Tens of thousands of tourists flock to Ireland each year for the St. Patrick’s Day Festival. But in the midst of the concerts, parades and art installations, one figure is strikingly absent—Patrick himself.

The new government in Ireland (which looks remarkably like the last one) faces a housing crisis that has become an economic and demographic emergency.

The Irish tradition has long been that on Nollaig na mBan, this final day of the busy Christmas season, women get to put their feet up and enjoy a day of socializing. In some versions of the tradition, men take over the household chores.

When Irish people went to the polls on Nov. 29, there had been concerns that the nation would see a far-right surge in the Dáil, or parliament, in keeping with trends within the rest of Europe. But Ireland continues to be an outlier.

Loyalist paramilitaries played a central role in organizing the unrest in Belfast, but it was a surprise on both sides of the northern Irish border when they were joined by self-proclaimed “Irish patriots” from the Republic of Ireland.

A newly elected city councilor in Cork, Ireland, wants to stop the practice of opening meetings with a prayer. He also calls for the removal of a crucifix from the council chamber.

The elections results suggest that European states will set stricter policies on immigration, raising levels of despair among asylum seekers and hundreds of thousands of people living without official status across Europe.

Palestinians face a much stronger neighbor who apparently can occupy territory with impunity. Irish people, with a strong cultural memory of British rule, have a visceral reaction to such a situation, he suggests.

The misogynistic language of the old Constitution may be removed, but in its place will be clauses that relinquish the state of any real responsibility to support family caregivers, critics say.

RTÉ aired two documentaries in January looking at the decline of the Catholic Church in Ireland: “The Last Priests in Ireland” and “The Last Nuns in Ireland.” But signs of hope can still be discerned amid the decline after years of church turbulence.