Launch of Building a Church Without Walls

image I started this blog just over a year ago. My first post was called ‘Count me Out? Responding to the Report on Child Abuse in Dublin Diocese.’ I saw this blog as a place where I could share my … Read more...

Continuing Education Course on Ethical Remembering: Acknowledging the Decade of Change & Violence, 1912-1922 Begins 19 January

imageA six-week continuing education course on ‘Ethical Remembering: Acknowledging the Decade of Change & Violence, 1912-1922,’ begins next week at the Irish School of Ecumenics, Trinity College Dublin at Belfast. More information can be found in my post on the Read more...

Zimbabwean Migrant Workers in a Limpopo Village: Reflections on the Treatment of Refugees on the Feast of the Epiphany

imageJanuary 6th, the Feast of the Epiphany in the Christian calendar, is probably best known in today’s Western secular culture as the day when people  take down their Christmas decorations. For me yesterday was one of those particularly … Read more...

The Future of the Organised Church Part IV: Do Churches Care About Climate Change and Fair Trade?

image Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve written some posts around a panel discussion I participated in, organised by the Fermanagh Churches Forum (FCF): The Future of the Organised Church – Any Questions? This is my final post about the … Read more...

Future of the Organised Church Part II: Is Segregated Education Benign Apartheid?

image Yesterday I began a series of blogs about last week’s panel discussion on ‘The Future of the Organised Church: Any Questions?’, organised by the Fermanagh Churches Forum. More details about the event, including the participants, can be read on … Read more...

God’s Country: Review of Tinderbox Theatre ‘True North’ Production

image Is religion preventing people from the LGBT community living full and happy lives in Northern Ireland? That’s a question at the heart of ‘God’s Country,’ a new play by Colin Bell.

The play is part of Tinderbox Theatre’s True North Read more...

McCluskey Civil Rights Summer School: Was the ‘Armed Struggle’ Justified?

Danny MorrisonHow might the civil rights campaign in Northern Ireland have developed, had there been no ‘armed struggle?’

That was the theme of the first session of the McCluskey Civil Rights Summer School, held on Saturday 28 August at the Heritage … Read more...

Gay Rights and the Growth of Conservative Evangelical Christianity

image It has become a familiar debate in the media, not least on BBC Radio Ulster. Last week, when filling in on the Stephen Nolan show, William Crawley moderated a conversation about civil partnerships for people from the lesbian, gay, bisexual … Read more...

Ian Paisley and the Pope: The Return of Dr No?

image It’s been awhile since we’ve heard the Rev. Ian Paisley rail publicly against the pope, identifying him as an ‘anti-Christ.’ But in an interview with the BBC World Service, Paisley reverted to ‘anti-Christ’ mode as he voiced his opposition to … Read more...

The Irish Catholic Church & the Civil Partnerships Bill: What’s ‘Morally Wrong?’

image Why are the Irish Catholic bishops complaining about the Civil Partnerships Bill, which is being debated this week in the Dáil?

The bishops’ criticisms have not been welcomed by government ministers, who say they have taken great pains to make … Read more...

From World Mission to Interreligious Witness: Why Dialogue?

image In the latter sessions of a conference held last week at Trinity College Dublin, ‘From World Mission to Interreligious Witness: Visioning Ecumenics in the 21st Century,’ the theologians and others gathered there began to get around to some crucial questions … Read more...