Darragh McGann Like any audience, a priest has to know his congregation when delivering a homily, writes Darragh McGann For as long as I can remember I have heard people saying that Mass is boring, as an explanation or an excuse for not attending. I was an altar server for eight years and would often…
It’s not until something goes wrong or breaks that we realise how much we miss it. This week everything in our house seemed to be giving up the ghost: the heating packed in with a worst case scenario of some sort of expansion tank having burst; we failed our NCT and, disaster of all disasters…
Mags Gargan speaks to the Diocesan Pastoral Coordinator in Ossory If anyone is qualified to take the pulse of the Church on the ground in Ireland, it would be someone in Gemma Mulligan’s position. As Diocesan Pastoral Coordinator, the core part of her job is to visit parishes in the Diocese of Ossory on a…
Pancake Tuesday may be over but it always reminds me of delicious spiced Semlor buns from Sweden. Instead of pancakes, in Sweden they have light cardamom buns filled with almond paste or marzipan, and fresh cream. I’d never tasted anything as sweet as semlor buns and although I’ve yet to try the recipe, I’ve come…
Parenting Matters Even psychologists have referral patterns. January and February are the months when I get more behaviour-related questions for children than any other time. Winter must be the explanation. Most of us find it hard going and we are not quite in sight of spring but the distraction of Christmas is well behind us.…
“There goes another one!” We were practising ballads for the GAA Scór competition and we needed help to add harmonies and generally lift the quality of what we had learned from straightforward ballads to something a little special. Brighdín has the most amazing musical ability. All it took was for us to begin singing the…
Mags Gargan looks at simple recommendations for parents to keep children safer online Cyberbullying has been described as the “child-protection issue of our time” and it can be very difficult for parents to walk the fine line between allowing their children access to the benefits of the internet while protecting them from the dangers. In…
Michelle Manley Michelle Manley describes the work of Dublin’s new Youth Evangelisation Team The Archdiocese of Dublin has established a new Youth Evangelisation Team, tasked with faith outreach to teenagers and young adults. The central hub for this exciting new venture is right in the heart of Dublin in St Paul’s Church at Arran Quay…
World Book Day is today, March 2, and you’ll no doubt be celebrating your favourite books, authors and illustrators in school. World Book Day is the biggest celebration of its kind, observed in 100 countries all around the world. Now it’s in its 20th year and it seems more important than ever to celebrate reading,…
I spent last Tuesday at work in the rarefied environs of the Supreme Court in London. Just for contrast, I spent the next day knocking down a wall with a sledgehammer. I was working at a rapid pace, as I had to have the rubble cleared in time to pick the kids up from school.…
Maria Byrne
Mags Gargan
Erin Fox
Bairbre Cahill