When did we lose it? When did we lose that deeply-engrained, forever-sanctioned sense that however much we might disagree with each other or even dislike each other, we still need to accord each other basic courtesy, respect, and politeness? We’ve lost that, at least for the most part. From the highest levels of government to…
Personal Profile Fr Declan Lohan, a priest of the Galway diocese, says that he didn’t appreciate Christ or the Church in the first part of his life. He developed this appreciation over time, first through the Legion of Mary and Youth 2000, and now through his work as a parish priest in Renmore, Co. Galway.…
The Sunday Gospel If all of Scripture were to be destroyed with the exception of one passage, my choice to be preserved would be today’s Gospel (Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32), the parable of the Prodigal Son. This is the essence of salvation history, the story of sin and God’s offer of forgiveness. It describes three steps…
In Laudato Si’ Pope Francis says: “Given the seriousness of the ecological crises our world is facing, action is urgently needed. Caring for our brothers and sisters means caring for the home we share. This responsibility is “essential to a life of virtue (LS, 217).” In November 2021, Pope Francis launched the Laudato Si’ Action…
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…
Wreck of Shackleton’s ship found off Antarctica The wreckage of polar explorer Ernest Shackleton’s ship ‘Endurance’, which was crushed by Antarctic ice and sank some 3,000m to the ocean floor more than a century ago, has been found, a team searching for it has said. The three-masted sailing ship was lost in November 1915 during…
Mindful Living Laurence Freeman who leads the World Community for Christian Meditation spoke recently about the sickening invasion of Ukraine. He said: “It’s a really dark time for the world and we have to approach it with as much faith and hope and love as possible. The way forward is going to be difficult and…
The Sunday Gospel Lent is a season of preparation for Easter when we will renew our baptismal promises to reject the wiles of Satan and to commit ourselves afresh to being a follower of Jesus Christ. Today’s Gospel (Luke 13: 1-9) is an encouragement to improve our lives with the help of God’s grace. Remember…
This was supposed to be a happy family gathering. My granny turned 98 at the end of February. Like most years we travelled to Germany to visit her and celebrate another milestone in her life. I love what Pope Francis says about grandparents: “…because they have the strength and are of the age to carry…
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,”…
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Ruadhán Jones