I’d like to return to a problem I briefly alluded to in my last post, namely the fact that we’re very reliant on the US Catholic blogosphere for much of our online analysis and news in the English-speaking Catholic world, or at least here in Ireland.
A comprehensive list of examples would be too exhausting to compile; just take a look at the samples in the last link for a lengthy debate between points of view that only scratches the surface when it comes to US Catholic blogs and online news outlets. Most of those links are bouncing ideas off or rattling sabres with yet more blogs and there is a massive range of opinion, if at times a bit too much hot air in this humble blogger’s opinion.
Although I am less familiar with it, the British Catholic Blogosphere seems to be fairly extensive as well going by this list.
Although it is good to pay attention to what goes on in the US Church, and I have no intention of ceasing to look at US Catholic blogs and news sources, the lack of a wide range of online Catholic engagement, discussion and debate regarding our specific situation in Ireland is not a good thing. Without this debate, the sharing of ideas and contacts and the sharpening of our thoughts, strategies and arguments against one another, our sense of isolation can be increased and we can lack the resources and knowledge necessary to help our own situation.
An American or English or Australian Catholic blog can certainly provide very good opinion, analysis and formation when it comes to more generic topics such as different devotions, the lives of the Saints or different experiences and strategies in cultural battles can be very useful, and many US resources are very helpful for liturgical calendars and so on.
But what we lack is a wide-ranging online discussion of our specific situation and the nuances and history that must be navigated. Things like the specific history of our abortion battles and how it impacts upon networking and strategy. Things like online lists of prayer groups, resources, local networks. Things like places to form networks between Catholics across the island.
Now, some of these things already exist to a degree. I am not saying that there is no Irish Catholic presence on the internet. Such a statement on an Irish Catholic blog would be, well, ironic.
What I am saying is that it is pitifully small. Google ‘Irish Catholic Blogs’ and suchlike and you will find the first few search pages littered with the ageing shipwrecks of Irish Catholic blogs and websites started full of hope and ended prematurely, the last posts in 2013 or 2011 or before.
Part of the problem is that we are smaller than the US, of course. But looking at the extent of the British Catholic Blogosphere, in a country with a similar Catholic population to us, surely we could be doing better. And our size works in our favour, because we can be more concentrated in our effect.
We need more discussion, more linking up between people, more debate, more research, more ideas, more promotion of the ideas that are working out there in the real world.
So let me plug a number of the things that are out there.
First off, there is the excellent if small-scale Irish Catholic Forums. I have mentioned them before; several very good people are engaged in a fascinating discussion of our problems in the Church in Ireland and the history of those difficulties. I post there myself, albeit as one of the less erudite members. One difficulty there is that the active membership hovers at around a dozen people, with others joining intermittently or for once-off posts. There are many more ‘lurkers’ who don’t join in the discussion. It’s an excellent resource, that could benefit from more traffic from people willing to engage in constructive debate.
I also previously quoted at length from Shane’s blog Lux Occulta in this post here. He has very good historical resources and has uploaded numerous interviews and Irish Catholic pamphlets, although I don’t always agree with his strident traditionalist views. Nonetheless he is performing a very valuable service, providing us with a resource that allows for a real look at Irish Catholic life in that period.
There is the Irish Papist blog as well by Maolsheachlann O’Ceallaigh, the head of the Irish G.K. Chesterton society. Very broad-ranging look at a lot of issues, touching on Life, the Universe and Everything from a Catholic perspective. Maolsheachlann always has an interesting perspective on things, and I appreciate the fact that he branched out from apologetics early on. He also very kindly linked to this blog back when it started up.
The Thirsty Gargoyle hasn’t posted in almost a year, but his archives are well worth a browse. Besides interesting historical pieces and musings on comic books, he has the most in-depth, balanced, well-researched analysis of the child abuse scandals here in Ireland, not to mention other issues such as abortion debates and more. Always an edifying read.
A more recent blog is Shadows on the Road, Ireland’s outpost on the Catholic channel on Patheos run by Ben Conroy of Iona Institute fame (contain your searing white rage, o liberals). Ben has represented the Church and causes such as the campaign against same-sex marriage, chastity education and more on the radio and television very admirably, and he’s a bit of a gent too.
Please also check out Ex Umbris et Imaginibus by the Carmelite spiritual director of the Fraternity of St. Genesius here in Ireland, he always has a fantastic, even-handed look at the Church here and abroad, and the blog of the Brandsma Review which contains some of the pieces from each issue. I should also mention the blog of Roger and Kim Buck, traditionalist Americans now living in Northern Ireland.
There’s more than just blogs, of course; the Irish Catholic website has many of their articles online, for instance, as well as the resource website Catholic Ireland. Then there is the new iCatholic news website too.
There are others, too. It would be incorrect to say that there is no Irish Catholic presence online. But without more voices, more ideas, more debates on a scale similar to the US (but appropriate for our size here in Ireland) we risk not making the most out of the internet and all the possibilities and opportunities it provides.
All of this, of course, will be next to useless if every second Irish Catholic blog goes down the route of hysteria and infighting we’ve seen elsewhere over the smallest differences of opinion.
As the saying goes, ‘in the essential, unity, in the non-essential, liberty, in everything, charity.’
By Grace and Banners Fallen 