UK bishops criticise upcoming arms fair A major arms fair in London has drawn fire from Catholic bishops and justice and peace groups who say the trade in weaponry fuels conflict around the world. In a joint statement, they criticized the DSEI arms fair, which will bring together more than 1,600 companies that develop, manufacture…
Jason Osborne and Ruadhán Jones The focus on lay leadership in the Church of Legion of Mary founder Frank Duff has been hailed as “prophetic” as celebrations get underway to mark the centenary of the organisation. The Irish Catholic can also reveal that final preparations are now underway to progress the cause for canonisation of…
“If John brought the brilliant mind to the peace-making then Pat brought the pure heart,” the funeral Mass of Pat Hume was told this week. Fr Paul Farren paid tribute to Mrs Hume both as a community activist and as a mother. The funeral of the 83-year-old former teacher was held in St Eugene’s Cathedral…
A former Manchester United player turned priest has cautioned against turning football into a god and treating it as a religion. Fr Philip Mulryne OP, who spent most of his career with Norwich City, said football was fundamentally good and was a wonderful vehicle for teaching virtue but should be kept in perspective. Speaking on…
The mortal remains of the first three Korean Catholic martyrs have been recovered more than two centuries after their deaths, announced the Diocese of Jeonju. Ucanews.com reported that following historical research and DNA tests, it has been confirmed that the remains are of Paul Yun Ji-chung and James Kwon Sang-yeon, both beheaded in 1791, and Yun’s brother,…
Veteran broadcaster Donncha Ó Dúlaing, who died at the weekend, has been remembered as a man who was animated by his deep Catholic Faith. Mr Ó Dúlaing (88) died just a week after his beloved wife Vera. From Doneraile in Co. Cork, he was known for his cultural and traditional music programmes. In a career…
Same-sex couples can now have their marriage blessed by the Church in Wales following a vote earlier in the week. The Church still won’t be performing same-sex marriages, however. The Church in Wales is the Anglican Church in Wales, made up of six dioceses. The Evangelical Fellowship expressed its opposition to the move, saying it…
President Joe Biden last Thursday announced a “whole-of-government” response to “ensure” abortion access in Texas, after the state’s pro-life law went into effect September 1. In a September 2 statement, the president – a Catholic – directed his administration to examine “what steps the Federal Government can take to ensure that women in Texas have…
A Catholic diocese announced last Wednesday that kidnappers had freed a priest seized in Cameroon’s restive Anglophone region. In a statement circulated September 1, Fr Sebastine Sinju, chancellor of the Diocese of Mamfe, said that Msgr Julius Agbortoko Abbor was released without payment of a ransom, reported ACI Africa. “After three days in captivity, we are glad…
Letter from America Mark Pattison The United States last declared war nearly 80 years ago in the conflict known as World War II. Afterward, there were several wars fought that weren’t declared as such. Some ended successfully from a military standpoint: the 1983 invasion of Grenada, a 135-square-mile island in the Caribbean that was set…