Courtney McGrailPupils from Senior Infants in Guardian Angels’ N.S. in Blackrock, Dublin created a ‘classroom of love’ on St Valentine’s Day. Photo: Anne Collins
Month: February 2017
Church culture contributed to abuse mishandling – theologian
Staff reporter Former Jesuit provincial Fr Gerry O’Hanlon has insisted that the Church’s centralised model of governance contributed to the mishandling of sexual abuse allegations against priests. Speaking to the royal commission on abuse in Australia via a videolink from Dublin, Fr O’Hanlon also said that the Church suffered from the same defensive attitude as…
Antrim parish left large legacy
A parishioner has left a Co. Antrim parish a legacy of more than half a million pounds, one of the largest donations ever received within the Diocese of Down and Connor. The parish of Glenavy and Killead received the generous donation from Peter McAreavey, who died peacefully in hospital in July 2015. Fr Colm McBride…
Irish medieval thriller gains US cinema release deal
Paul Keenan
An Irish film which follows the adventures of a young 13th-Century monk as he attempts to transport a holy relic from Ireland to Rome has been sold to a US distributor for €1.2million. The deal means that Pilgrimage, directed by Brendan Muldowney, will reach cinema screens later this year. Pilgrimage tells to the story of …
Family gathering attracts hundreds of volunteers
Mags Gargan
Organisers of the World Meeting of Families in Dublin next year have expressed delight that 900 people have already expressed an interest in volunteering at the event. Fr Tim Bartlett, Secretary General of the World Meeting of Families 2018 (WMOF2018), told The Irish Catholic that while an official call for 2,000 volunteers had not yet…
Schools welcome plans for imminent action to tackle vetting logjam
Greg Daly
Catholic schools have welcomed news that new guidelines to streamline the process for vetting people who work in schools are expected shortly. “We’re absolutely delighted to hear that it’s imminent,” Seamus Mulconry, General Secretary of the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA), told The Irish Catholic. “It will be very welcome by schools and voluntary…
Free at last
Nizar al-Qassab, an Iraqi Christian refugee from Mosul, gets a kiss from his children as they prepare to depart from Beirut international airport en route to the United States. The US bishops have welcomed an appeal court’s decision to overturn President Trump’s ban on travellers from seven nations. Photo: CNS
Cardinals appeal to Indian leader on abducted priest
Three Indian cardinals have brought the case of Fr Tom Uzhunallil, the Salesian kidnapped in Yemen in March 2016, to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Cardinal Baselios Cleemis, Cardinal George Alencherry and Cardinal Oswald Gracias urged Mr Modi to do all in his power to seek the release of the Indian priest, who appeared weak…
Difference of opinion continues around Amoris Laetitia
The president of the Conference of German Bishops has said the Pope’s Amoris Laetitia exhortation is “very clear” and new guidelines adopted by the conference on Communion for divorced-and-remarried Catholics are in line with that. Speaking in Rome, Cardinal Reinhard Marx dismissed the ongoing row among priests and prelates on Amoris Laetitia and said he…
India is failing to protect religious minorities – report
Religious tolerance is steadily deteriorating in India and violations of freedom of religion are rising, a new report has found. Sponsored by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), ‘Constitutional and Legal Challenges Faced by Religious Minorities in India’ examined state laws across the nation and found that, while India’s constitution guarantees equal rights…