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Andrew McDonald: Avoiding toothache needn’t be a pain in the … mouth
Of all body pains, there’s nothing quite like a toothache. Maybe it’s that your mouth is so close to your brain that an oral...
Fr Paddy: Without counting the cost …
There is story in the Gospel about a leper coming to Jesus on his knees and pleading with him, saying, ‘If you want to,...
Andrew McDonald: Nine reasons why pets improve mental wellbeing
Pets reduce anxiety. Studies have shown that playing with animals, even just for five minutes, helps fight stress hormones.
This makes having a pet, particularly...
Fr Paddy: Let go … Let God
It’s good to think of prayer, not just as saying prayers, or speaking to God, but as listening to God.
Not just as words but...
From the Archives – Pat Critchley: Priceless memories from working on the bog
This Pat Critchley piece originally appeared on LaoisToday in 2017
Long before the Spanish sun holidays became the norm, we had the bog. It was...
Andrew McDonald: Alcoholism – fighting fire with fire
Alcoholism leaves a trail of destruction wherever it appears. It devastates the health and wellbeing of sufferers and tears apart their relationships.
Furthermore, it is...
Fr Paddy: Meandering our way through unprecedented times
Security is an important reality we all desire, even though most of us spend most of our lives doing just that. We long for...
Andrew McDonald: A mindful workplace is a successful workplace
Mindfulness makes the workplace a more productive environment for both employees and employers.
Once simply a Buddhist practice firmly rooted in the East, mindfulness has...
Fr Paddy: A message of Hope following a walk in Emo Court
As we move closer to the Month of May, it brings a sense of hope and fresh opportunity.
A recent walk in Emo Court, reminded...
Andrew McDonald: Reading keeps you (your brain, anyway) young!
Your mind, like your body, needs exercise. Working it helps it stay fit and healthy. Reading is one activity which stimulates mental activity, keeping...
Fr Paddy: Easter – A time to hope
Easter is a time of hope and new life, an opportunity to begin again in a new way.
The Angel said to the wounded followers...
Andrew McDonald: How you defeat your anxiety with hypnotherapy
You have two major parts of your mind. The conscious and the subconscious.
The first is responsible for all the things you do deliberately, the...
Fr Paddy: Make time to share a meal this Easter
This is Holy Week, a sacred time when through ritual and symbolism we remember and give thanks for the great sacrifice Jesus made for...
Andrew McDonald: Saving friendships from the aftermath of Covid
Two years of limited socialising, or none at all, left scars. We’re out of practice in the art of being around others.
Navigating inevitable bumps...
Fr Paddy: The danger of keeping silent
The number of priests and members of religious orders in Ireland has dropped by 70% since 1970.
In the past three years more than...
Andrew McDonald: Good luck? Bad luck? Who can say?
We all experience bad luck. Events do, however, also take favourable turns for us.
A problem many people have is the enjoyment of these occasions...
Fr Paddy: The Strangest Dream
Tanks in the city streets of Ukraine. Blocks of flats on fire. Wrecked and burnt-out trucks, twisted metal and shattered windows.
Small groups of cold...
Andrew McDonald: Chocolate is good for you
Easter; annual festival when children, and some adults, gorge on sweet things.
Also, the part of the Christian year commemorating Jesus of Nazareth’s crucifixion and...
Fr Paddy: The Little Flower … a powerful Saint
St. Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) was a French Catholic who became a Carmelite nun at an early age.
She died in obscurity at the age...
Andrew McDonald: The benefits of feeling it will all be OK
Thinking is both a blessing and a curse. Properly harnessed, wonderful creativity emerges. Allowed to run free, it frets over the uncontrollable, big questions...
Fr Paddy: St Patrick – icon of solidarity
After two long years of lockdowns and living with the reality of pandemic, it is with a great sense of joy that we can...
Andrew McDonald: Positive action is controlling the controllable
Living costs are rising fast and predictions are they will worsen over coming months. This is, at least for the individual, uncontrollable.
You can choose...
Fr Paddy: Martin Luther King’s Letter to White Church Leaders
In 1960, Martin Luther King was imprisoned after leading a civil rights march. His dream seemed a long way off.
Criticised by white church leaders,...
From the Archives – Pat Critchley: Remembering the Portlaoise Fire Brigade from back in...
This piece by Pat Critchley was originally published in his book Hungry Hill and later on LaoisToday in July 2017
The members of the Fire...
Andrew McDonald: Much to learn from the more experienced
Cultural differences are plentiful between West and East. Some things are better here, others there and a myriad of nuances exist which are neither...
Fr Paddy: Make the most of Lent
Saint Basil, known as the Great, was a fourth-century bishop of the Eastern Church who was known for his care for the poor.
He was...
Andrew McDonald: Coping with grief
The sadness of a loved one’s passing is an unwelcome visitor for all of us at one time or another.
The cycle of life dictates...
Fr Paddy: ‘No one can do everything, but everyone can do something’
In the Bible, the Virgin Mary was named Sella Maris, which means star of the sea.
The Virgin Mary is a symbol of guidance and...
Fr Paddy: The importance of slowing down
Most of us live rushed lives, dashing from one thing to another. One consequence is that we live on the surface of life, skimming...
Andrew McDonald: Return to the office is not all bad
In every negative, there is a positive. For many people the plus point of covid lockdown and restrictions was being able to work from...