By Gerry O'Shea

Latest Stories

O'SHEA: A New Look at a United Ireland
Opinion
O'SHEA: A New Look at a United Ireland
The census figures for Northern Ireland released last September show Catholics, broadly understood, at 45.7%, and Protestants, or people brought up...
O'SHEA: LGBTQ Issues Roll Into New Year
Opinion
O'SHEA: LGBTQ Issues Roll Into New Year
Some readers may remember the Stonewall riots that took place in Greenwich Village in June, 1969. The Stonewall Inn was one of a number of bars, mo...
O'SHEA: Looking Back at a Century of Irish Independence
Homepage
O'SHEA: Looking Back at a Century of Irish Independence
An outsider looking at Ireland’s hundred years of independence would surely be astonished by the gradual transition from rags to riches. The countr...
O'SHEA: Looking Back on the Year Just Past
Opinion
O'SHEA: Looking Back on the Year Just Past
In Greek mythology the River Lethe was deemed very important because those who drank from it in the underworld experienced complete forgetfulness a...
O'SHEA: Poverty Will Outrun Lame Duck Congress
Opinion
O'SHEA: Poverty Will Outrun Lame Duck Congress
The wisdom of Oliver Goldsmith’s powerful lines in his moving 18th century poem "The Deserted Village" resonates today at a time of flagrant inequa...
O'SHEA: A Grim Roll of Abuse in Irish Schools
Opinion
O'SHEA: A Grim Roll of Abuse in Irish Schools
Gabriel Byrne’s recent Broadway play "Walking With Ghosts" deals with the actor’s life growing up in Dublin as the eldest of six children in a work...
O'SHEA: Reflections and Memories of an Immigrant
Opinion
O'SHEA: Reflections and Memories of an Immigrant
I came to America on a student visa in the summer of 1968. I travelled with a college friend, Ignatius Coffey, who hails from Labasheeda in County ...
O'SHEA: These Midterm Elections Are Hard to Call
Opinion
O'SHEA: These Midterm Elections Are Hard to Call
When John Healy, the great Irish Times columnist in the 1970s, faced covering a bewildering political situation in Ireland he would playfully plead...
O'SHEA: The Never Ending Allure of 'Strongmen'
Opinion
O'SHEA: The Never Ending Allure of 'Strongmen'
Donald Trump is America’s strongman. On election night in November, 2020, he claimed that with over 70 million voters he had won the approval of a ...
O'SHEA: A Partition Approaching its Sell-By Date
Homepage
O'SHEA: A Partition Approaching its Sell-By Date
The great Shakespearean drama "Macbeth" issues a clear warning to power-hungry and unscrupulous leaders about the consequences of their actions. “T...
O'SHEA: Surprises in the Irish Synod Report
Opinion
O'SHEA: Surprises in the Irish Synod Report
About five years ago, I attended a lecture in Manhattan by an Irish Redemptorist priest, Fr. Tony Flannery. The event was sponsored by Call to Acti...
O'SHEA: Mary Magdalene: A Leader Among Men
Homepage
O'SHEA: Mary Magdalene: A Leader Among Men
After the crucifixion the fledgling movement of Christians commemorated the life and death of a man who had deeply impacted their lives and who the...

 

Donate