Céire Kealty

3 weeks ago | commonwealmagazine.org | Céire Kealty |Stephen Pope |George Scialabba |Helen Rouner

In the late hours of January 1, a fire broke out in Kantamanto Market, the world’s largest secondhand clothing market, located in Accra, Ghana. Surveyors from the Or Foundation, a Ghanaian-based nonprofit organization, found that the disaster impacted over ten thousand people who made their livelihoods there, with over 60 percent of market businesses destroyed. At least two people died and hundreds more sustained injuries or illnesses from the fire and its aftermath.

1 month ago | uscatholic.org | Nathaniel Hunter |Céire Kealty

Ireland is known as the land of saints and scholars, and for good reason. Ireland boasts a variety of wild and wonderful saints, including a stunning repertoire of women saints from Irish folk history. Yet we mostly hear about St. Patrick (and occasionally, St. Brigid) in the springtime. To bridge the celebration of Women’s History Month with the church’s attention towards Ireland in March, I’ve devised a list of the wild and wonderful women saints of Ireland.

Dec 3, 2024 | commonwealmagazine.org | Paul Lauritzen |Alexander Stern |Céire Kealty |Michael Peppard

“All generations shall call me blessed,” she correctly predicted in her famous song of prayer, the Magnificat (Luke 1:48). From late antiquity to the present, images of Mary during her miraculous pregnancy, cradling the infant Jesus, suffering at his death, praying at his Ascension, and being crowned heavenly queen have populated Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Americas. Whether wandering the countryside of Poland or Costa Rica, you will find her there.

Nov 29, 2024 | commonwealmagazine.org | Céire Kealty |Mary Gordon

In the range of social-justice issues clamoring for our attention, clothing doesn’t tend to rank very high. We often think of what we wear as an individual choice of self-expression rather than an ethical decision. But more and more, consumers, activists, and legislators have come to understand the complex set of issues that come with making, selling, and buying clothing.

Nov 25, 2024 | uscatholic.org | Nathaniel Hunter |Céire Kealty

Jeremiah 33:14 – 16Psalms 25:4 – 5, 8 – 9, 10, 141 Thessalonians 3:12 – 4:2Luke 21:25 – 28, 34 – 36As we begin another liturgical year, our world cries out, begging for peace. On this first Sunday of Advent, God hears the sorrowful laments of many throughout the world, from Ukraine to Sudan to the Middle East. So many of us, myself included, want peace.