by Cindy Wooden The Second Vatican Council was the universal Catholic Church’s response to God’s love and to Jesus’ command to feed his sheep, Pope Francis said, celebrating the 60th anniversary of the council’s opening. The council reminded the Church of what is “essential,” the Pope said: “a Church madly in love with its Lord…
Noelle Fitzpatrick Mission Sunday Supplement ‘You Shall Be My Witnesses’ Today, the 10th October is the feast of St Daniel Comboni, an Italian missionary and one of the first to come to Sudan. He was the only surviving child of a family of 8. He endured the judgement of many for leaving his aging parents…
A New York judge opened the door to legal recognition of multi-partner relationships while ruling in a housing court case. In a ruling on a dispute over a rent-stabilised apartment, Judge Karen May Bacdayan of the Civil Court of the City of New York opined that the legal protection of same-sex relationships shouldn’t be limited…
Paul Francis Spencer C.P. Mission Sunday Supplement At the heart of the mission of the Passionists is the conviction that the Passion of Christ is, in the words of our founder St Paul of the Cross, “the greatest and most overwhelming work of God’s love.” Passionist Missionaries from Ireland have worked in many countries, including…
Catholic bishops in the southern Indian state of Kerala expressed shock over the human sacrifice of two women as part of a ritual to gain wealth and prosperity. Fr Jacob G. Palakkappilly, spokesman for the Kerala Catholic Bishops’ Council, said the incident, which came to light October 11, has shaken the collective consciousness of Indian…
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…