Finola Kennedy The Jesuit Pope might visit the shrine of a colleague, but there’s another nearby tomb he could consider as well, writes Finola Kennedy When stepping down from the role of Taoiseach, both Charlie Haughey and Brian Cowen quoted household names: William Shakespeare and John F. Kennedy respectively. Not so Bertie Ahern who quoted…
Stephen Bullivant Stephen Bullivant considers how the Fatima visions sought to speak to the modern world Sunday, May 13 1917 would prove an auspicious day, both for the Catholic Church, and for the whole tumultuous course of the 20th Century. In the Sistine Chapel, Pope Benedict XV consecrated Eugenio Pacelli as archbishop, prior to sending…
While St John Paul II’s devotion to Fatima may be proverbial, and while Pope Francis’ visit to the shrine may be filling the headlines, it is always worth remembering that their devotion to Fatima is one shared by countless Catholics – and even, as described below, Muslims! Some four million people visit the Portuguese shrine…
Fr Dwight Longenecker Rational explanations for Fatima admit the supernatural, argues Fr Dwight Longenecker Atheists love to mock miracles, and the miracle of the Sun at Fatima is one of their favourite objects of derision. The high priest of the atheists, Richard Dawkins dismisses the miracle of the Sun as a mass hallucination. He writes…
Ambar Calvo, a 20-year-old student of architecture at the University of Panama, was the winner of the competition among 103 entries for the next World Youth Day logo, to be held in Panama from January 22-27, 2019. Msgr José Domingo Ulloa Mendieta, Archbishop of Panama, said the design managed to capture the message the country…
Draft educational legislation would destroy faith-based schools, religious freedom think-tank The Iona Institute has warned. It was responding to the ‘Equal Participation in Schools Bill’ proposed by Ruth Coppinger TD. The draft proposes to take away the right of denominational schools to have a religious ethos and would require religious education to take place outside…
Fr Mathew statue not returning to O’Connell Street A statue of Fr Theobald Mathew, founder of the temperance movement in Ireland, will not be returned to O’Connell Street after the completion of the Luas works in Dublin. The statue, erected in 1893, cannot be accommodated in the new transport layout and discussions are ongoing between…
The Church in Ireland now looks to the next generation of priests for renewal, according to Archbishop Diarmuid Martin. Speaking at the priestly ordination of Edward Cosgrove SJ in the chapel of Milltown Park on Sunday, the Archbishop of Dublin told the Jesuit he had “become a priest at a new time in the history…
Staff Reporter A young rugby player has revealed the strength he receives from his faith, speaking at a Mass to celebrate sport in his parish in Co. Sligo. Connacht prop and Irish under-20 squad member, Conan O’Donnell, told St Patrick’s in Strandhill that “God is important in my life”. “My faith was nurtured by regular…
The beatification of Dubliner Fr John Sullivan SJ, a convert from Anglicanism, has been hailed as a sign of reconciliation in Ireland. The first ever beatification in Ireland was held in the Jesuit Church on Gardiner Street on Saturday with Cardinal Angelo Amato, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, as chief celebrant.…
Greg Daly
Mags Gargan