New voices, new sounds added to the mix for Christmas Celtic Sojourn

By Sean Smith
December 5, 2011
Sean Smith

Northern Irish traditional singer Len Graham, Boston-area fiddle band Halali, and cross-genre Canadian singer Ruth Moody of The Wailin’ Jennys join the cast for the ninth annual “Christmas Celtic Sojourn,” the popular holiday-themed showcase of music, dance, songs, and stories in the Celtic tradition that kicks off a four-city tour Dec. 9 before its customary run at Boston’s Cutler Majestic Theatre December 16-18.

A fond farewell, Liam and Pauline

Ed Forry
By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
December 5, 2011

by Ed Forry
BIR Publisher
In 1990, when first we began to publish this newspaper, the plan was to tell “the stories of Boston’s Irish.” We noted then that there were scores of stories about the culture of Boston’s broad and diverse Irish culture that were going untold in the general media, and since we were born and raised in that milieu, it was an area that called out for coverage.

Nollaig Shona Dhuit (Happy Christmas to you)

By Joe Leary, Special to the BIR
December 5, 2011
Joe Leary, Special to the BIR

The celebration of Christmas in Ireland is a remarkable occasion. Not only is it the commemoration of the birth of the baby Jesus and, in fact, the beginning of the Catholic Church as we know it today, but for the Irish it is also a homecoming, a reunion of friends and family that is looked forward to with special anticipation throughout the year.

Humans should define ‘reasonable’

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
December 5, 2011

by James W. Dolan
Special to the BIR
The recent Boston Globe series on OUI cases illustrates the significant disparities that arise as judges, jurors, and everybody else grapple with the notion of what is “reasonable.”
In a criminal trial, the standard of proof is beyond a reasonable doubt. What may be a reasonable doubt for some, may not be for others. The most celebrated illustrations of that fact are the O.J. Simpson case and, more recently, the Casey Anthony verdict.

Pope John XXIII and the case for his long-delayed canonization

By Staff
December 5, 2011

by Bill O'Donnell
Is Pope John’s Case Buried—What in God’s name is happening at the Vatican and the long-delayed canonization of Pope John XXIII? The case for Pope John, who died in 1963 and was beatified in September 2000, remains in some ideological backroom queue while Pope John Paul II has been fast-tracked for sainthood by the current denizens of the Vatican Curia.

Ireland offers plenty of help for roots-searchers

By BostonIrish.com... (not verified)
December 5, 2011

by Judy Enright
Special to the BIR

Is it because this country is such a grand melting pot that so many of us are engaged in the search for our roots? There are, of course, a number of sensible reasons for learning about your past: ancient traditions that might be lost if you didn’t learn about them; or genetic medical conditions in the family that you should know about and watch for.

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