Egypt’s Coptic Christians – often the target of Islamist violence in the country – have pledged solidarity and support after a deadly terror attack on a mosque in Sinai which left at least 305 worshippers dead. Pope Tawadros II, along with all members of the Coptic Church, extended their condolences to the victims’ families, a…
Firebrand left-wing TD Paul Murphy has contrasted the time Irish schools spend on religious and physical education, suggesting that a burgeoning obesity crisis among Irish children could be staved off by increasing time for physical exercise in the school curriculum. “If the Government is serious about an approach in terms of a healthy lifestyle then…
All Zimbabweans should have a voice in the country’s governance following Robert Mugabe’s 37-year presidency, and the new government should embrace diversity, Zimbabwe’s bishops said. Congratulating President Emmerson Mnangagwa, whose November 24 inauguration followed a de facto coup, the Zimbabwe Catholic Bishops’ Conference also thanked 93-year-old Mugabe for “the good work he did for Zimbabwe…
The archbishop of Dublin intervened to avoid a general election during the political row which led to the resignation of Tánaiste, Frances Fitzgerald. Pointing out the time and polarisation an election would involve, he told RTE news on Sunday last that “people will suffer”. Earlier at the reopening of Huntstown Church, damaged by a fire…
The Second Vatican Council continues to have an enduring impact on the Church and on the papacy of Pope Francis, according to the Vatican’s top diplomat, Cardinal Pietro Parolin. That gathering of bishops from around the world presented a new paradigm of a “world Church – a Church with a global dimension”, said the cardinal,…
Altar servers celebrate in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh on the feastday of St John Berchmans, November 26, the patron saint of altar servers.
A diocesan bishop is the sole judge in the streamlined process for handling marriage annulments, Pope Francis has said. The simplified process “is not an option that the diocesan bishop can choose, but rather an obligation that derives from his consecration and from the mission received”, making the bishop the sole and exclusive authority in…
As Pope Francis continues his tour to Myanmar and Bangladesh, Catholics in neighbouring India regret missing a chance to meet him in their homeland, nostalgically recalling past papal visits, reported ucanews.com. Catholic groups began discussing plans to host the pontiff earlier this year, after the Vatican confirmed a papal visit to the region. According to…
We have a duty to stand in solidarity with persecuted believers, writes Dr Michael Kinsella As 2017 comes to a close, we can reflect upon a year in which the Church marked both the 70th anniversary of the founding of Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) by Fr Werenfried van Straaten and the…
Science and Spiritual Practices: Transformative experiences and their effects on our bodies, brains, and health by Rupert Sheldrake (Coronet, £20.00) Christopher Moriarty Scientific evidence shows that humans have sought, for tens of thousands of years, to connect their activities with something outside their day-to-day activities. Since history began, written records of religious practices have…