Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion We probably won’t miss our priests until they’re gone

Twenty-five years ago, when I was in college, the sociologist Fr Liam Ryan wryly predicted that the church in Ireland would one day soon go the way of rural garda stations: “The local presbytery will be closed, and two curates will cover half the county in a squad car.”

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Political reality must finally push Northern Ireland’s big parties together

Well the votes are pretty much counted but a deeper truth will not change, whether Sinn Féin or the DUP come out on top. Both parties are marooned and if they refuse to work together it will only be those they represent who will suffer.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion When this son of Ireland takes the highest office in Israel, we should raise a glass in salute and in hope of peace

The promotion to high office of a son or daughter of Ireland rarely goes without a fanfare in the old sod. Joe Biden’s touting of his Irish roots has caused no end of pride in Ireland – particularly in Louth and Mayo, from where his forebears hail.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Easter a message of hope, not political embarrassment

Tony Blair was probably the most religious of recent UK prime ministers. Which is a surprise, because the UK Labour party had always tended to the idea of Karl Marx that “religion is the opium of the people”.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Reunification of Ireland must be based on something more subtle than a headcount

This Sunday, March 21, is officially census day in Northern Ireland. It’s quite the undertaking to count everyone in the midst of a pandemic. But there is the added bonus that enumerators will not have to go traipsing around hotel bars trying to get guests to fill out forms because they’re all closed.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Being deprived of social occasions makes presence the best gift to give this year

We often hear pleas for people to remember the ‘true meaning’ of Christmas. Whether you’re a believer or not, it’s hard not to be moved by the image of a child born in precarious circumstances to a frightened young woman and a bewildered husband.

Premium

We relied too long on lazy caricatures of US and election results will shatter illusions Irish people have about American politics

WHATEVER way the chips fall when the final votes are counted across the Atlantic, Tuesday’s election was a huge victory for Donald Trump and the Republican Party. Whether we get a President Joe Biden in the White House or another four years of the Donald, Trumpism has shown that it is a force to be reckoned with rather than a blip. Equally, the Democrats have shown themselves incapable of articulating a vision for America.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Results will shatter illusions we Irish people have about American politics

WHATEVER way the chips fall when the final votes are counted across the Atlantic, Tuesday’s election was a huge victory for Donald Trump and the Republican Party. Whether we get a President Joe Biden in the White House or another four years of the Donald, Trumpism has shown that it is a force to be reckoned with rather than a blip. Equally, the Democrats have shown themselves incapable of articulating a vision for America.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion There’s no evidence to show a ban on public worship does anything but harm

Rumours of the demise of religion in Ireland are greatly exaggerated. Before Covid-19, about a third of Irish people reported that they attended a religious ceremony at least once a week. Some 100,000 people went to Mass every single day before the pandemic restrictions were imposed.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Pope's message of inclusion is a big deal, but don't ever expect to see same-sex weddings in church

The Pope's call for legislation for civil unions for gay couples is a big deal. It's also a significant shift away from the policy of his predecessors who warned Catholics that opposing such unions was an obligation.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Tories' reckless use of North as political football feels like a kick in the stomach

While we've all been preoccupied with Covid-19, talk about backstops and the Border seemed like a distant memory from a long-settled battle. Britain's decision to leave the European Union still loomed large, of course. But negotiations between London and Brussels had long since moved to trade and the actual withdrawal was a done deal.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Compromise is key - no political marriage is ever made in heaven

A friend of mine who is a therapist says that decades in practice have convinced him that people's greatest weaknesses are really their strengths pushed too far. A very generous person may end up giving away too much. A supremely honest person may alienate people with too much truth. Someone who is extremely understanding may end up getting taken advantage of. You get the picture.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion It's a paradox but the absence of Mass may lead to a stronger Church in the community

So far, people have - if reluctantly - adapted to a new normal.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion The history of the nuns in Ireland isn't all glorious, but it isn't all bad either

We're rightly showing our appreciation during the pandemic for essential workers who are making a huge contribution while many of the rest of us work from home.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Shift towards selflessness creates great opportunity to build a more just world

In early March, the Government was in two minds about whether or not to let hundreds of thousands of people on to the streets for St Patrick's Day.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion 'Yes, yes, I am the Pope. Every time I call someone they think it's a joke, but it is me'

Before the coronavirus pandemic, the newspaper 'L'Eco di Bergamo' was little known to anyone except in the town of Bergamo itself, 40km north of Milan.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Our isolation has made us come together even more - thanks to Christian tradition

"The whole world has changed - and all of our daily lives have changed dramatically in a way none of us could have seen or predicted at Christmas."

