Retreats offer a chance to spend time with God away from the pressures of the world, Greg Daly is told “The beauty of a retreat is that it is time for you to step away from the everyday and to reconnect with God and your Faith,” according to Noirín Mulhern of Knock Shrine. “I…
St John Paul II’s Theology of the Body isn’t just about sex. That might seem unlikely to those who’ve only ever encountered specific introductions to the late Pope’s biggest area of catechesis, or who’ve only ever heard caricatures of the late Pope’s teaching, but it’s important to understand for all that. Emily Stimpson at thecatholictable.com…
The ransacking of a historic Church of Ireland church crypt is a “desecration” and an “attack on Christian communities”, a prominent inner-city priest has said. The raid on the crypt of St Michan’s Church on Dublin’s Church Street was discovered at 1pm on Monday, February 25, when a tour guide was preparing to open the…
Parishioners need to be helped welcome refugees into their communities and cannot simply be taken for granted, Elphin’s Bishop Kevin Doran has said. Speaking to The Irish Catholic after the publication of a joint statement with Bishop Francis Duffy of Ardagh and Clonmacnois, Dr Doran said “our responsibilities as a nation under international law, and…
The Church in the North will continue to resist efforts to divide the community even if a hard border follows a no-deal Brexit, Derry’s Bishop Donal McKeown has said. Speaking against the background of a UNESCO-backed report that claims young people in the North would be groomed into violence by extremist and terrorist organisations following…
Accord’s marriage preparation figures may be dropping, but this disguises an increase in its importance, writes Greg Daly 2018 saw a continuing year-on-year drop in numbers of people attending sacramental preparation courses offered by Accord, the Catholic marriage care service, but as usual it’s worth getting behind the headline figures. On the face of things,…
Ireland will be in “uncharted territory” if it makes a willingness to participate in abortions a condition of employment in hospitals, Baroness Nuala O’Loan has warned. Baroness O’Loan, who has been an outspoken advocate for the conscience rights of medical professionals, was speaking after the National Maternity Hospital advertised posts stipulating that successful applicants would…
Samizdat, before the fall of the Iron Curtain, was the name given to the clandestine copying and distribution of banned literature; in David Foster Wallace’s 1996 novel Infinite Jest, however, it means something very different, a captivating film, also called ‘the Entertainment’, that saps wills and paralyses viewers, leaving them unable to tear their eyes…
New bishop in appeal The Church in Ireland must do more to reach out to Catholics who feel themselves on the margins and recognise that God is still present in families where the parents are not married, Ireland’s newest bishop has said. Speaking after his ordination in Monaghan’s St Macartan’s Cathedral on Sunday, Bishop…
Leading anti-abuse campaigner Marie Collins has welcomed an initiative of the Church in Ireland to roll-out special liturgies for victims and survivors across parishes around the country. Ms Collins – who formerly advised Pope Francis on the issue – told The Irish Catholic she believed that liturgies of atonement for survivors of abuse can have…