Rayssa Leal, a 16-year-old Brazilian skateboarder competing in the Paris Olympics, used sign language to quote Scripture before winning the bronze medal in the competition. Leal, a Christian, won the bronze medal in the women’s street skateboarding final on July 28. At one point during the competition, Leal smiled into the camera and signed John 14:6, which…
Renata Steffens and Renata Milán Morales St. Patrick’s Purgatory, also known as ‘Station Island’ or ‘Lough Derg’, is a pilgrimage site located in Co. Donegal, Ireland. Known for its rich tradition of penitence and prayer, it offers pilgrims a unique opportunity to step away from the chaos of daily life and immerse themselves in a…
Cardinal Vincent Nichols has written to Monsignor Eric de Moulins-Beaufort from the Bishops’ Conference of France to share his deep regret at the “scenes of mockery and derision of Christianity” during the Olympics’ opening ceremony in Paris. Archbishop de Moulins-Beaufort had already issued a statement expressing the French bishops’ ‘regret’ at the controversial content during…
Speaking on Joe Duffy’s Liveline programme last week, Deacon Frank Browne, a permanent deacon attached to Rathfarnham Parish, lamented at what he sees as a common “message that’s continually in the media” surrounding the Church and abuse; a message he believes the Church needs to robustly counter by outlining the successes of its safeguarding systems…
I could do so much more for this man now if I were a priest, says Fr Chris Gault OP “It’s just who I am.” So came the simple response with which I was met on an evening around 10 years ago, sitting in the living room of my student house with my friend and…
Church leaders in Northern Ireland say they are “appalled” by calls for “anti-Islamic” protests last weekend. A number of social media posts were shared asking for people to gather and block roads in the greater Belfast area and elsewhere. It came after two nights of violent protest in English towns last week, following a fatal knife attack…
Fr Jason Nioka was ordained a Catholic priest one month ago, and his very first assignment is to spend his summer in Paris in charge of the Catholic contingent of Olympic chaplains – the largest group of chaplains at the Olympics – made up of 40 Catholic priests, religious, and lay faithful. In an interview…
Knock Shrine is one of those places where you do not need to be very religious to feel that there is a holy presence around. As the story goes, in the late 1870s the figures of Our Lady, St Joseph and St John the Evangelist were seen standing out from the church gable. “They stood…
Without wishing to re-hash the controversial tableau of the Last Supper at the Olympic Opening Ceremonies in Paris, at least we can be thankful that it has focused attention on how important the Eucharist is to Catholics. Knowledge of the Catholic faith is shallow indeed in Ireland. But perhaps one of the most striking illustrations…
Matt Letourneau If your child had a disability, wouldn’t you want to give them the best treatment, support and services available? According to the Disability Federation of Ireland, over 1.1 million people in Ireland have a disability — 22% of the population — and this group encounters more health, educational, employment and housing problems than…
Brandon Scott
Renata Steffens
Breda O'Brien