(i) Designed to be Desirable
-
Tom O'Connor explains 'contagious desire' to a Mercedes
driver.
(ii)
Bullying:
Putting others down to put yourself up
-
Tom's sister-in-law learns how school bullying is caused by contagious
desire for status.
(iii)
Haute
Cuisine Catholicism
-
The O'Connors explain to a malicious neighbour how
snobbery can distort the faith.
(iv)
Christianity and Paganism
-
The crucial difference between Christian and Pagan
sacrifice.
(v) Understanding
'The World'
-
Why the Bible speaks of 'the world' both as dangerous and
as worth saving.
(vi)
The
Sanctuary Lamp
-
Fr Vincent Carney P.P. shares his fears for the future of the Church in
Ballyraine.
(vii)
Vanity
-
Worldliness in the church & the problem of clerical
child sex
abuse.
(viii)
Sacramental Snobbery
-
Fr Carney questions publicly his own attitude to ordination, and gives the people
of Ballyraine a challenge.
(ix)
Whose
Responsibility is the Faith?
-
Tom O'Connor disagrees with an influential neighbour who thinks that Fr
Carney is 'throwing in the towel' and that interpreting the Creed should
remain the responsibility of the priest.
(x)
Orders from Above
-
Is the Church an army marching in step, and will it fall apart in
Ballyraine as a result of Fr Carney's initiative? Tom O'Connor
disagrees with another pessimistic neighbour.
(xi)
The Moral Universe
of the Creeds
-
Is the universe of the creeds best understood as a moral universe, in
which up and down represent good and evil, and Jesus' life and death help us
to choose between these?
(xii)
The Deposit of
Faith
-
Ballyraine's curate, Fr Bradley, explains to Tom why he feels the town
needs a course in the Catechism before it can respond to Fr Carney's
challenge to explain the creeds - and Tom explains why he doesn't agree.
(xiii)
Some Things Just Have to be True
"What is relativism?" asks Patrick O'Connor, and learns why no one is safe
unless some things are firmly believed to be always true.
(xiv)
Showing Off
Marie Nevins (10) asks a question of her teacher, Cliona
McNicholl, giving Cliona the solution to a problem set by her
principal, Tom O'Connor.
(xv)
The Roots of Conflict a falling-out of two
classmates with his father,
Discussing a falling out between two friends in school, Patrick O'Connor gets an idea
for a school presentation on the meaning of the Creeds.
(xvi)
One Model of
Leadership
Fr Ciaran Bradley explains to his mentor, the Vicar General Fr
Aloysius Flaherty, why firm clerical leadership is necessary in
Ballyraine, and how he proposes to defeat the PP, Fr Vincent
Carney, in his plans to let the people of Ballyraine explain
what they think the Creeds mean.
(xvii)
Original Sin
Preparing her class for a school presentation on the Creeds, Cliona
McNicholl, Tom's deputy head, receives an unexpected visit from the
school's chaplain, Fr Ciaran Bradley.
(xviii)
What Do You Believe?
Ballyraine's pastoral council meets to decide whether Fr
Carney's proposal to allow his parishioners state their own
understanding of the Creeds should go ahead.
(xix)
A Curate's Penance
Fr Ciaran Bradley is not impressed by the school presentations
on the Creeds - and decides that he will need to take a stand.
(xx)
Learning Together
Warned by the sacristan that 'something is wrong with Fr
Bradley', Fr Vincent Carney reflects on his differences with his
curate - and then gets some shocking news.
(xxi)
The Gift of the Present Moment
Trying to absorb news that has completely upended his life, Fr
Ciaran Bradley, takes a boat alone onto Lough Corrib - and finds
his perception of time changing.