Public Masses, Confirmations and First Communions have been cancelled in Dublin for three weeks after the Government’s new guidelines were announced this evening. Archbishop Diarmuid Martin sent an “urgent notice” to parishes in the Archdiocese of Dublin this morning (Friday), presupposing the Government’s announcement as he said the outcome “seems likely”. The restrictions will see…
EXCLUSIVE New research which reveals that one in five previously Mass-going Catholics may not return after the pandemic has been described as a “wake-up call”. While just four percent of people surveyed said they had no intention of returning to Mass, a further 19% of people who went to Mass regularly before restrictions indicated that…
The Irish Primary Principals Network (IPPN) have said that while they support siblings attending the same school, the objective should be getting children into school “at an appropriate age”. This comes as Catholic primary schools in the greater Dublin area are being told by the Archdiocese of Dublin to stop giving priority enrolment to siblings…
Former Ireland international and current Shamrock Rovers footballer Joey O’Brien has said he will be saying a few prayers at a Dublin church before his team take on AC Milan this evening, Thursday. Mr O’Brien said he customarily prays to St Anthony and did so over the weekend before the match in Tallaght Stadium in…
The Archdiocese of Dublin, along with many other dioceses, brought their yearly Lourdes pilgrimage online due to the coronavirus pandemic. Those remembered in their first ‘Virtual Pilgrimage to Lourdes’, which took place last week, were people who lost their lives since the pandemic began, those who are ill, and frontline workers. It’s the second time…
Premiums refund because of closures EXCLUSIVE Hard-pressed parishes feeling the effects of financial pressure due to Covid-19 restrictions will receive rebates on their insurance premiums, The Irish Catholic can reveal. Priests have welcomed the decision by the main insurer of Church property that parishes will receive refunds due to lockdown and the fact that many…
Ahead of the upcoming Budget, the Irish Hospice Foundation has renewed calls for a whole-of-government strategy for end-of-life and bereavement care. The charity – dedicated to death, dying and bereavement, is urging the Government in a pre-Budget submission to invest in healthcare infrastructure and adequately support end-of-life and bereavement services to ensure the country can…
The bishop of Clogher has called on people to take action to save biodiversity, as after the pandemic “we cannot be healthy if the planet is not healthy”. In a pastoral letter for the Season of Creation, Bishop Larry Duffy said Covid-19 has shown how “deeply connected everything is”, and “how vulnerable we are as…
The constraints brought about by Covid-19 have merely accelerated an inevitable decline, writes Chai Brady Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has never made a secret of the fact that he wanted out of Dublin when he was obliged to tender his resignation to the Pope on his 75th birthday. That milestone passed more than five months ago,…
To attract back lapsed Catholics, the Church must embrace the vision of Pope Francis and present the Gospel in a way that is positive and uplifting rather than concentrating on negatives, the country’s newest bishop has said. Bishop of Achonry Paul Dempsey was ordained at the weekend, and at just 49 also becomes Ireland’s youngest…