Ngala Killian Chimtom A leading bishop in the Republic of the Congo has warned that an exponential rise in Christian Pentecostalism in the country is posing a stiff challenge to the Catholic Church, drawing people away amid what he described as “guerilla warfare” in the spiritual realm. “They disrupt the faith of Catholics by…
Jem Sullivan Is 63:16b-17, 19b; 64:2-7 Ps 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19 1 Cor 1:3-9 Mk 13:33-37 Advent offers us a graced time to recognise that the deepest longings of our heart are for God. The prophet Isaiah shines a bright light on this indwelling desire, etched by God into each human heart. For this reason, Isaiah…
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 the opportunities and good things, is also a sad, frightened, angry and unhappy place. “Naming this truth is the first step to healing…
Dear Editor, Effective Catholic education within Ireland is dependent on, amongst other things, the presence of third level theology departments who can provide training for a Catholic laity who are going to be ever more important in the 21st Century Church. In that regard, the ongoing failure to appoint a Head of Theology in Mary…
Catholic couples invited to work in-Tandem Tandem Teams, a programme for recently married or engaged couples devised by Teams of Our Lady, will begin its latest round of meetings on Saturday, December 9 at 3.30pm. The programme is structured around 13 monthly meetings and aims to “offer an occasion to dialogue in-depth with your partner/spouse…
The archbishop of Seoul has said that he wants to invite young North Koreans to the Catholic Church’s next World Youth Day. Archbishop Peter Chung Soon-taick shared at a peace forum in Seoul this week that he plans to invite a youth delegation from North Korea to the 2027 World Youth Day to take place…
Thomas O’Loughlin This essay is a continuation of the theme of the essay on the breaking bread published here recently. Whilst our common memory of the origin of the Eucharist is that Jesus took “bread and wine” (emphasising distinct materials), by contrast all our early texts notice that he shared “a cup” (the emphasis…
When adults pursue their own selfish ends it’s often the children that suffer, even if the excess of individualism comes nicely wrapped and rationalised. Last Thursday I was listening to an interesting discussion on cribs (the Christmas kind) on Liveline (RTÉ Radio One). It was quite positive – the live animals were being restored to…
With his death on November 17, the long life of the doyen of our composers – Seóirse Bodley – came to an end. May he rest in peace. Born in Dublin on April 4, 1933, Seóirse Bodley attended the CBS Coláiste Mhuire on Parnell Square where the curriculum was taught through Irish. Bodley also studied…
I heard someone at a wedding Mass introduce the Scripture passage to be read as: “A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Theologians” – I smiled! In fairness, the reading was perfectly delivered, and the message was a solid and apt addition to the celebration. I wondered afterwards what might St Paul…
Michael Kelly
Brendan O’Regan