In all of Ireland’s current sex abuse scandals, it seems the perspectives of the victims keep getting lost as we focus on the bishops of the Irish Catholic Church, or on abusers like Liam Adams.
Today an anonymous victim of … Read more...
Priest Tells Congregation to Shoplift
Shoplifting is a Christian option. So says Fr Tim Jones of St Lawrence and St Hilda Parish in York, who advised the poor members of his congregation to steal from large national businesses if they were desperate in the run-up … Read more...
The Religious Education Debate: Does Religion Need the State?
Terror and wonder. Religious education has the power to instil such emotions in the young. Recent revelations have exposed the physical and sexual abuse that was rampant in many of the state-run, church-controlled churches on this island. On the other … Read more...
Tyrone Football Manager Mickey Harte Book Review: Presence is the Only Thing
I don’t consider myself a fan of the GAA, having grown up in a part of the United States where awareness of Gaelic Games is non-existent. But I’m deeply intrigued by the relationship between spirituality and sporting excellence, so the … Read more...
Gerry Adams’ Niece Abuse Case: Acknowledgement for Victims
Last night’s UTV Insight special painted in disturbing detail the ordeal of Aine Tyrell, niece of Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams. Tyrell was sexually abused for eight years by her father (Gerry Adams’ brother), Liam, during the height of Northern … Read more...
‘For the Good of the Church’: Will more Irish Catholic Bishops Resign?
In today’s Irish Times, Mary Raftery has offered a shocking analysis of recent comments by bishops named in the Murphy Report on child abuse in the Dublin diocese. Raftery argues that their public statements reveal a stunning lack of will … Read more...
Sex Sells: Advertising Christmas in New Zealand
A ‘Progressive Christian’ congregation, St Matthew’s in the City in Auckland, New Zealand, has launched a provocative billboard campaign for Christmas, depicting Mary and Joseph in bed, with the words: ‘Poor Joseph: God is a hard act to … Read more...
Never Heard of the Hard Gospel?
Last week when lecturing master’s students on the role of the churches in reconciliation in Northern Ireland, I spoke about the Church of Ireland’s Hard Gospel Project. I was surprised when a local student, with a long history of … Read more...
Re-Organisation of the Irish Catholic Church
The word from the Vatican is that ‘the Irish Catholic Church faces major reorganisation.’ This comes in the wake of the child abuse scandals and their cover-up by senior officials of church and state.
Count me Out? Responding to the Report on Child Abuse in Dublin Diocese
The last time I attended mass – the Sunday before the report of the commission on child abuse in the Dublin diocese was released – the priest told the assembled faithful about a website that instructed people about how to … Read more...