Fr Pat Collins CM Recently, when he was in Singapore, Pope Francis said, “All religions are paths to God, I will use an analogy: they are like different languages that express the divine. But God is for everyone, and therefore, we are all God’s children. ’But my God is more important than yours!’ Is this…
Fr Barry White The understanding of the laity’s role in the Church has evolved considerably, especially since the Second Vatican Council, which emphasised their central participation in the Church’s mission. Rooted in the sacraments of Baptism and Confirmation, laypeople are called to share in Christ’s kingly, priestly, and prophetic office. Their participation is not merely…
The Amergin Step: An Exploration in the Imagination of Iveragh by Paddy Bushe (Dingle Publishing Services, €30.00 / £25.00; contact Árd na Caithne, Ballyferriter, Tralee, Co Kerry; email: info@dinglepublishing.com; tel: +353 89 483 3793) Gabriel Fitzmaurice Paddy Bushe, one of Ireland’s outstanding poets both as Gaeilge and in English, has with this, his latest book, The Amergin Step, gifted…
Thomas O’Reilly A four-day visit to Belgium by Pope Francis acted as the perfect bellwether in what many regard as Western Europe’s most secular country as greater than-expected numbers flocked to see the Pontiff, dissuaded by showery weather and a last-minute attempt by political elites to dredge up abuse scandals. In the first papal visit…
Fr Patrick Briscoe OP When I think about the saints most beloved by modern Catholics, Padre Pio tops the list. His weathered face and brown Capuchin habit are iconic. His remarkable personal story, his strong-willed personality and the intensity of his spiritual life are absolutely captivating. But here’s the thing: I think most people get…
The Sunday Gospel Gn 2:18-24 Ps 128:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6 Heb 2:9-11 Mk 10:2-16 or 10:2-12 Fr Joshua J. Whitfield As Eve to Adam in the purity of Eden, as bride to groom in the joy of a wedding: it is a primeval holiness, the holiness of a woman in love with a man in…
I believe the faith in Ireland is not dead. It’s like a bird in hibernation, waiting to awaken, says Anto Crossey It was November 2019, when Robert Nugent called 500 men to Derry. Like many others, I simply responded to the call, showing up that day without fully realising what lay ahead. The gathering was…
Michael R. Heinlein I’ve noticed a pattern lately. Whenever my 7-year-old son presents himself for Holy Communion to a minister unknown to him, he is routinely denied the sacrament. I find this fascinating. He does all the right things. He bows. He makes the sign of the cross. He waits patiently to say “Amen” before…
Laptop by Desmond Egan (The Goldsmith Press, € 20.00 / £16.00) William Adamson Desmond Egan once wrote that poetry is essentially a dialogue, an insight into the universal through the particular experience, and in his latest collection, Laptop, this thought is taken to a level of intensity rarely found in poetry today. The book itself is…
Bishop Robert Reed It’s that time of year, again, when the waking air has a chill crispness to it, and the hallways are lined with bookbags full of fresh spiral notebooks, binders still blank of the doodles of midwinter boredom and the good old marble-covered notebooks, as yet unsullied. Pencils have been sharpened, erasers are…