Be United in your Convictions and United in your Love Last December, on the first Sunday of Advent, we launched a “Year of Vocation” in the Diocese. It turned out not to be a great year for launching things but, as so often happens, even in the most challenging of circumstances, the Holy Spirit has...

Celebration of the Call to Religious and Consecrated Life I want to invite you this morning to imagine a scene that could take place any day of the week in this Cathedral or, indeed, in any Church. A young couple pushing a buggy come for Sunday Mass, or a young woman leading her infant child...

Bishop Kevin Doran’s homily and World Day of Peace message for New Year’s Day 1st January 2020 Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Sligo In 1967, Pope Paul VI established 1 January, the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God, as World Day of Peace.  This was not just because it was the first day of...

From This Time Onwards and Forever Homily of Bishop Kevin Doran at Midnight Mass, 24th Dec 2019 Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Sligo Every year since I was a child, I have heard these same readings from Scripture on Christmas Eve. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light She gave birth...

Journeys of Faith, Hope and Love; The Inspiration of St. Columbanus Address of Bishop Kevin Doran to Knights of Saint Columbanus, Saturday 19th Oct 2019 In these days we are entering into the last weeks of the liturgical year. The Church invites us to contemplate the end of time and the final establishment of the kingdom...

From time to time, since I was first ordained as a priest, I have been asked to move from one parish or pastoral situation to another. There has always been a certain amount of sadness in saying good by to people but, over the years, some of those relationships have become real friendships, and have...

Some years ago, in a parish where I was working, we decided to set up a Family Mass group, to encourage the involvement of parents and children each Sunday. There was a lot of work involved. The parents and the children were very generous with their time and their talents. The first Sunday, after Mass,...

Saul of Tarsus – Death and the Hereafter A.) Saul of Tarsus  Tarsus Like many people, I imagine, I became aware of Tarsus in one context, namely that it was the home town of St. Paul, who wrote many of the letters (or epistles) of the New Testament. Over the years I have, understandably, paid...

A Joy that Lies Ahead of Us Homily of Bishop Kevin Doran at the Knock Novena The Apparition: It was pouring rain in Knock at around 8 o’clock in the evening on August 21st 1879. There wasn’t anything unusual about that. But people in the West of Ireland are no strangers to rain, so Mary...

We often read in the Gospels how Jesus went out into the wilderness to pray and large crowds of people followed him. Today we come out, not exactly into the wilderness, but to a quiet place to pray. This Holy Well is made Sacred because, for centuries people have gathered here in Jesus name, originally...