Creating a fairer Budget

Posted on 21. Jul, 2016 in Christian Values, Church Teachings, Economy

For the first time in many years the government won’t have to implement an austerity budget. Many people are hoping for changes that will help make Ireland a fairer society,especially for those on the margins. Social Justice Ireland, an organisation that works to create a fairer society, said that it was critical in times of […]

Reaction to Brexit

Posted on 30. Jun, 2016 in Christian Values, Community, Economy

Pat Riordan is an Irish Jesuit, who lives and works in Britain, lecturing in Heythrop College on Political Science. He talks about how the vote to leave the European Union is a great blow to the idea of Union – that it shows an abandonment of the principles of sticking together and solving things through political resolutions. […]

Atheist to Pope Francis

Posted on 23. Jun, 2016 in Christian Values, Church Teachings, Community, Economy, Faith and Justice

No Pope has attracted atheists as much as Pope Francis. So says, Bill Purcell, Associate Director of Catholic Social Tradition and Practice in Notre Dame. He has written a paper on Saul Alinksy, a non practicing Jew and community organisor who wanted to improve the rights of the marganilised. Bill explains how Alinsky was drawn […]

Understanding Mercy

Posted on 02. Jun, 2016 in Christian Values, Community, Conflict, Crime, Death, Economy

Rev Alan Boal is a Presbyterian minister in Findlater’s church in north inner city Dublin – very close to the scene of the latest killing in a feud between two families from the area. Because of this he says that the Pope’s call to gangland criminals and organised crime bosses  in this “Jubilee Year of Mercy” […]

The Right to Housing

Posted on 26. May, 2016 in Christian Values, Community, Economy, Homelessness

Mercy Law Resource centre provides a unique legal service for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. They recently submitted a paper calling for the right to housing to be included in the Irish Constitution. They pointed out that the right to housing is included in eighty-one Constitutions and that it is provided […]

Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation

Posted on 19. May, 2016 in Christian Values, Church Teachings, Community, Ecology, Economy, Gospel Values, Saints

Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation (JPIC) is a movement that wants to get back to gospel values and to get the Church involved in supporting Christians to ask questions and change society. It looks at wider social analysis and see where the spirit of God is present and help the Christian community move in […]

Solidarity and the Common Good

Posted on 21. Apr, 2016 in Christian Values, Church Teachings, Community, Economy

Social Justice Ireland recently produced a socio-economic review for 2016, “Choices for Equity and Sustainability – Securing Solidarity and the Common Good.” In it they found that there is a urban-rural divide with urban people earning more and being more likely to be in employment than people living in the country. The Border, Midlands and Western […]

Family homelessness

Posted on 25. Feb, 2016 in Addiction, Christian Values, Economy, Homelessness, Young people

Fr. Peter McVerry has said that housing should be a key election issue. Given the scale of the housing crisis, he said it was surprising and disappointing that the issue had not featured far more prominently in debates leading up to the General Election. Commenting on the current figures for homelessness, he added: “Housing is […]

Election Preparation

Posted on 04. Feb, 2016 in Christian Values, Community, Economy, Faith and Justice, Politicians, Politics

Political parties all over the country are preparing themselves for election. They will soon be knocking on doors and looking for votes. Michelle Murphy from Social Justice Ireland talked about we need to use this time to think about the kind of society that we want to build and how we can make it fairer […]

Climate Change: the Christian Calling

Posted on 07. Jan, 2016 in Christian Values, Church Teachings, Climate Change, Community, Ecology, Economy, Environment, Nature

The recent United Nations climate change conference in Paris in December was declared by Francois Hollande as a “revolution for climate change.”  150 presidents and prime ministers were present, the largest ever single-day gathering of heads of state. Éamonn Meehan, Executive Director of Trócaire, was also present representing the Christian obligation to remember the poorest […]