By Turlough McConnell The President of Ireland Michael D. Higgins paid tribute to the First Nations of Canada and Native Americans for their contributions to Irish Famine relief in 1847 at the National Famine Commemoration Day ceremony held in Kilmallock, County Limerick, on May 17th. Speaking at the event, he acknowledged donations from the Choctaws and Cherokees in the United … [Read more...] about On Famine and Native Americans: President Higgins leads Ireland’s Commemoration
Newsletter
A Pilgrimage of Repair
By Colum McCann
May 3, 2025 Newsletter
In January 2025, to open the Jubilee of the World of Communication in Rome, the Dicastery for Communication at the Vatican, Colum McCann, author of numerous works and co-founder of Narrative 4 – a global non-profit which uses storytelling to better communities, stressed the importance of stories in his address to an audience that included Pope Francis. “The shortest distance … [Read more...] about A Pilgrimage of Repair
Pope Adrian IV, King Henry II and The Siege of Ireland
By Rosemary Rogers
On December 4, 1154, Nicholas Breakspear, the first and only Englishman to ascend to the papacy, was unanimously elected the Catholic Church’s 107th pope. He chose Adrian IV, a posh name for a pope who proved deadly for the pesky isle across the sea, Ireland.
Quite unfairly, in 12th-century Europe, Ireland, a country steeped in spirituality, learning, and illuminated … [Read more...] about
Nellie Bly: “The Best Reporter in America”
By Darina Molloy
November 1999
Nellie Bly’s biographer, Brooke Kroeger, captured the essence of his admirable subject when he wrote: “In the 1880s, she pioneered the development of ‘detective’ or ‘stunt’ journalism, the acknowledged forerunner to full-scale investigative reporting.” Born Elizabeth Jane Cochran on May 5, 1864 to Michael Cochran and Mary Jane Cummings, both of whom were of Irish descent, Bly … [Read more...] about Nellie Bly: “The Best Reporter in America”
British Government Faced With Legal Dilemma Over 1997 Murder of Sean Brown
By Brian Dooley
This month is crunch time for the British government on one of the most prominent legal cases from the Northern Ireland conflict, with London now under severe pressure to set up an inquiry into the 1997 murder of Sean Brown, despite extensive evidence linking his killing to British state agents. Sean Brown was abducted and killed by Loyalist paramilitaries less than a year … [Read more...] about British Government Faced With Legal Dilemma Over 1997 Murder of Sean Brown