An estimated 5.2 million children in 21 countries, including the United States, lost at least one parent, a custodial grandparent or a primary caregiver to Covid-19 during the first 20 months of the pandemic, social researchers and child well-being advocates said in a new study. Notably, the researchers estimated that the number of children orphaned…
Children aged 12-15 to be offered Covid booster dose Children aged 12 to 15 are to be offered a booster dose of Covid-19 vaccine in a bid to reduce infection rates among this age group. The move follows a recommendation by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (Niac), which has been accepted by Minister for Health…
Spanish bishops announce clerical abuse investigation In an about-face, the Spanish bishops’ conference announced that it has hired a law firm to conduct a yearlong investigation into clerical sexual abuse in the country. At a news conference in Madrid February 24, Cardinal Juan José Omella of Barcelona, president of the Spanish bishops’ conference, said the…
A researcher with the Philos Project told journalists last Tuesday that Iran is using incremental strategies to squeeze non-Muslims out of the country and in nearby states such as Iraq and Syria, and that the plight of Christians in the Middle East is “truly misunderstood” by most in the West. Senior Research Fellow Dr Farhad…
President Joe Biden announced federal appeals court Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson as his first nominee to the Supreme Court on Friday. In a tweet announcing the news, Biden called Jackson “one of our nation’s brightest legal minds” and said that she will be “an exceptional Justice”. If confirmed, Judge Jackson would be the first black…
Pope warns against digital media addiction in Lenten message The Vatican released Pope Francis’ Lenten message last Thursday in which the Pope recommended that Lent 2022 can be a time to put down the smartphone and encounter those in need face to face. “Let us not grow tired of fighting against concupiscence, that weakness which…
Overcome our argumentative age with generosity, says Bishop McKeown Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown warned that we must heed Christ’s call to a “spirit of generosity” to overcome our “argumentative age”. In his homily Sunday 20, Bishop McKeown said that Jesus offers us the grace to rise above “the desire for revenge or sectarianism”. He…
Dear Editor, It was good to read Michael Kelly’s article [The Irish Catholic – February 17, 2022] on the Women’s Council of Ireland and his pointing out that it is a long time since the Women’s Council – which claims a fortune of taxpayer’s money to lobby on behalf of women – has even pretended…
Marta Osborne Do you have any suggestions for approaching lent with your spouse? I think we’d be more successful if we tried to go through it together. Lent is difficult at the best of times, but it can be especially so if we try to go it alone. As married couples, we’re blessed to have…
Former Republic of Ireland football star on what it meant to be part of the first pilgrimage to the Holy Land since the pandemic.