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Our pilgrimage took on a new intensity amidst war
Thankfully all 52 of our Holy Land pilgrims are safe and well after the unprecedented situation of finding ourselves in Israel when war broke out with the militant faction Hamas. The group of pilgrims...
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Synodality requires patience
The general consensus here at the Synod of Bishops in Rome is that it’s good to talk. Some people are even learning that it can also be good to listen. The beauty of the papacy as we now understand it...
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Stubborn inability to deal with abuse is stomach-churning
“We had hoped, but…” is what Cleopas told the hidden Lord on the road to Emmaus about the experience of desolation in the early Church following the Crucifixion. The post Stubborn inability to deal...
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We need a rethink on Communion Services
I must admit, I was a very infrequent Mass-goer (if that is the word) for a couple of years. When the Covid-19 pandemic started and Mass ‘went online’, I tried for a week or two, but I soon discovered...
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Without Christians, the Holy Land is a museum
Christians in the land of Jesus are living yet another episode in the drama that is their long Good Friday. In recent decades, the Holy Land has haemorrhaged its Christian population to such an extent...
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Why are we so unwilling to face the unhappy truth?
Have you ever had an experience of being gaslit? Gaslighting is a form of psychological abuse where a person (or institution) causes someone to question their sanity, memories, or perception of...
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People want politicians who say what they mean, and mean what they say
It hasn’t been a great week for ‘Team Ireland’, as successive governments have dubbed Ireland’s overseas diplomatic and trade efforts. Last week I observed in this column that “modern Ireland, for all...
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The lost art of waiting
I think if we’re honest, none of us actually like waiting for things. Think of the tedium of waiting in the doctor’s surgery, or at the dentist. Or, if like me you use public transport, waiting on...
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The danger when our media live in a bubble
Ask practising Catholics to tell you about their Church and their faith, and on the whole, you get glowing reports. There will be complaints, and stories of inadequacies, and reservations about this...
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Keeping the Holy Land in our minds this Christmas
My colleague Fr Ron Rolheiser writes in this edition about connecting the dots between the crib and the cross. We’re not used to thinking about the cross at Christmas, but in one sense, Calvary always...
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Humbly trusting that Christ is with the Church
The year 2023 is not a year on which I will look back with undiluted pleasure. At this time of year, our thoughts naturally turn to those who are no longer with us. At a lot of our dinner tables this...
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Strangers in a strange land
In just five years, we will mark the bicentenary of Catholic emancipation. Four years after that, in 2032, it will be 1,600 years since St Patrick’s mission to convert the Irish to Christianity....
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Freedom of expression in democratic Ireland
Freedom, in many of its manifestations, is under threat around the world, whether it be freedom of speech, freedom of assembly or freedom of thought and conscience. We know only too well of the many...
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Rolling out the red carpet for those who suppress religious freedom
Ireland gave a warm welcome to China’s second-in-command this week, Premier Li-Qiang, in what was the first visit of a high-ranking Chinese official since Mr Li’s predecessor, Li-Keqiang’s 2015 visit....
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Catholic schools rich in understanding humanity
This week has seen the celebration of Catholic Schools Week in Ireland, which is running from Sunday, January 21st to Saturday, January 27th. Coming around with the unassuming regularity that they do,...
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Catholics know what they are doing here
Former Taoiseach John Bruton’s funeral saw a fitting send-off for a man well-known as an able and honest politician, “a man of integrity and truth,” as current Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said. However,...
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Euthanasia advocates only have to be lucky once…
The release by the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life of a new booklet on end-of-life issues ‘Small Lexicon on End of Life’ comes at a time when the final stages of life are subject to increasing...
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Amnesty International moving from its original purpose
The announcement last week that Amnesty International Ireland is planning to lay off the majority of its staff due to encountering a severe financial crisis is sad news for the individuals concerned....
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Freedom of Catholic schools being reduced
Our readers are likely, by now, to be familiar with the offensive, and some may say, racist, section in a Junior Certificate textbook that depicted a ‘traditional’ Irish family as a plastic Paddy-type...
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Don’t let the State off the hook
The Scoping Inquiry into Historical Sexual Abuse in Schools run by Religious Orders has rightly generated a response of revulsion at the horrific acts perpetrated across the country. The inquiry...
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