The Catholic Education Partnership (CEP) has published a new vision document setting out the identity and mission of the Catholic school in Ireland, describing such schools as offering a “unique, vibrant, nurturing environment” for students, families, the Church and wider society. The vision document will be launched on October 16. The document, A Vision for…
“Contracts or memoranda of understanding covering formation, gender equality, remuneration and the administration of assets.” This is strikingly business-like language, and not what one expects to find in the headline of a Vatican press release, as was the case when the Vatican issued a report from one of the study groups running parallel to the…
Northern Catholics of my parents’ generation had an image of Belfast City Hall as a citadel of hardline unionism. It was an imposing presence at the centre of the city and seemed to symbolise the dominance of a culture with which they felt little in common. They would hardly have envisaged that, within most of…
The trial of Lindsay Clancy in Massachusetts for strangling her three small children in 2023 ended two weeks ago with a hung jury and a verdict of mistrial. The case attracted a high level of media interest and a very polarised debate between those who see Lindsay herself as a victim and those who, in the…
Even if you have never watched Star Trek, you have definitely heard of Captain Kirk and Spock, the half-human, half-Vulcan science officer of the Starship Enterprise. Star Trek is now celebrating its 60th anniversary, which is incredible for a show that was cancelled after just three seasons and 79 episodes. The fact that the main characters…
Though Seán Farrell has worked in war zones, it is Ebola which still frightens him in a different way. In 2014, the Trócaire CEO led the organisation’s response to the outbreak in Sierra Leone, spending weeks in communities where despite households under quarantine, the virus was rapidly spreading. “It was one of the scariest things…
Education Nation returns with Claire Kilroy as first guest Education Nation returned this week for its second season, and it was fitting that the first guest was Claire Kilroy, CEO of the Association of Patrons and Trustees of Catholic Schools (APTCS). Her appointment in September 2025 marked a significant moment for Catholic postprimary education in…
When Declan Hannon climbed the steps of the Hogan Stand in August 2018 and lifted the McCarthy Cup, the significance of what Limerick had achieved was immediately understood. Forty-five years of hurt had finally come to an end. A generation of supporters who had grown up knowing only disappointment could finally call themselves All-Ireland champions.…
The Irish Catholic Church may be facing a decisive opportunity in the 2021–2028 synodal process. Although The Irish Catholic and other Catholic publications have reported on the Vatican Synod and the Irish Synodal Pathway, there is a troubling gap between their importance and their visibility in ordinary parish life. Many practising Catholics remain only vaguely…
Are we made in the image of God or the machine? asks Fr Barry White When I watched Rise of the Planet of the Apes in 2011, an unsettling thought came to mind: human beings can create something they believe they control, only to discover that it has developed beyond the limits they imagined.…
David Quinn
Fr Barry White