Chaplains are unique, in that they have no agenda other than the welfare of prisoners and prison officers. There is no career path or advancement for chaplains that might compromise how they work. Thus, they are almost universally respected by prisoners who place a high level of trust in them. They will talk to the chaplain about issues in their life, traumas they may have experienced in childhood and their fears for the future. Most prison officers, too, hold the chaplain in high regard and appreciate the work they do.

  In the midst of a global pandemic our perception of what is important in the world around us can shift. Foreign holidays pale when compared to the freedom of being able to visit our families, and the appeal of a healthy natural environment gains relevance when we have the opportunity to experience it more.… Read more »

  Last weekend, in the middle of a worsening pandemic, a crowd of almost a thousand people marched through the streets of Dublin, protesting at what they saw as illegitimate restrictions on their freedoms. Most of us agree that these “restrictions” are in fact sensible public health procedures and fail to understand how being asked… Read more »

  The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice has made a submission to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine on the ‘Agriculture Appeals (Amendment) Bill 2020’. With this submission we hope to contribute to the to the ongoing discussion of the importance of maintaining and enhancing the ecological integrity of our ecosystems through… Read more »

  Last weekend, Irish social media lit up with the sharing of a shocking video. By habit and disposition, I try to avoid clicking on these links. My world is distressing enough as it is at the moment and it is easier to process things when presented in black and white in text. Full colour… Read more »

Imagine if death was somehow suspended, causing people who are close to their demise or severely injured to exist, in a catatonic state? Portuguese author, Jose Saramago posits this scenario in his novel Death with Interruptions. He considers it as a thought experiment, teasing out its potential political, economic, and social ramifications, often with surprising… Read more »

At the end of July, we witnessed a surge in the number of deaths of people who were homeless or in emergency accommodation. Almost daily reports made the loss of life seem endless. In Dublin alone, ten deaths occurred in July – six men and four women – bringing the capital’s total for 2020 so… Read more »

On July 31st 2020, in an historic judgement, the Irish Supreme Court found in favour of Climate Case Ireland, quashing the National Mitigation Plan (NMP), a major component of the State’s climate change policy. Climate Case Ireland’s lawyers successfully argued that this plan was inadequate in terms of reducing our emissions by our fair share.… Read more »

  The EU Commission ruled in 2016 that Ireland had illegally offered State aid to Apple in their tax arrangements. Like so many of the multi-national corporations based in Ireland, Apple were never heavily taxed here – paying about 1% of their profits in 2003. But by 2014, that rate had reduced to 0.005%. The… Read more »

  The age in which we live is, apparently, one of seismic political shifts. For some, a dangerous popularism is resurgent around the world. Others optimistically spy the end of neoliberal hegemony and the beginning of a new left renaissance. Regardless of where one falls on these questions, two recent books – Chris Arnade’s Dignity… Read more »