Readers blog: Secular materialism and individualism will not serve Ireland well

After the shamrocks have wilted and the leprechaun costumes put away for another year, it seems timely to ask what it means be Irish today.

Beyond dispute, we call home the most beautiful country in the world.

Especially around St Patrick’s Day, we remember those who had to leave over the centuries to make a better life elsewhere, and mourn the fact that our young still require to leave in their thousands.