I share an inherited appreciation for Fr. Flanagan thanks to my father. Boys Town and similar organizations were always close to my dad’s heart and among the top of his donation pile, next to our local parish church fund. The reason is that he was sent to spend the last few years of high school…
March 17, 2023 I visited Westport Ireland three years ago in search of my grandmother’s (Cahill) birth certificate. It is a beautiful place on the West Coast of Ireland, north of Galway. It lies at the foot of Croagh Patrick which is named in honor of Saint Patrick, the apostle and patron of Ireland and the Irish race.…
CNS—The head of the Irish bishops’ conference said the government’s move to criminalize attendance at Mass as part of COVID-19 regulations was a “potential infringement of religious freedom and of constitutional rights.” “The precise provisions are unclear and at first reading appear to be draconian, going further than the restrictions we have been cooperating with…
CNA—The Supreme Court of Ireland ruled Friday that a hospital may withhold medical treatment contrary to the wishes of the parents of a child with severe injuries. “The withholding of treatment to a child does not necessarily require parental consent to be lawful if it based on a properly made decision as to the best…
CNA, with CBJ edits—On April 16, 2016, a 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck Ecuador, killing at least 676 people, including a young religious sister called Sr. Clare Crockett. Two years after her death, her order released a film about her remarkable life in both English and Spanish. “All or Nothing: Sr. Clare Crockett” now has more than…
CNA—Retired politician and Nobel laureate John Hume, a major leader in the effort to secure peace in Northern Ireland, died Monday at the age of 83. Many leaders in the region praised his success in responding to one of Europe’s longstanding conflicts. “I was leader of a great team of people, all of whom have…
