Dear Editor, Our Faith shouldn’t be reduced down to just some self-help guide on how to improve ourselves and be kinder to others – a mentality which I think many interpret religion to be.
As Catholics we are called to not only transform ourselves, but to also change the society we live in by always striving towards and seeking out the common good.
This can only be truly achieved through incremental, structural progress where certain representatives or institutions are given more or less power.
One way this important change can come about is through the local elections, where we vote for people who represent our voice and our communities.
Many voters tend to opt for the same party, but given how much our political landscape has changed in the last few decades, parties’ political identities are no longer the same as they once were.
In light of this, it’s important for those voting to discern who is the best candidate for their community – it’s not enough to fall back on old political ties and traditions.
For Catholics, it’s of upmost importance to vote for those candidates who will respect and promote the Faith, as well as the underlying values of it. Keep this in mind when at the polls.
Yours etc.,
John Kearney,
Waterford.
The sound of a beating heart silences protestors
Dear Editor, A few days ago there was a pro-life event in Times Square, New York where legislation against the unborn is currently at its most harsh.
There was the usual mix of speakers, abortion survivors and pro-life advocates and a crowd of 20,000 supporters. A group of 2,000 pro-abortion supporters also attended to disrupt the event but they got more than they bargained for.
One of the speakers prayed for the protesters; others who had had abortions themselves and had previously shared their views expressed their sorrow and regret.
Towards the close of proceedings, the former Planned Parenthood Director (turned pro-lifer) Abby Johnson was in the back of a van hooked-up to a 4D ultrasound machine scanning her new baby in her womb. The sleepy baby’s face, in great picture clarity, was beamed to large screens on the stage and the audience fell silent.
After a few moments the technician doing the scan amplified the sounds coming from the womb, and a thunderous heart beat reverberated around the square. A more concise or eloquent testimony cannot be imagined.
All else was silent, even the pro-abortion protesters skulked away in defeat.
Yours etc.,
Stephen Clark,
Manila.
Site-seeing
Dear Editor, Fr Conor McDonough OP’s Notebook contribution (IC 16/05/19) hit the nail on the head when he writes that we should be more cognisant about the holy sites in our own areas. There are plenty of religious buildings and monastic ruins throughout the country that few people even know are on their doorstep.
Echoing what Fr McDonough said, I think we should make a more concerted effort to seek these beautiful places out and reflect upon what they meant for the people who actively used them, and also what they can teach us today. When deciding what to do on a drizzly afternoon, instead of the cinema or the pub, how about driving to an ancient religious site for an exploration of the early faith in Ireland?
Yours etc.,
Mary Brady,
Tallaght, Dublin 24.
Holiness of Medjugorje is beyond question
Dear Editor, There’s been plenty of talk over the last week about whether the miracles in Medjugorje actually happened, after Pope Francis announced that he will allow organised official pilgrimages there. Personally, I don’t think it really matters whether Mary did appear in 1981 and has been appearing since. What does matter about the site is that Catholics all over the world gather in worship and in celebration of their Faith. While we’ll probably never know whether Mary was there, we can say with confidence that the Holy Spirit definitely is.
Yours etc.,
Sean Duggan,
Newry,
Co. Down.
Left-leaning media has a lot to answer for
Dear Editor, I find it outrageous to read in your paper (IC 16/05/19) that Facebook censored an ad with an image of an unborn baby, dubbing it ‘graphic or violent’. Since when is the image of an unborn child anything but innocent and beautiful?
Every day, thousands of pregnant women watch their unborn child in the womb during an ultra-sound scan – should this image be censored too? What’s more dumbfounding is that the European Parliament posted a video on Facebook and Youtube this month called ‘Choose Your Future – European Election 23-26 May’ which opens with a similar image of a foetus. Should this video be banned also?
Of course, the real reason why the image was censored is because it was a pro-life ad, which had the caption “still one of us”. Our pro-choice, left-leaning media want to censor anyone and anything that challenges the overriding political consensus. If the ad read “Women have the right to choose”, I’m sure it would have been applauded rather than censored. How is it that we have gotten to a point in so-called Catholic Ireland that voicing protection for our unborn is so scorned? I worry for a future when the right to life is snuffed out completely.
Yours etc.,
Geraldine McKenna,
Drogheda, Co. Louth.
