In a refreshingly forthright speech, Cardinal Brady took issue with the fact that the “the claims and influence of secularism and relativism have gone largely unchallenged in the Irish culture and media”. Indeed those driving the European agenda, which Pope John Paul II described as having a “loss of Christian memory” may need to be reminded that the European Convention on Human Rights has been build on a foundation of Judeo-Christian ethics.

The removal of any reference to Christianity in the foundation of these rights has placed the European state in a value vacuum. Without the God given boundaries to govern human conduct there can be little confidence that the flow of anti-Christian decisions, listed by the Cardinal, will abate.

Ireland and indeed Europe have become places where Christ is largely absent from its institutions. In his lecture this scene was contrasted with the US where last week the political contenders were brought together by a Pastor, who spent two hours interv ... Read More »

“What strikes me when I come back here is that someone is always going to a funeral.” The community aspect of funerals was highlighted in the comment made by someone returning from the UK for Cemetery Sunday. The cohesion of the community at funerals reflects respect for the dead and sorrow and support for the family. Cemetery Sunday provides an opportunity to renew these sentiments, strengthen family ties and renew the link with the past.

Other cultures mark the right of passage in different ways. A Chinese friend, who had cared for his elderly father during his terminal illness, had a problem when it came to the burial. Ancestral worship was the family way but as both my friend and his father had come to trust in Jesus a Christian funeral was arranged. There would be no money buried with the deceased and no joss-sticks burned on the grave. Instead flowers were planted and tended emphasising love and respect for, but not worship of, the dead.

We need to be guided by the Bible on th ... Read More »

The celebration marking to opening of the Olympic Games in Beijing must rank as favourite for the title “the greatest show on earth”. It was breathtaking as our senses were overwhelmed by the sheer scale and technical complexity of the “Birds Nest” stadium. The gravity denying deeds appeared to be miraculous.

The bonus for China was that the flawless performance was witnessed by the global power-brokers from their seats in the arena.

The Olympic slogan “One World, One Dream” and the 5 interlocking circles representing the 5 continents joined by sport bear testimony to the 204 competing countries.

Behind the statistics lie years of gruelling training undergone by the competitors.

St Paul was familiar with the rigours required by athletes. He encouraged the Christians at Corinth to adopt a similar lifestyle and to go all out for the prize.

He wrote; “Do you not know that in a race all the runners compete, but only one receives ... Read More »

Of all the definitions of faith I have heard this one is the latest! It is hard to comment on the one-liner which was used last week in the address to the annual gathering of the Legion of Mary at Knock except to say it was positive. It certainly beats the schoolboy’s “Faith is what you need to believe something that ain’t true”.

Perhaps the most often heard injunction regarding faith is the phrase “Keep the faith”. Most who use it would be surprised to learn that it was first used by St Paul, in his final letter to Timothy. St Paul used it in the past tense “I have kept the faith”. The question is, what was this faith St Paul kept, all about?

As the Apostle to the Gentiles he was well aware of the faith placed in the idols of his day. They abounded in every city he visited. He accused the people of “worshipping created things rather than the Creator”. He would probably say the same thing if he visited Ireland today! For St Paul his faith was in Christ. For him to live was Christ. ... Read More »

Warm sunshine and the attention of the media doubled the numbers climbing Croagh Patrick last Sunday. An astonishing 35/40,000 climbed the 2,510feet from the shores of Clew Bay to the boulder strewn summit. The televised Mass on the mountain top broadcast the beautiful singing of the choir sending the message that “Jesus Christ is Lord” around the world.

In his homily the Archbishop, in a play on Christ’s words, expressed the view that faith may move mountains but prayed that “this holy mountain will move faith”.

It seems that historically the mountain was not always holy. Prior to St Patrick, it appears to have been a place of pilgrimage for worshippers of local deities.

The genius of St Patrick is seen in his relatively non-violent evangelisation of Ireland by his converting wells from pagan fertility rites to places of believers’ baptism. It is present again on the Reek, recounted in the legend, when he threw a Read More »

Now that summer appears to have visited these shores and the school holidays are in full swing we can take time out to enjoy our many blessings. This is the blissful period between the end of term tests, now but a dim memory and the ominous prospect the results, still far enough removed not to intrude into the present enjoyment.

As the poet has put it: -

What is this life if full of care,

We have no time to stand and stare?

No time to linger beneath the bough

And stare at horse or sheep or cow!

Which brings me to another test – one which every stock farmer knows – the herd test. This devise, invented many years ago, to ensure the National herd is kept free from disease, keeps farmers and vets busy. Preparation consists of something akin to the Calgary stampede as all cattle irrespective of sex or age have to face the vet equipped with a computer in one hand and a needle in the other. Maintaining order in the face of threatening chaos requires th ... Read More »

We are not told in the Bible why God made Adam and Eve instead of Adam and Steve but it makes sense when a short time later he commands them to "be fruitful and multiply".   We are not told why the one man and one woman in lifelong monogamous relationship was the best arrangement to rear a family but we can see throughout Scripture the blessings it brought when it was not transgressed.   We are not told why St Paul in his first letter to Timothy rules that, in the church, a woman should not teach or have authority over a man relating this back to the creation order, but at the very minimum it implies that gender matters.   There are God-given roles which we breach at our peril.   Once you say that gender doesn't matter, it may seem to be a small thing, but you "sow to the wind and reap the whirlwind".   The consequences of our actions may not be apparent at the time but t ... Read More »

The Bible authorises three groups for the promotion of human existence.   They are the Nation the Church and the Family.  All three are under attack.   The Nation because we fear being subsumed into the EC.   The Church because we want to live as we please.   The Family because the marriage bond is thought to curtail our freedom.   Underlying these complex issues is the assumption that we have matured, moved up the evolutionary scale and are better placed to rearrange our affairs without reference to what God has said in the Bible.

Nowhere is this more evident than in the proposed Bill to give legal recognition to same-sex unions and to provide a "redress scheme" for long-term co-habiting opposite-sex couples.   Whatever the justification for the former there can be no logical reason to provide a parallel legal entity to marriage for opposite-sex couples. &a ... Read More »

There is something incongruous in seeing President Mugabe with a Bible in his hand.   The same hand that is stained with the blood of his own people whose only crime was to exercise their democratic right and vote for the opposition.

Not that the Bible doesn't highlight many bloody examples of rulers who like Mugabe started off well but the corrupting influence of power eventually undid all the good they had done.   It simply shows how we are when power is unbridled.  The vows made at the inauguration ceremony must be familiar after five previous occasions.   Each time they have been made they have become more meaningless.

But why are vows taken?   The intention is to put the person making them under stronger constraints.   There is a tacit recognition of human frailty to honour any promise.   The irony in Mugabe's case was that the vows were being ... Read More »

Actuarial statistics tell us that life expectancy is currently increasing at the rate of 5 hours per day!  

A new born child who would have had 70 years to look forward to is now looking at an 84 year life span.  Not only are we living longer but we can increasingly control just how much longer.   The Health Magazines are right when they tell us that eating the suggested 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day will add a further 3 years.   For smokers who desist the reward is an additional 6 years.   A healthy and happy marriage can earn the couple another 8 years on the planet.   There are no statistics for those who embrace Christianity but the way these numbers add up Methuselah's record may be under attack!  

In fact the only person recorded in scripture who wanted a longer life was Hezekiah.  2 Kings Chapter 20 tells us that his pr ... Read More »