must first restore ourselves”, words from Pope Francis speaking at an event to mark the beginning of the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration. This global initiative is an effort to protect and restore the vast ecosystems of our planet. Biodiversity loss is at critical levels due to human…

The Catholic Church has upheld the Sacred Heart of Jesus for a long time, and it’s as relevant now as ever, writes Jason Osborne The month of June is dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which was, and remains, one of the most widespread and popular devotions in the Church. In this hectic, scattered…

Personal Profile Included in the Queen’s recent birthday honours list, much to her surprise, was Ms Maureen Devine MBE of the Irish Pilgrimage Trust. Though she doesn’t consider herself a Holy Joe, her almost 25 years volunteering in a number of capacities for the trust were devoted to the works of mercy characteristic of the…

The warm weather will make sleeping more difficult for many of us, but for some, it’s a problem all year round, writes Jason Osborne Recent conversations with some family and friends have made me very grateful for the ease with which I sleep. I’ve heard many reports of people struggling to get comfortable and drift…

Personal Profile When David Mullins was 18, he spent a year in the Franciscan postulancy. After the year finished, he decided to take a break, intending to return at a later date. “But things changed,” Mr Mullins tells The Irish Catholic, “and I got married and now I have five kids!” He maintains a great…

The Irish love of the sun must be tempered with prudence and sun cream, writes Jason Osborne We’re getting to that point in the year when the sun starts to make its all-too-fleeting appearances upon these shores. Emerging from what seems like the rainiest start to a year in recent memory, I’ve lapped up whatever exposure…

Personal Profile There was such a degree of happenstance in Jesuit Fr Ashley Evans’ call to Cambodia that it could only have come from God. Having initially been denied his wish to serve as a worker-priest in Birmingham, Fr Evans volunteered for the newly formed Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) and was sent to Thailand. There…