Occasional Scribbles

Pope Francis on the gossip that goes on in  religious congegrations. This man is so on the ball. He might be a Jesuit but he seems t...

BBC Radio 4's 'Germany: Memories of a Nation' concluded today. The series lasted six weeks. It can be heard on the BBC player ...

This month the freesheet 'Alive' attempts to change history. On Page 15 there is a biography of St Oliver Plunkett. St Oliver Pl...

The piece below is from the National Catholic Reporter. Divisions within the Irish Catholic Church can seem at times enormous. Members ...

Twenty five years ago today in the middle of East Berlin tens of thousands called for democracy and freedom in the GDR. Among those who ad...

This week Germany will see its longest railstrike in the history of the Federal Republic. All cargo traffic will stop at 15.00 tomorrow an...

The 85 richest people in the world own the same wealth as the 3.5 billion poorest people. Eighty five people own what half the world's...

News presenter Jon Snow has refused to bow to viewer demands for him to wear a poppy, branding it ‘poppy fascism’. 

"The label Independent is what gets us elected. Apart from being against the government, you don't explain in detail what you stand...

It's now 'custom and practice' that this blog republishes an appreciation of John O'Gorman. John died on November 3, 2002, t...

Surely anyone interested in the environment sees the value in metering water.

"Evolution of nature is not inconsistent witht he notion of creation because evoltution presupposes the creation of beings which evolve...

Below is a comment from a Dominican in response to what Fr John Harris said at a public meeting in Drogheda. Fr Harris' comments were ...

"A mild morning, thank God" The greeting of a workman directing traffic in and out of a building site at 07.10 today on Orwell R...

The Irish Catholic dated Thursday, October 30 features over 100 pictures of clerics. Pravda or Neues Deutschland were not even as bizarre ...

On this the feast of Saints Simon and Jude the Gospel reading is on the choosing of the 12 apostles. Surely it's worth noting that eve...

Ben Bradlee died on October 20. He presided over the Washington Post's reporting of the break-in at the Watergate building in 1972 that ...

The piece below is from today's digital Irish Times. Interesting. England’s “800 years of oppression” in Ireland can be officially ex...

A thought on today's Gospel reading. A quote from Jesuit priest Peter McVerry. "The good news is that God loves you; the 'b...

Message of the Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI for the naming of the reformed Aula Magna of the Pontifical  Urbaniana  University Octobe...

The story of undercover policeman Bob Robinson and his relationship with Jacqui might well be a metaphor for how all organisations can and s...

Below taken from the disturbing Rorate Caeli blog. These days the blog is most disrespectful to Pope Francis. Finally, something good to ...

Letter in today's Irish Times. Sir, – I read and re-read Fr Vincent Twomey’s  article  (“Synod feeds secular agenda hostile to tradit...

Tomorrow, October 24 Zambia will celebrate 50 years of independence. Below is a talk given last evening by the writer of this blog at the ...

This blog would be interested in an explanation of today's Gospel. The current 'Scripture and Church' writes that Jesus often ...

The piece below is from the NCR. If every gay priest, bishop, cardinal admitted publicly his sexual orientation how many priests, bishops...

Niall Gibbons CEO of Tourism Ireland on Morning Ireland referred to the Wild Atlantic Way as a 'great product'. Yuk.

The piece below appears in this week's INM Irish regional newspapers. Michael Commane Concern Worldwide’s CEO Dominic MacSorley gave...

Simply, Mairia Cahill is a sensational woman.

A US president in the second half of his second term, especially if he has not a majority in Congress, is referred to as a lame duck preside...

"I have stopped going to Hoy Cross. I can't take it any longer." A comment from someone who has been attending the Dominican...