The Pro-Life Campaign and the LoveBoth Project have announced a series of six regional rallies entitled ‘Stand Up For Life’, organised as part of a nationwide grassroots effort to save the Eighth Amendment ahead of the referendum. The ‘Stand Up For Life’ rallies are due to be held from April 2-7. The first regional rally will…
Aborting a child with a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome is a gross violation of human rights and anti-discriminatory commitments, and can be considered genocide, according to a Vatican spokesperson at a UN panel. “Here at the United Nations there is much sincere talk and normally passionate action to fight against unjust discrimination,” said Archbishop…
A prominent Polish archbishop accused his country’s government of falsifying its data on refugees, while also fuelling a crisis with Germany over new demands for war reparations. Retired Archbishop Henryk Muszynski of Gniezno said the Polish government “still relentlessly insists it won’t accept a single one”. He said the government often states that it would…
Forged In Crisis: The Power of Courageous Leadership in Turbulent Times by Nancy Koehn (John Murray, £14.99) Joe Carroll The five ‘leaders’ discussed in this book are an unusual mix: the Antarctic explorer, Ernest Shackleton; US President Abraham Lincoln; anti-slavery campaigner and ex-slave, Frederick Douglass; German theologian, Dietrich Bonhoeffer; and finally Rachael Carson, author of The Silent…
Peru’s bishops have called for Peruvians to work together to root out corruption in the wake of the resignation of the country’s president, Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, amid accusations of corruption. The country is suffering from “a systemic process of corruption caused by the divorce between ethics and politics, reinforced by personal and group ambitions, exacerbated…
Philosophy of Religion: A Very Short Introduction by Tim Bayne (Oxford University Press, £7.99) Emily Keyes Christian theological scholar Don Cupitt says that philosophy is, at its heart, critical thinking, while academic philosopher Simon Blackburn thinks of philosophy as ‘a process of reflection on the deepest concepts, that is structures of thought, that make up…
Jesus’ direction to Mary and the apostle John to care for each other as mother and son is “a moment for all time”, the Catholic and Church of Ireland archbishops of Armagh have said. In a joint Easter message, Archbishop Eamon Martin and the Church of Ireland Archbishop Richard Clarke said in a time when…
Monsignor’s appointment is welcomed Bishop of Cloyne William Crean has welcomed the appointment of Msgr Joseph Murphy to the position as Head of Protocol Office of the Secretariat of State, taking over the role from Archbishop José Avelino Bettencourt. Bishop Crean said: “This is a great personal honour for Msgr Joe, and his family, the laity and clergy…
Dialogue and respectful understanding are the prerequisites for social harmony and world peace, Hong Kong Cardinal John Tong Hon told a symposium on Christianity and China. “If we see only our own reasons and insist on our own experience as the norm, thereby denying the basis of other people’s experience, then disagreement, quarrels and even…
Dirty Glory: Go Where Your Best Prayers Take You by Pete Greig (Hodder & Stoughton, £9.99) Emily Keyes In a world that seems increasingly ambivalent to religion and God, Pete Greig’s ‘24-7 prayer revolution’ is nothing short of incredible. Started in 1999, the prayer movement began as a humble gathering of young people curious to learn…