An Irish missionary priest who has served in Africa for more than 40 years has said that people are hopeful as churches in South Africa, which had been badly hit by Covid-19, begin to re-open. Fr Seán Mullin CSSp, originally from Kilconly near Tuam in Co. Galway, is a school and hospital chaplain but is…
Christians must resist the temptation to be harsh and judgemental, Bishop Donal McKeown has said. Speaking at the weekend, he likened some of the secular behaviour in modern Ireland to that of the religious hypocrites at the time of Christ. “Our secular world is very prone to precisely that Pharisaic desire to label people as…
Banned under lockdown, we can now return to the sacraments but not as we knew them writes Ruadhán Jones Typically, almost 17,000 children are confirmed every year in the Archdiocese of Dublin alone. Only a minute percentage of these have been able to take place thus far. Similarly, during lockdown thousands of weddings were cancelled…
Former world no. 1 Serena Williams has revealed in an interview that she has used the Covid-19 lockdown to study the Bible, having previously described faith as her secret weapon. In an interview on her return to tennis following the restrictions, Ms Williams said the virus gave her the time to reflect on the scriptures.…
The example of the Mother of God should offer hope in the midst of the pandemic to people worried about the future, Archbishop Michael Neary has said. Speaking at Knock Shrine on the Solemnity of the Assumption at the weekend, Fr Neary reflected on “the uncertainty which is brought about by Covid-19, the fear about…
Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin [pictured] has warned that there must be no place within the Church for “narrowness and bitterness”. He said that Catholics down the ages “have seen believers build barriers of narrowness and bitterness, when they think they are simply being zealous in defending the message of Jesus”. Speaking at Mass in…
The Irish Spirit – Issue No. 12 They celebrate the divine presence already in our hearts From the book Treasured and Transformed by Daniel O’Leary It is common, unfortunately, for preachers to talk about the sacraments in terms of offering grace to graceless people. This presumes, to a greater or lesser extent, that those who…
A senior Catholic aid worker said humanitarian conditions are deteriorating in eastern Ukraine and urged Western governments and Churches not to forget the continuing six-year conflict. “We thought we’d overcome war in Europe, but a whole growing generation here now knows only war – teenagers who look like teenagers everywhere, but will tell you how…
The Irish Spirit – Issue No. 12 From the book Beautiful Thoughts for Beautiful Minds by John Scally The late Pope John Paul I was known as the ‘smiling Pope’. Desmond Tutu is the laughing archbishop – a man who wears his humanity on his sleeve. When I was a boy, one of my…
Jesuit Fr James Martin will deliver an invocation at the Democratic National Convention this week where former Vice President Joe Biden will accept his party’s formal nomination for president of the United States. Fr Martin, an editor-at-large at America Magazine and one of the most well-known American priests on social media, will also be joined by a rabbi and an…
Chai Brady
Ruadhán Jones