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion St Patrick's basic message of love is more relevant than ever in these worrying times

Maybe it's a feature of the kind of company I keep online, but I was struck on Sunday morning when I opened social media by the number of priests who were offering live-streamed Masses for all those affected by Covid-19. Some were solitarily preaching to a webcam in big barracks of churches. Others had made a makeshift altar of their kitchen table, the only adornments in the background the odd 'to do' lists pinned by magnets to a refrigerator.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Politicians who forget they are elected to serve the people first will pay heavy price

While much of the Irish focus on politics in Britain inevitably still centres around Brexit, Boris Johnson's spending plans are the real key to understanding where our nearest neighbour is headed politically.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Pope Francis risks liberals' wrath by seeing it as his job to protect doctrines of Church

In the papal conclave that elected Angelo Roncalli in 1958, there were cardinals from just 21 countries. Europe was very much still the centre of power of Christianity. The man who emerged as pope, taking the name John XXIII, was to be a transitional pope, Vatican-watchers said. At almost 77 years of age, the cardinals perceived him to be a safe pair of hands to give them a breather after almost 20 intense years of the great war-time Pope Pius XII.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Fear of being labelled a bigot should not silence discussion of gender transition

Of all the radical social changes in Ireland in the last decade, from same-sex marriage to abortion, the legislative shift that has received the least attention is around gender.

Premium

Michael Kelly Opinion Michael Kelly: 'Tone-deaf Fine Gael needs to quickly find a sense of empathy for those who get up early'

Any therapist worth spending the money to see will tell you that the first step in addressing an issue is to admit that there is a problem in the first place. Maybe that's what Leo Varadkar had in mind during the television debate on Wednesday evening when he admitted that he finds it hard to show empathy towards the plight of the many people suffering in our country.

Michael Kelly Opinion Michael Kelly: 'True nature of football and faith is found in those who see innate beauty and goodness'

Hardly a day goes by without news of fresh controversy involving the Football Association of Ireland (FAI).

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'Royals will face a tough trial in the court of public opinion when queen leaves the stage'

It hasn't been the best of years for Britain's Queen Elizabeth. The monarch herself has been blameless in her conduct, but not for the first time she has been let down by her brood. In fairness, nothing could top 1992, the year she famously described as her 'annus horribilis' - horrible year.

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'Rites of initiation into the Catholic faith must be more than an elaborate version of 'Say Yes to the Dress''

Doing the same thing over and over again while expecting different results is regarded as a political dysfunction, but the Church in Ireland is hardly immune.

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'DUP's swagger is gone but if North is to be run in best interests of all, the party must return to Stormont'

Belfast's Lord Mayor John Finucane was left red-faced this week when he had to admit he was spoken to by the police after being caught short in the city during the summer.

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'Government is building a public hospital on private land - and the Vatican will have final say on what happens'

What is it with Fine Gael and new hospitals? The national children's hospital was projected to cost a hefty €650m that has now ballooned to as much as €2bn according to latest estimates - and the project isn't finished yet.

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'Parents can't protect children from the internet if they're addicted to it themselves'

There's a scene in the Emmy-award-winning American animated sitcom 'Family Guy' where the dad - Peter - is walking along the footpath peering in to his mobile phone, entirely oblivious to his surroundings. "What's that?" he says. "Sorry, I was too busy taking a selfie while shooting a Snapchat while Periscoping that Snapchat while Instagramming latte art while Shazaming The Weekend while streaming 'Master of None' while retweeting George Takei while saying, 'This wins the internet!' while still being #sooobored."

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'Married priests will not solve Church's crisis in Ireland, which runs far deeper than celibacy'

For decades, Hollywood's "go to" when looking for a priest-character was to raid central casting for an actor who could depict a saintly if slightly worldly Irishman.

Premium

Michael Kelly: 'DUP risks alienating its support if it rejects a deal that could signal a new beginning for the North'

Britain's wartime prime minister Winston Churchill has long been a hero of the current incumbent in No 10 Downing Street. Boris Johnson even penned a ridiculously sentimental biography of the British Bulldog which is more hagiography than history. In fact, the 'spirit of Churchill' and rhetoric about an island nation set apart against the continental Europeans has been a key motif of the Brexit push.