Secularisation – Page 2

My review of Crawford Gribben’s ‘The Rise and Fall of Christian Ireland’, on Slugger

I have a new post on the Slugger O’Toole blog, my review of Crawford Gribben’s excellent new book, The Rise and Fall of Christian Ireland (Oxford, 2021).… Read more...

New Post on Slugger – The Service of Reflection & Hope: An opportunity for the Church Leaders?

I have a new post on the Slugger O’Toole blog, ‘The Service of Reflection & Hope: An Opportunity for the Church Leaders?’

Image: Detail of the two-light stained glass window W27 in the north wall of the chancel (second from … Read more...

Has belief really vanished in Ireland? New post on Slugger O’Toole

I have a new post on the Slugger O’Toole blog, ‘Has belief really vanished in Ireland?’

Image: church ruins in Howth, Co Dublin… Read more...

RTE Brainstorm post on Women in Ministry in Ireland

I have a new post on RTE Brainstorm on women in ministry in Ireland, ‘How Women feel Undervalued by the Catholic Church’.

While the headline focuses on the Catholic Church, it also includes discussion of women’s roles in other denominations.… Read more...

A Review of ‘Evangelical Journeys’ – A Decade On

It has been more than a decade since Claire Mitchell and I published Evangelical Journeys: Choice and Change in a Northern Irish Religious Subculture (UCD Press, 2011).

I recently stumbled across a review of the book by Brutus Green in … Read more...

Religion Media Centre Conversation on Post-Brexit Religious and Political Divide

Earlier this month I took part in a conversation organized by the Religion Media Centre on Northern Ireland’s Post-Brexit Religious and Political Divide.

Moderated by broadcaster William Crawley, the panel included:

Dr Eamon Phoenix – political historian and head of

New Post on Slugger O’Toole: Reflecting on the Church Leaders’ St Patrick’s Day Confession

I have a new post on the Slugger O’Toole blog, ‘Reflecting on the Church Leaders’ St Patrick’s Day Confession’. Is this the churches’ most comprehensive confession ever for their historic contributions to division and violence?

Rev Ivan Patterson’s Reflections on ‘People Still Need Us’ for Care4Clergy

Rev Dr Ivan Patterson, President of the Irish Council of Churches, recently offered some reflections for the ‘Care4Clergy’ group based on research published in my report on churches during the pandemic, ‘People Still Need Us.’

Patterson’s reflections were posted on … Read more...

Why Secularisation is Good for the Churches – New Article in ‘Reality’ Magazine

I have a new article in Reality magazine, ‘Choice and Uncertainty: Why Secularisation is Good for the Churches.’

Reality is published by Redemptorist Communications Ireland. You can purchase a copy here.

I have reproduced the first few paragraphs of the … Read more...