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Popes in Peril – Times of crisis

It came as an unpleasant shock this week when news emerged from Rome that a threatening letter containing three bullets addressed to Pope Francis had been seized by Italian police.  The discovery was made in a postal facility in the small town of Peschiera Borromeo on the outskirts of Milan.  The suspicious package, believed to… Read More

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St David and Wales

This week, on Monday the first day of March our neighbours, Wales celebrated its national day with the feast of St David. They have been observing this since the twelfth century. Today the festivities usually involve the singing of traditional songs followed by a Te Bac which is a special tea with bara brith, a… Read More

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Making the Most of Quarantine (Lockdown)

The continuing fight against Covid-19 means that we are in the middle of another lockdown with no absolute certain end in sight.  We heard earlier this week that there will be no St Patrick’s Day parade.  While we could probably have predicted this it is still another dampener on our potential plans. In a time… Read More

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Violence on the Hill

Last week the world reacted in shocked amazement as an angry mob stormed in Washington and managed to enter and rampage in its hallowed halls.  Some even emerged with ‘souvenirs’! The first thing to note is that not every person who turned out to march that day intended such actions to take place, indeed many… Read More

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Christmas with Covid

One morning this week while listening to the radio I heard a news report broadcast from Dublin Airport.  The people interviewed were describing how different their workplace looked this year.  The crowds which usually pass through their portals at Christmas have dwindled, all as a result of the restrictions imposed by Covid-19.   One woman explained… Read More

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Mental Health in a Pandemic

I remember a long time ago seeing, perhaps on a poster, the words “Happiness is having something to do, someone to love and something to hope for.”  This would also suggest a formula for good mental health. According to the World Health Organization, Mental health is “a state of well-being in which the individual realises… Read More

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What is the meaning of Religion?

The Coronavirus and resulting Lockdown have taken their toll on many areas of life, including religious practice. Religion and its meaning in peoples’ lives have been the subject of much comment as places of worship across the country were closed for weeks on end. Such a state of affairs was unprecedented in modern times. What… Read More

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Upon St Swithun’s Day

On Tuesday, July 15 we celebrated St Swithun’s Day.  He was even mentioned on the RTE news, not an accolade afforded to too many saints in these times of religious indifference!  However, this saint may be an exception because of his association with a topic close to the hearts of us Irish, namely the weather…. Read More

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London Bombings Remembered

Tuesday of last week marked the fifteenth anniversary of the London bombings, an atrocity that claimed the lives of 52 people and injured more than 700 others.  I well remember the event and seeing on the news the image of the mangled number 30 bus in Tavistock Square, which became the symbol of that terrible… Read More