Our Divine Sparks with Dearbhail McDonald

1,700 years since the Council of Nicaea where fierce rivalries, power struggles, and a war of words shaped the future of Christianity. Dr. Rebecca Usherwood TCD, Kieran O’Mahony Milltown Institute and Diarmaid MacCulloch Emeritus Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

1,700 years since the Council of Nicaea where fierce rivalries, power struggles, and a war of words shaped the future of Christianity. Dr. Rebecca Usherwood TCD, Kieran O’Mahony Milltown Institute and Diarmaid MacCulloch Emeritus Professor of the History of the Church at Oxford University.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The fist millennial saint Carlo Acutis - Fr. Michael Collins. Siofra Mulqueen reports on the mystery of the moving statues 40 years on. Religion thriving against the odds - theologian and Vatican advisor Prof. Anna Rowlands. Pádraig O Tuama pens his memory of Ballinspittle 1985.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Saudi soap sparks scandal - Ahmed Al Omran of the FT. Impact of U.S. Foreign Aid cuts - Miriam Donohoe essay from Uganda. Religious tourism - Kevin Griffin, TU Dublin. Philippines report - Fr. Shay Cullen whose Preda Foundation is 50 years old.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

St. Patrick in his own words. What drove him, how others saw him and how his image was later shaped to match the ideal of an Irish Apostle. Dr. Elizabeth Dawson, lecturer in Medieval History, Carlow College and Thomas O'Loughlin, Emeritus Prof of Historical Theology, University of Nottingham. Reports on sacred sites and animals in world religions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the eve of International Women's Day, Gina Menzies on women priests, Siofra Mulqueen visits the Poor Clare Sisters in Ennis, Seema Chauhan on the Hindu festival of Holi and Marie Staunton pays homage to spring flowers.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Gay, Muslim and breaking barriers with Europe’s first inclusive mosque: Imam Ludovic Mohamed Zahed. Matt Talbot centenary - historian Lindsey Earner Byrne. Pancakes and penance – vox pop. Cultivating contentment: neuroscientist Ian RobertsonSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Hans Zollner, global expert on clerical child sex abuse. Using faith to push political agendas – essay by Marion McKeone. Popular culture and religion – Dr. Peter Admirand, DCU.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Can faith revive family life? - David Quinn of the Iona Institute. St Valentine, original matchmaker - Siofra Mulqueen report. Is sex a dirty word in the eyes of God? - Jacob Erickson, Assistant Professor of Theological Ethics, TCD.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Dr. Umar Al-Qadri on the Aga Khan. Sr. Liz Murphy on St. Josephine Bakhita Patron Saint of Trafficking. Roe McDermott reflects on the essence of love. Myozan Ian Kilroy on his journey to becoming a Zen Buddhist priest.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.