Cardinal: Church in Asia must be ‘prophetic’ and ‘relevant’ The Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences must restructure itself to make the Church “relevant and responsive” to the people of Asia, a top-ranking cardinal said. Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai, a member of Pope Francis’ Council of Cardinals, stressed there was a great need to restructure…
Dear Editor, Halloween which stems from the Celtic festival of Samhain marking the end of harvest and the start of the Celtic New Year is almost upon us. During the night of October 31 into November 1 the barrier between the realm of the spirits and the real world grew weak. This allowed the deceased return to…
Staff Reporter The mother and baby home redress scheme has been approved by Cabinet, and is set to be debated in the Dáil and the Seanad in the next weeks before a vote. The scheme is expected to cost about €800 million and will be open to around 34,000 victims of the former mother and…
Staff Reporter Pope Francis has called on world leaders to keep their promises to help poorer nations affected by the climate crisis ahead of a UN climate conference next month, a message the Irish bishops have welcomed. In the Pope’s Season of Creation message he said world leaders should “take more ambitious steps”, to keep…
Staff Reporter Ireland took to the coasts for the Rosary for Life and Faith on Sunday, with Fr Marius O’Reilly praising the “great witness” of those who took part. The Faithful gathered at around 180 locations on Ireland’s coasts to pray for “faith and life in Ireland”. Inland communities that wanted to join in prayed…
Staff Reporter Research by price comparison website confused.com has revealed that Ireland is the worst of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) states when it comes to “public family policies”. The State scored just 1.05 out of 10 when it came to spending on family, education and more. Ireland also came in second…
Pope Francis has selected a French Jesuit theologian and a Jewish law professor as winners of the Ratzinger Prize. The winners for 2022, announced by the Vatican October 7, are: Jesuit Fr Michel Fédou, professor of dogmatic theology and patristics at the Centre Sèvres of Paris and dean of the faculty of theology. He is…
On the date marking 700 days of war in Ethiopia’s region of Tigray, Bishop Tesfasellassie Medhin of Adigrat restated his call to the local and international community to act to save millions of people. People must “exercise their moral duty (to) be a voice of the voiceless and enforce international treaties to save more than…
Mercy sisters dip into podcasting Three Mercy Sisters from the Western Province have ventured into the world of podcasting in order to share their stories. Sr Angela Bracken tells of the two choices she faced at the age of eighteen: the convent or the stage, while Srs Noreen Lyons and Anne Mills reveal how their…
Pope Francis said he was “deeply saddened” after hearing the news of one of the world’s worst mass shootings at a day care centre in northeast Thailand. In a message sent October 7 by Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Vatican secretary of state, the Pope offered prayers for the victims “of the horrific attack” that claimed the lives of…