Personal Profile Ruth Hogan grew up in a family that was both musical and Catholic, but it took some time for both these childhood realities to find their home in her life. After spending time in the Holy Family Mission and giving retreats herself, she realised that music is a gift God gave her to…
As we noted at the start of Lent, the number 40 is usually associated with a period of preparation. Following the 40 days of Lent, there are 40 days of preparation between the Resurrection and Ascension. My very young grand-nephew once asked me a very profound question: “Where was Jesus in the time between his…
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin once said something to the effect that we reach moral maturity on the day we realise that, ultimately, we have to choose: genuflect before something higher than ourselves or begin to self-destruct! Simone Weil had a similar idea. She consistently affirmed that our deepest longing was to find someone or something…
This month saw the release of another stark report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the third in a series of red alerts from the United Nations, calling for governments around the world to urgently respond to the climate crisis. The report painted a grim picture of a world with rising greenhouse gas…
Almsgiving is about more than the material help we offer; it has an effect on our souls, writes Jason Osborne Prayer, fasting and almsgiving are the three pillars upon which a successful Lent stands. Many Catholics know of the spiritual benefits of prayer and fasting, but view almsgiving as a purely material practice that one…
‘Stolen’ Darwin manuscripts anonymously returned Two Charles Darwin manuscripts that were reported as stolen from Cambridge University Library have been anonymously returned in a pink gift bag, with a typed note on an envelope wishing a Happy Easter to the librarian. The precious items were found to be missing in 2001, but at the time…
Easter Sunday is the most important day of the year. Pope St Paul VI said that the resurrection is the unique and sensational event on which the whole of human history turns. It is so central to our Christian belief that St Paul wrote: “If Christ has not been raised then our preaching is useless and your…
Mindful Living In my article in February I wrote about meditation and marriage and how both contribute to deepening our sense of who we are at the deepest level of our being. Couples are often reminded at the marriage ceremony to view love, not as a noun, but as an action verb; to see love…
After two years of celebrating the most important week in our liturgical calendar behind closed doors, we are finally to welcome people back into church. How lucky are we! I mentioned this at a recent parent meeting for those whose children wish to be confirmed. Many blank faces looked back at me. I wondered, did…
“They shall look upon the one whom they have pierced!” A phrase that names the voice that’s left behind on Good Friday. In 1981, an anonymous, young girl was brutally raped and murdered by the military at an obscure location in El Salvador, fittingly called La Cruz (the Cross). Her story was reported by a…
Ruadhán Jones
Fr Ronald Rolheiser