In one day, the Catholic Church on two continents lost two leaders to Covid-19. Both men were outspoken defenders of the church. Brazilian Cardinal Eusebio Scheid, 88, died in the interior of São Paulo state January 13, after only a few days in the hospital with Covid-19. Scotland Across the Atlantic, in Scotland, Archbishop Philip…
Three North Dakota state legislators introduced a bill this week that would oblige Catholic priests to violate the seal of Confession in cases of confirmed or suspected child abuse, on penalty of imprisonment or heavy fines. The bill was introduced January 12 by a number of Republican and Democrat state senators and state representatives. The…
The Church and society often took it upon themselves to humiliate and exclude rather than show the love of Christ, writes Brian McCormick There is very little difference between the word teacher and preacher. I would always see John the Baptist as a preacher. Jesus is frequently referred to in the Gospels as teacher. I…
An English bishop expressed solidarity with the family of a man on feeding tubes who appealed to a court for him to be kept alive. Bishop Mark O’Toole of Plymouth said in a statement sent to Catholic News Service that the English court’s decision “to allow for the withdrawal of hydration and nutrition is very…
Peace Smiles: Rediscovering Thomas Merton by Bishop Fintan Monahan (Veritas Publications, €9.99/£9.12) Anthony Redmond It is very clear that Bishop Fintan Monaghan is an ardent admirer and devotee of Thomas Merton and his writings. Dr Monahan, of course, is Bishop of Killaloe, based in Ennis, Co. Clare, and could be said to speak from the heart…
Celebrating a livestreamed Mass for the community of Archbishop Carroll High School in Washington January 13, Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory noted how sometimes the readings of the day “fit our lives so perfectly”. They “somehow almost mystically describe where we are at this moment”, he said. Washington’s archbishop then pointed out how that day’s Gospel…
Vatican modifies distribution of ashes for Ash Wednesday The Congregation for Divine Worship announced that the ashes will be “sprinkled” rather than applied as a paste and the priest will “say nothing” while doing so. The Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments published the note ahead of the beginning of Lent,…
The Sunday Gospel Fr Silvester O’Flynn OFM Cap. Pope Francis, with the assistance of Austen Ivereigh, recently published a book entitled Let us Dream. In describing his ideals for the world, he was not the first dreamer. He is following his Master. Jesus began his public mission by proclaiming his dream: he called it the…
Dear Editor, The Irish Catholic [IC 07/01/2020] carried criticism, by David Quinn and others, of the Irish Government and of our bishops for the suspension of public Masses. The point made was that Ireland was amongst few European countries in taking this step. In light of decisions taken in Northern Ireland and Britain since then,…
Bishops urge French Catholics to pray and fast as bioethics bill returns to Senate French bishops asked Catholics on Wednesday January 13 to pray and fast for the next four Fridays for respect for human life from conception in response to new legislation. The bishops of France called on “all Catholics, as well as men…