The recent kidnapping of a Congolese priest illustrates some of the problems the Church has faced during the African nation’s prolonged conflict. Fr Celestin Ngango of St Paul Karambi Parish in the Diocese of Goma was kidnapped by armed men on April 1. He was leaving a parish after celebrating Easter Mass when the abductors…
An Irish migrant rights group will join a national demonstration aimed at highlighting the impact of homelessness on the refugee, asylum seeking and migrant population taking place tomorrow (April 7) in Dublin. Ireland Says Welcome, a membership group of human rights organisation Comhlámh, will march in solidarity with everyone in Ireland experiencing homelessness regardless of…
Archbishop Jude Thaddeus Okolo, Apostolic Nuncio to Ireland, will serve as chief celebrant and homilist for the 36th annual Mercy Sunday celebrations at Knock Shrine this Sunday. Divine Mercy Sunday ceremonies will begin at 12.45pm with Divine Mercy Devotions led by Father Mark Byrne SOLT. Music during the celebrations will be provided by Knock Shrine…
A Fine Gael senator has provoked criticism after complaining publicly on social media about an Easter Sunday Mass where the priest preached about the sanctity of all human life. Catherine Noone – who chaired the Oireachtas Committee on abortion and is a leading campaigner for repeal of the Eighth Amendment – later deleted the tweet which…
Ongoing discussions around the so-called ‘baptism barrier’ and the role of religion in schools are distracting from the main challenges facing primary education in Ireland, the head of the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association has said. Maintaining that “the real issue in Irish education is around a lack of resources”, CPSMA head Seamus Mulconry told…
Over 6,000 people from all over Ireland are expected to attend a pilgrimage to Knock this month to pray for the retention of the Eighth Amendment of the constitution. Currently 23 Diocesan Eucharistic Adoration Committees, hundreds of parish Adoration Committees and others are organising transport to Knock on Sunday, April 29 to pray with the…
An Irish charity is encouraging the Garda to interpret law that criminalises sex-buyers in a way that stops women in prostitution having to appear in court for low-level offences. Ruhama, a frontline NGO that works with women affected by trafficking and prostitution, is advocating for a fine system similar to traffic fines against sex-buyers, which…
Fr Joseph Mallin SJ, the last surviving child of an executed 1916 Rising leader has died at the age of 104. Fr Mallin, a Jesuit priest based in Hong Kong since 1948, died on Easter Sunday. His father had been Comdt Michael Mallin who had led the Irish Citizens’ Army troops at St Stephen’s Green…
Generations both young and old are equally likely to attend Pope Francis’ Mass in Phoenix Park this summer in celebration of the World Meeting of Families (WMOF), a new survey has revealed. The study which was carried out by Claire Byrne Live shows that one in five Irish people (18%) plan on attending the Pope’s…
Pro-lifers should take advantage of Ireland’s political ethics laws in order to ensure the referendum on repealing the Eighth Amendment is conducted fairly, a cross-denominational group of Christian leaders has said. ‘Is God for the 8th?’, a pamphlet signed by 120 Christian leaders from throughout Ireland, highlights how key organisations in the campaign to repeal…
Chai Brady
Greg Daly
Colm Fitzpatrick