What the North’s child abuse inquiry reveals

The latest revelations deserve greater attention, writes David Quinn Another report of another child abuse inquiry was published last week. This time, the inquiry, the Historical Institutional Abuse (HIA) Inquiry, chaired by retired judge Sir Anthony Hart, dealt with abuse in institutions in Northern Ireland. These institutions were run by the Catholic Church, by the…

Govt should see the real value of faith schools

“Bruton set to pledge end of school ‘baptism barrier’”, read the headline in one newspaper on Monday. It was typical of the headlines in a number of news outlets. Reading those headlines you could be forgiven for thinking that Education Minister, Richard Bruton, has decided to altogether abolish the right of Catholic schools to admit…

Our bishops get ready to meet Pope Francis

Times have changed since the last ad limina, writes David Quinn It is 10 years since the Irish bishops made their last ad limina visit to Rome. It will take place from January 15-25. Literally, an ad limina apostolorum means ‘to the threshold of the Apostles’. It is a pilgrimage to the tombs of Ss…

A 14-year old girl in the UK, dying of cancer, was awarded by court the right to have her body frozen after her death, so-called ‘cryogenic freezing’. The girl, who has since died, wants the possibility of being raised from the dead if science ever allows this, even if that is still hundreds of years…