Irish grandparents should vote to keep Ireland’s constitutional protections for the unborn, the Catholic Grandparents Association (CGA) has urged. In a notice in their March news bulletin, dedicated to Saint Joseph, the CGA said: “As Catholic grandparents we love our grandchildren; those who are born and those who are waiting to be born. We believe…
Month: March 2018
A Bible-Studying Parish
Episode 5 brings John Quinn into conversation with Anne McGrath and Robert Poynton at Marley Grange Parish in Dublin to discuss their ecumenical bible study, which has been meeting each week over the past decade. Their chat looks at the importance and value of ecumenism, the joys and challenges of reading God’s word on a…
McAleese did not make pro-abortion remark
Sources close to former President Mary McAleese have said that she was “seriously misquoted” by national and international media in relation to a comment about abortion. Mrs McAleese is said to be wrongly reported by the BBC, RTÉ the Irish Independent, Breitbart the South China Morning Post and many others today, Friday March 9,…
Mary McAleese to speak at the ‘5 Years to Save the Irish Church’ Conference
Mary McAleese, the former President of Ireland, is slated to be the keynote speaker at the ‘5 Years to Save the Irish Church‘ conference being held on Saturday, the 19th of May at the Gresham Hotel in Dublin The conference is being organised by Columba Press, the stellar publishing house that actively strives to keep up…
There’s something about Mary…
A look back at our 2015 profile of the former president of Ireland, Mary McAleese Four years, almost to the day, since she retired after 14 momentous years as eighth President of Ireland, Mary McAleese, devout and questioning Catholic, stateswoman, peacemaker, Pope Francis admirer, qualified Canon lawyer, wife, mother and grandmother, is relishing the…
Chaplains bemoan ‘fire-fighting’ conditions facing hospital patients
Nurses find it increasingly difficult to maintain a high-level of personal contact with patients given the crowded conditions in many hospitals, a chaplains’ representative has said. Fr Gerry Byrne of the National Association of Healthcare Chaplains told The Irish Catholic that many nurses and other hospital staff find themselves constantly in fire-fighting mode. He also…
Clerical abuse small proportion of national rate – Garda
A new report on child abuse has revealed that clerical abuse makes up a statistically negligible proportion of abuse in Ireland. The Garda Inspectorate’s Responding to Child Sexual Abuse states that although clerical and institutional cases are reported and investigated every year, they form “a small proportion” of the overall number of cases investigated. The…
Dromore bishop should have delayed resignation – PR man
Dr John McAreavey ought to have held off for a few months before tendering his resignation as Bishop of Dromore, an old friend and PR adviser to he bishop has said. Speaking on BBC’s Talkback, Tom Kelly said he advised the bishop against resigning, saying: “If you want to do it, do it in a…
New feast keeps Mary at the centre of Church life
A leading theologian has said that the Pope’s decision to institute a new feastday of Our Lady as ‘Mary, Mother of the Church’ is a way of underlining the importance of avoiding institutionalism in the Church. At the weekend, the Pope announced that the new feastday will be celebrated on the Monday after Pentecost. According…
Why Youth Retreats?
“It has been the best day of my life.” This is the verdict of a twenty-year-old third level student – no, not at the end of a day of retreat, but in a quiet moment at the end of a day spent working at the construction of a humble little home for a needy Indian…

Colm Fitzpatrick

Chai Brady

Martin O'Brien

Greg Daly

Susan Gately
