I was born in 1945 at the end of World War II. As I grew up, I heard about the Holocaust. Descriptions of the greatest crime in history disturbed me deeply during my teenage and college years. I was ordained a priest in 1971. At that time, I suspected that references to the Devil were…
An Irish charity has hit out at new figures which show that the number of people experiencing homelessness in Ireland is on a record-breaking rise with over 10,000 suffering from the epidemic. Official statistics from the Department of Housing, released yesterday, show that there is now a combined total of 10,264 people homeless and living…
Letter from Rome Elise Harris By the time he died at the age of 50, Greek Catholic Bishop Vasile Aftenie was crippled, maimed and, according to accounts of those who knew him, out of his mind due to torture endured while imprisoned by Romania’s communist regime. When he finally succumbed in 1950, Bishop Aftenie…
The patronage and ethos of Ireland’s schools should be determined at a local level by parents and communities, Minister for European Affairs Helen McEntee has said. While paying tribute to the Church and to the role of Church teachings in educating generations of Irish people, Ms McEntee stressed that not all children had positive experiences…
Nearly two million people marched on Saturday last in Pope Francis’s native land of Argentina in pro-life demonstrations dedicated to defending the life of the unborn, and offering solutions to mothers in crisis pregnancies. The rally was organised by Argentina’s March for Life, a lay-led organisation. Although Catholic bishops, evangelical pastors, and Jewish and Islamic…
Chai Brady and Hannah Harn Missionary sisters in Ireland have said they are “very concerned” about members of their religious order in Mozambique after a cyclone devastated the country. The death toll of the natural disaster has risen to over 750 in three countries in the south of Africa. In Mozambique the fatalities are believed to be about…
A Venezuelan cardinal has called on state security forces to exercise civil disobedience when given orders to use lethal force against citizens. “State security agencies exist not to take care of the government but to take care of the citizens,” said Cardinal Baltazar Porras, at a press conference last week. “Therefore, every order that is…
Inés San Martín During a visit to the Italian city of Loreto on Monday past, Pope Francis signed a new document dedicated to youth and called on people to remember the importance of the family for society. According to tradition, the Nazareth home of the Holy Family was transported to the city of Loreto in the…
The former religious affairs correspondent at RTÉ has told how Bishop Eamonn Casey tried to put pressure on him in the 1980s by urging other bishops not to talk to him. Kieron Wood – who was religious affairs correspondent for the national broadcaster from 1987-1990 – told The Irish Catholic this week that Dr Casey…
A Franciscan science teacher from rural Kenya who donates most of his salary to help poorer students has been crowned the world’s best teacher. Beating 10,000 nominations from 179 countries Peter Tabichi (36) was awarded $1 million (€886,185). The maths and physics teacher at Keriko secondary school in Pwani Village won the Varkey Foundation Global…