‘You shall love the Lord your God… and your neighbour as yourself’(Luke 10:27) Archbishop John McDowell, Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, and Archbishop Eamon Martin, Catholic Archbishop of Armagh, mark the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity (18th-25th January) with a wide-ranging conversation on this year’s theme, ‘Go and do likewise’. In the conversation…
Month: January 2024
Council of Experts calls for strategy for Ukrainian refugees
Berlin (KNA) The Expert Council on Integration and Migration (SVR) is calling for a long-term strategy for war refugees from Ukraine. Temporary protection will end for them in March 2025, said Jan Schneider, Head of Research at the SVR, in Berlin on Thursday. Sustainable follow-up solutions are needed, “otherwise several million people in Europe may…
Pope Francis confirms election of head of Syro-Malabar Church
Pope Francis has granted his confirmation to the election of His Excellency Raphael Thattil, Bishop of Shamshabad, as Major Archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly (India) and “Father and Head of this beloved Church sui iuris.” A Church “sui iuris” (Latin – literally, “of its own law”) is “a community fo the Christian faith, which is joined together by…
France’s bishops stand united behind papal decree
Paris (KNA) The French Bishops’ Conference is unanimously in favour of the Vatican document on the blessing of homosexual couples. The declaration issued by the Vatican’s authority on the faith in December is seen as an encouragement to priests to “generously bless those who turn to them and humbly ask for God’s help”, according to…
Resource issues remain warns Ballinrobe PP after protests
Chai Brady
Rural communities “must be resourced” if they are to accommodate asylum seekers with dignity, a Mayo-based parish priest has said. Following peaceful protests this week regarding a property in Ballinrobe, Co. Mayo which will house asylum seekers, Fr Denis Carney PP of Ballinrobe-Kilmaine told The Irish Catholic that the parish, the council and Government need to work…
Bishops called to take harder stance on ‘hurtful’ funerals
Funerals that celebrate the life of notorious criminals are “particularly hurtful” to parishioners who see their church “taken over by those who prey on the community”, according to a Dublin-based priest. Fr Joe Keegan CC in Cabra West has called for Irish bishops to take a harder stance on what is permitted at funerals as…
Senator Mullen: Govt ‘allergic’ to speaking up for persecuted Christians
There’s a danger that persecuted Christians in Nigeria and other parts of the world are “out of sight, out of mind”, Independent Senator Rónán Mullen has said. The “least” Government can do is use whatever levers they have to try and pressure uncooperative countries, such as Nigeria and Nicaragua where attacks on Christians are rife,…
US Irish Catholics defended after backlash to social media trend
A trend on social media among Catholics in the US with Irish heritage, which was criticised by some online users who took issue with them describing themselves as Irish, has been defended by EPIC (The Irish Emigration Museum). The TikTok trend involved people uploading videos of themselves starting sentences by saying ‘We’re Irish Catholics’ and…
No country for old moans
Mary Kenny
It’s been pleasing to see a revival in the old Irish tradition of celebrating January 6 as ‘Nollaig na mBan’, the ‘women’s Christmas’. Although it had been a country tradition, I don’t think it was very widely observed in Dublin, where January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany was known, traditionally, as ‘Little Christmas’. The…
Parents reject teaching of abortion in Catholic schools
Ruadhán Jones
Parents in the North have overwhelmingly rejected a Westminster law that would force Catholic schools to teach about accessing abortions, a consultation has shown. However, the department of education said its hands are tied and it will be releasing guidance on teaching access to abortion this month. In response to a department of education consultation…