Speaking on The State of the Nation podcast, primary school teacher and Aontú local election candidate, Aisling Considine, reflected on her experiences at the recent INTO conference and how a minority of left-wing activists are avidly pushing gender ideology in schools across the country. Speaking in relation to her appeal to delegates to disaffiliate with the…
Vatican says ‘no’ to sex changes and gender theory in new document
The Vatican on Monday reaffirmed its opposition to sex changes, gender theory and surrogate parenthood, as well as abortion and euthanasia, four months after supporting blessings for same-sex couples. The Vatican’s doctrinal office (DDF) released the ‘Dignitas infinita’ (Infinite dignity) declaration following fierce conservative pushback, especially in Africa, against its document on LGBT issues. There is no…
Irish missionary priest says clergy must do more in tackling scourge of child sexual abuse
Fr Shay Cullen, a Columban missionary priest in the Philippines for the last 55 years, has revealed that according to Unicef reports, seven million Filipino children are abused every year and get no help Additionally, one child in every three are victims of sexual abuse. Fr Cullen has been a longstanding advocate for children’s rights…
Irish diplomat says Ireland has a special place in Pope Francis’ heart
The Irish Ambassador to the Holy See Frances Collins said that she believes that Pope Francis has a keen appreciation for Ireland, with particular concern for the status of peace on the island while also describing the present relationship Ireland enjoys with the Holy See as “strong”. Commenting on the admiration the current Pope has…
Distinguished sculptor whose works adorn many churches dies age 96
Acclaimed German-Irish sculptor Imogen Stuart, who produced a sculpture of Pope John Paul II, located in St Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth, and the altar and baptismal font of the Honan Chapel on the grounds of University College Cork, died last Monday at age 96. Born in Berlin, Ms Stuart was the daughter of art critic…
We are not alone, abandoned or afraid,’ patriarch of Jerusalem says
When Christians gathered in Jerusalem to remember Jesus’ entry into the city, it was one of a few joyful moments in the Holy Land, “crushed by so much hatred” in the months following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. “Despite the war and everything going on around us this year, we have once again…
Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia church to be finally completed by 2026
Barcelona’s Sagrada Familia is set to finally be completed by 2026, a whole 144 years since work on the monumental basilica started. Designed by celebrated Catalan architect Antoni Gaudi, who is buried in the church’s crypt, the world-renowned piece of architecture is famously unfinished. According to La Sagrada Familia Foundation, the organisation tasked with the…
French bishops condemn Macron’s assisted suicide bill
French President Emmanuel Macron announced last week that the French Parliament in May would examine a proposal to legalise ‘aid-in-dying’ throughout the country. Macron in an interview with the Catholic newspaper La Croix described the measure as “a law of fraternity” that “reconciles the autonomy of the individual and the solidarity of the nation”. The law “opens…
Belgian ex-bishop and abuser Roger Vangheluwe defrocked
Pope Francis has laicised Bishop Emeritus of Bruges, Belgium, Roger Vangheluwe, years after the former prelate admitted to repeatedly sexually abusing his nephew when the latter was a minor. The apostolic nunciature to Belgium said in a statement last week that “serious new elements” had come to light regarding ex-bishop Vangheluwe, who resigned in 2010 after…
Bishop McKeown: Most political parties don’t listen to anyone outside of the secular ideology
Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown has criticised what he describes as the “modern secular and consumerist culture”, saying that it leaves “no place for a dissident voice” that doesn’t support it and that the political parties who adopt this ideology in the North “seem to assume that Catholic education has no place in a modern…