Pat Coyle interviewing Gerry O’Hanlon SJ on the position of Pope Francis and women’s ordination.

Western People 25.7.2023 In his poem, Church Going, the English poet Philip Larkin suggests that no matter what meaning churches have they should be preserved. A strange thought in that…

Clontarf Ecumenical Conference Ecumenism: Reimagining the Future of the Irish Church. Date:                         Saturday 13th October 10.00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. Venue:       Church of St. John the Baptist, Seafield…

Seamus Ahearne finds the ‘living is easy’ in summertime.
“The unexpected has to happen or we have to believe in the surprises of life. The unlikely does occur. ‘Summertime and the living is easy.’ That may not be so always. But in faith and with God, there is always a summertime.  The life of grace. The life of wonder. The life of love. It is there. Our church cannot be dour.”

The official translation is now available at http://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/speeches/2014/december/documents/papa-francesco_20141222_curia-romana.html.
The introduction says, “Francis received in audience the Cardinals and the Superiors of the Roman Curia for Christmas greetings.” Francis mentions “brothers and sisters” at the beginning!
Pádraig McCarthy

Brendan Hoban in his Western People column takes a look at a new proposed programme on Sex Education in schools, at what could be the next debate / battle “between civil and religious contexts’ where “distrust and accusation are the order of the day.”….
“The hope would be that … we’ve learned a bit from our mistakes: that we don’t know it all; that we can learn from those we may disagree with; … and especially that, given all that has happened in recent decades, we’re not in the best place to pontificate on matters sexual. In other words, that we can learn as well as teach.”

Happy New Year