[ About Mike O'Shea ] [ About Speakers Corner ] [ Searching For God ] [ AUTHORITY ] [ Essay on Authority ] [ The face of Christ ] [ The Incarnation ] [ Mary, Mother of Christ ] [ Life & Death ] [ Spirit ] [ Trinity ] [ Predestination ] [ EVIL ] [ Who is Patrick ] [ Laughter ] [ Opinions ] [ Links Page ]

Links

Interesting & Useful Links: If you have any suggestions please let me know: by E-mail or by

The Vatican Catholic Info. straight from the horse's mouth - if you can wait for it to download & manage to navigate, though it is improving all the time.
When special events take place, e.g. the pope's visits to Africa & Cuba, it is interesting to read what is actually said by him. His words embody much that I can imagine Christ would wish to say regarding liberty of conscience and freedom from persecution. Let's hope that Dictators worldwide will listen!

Donabate Parish A Catholic Parish in Ireland. A very busy site - created by one of the priests of the parish, Fr Aquinas Duffy.

The Catholic Encyclopedia A growing source of information, gradually being put on the Web.

Catechism of the Catholic Church There are almost 700 pages to the printed version of this Catechism (published 1994). This electronic version is complete and formidable. A valuable resource and reference document - an absolute MUST for enemies of the Church! (Firing from the hip is OK but it's better to know what you are aiming at! Every aspect of Church teaching is covered: from A - for Abortion, it so happens - to Y - Yahweh names of God.)
Even Catholics should find it interesting! Know this volume completely and my little burble of a religious website will appear as light, anecdotal reading - Agatha Christie as opposed to the Concise Oxford Dictionary!

International Movement We Are Church Signs of healthy discussion within the Church regarding introduction of a large measure of democracy. The traditional stance is that: "The Church is not a democracy. It is authoritatively controlled by the successors of the Apostles".
    Those who take this view tend to forget that the authentic voice of the Church is that of the entire people of God. The real authority in the Church is the Holy Spirit. You don't agree? Ask yourself, "Who is the Holy Spirit?"
    It is a fact that quite often the faithful (collectively )have remained true to the Spirit when those with titular authority have imposed exaggerated norms. I can imagine Our Lord throwing His hands up to Heaven - at times!
    In practical matters too the appointment of bishops has frequently been by the acclamation of local people (Augustine of Hippo, 4th Cent. is a case in point). There really is a need to get away from an authoritarian model of the Church where everything is seen as organised Authority and little emphasis is placed upon the reality and equality of brotherly love in the Spirit.
    Such movements as 'We Are Church' are a sign of the times, and should not be dismissed lightly - even if they lampoon themselves by writing letters to the Pope that begin "Dear Brother Pope..." instead of the more appropriate "Dear Brother John Paul II...". Have a look and see what you think?

Leonard Swidler THE COPERNICAN TURN A considered, truthful article by a distinguished American theologian on the effects of Vatican II.

The Catholic Pages Very traditional & correct - and impressive if you believe the Pope to have an exaggerated total authority. There is no doubt in the imagination of 'The Catholic Pages' Webmaster how we are to view the Pope! We are, in his view, only truly loyal to Catholicism if we prostrate ourselves mentally and physically before he who is the Bishop of Rome and successor of Peter.
    The truth is that Christ totally identifies Himself with all to whom He has given faith - cf. His words to Paul before his conversion "Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute Me?" Not my Church or my Bishops.
    Don't get me wrong! I revere the position of the Pope. I am sure that the present Pope is most worthy of the office. But there are those in the past who have been anything but - and I know of one instance at least where the Pope of the day had to be gently drawn aside after a sermon and told that he was preaching heresy.
    Could it happen today? It is unlikely. But I very seriously take the advice of St. Thomas Aquinas: "consider not who says a thing, but the truth of what is said". (I quote from memory, but this is the gist of his advice)..
    Truth is absolutely vital if we are to find Christ.
    To abandon one's critical faculties, the only way we can find and hold onto truth, is suicidal - as well as being an insult to our Creator.
    The Holy Spirit of Christ lives in all of us, giving us faith and leading us into "all truth". His activities are, thankfully, not restricted to the Pope, and we must not make the Pope into something other than a fellow Christian included in this same wonderful guarantee, with extra responsibilities and a powerful guarantee that his 'faith will not fail' and that he will 'strengthen his brothers' - provided he lives for and in and by the truth of course.
(My God! I've gone on about this! Haven't I! It's just that I detest empty-headed, thoughtless attitudes!)