Ava Westendorf On June 27, the international missionary charity Misean Cara released their 2023 press release where they described the impact they made for 1.9 million people in 52 different countries. The report claimed that they allocated €13.6 million in funding to support 321 projects in these 52 different countries. Some of these projects…
Pope calls us every evening says Gaza parish priest
Luca Attanasio Father Gabriel Romanelli, an Argentinean of Italian origin, belongs to the religious family of the Incarnate Word (Ive). He is the only Catholic parish priest in the entire Gaza Strip. His parish, dedicated to the Holy Family, is located in the al-Zaitoun quarter of Gaza city (north of the Strip) and, before the…
New Dublin bishop struck by generosity of priests
Matt Letourneau The new auxiliary bishop of Dublin, Bishop Paul Dempsey has said that he is only a few weeks in Dublin but is already struck by the large size of the parishes and the generosity of the priests. “One of the things that has struck me in Dublin and I’m only a couple of…
A union begun by a single surname
Ava Westendorf The Purcell Society Gathering or Reunion is said to inspire a “gathering of unity around a surname” says Fr William Purcell PP of Clara. On June 21 through 23, 215 people from around the world who have the Purcell name, most who have never met, will gather in areas of Kilkenny and Tipperary…
Parish falls out of harmony with Gay Men’s Chorus
Matt Letourneau Dublin’s St Andrew’s Church in the Westland Row Parish has had to cancel a performance by the Dublin Gay Men’s Chorus, titled ‘Pride In The Name Of Love’ which was to be held in the church. The parish was originally slated to host the chorus on June 23 during the Dublin Pride celebration.…
Three Irish comedians go to the Vatican
Ava Westendorf Pope Francis invited more than 100 comedians, including Irish and international names, to join him at the Vatican on June 14 at a joint event organised by both the Vatican’s Dicastery for Culture and Education, and the Dicastery for Communication. ‘Father Ted’ star Ardal O’Hanlon, ‘Late Late Show’ host Patrick Kielty and ‘The…
I can’t believe it was Jesus all along
Rohan Healy We are reminded daily of the many social ills that the internet, and social media in particular, perpetuate. The increased sense of social isolation, despite early promises to bring people closer together, the negative effects on self-worth as we are constantly bombarded with exaggerated examples of others success, the ever-present temptation to get…
Summer media survival tips for parents
Sr Hosea Rupprecht When I was a kid, my main form of media consumption was books. I used to go to the library and check out four or five ‘Hardy Boys’ books at a time. I don’t know why I never got into Nancy Drew (I am a girl, after all), but I think it’s…
Want revival? The Sacred Heart shows us what it takes
Jayme Stuart Wolfe Every sincere Catholic hope for a revival of the faith – even if we don’t all agree about what that should look like. But now that the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage has begun, and the National Eucharistic Congress being held in Indianapolis is only six weeks away, I expect that the inside baseball…
Into the mind of a convert
Roman Cabay To those who knew me then, the idea of my conversion was an absurd prospect. I was raised non-denominationally protestant, variously attending Anglican and Methodist services as well as Sunday school. Church, to me, was an interminable lecture where I fruitlessly attempted to achieve apostasy. Faith was a private certainty of my damnation…