John writes: I have heard it said that more people are admitted to psychiatric care in the weeks after Christmas than at any other period of the year. Could this be true? If so, why? Bernard McGuckian SJ replies. John.
Frank writes: I brought up my children in the faith, but none of them goes to the sacraments any more. They are married now with their own children. I worry for my grandchildren, who have no religious instruction in their home. Bernard McGuckian SJ responds.
Jill Sheehan’s book is a collection of short, thoughtful and heartfelt reflections for times of joy and trouble. It carries a simple but significant message of optimism and appreciation for all that life offers, good and bad.
Holy Thursday marks the end of Lent and the beginning of the sacred three-day event of Easter. Click below
Charles de Foucauld spent his life searching for a way to be a brother to people of all religions – especially Muslims, Jews and Christians. He wanted to found a brotherhood dedicated to this, but is was only in 1933 that the Little Brothers of Jesus were set up on [...]
Not all of us makes the best of the hand of cards that fate has dealt us, but Paul Andrews met someone who definitely did – “one of the most remarkable people I have met”.
Sister Wendy Beckett looks at the late 16th century Russian icon – The Dormition of the Virgin.
Jesus wasn’t an instant success. He had to endure the triumph of failure. Paul Andrews SJ shows haw we can do the same.
Here the brothers of the Taizé community offer a series of short meditations on questions of God, the Christian faith and what it means to believe. We all seek a meaningful life. The questions asked here lead on to intimate communion with the mystery of God.
John Murray PP tells us the story of Eve Lavallière, an accomplished actress and high flyer, who changed her whole way of life when a parish priest invited her to Mass and gave her a book about Mary Magdalen.
Drawing on his own transfiguring life experiences, including a bout of leukemia, as well as from Eastern Christian iconography, the Fathers of the Church and other theologians, Kenneth Stevenson shares his own moving “lectio divina” on the Transfiguration.
Pope John Paul II spoke of the brothers Sts Cyril and Methodius as ideal examples of the true missionary spirit – faithful to the traditions that formed them and yet endeavouring to understand the peoples to whom they were sent. Fr John Murray PP explains.
Gerard writes: Drinking too much leads to more serious consequences than overeating. Yet fast and abstinence in the Church is always focussed on food and never on drink. Why is this? Fr Bernard McGuckian SJ replies.
How do the choices we make in adolescence affect the direction of our future life? This is the theme implicit in Fr Brian Grogan’s account of the adolescence of Ignatius Loyola.
Sé intinn choitianta an Phápa do Mhí Mheithimh 2008 ná: Go raibh cairdeas domhain pearsanta ag Críostaithe le Críost ionas go mbeidh ar a gcumas neart a ghrá a thaispeáint do chách lena mbuaileann siad. Léiríonn Leon Ó Giolláin.
A concerned mother of a young family writes: At a mission recently in our parish one of the speakers stated that he did not know where our deceased went when they die. His exact words were: “They either go to the unknown, heaven or hell.” Neither I nor any of [...]
Jesuit student, John Callanan, tells about his experience on the “Camino de Santiago” and how interacting with some of his fellow pilgrims gave him a new sense of God.
Local ministry development officer Judy Hirst shows us the the heart of being holy is also the heart of being truly human. A new edition of the 2006 book, with discussion questions on each chapter. A beautiful book.
Probably the best modern book on Christianity, this classic from Hans Küng was written in 1974 and has been re-issued in 2008 by Continuum Books. Küng himself regards it as his “magnum opus” and says of it: “It seeks to bring to light for this present time the original Christian [...]
Jenny Taylor rediscovers chastity as a counter-culture that heralds a new sexual freedom and a recovery of community. She has as her model pioneers, like Florence Nightingale and Jane Austen, and the missionary spinsters who spent decades in India, Nepal and Africa providing healthcare and educational opportunities, especially for other [...]
Celine Mangan OP writes of the role of the Spirit in creation and in the life of believers. “Thinking of the Spirit as ‘Trainer’,” she says, “could call us today to the discipline and action needed to take on responsibility to undo the harm we are doing to the environment.”
Bethany Bereavement Support Group is a parish-based ministry which aims to help and support those suffering any loss. The name Bethany recalls the visit of Jesus to Mary and Martha on the death of their brother Lazarus. In today’s world, it is not widely understood that the grieving process may [...]
David Birchall SJ answers an inquiring parent about the sacrament of confirmation.
I go to Church most Sundays but don’t go to Communion as I’m separated from my husband. I would like to go to Communion with my child on first Communion day, is this all right?
Advertising, politics, entertainment: are we losing our grip on reality?
Helen Doherty learns that to be a good mother one doesn’t have to be perfect, just good enough.
Andrew Nugent OSB explores the Rule of St Benedict for what it might teach us about personal prayer.
