Rescuers search for survivors after a building collapsed during a magnitude-6.4 earthquake in Tainan, Taiwan. Pope Francis sent condolences following the quake that hit as the island prepared to celebrate Chinese New Year. Photo: Paul Yang
Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta decided to reject plans for rules to regulate religious worship following consultations with religious leaders, the secretary general of the Kenyan Episcopal Conference has said. Religious Societies Rules 2015, which Kenya’s bishops had believed defied constitutional guarantees of religious freedom and the separation of Church and State, will not now be…
Vatican joins international call to help Syria The Vatican has joined international appeals to raise funds for emergency and long-term assistance to victims of the Syrian crisis. Speaking at the Syria Donors’ Conference in London, Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Vatican secretary for relations with states, said the Church would continue to help the region through its fundraising efforts. In his address,…
Christian leaders in Pakistan have welcomed suggestions by Muhammad Khan Sherani, President of the Islamic Ideology Council, that the country’s repressive blasphemy might be amended. While there is a possibility that the already strict law could be made more censorious, Christian activist Nasir Saeed, director of the Centre for Legal Aid, Assistance and Settlement, said…
EXCLUSIVE New survey shows media figures ‘misleading’ The number of Catholic primary schools that are being forced to turn away pupils is dramatically lower than has been claimed, The Irish Catholic can reveal. Despite claims by politicians and commentators that one in five Catholic schools are over-subscribed and therefore forced to apply a ‘Catholics first’…
The Pro-Life Campaign has urged voters to quiz general election candidates on where they stand on the constitutional protection of the unborn. The PLC has released a new video on YouTube urging voters only to support candidates who will use their influence to protect the Eighth Amendment. “Your Vote Matters – Use It To Protect…
NFL football star Peyton Manning has thanked God following his team’s surprise win in this year’s Super Bowl. “I’m very grateful,” the Denver Broncos quarterback said following his side’s victory over the Carolina Panthers, adding that he was “definitely going to say a prayer and thank the man upstairs for this opportunity”. The 39-year-old has…
A parish priest leading a campaign to keep community hospitals open in three rural towns in Co. Donegal has criticised Government policy for “failing rural Ireland”. Fr John Joe Duffy, parish priest in Stranorlar described plans to remove long-term beds, or residential nursing beds, from the community hospitals in Lifford, Ramelton and Stranorlar for a…
“When someone objects to mandatory celibacy, it is because they imagine it to be a lonely life”, writes Editor, Michael Kelly The Pope’s right-hand man Cardinal Pietro Parolin this week cautioned against knee-jerk reactionary responses to problems facing the Church. Addressing a conference on the issue of priestly celibacy in Rome, the Vatican Secretary of…
Pictured launching the 2016 Trócaire Lenten Campaign are Jessie Rogers (2) from Celbridge, Co. Kildare and Luka Farrell (3) from Longwood, Co. Meath. For the fi rst time the Trócaire box features Trócaire supporters from across Ireland who are fi ghting for justice for the world’s poor by fundraising, campaigning and volunteering. Photo: Mark Stedman/Photocall…
Cathal Barry
Greg Daly
Mags Gargan
Michael Kelly