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R O O T  &  B R A N C H A SYNOD THAT STARTS WITH WOMEN AND DOESN’T END THERE. *In the Catholic Church, Synods usually mean only bishops…

Two reviews of Seán McDonagh’s book Robots, Ethics and the Future of Jobs. The first is by Dr. Margaret McGaley and it appears in the current edition of Studies, a…

Article from ACI website  What is it to be Holy? What exactly is holiness? Will we know it when we see it? Is it attainable by anyone, or only by those who…

Irish bishops listened to the wrong voices. Western People 17.8.2021 When something is difficult to understand, a good tactic is to look behind the presenting problem and ask the question:…

This article, from NCR Online and dating from July 2019, was submitted following recent discussion in these pages on Synodality… LOUISVILLE, KY. — In his recent book Worship as Community Drama, sociologist…

A Church in crisis demands creativity Dublin’s newly appointed Archbishop, Dermot Farrell engaged with Síolta Editor, Darragh Kennedy for a COVID-19 “virtual” Q&A in which he expresses his confidence in…

From The Irish Times: Tues 17 August 2021: Church criticism of Covid curbs may trigger review of place of sacraments in school by Fr Tony Flannery It is now a…

Irish Examiner Monday 16 Aug 2021: The Catholic Church doesn’t have a great record in consulting people. It is a pyramidal structure, completely controlled by male clergy. Nobody else has…

Tim Hazelwood: The costly price of Church mismanagement – Time for honest change It isn’t often that a story about a priest in The Tablet ends with the contact number…

15 August 2021 Today is no ordinary day. The Taliban are already at the gates of Kabul after a lightning takeover of the rest of Afghanistan. If an agreement can…

Be willing to be a beginner every single morning   (Meister Eckhart) The Pelican, Kingfisher and Heron: The Pelican took off for the River Avoca. It needed a change from Fota….

The ACP Leadership fully endorses the statement of our (founding) member Seán McDonagh to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030. The recent report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate…

The Plenary Council in Australia starts on 3rd October 2021.   The Australian Bishops have issued the Agenda  for the Fifth Plenary Council which consists of 16 Questions.  FIFTH PLENARY…

There’s no denying how to beat the virus Western People August 10, 2021 If we want to put some clear water between ourselves and the Covid-19 virus, it really is…

During our site refurbishment some links have been temporarily affected. For those using our Liturgical Resources (by clicking on Liturgy on the Home Page and then clicking on Sunday Homily…

ASSOCIATION OF CATHOLIC PRIESTS STATEMENT 8 Aug 2021 The leadership of the ACP believes that the recent disagreement between the Government and some members of the Catholic Bishops offers an…

Latin Mass became a vehicle for dissent Western People 3.8.2021 Around 1957, I graduated as a fully qualified altar-boy in Ballycastle, no mean feat in those long-gone days. Sr Perpetua…

Please note: The deadline for submissions has been extended to 18th August. Interested parties (this includes the general public) are encouraged to make submissions, as the ethical guidelines will govern…

The Minister as an Olympian Wally the Walrus and the Heron: Wally the Walrus is an intrepid traveller. He is very sensible to make Ardmore his holiday venue. He drops…