Month: August 2016
Keeping a check on back to school costs
Lists are absolutely essential when getting ready to send your children back to school, says Claire, a mother of two in Crumlin, Dublin, “because otherwise you go to the shop and you buy 47 copies and 20 pencils and forget you need a pencil parer”. Edel in Drogheda is similarly emphatic, stressing that she draws…
Irish campaigners urged to step up pro-life fight amid funding row
Greg DalySenator Rónán Mullen has called on Irish people at home and abroad to support Irish pro-life organisations as pressure builds to overturn the constitutional protections for the unborn. The NUI senator’s comments came as it was revealed that the billionaire financier George Soros’ New York-based Open Society Foundations is a major contributor to the Abortion…
Music Ministry in the Midlands
Music Ministry Together, held at Cistercian College Roscrea from August 16-21, is a summer school for youth and adult leaders with a passion for liturgical music and the desire to serve as ministers in their parishes, schools and communities. During the five-day summer school the participants gathered together as music ministers, and took part in…
Breathing life into the embers of Faith
Over 250 young people gathered at All Hallows College in Drumcondra, Dublin, over the weekend of August 20-21 for a conference organised by the Legion of Mary on the theme of how Mary fires up the spirit in our souls. Among the speakers at the conference was Roger Buck, an American-born convert to Catholicism from…
Poles apart: attending Mass in Ireland
Katarzyna Gmerek reflects on differences between liturgy in Ireland and Poland
Preserving the Catholic Library for another Century
Peter Costello
The Central Catholic Library has found itself in the news headlines. Many people, especially those outside Dublin, may like to learn a little more about this venerable institution, its history, and the difficulties it faces today. The Central Catholic Library was founded in January 1922 — so it is actually as old as the State…
Catholic Bishop leads calls for truth in Philippines killings
Paul Keenan
A Catholic bishop in the Philippines has led calls for the nation’s elected representatives to uncover the truth about the surge in killings of suspected drug dealers and addicts. As senators convene a congressional inquiry into killings which have risen in line with the tough stance adopted by President Rodrigo Duterte since his election on…
World News in Brief
Chilean Bishop welcomes talks A Catholic bishop in Chile has welcomed moves to establish a forum for dialogue towards ending violence and arson attacks in the Araucania region. Bishop Hector Vargas of Temuco said such a forum for talks “will be very positive” if they are conducted for “the common good of all inhabitants”. The proposal of talks…
Bishop undaunted by prison threat
A Catholic bishop in Mexico threatened with prison for allegedly interfering in politics has vowed to continue his work on behalf of the people of his state from behind bars. Bishop Ramón Castro Castro of Cuernavaca in the state of Morales is awaiting a decision from local prosecutors on possible charges after he hosted a…