As we approach Holy Week, a couple of activities can help families hold fast to their Lenten resolutions, writes Jason Osborne The end of Lent is rapidly approaching, and it would be all too easy to let our guard down now. In particular, children who are just beginning to grow into the liturgical life of the…
Personal Profile Fr Patrick Cunningham is the Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) Co-ordinator for the Columban missionaries in South Korea. The role combines a number of his passions, particularly bettering the lot of the poor and migrants, with his calling as a missionary priest. Their human interest stories made a deep impression on…
A Parent’s Perspective I’ve detected an increasing sense of despondency and dismay with the realisation that any chance of life going back to normal seems a long way off. My daughter was watching an anime film recently; its themes of love and romance made her sad because she said it just reminded her of her…
After the drear of an Irish winter, the first few sunny spring days seem almost miraculous. As the gloom wore on, month after month, it seemed that never again would we rest easy in the sunshine. The Irish climate makes moments of luxuriating comfortably in nature rare, and therefore precious. Yet all of a sudden,…
Among people of faith, there is the notion that if you are person of deep faith you can easily renounce the things of this world, see the world for all its ephemerality, not cling to things, and die more peacefully. Not true. That is naïve, at least a lot of the time. James Hillman writes:…
Children’s Corner We’re now approaching Easter and as the temperatures increase, the sun makes its presence felt and spring brings a plethora of growth in nature, what better time to investigate whether the colour of our clothes matters when it comes to retaining heat? When you’re out in the sun on a warm day does…
Ancient scroll found in Israel ‘cave of horror’ The BBC has reported that fragments of a biblical scroll and other relics have been found in what officials call an “historic discovery” in desert caves in Israel. The dozens of pieces of parchment were written in Greek, with just the name of God appearing in Hebrew.…
Our ever-evolving world is bringing about newer methods of fraud by the day, so it’s important to stay alert, writes Jason Osborne An advertisement I saw recently on the internet suggesting that I could “double” my Bitcoin got me thinking about how a scam like this would make no sense to someone even 20 years ago.…
Everyday Philosophy In my first year of university, the study of philosophy was divided into three subtopics. There were lectures and classes in logic, ethics, and then ‘general philosophy’ which was supposed to include everything else. I showed up to my first lecture in the latter as a fresh-faced undergraduate eager for knowledge, and left…
Personal Profile The family of Fr John Joe Duffy, parish priest in Creeslough/Dunfanaghy Co. Donegal, have been fishermen for generations. His father, his grandfather, his uncles – all were involved in the fishing industry in one way or another. But the priesthood was always Fr Duffy’s calling and today he combines his life and calling…
Ruadhán Jones
Maria Byrne
Fr Ronald Rolheiser
Chai Brady
Ben Conroy