Chairman and former editor of the Irish News Jim Fitzpatrick has died. Mr Fitzpatrick, 92, had owned the newspaper since the early 1980s. Great privilege Taoiseach Micheál Martin led tributes, saying that he had the “great privilege” of knowing Mr Fitzpatrick for many years, and that he was “in every respect, a true gentleman”. “In…
One of the most finely illustrated medieval manuscripts has been digitised by the Library of Trinity College Dublin (TCD) for the first time. Created by the renowned Benedictine monk and scribe of the 13th Century, Matthew Paris, the Book of St Albans features 54 individual works of medieval art that have fascinated readers throughout the…
Jason Osborne in Athlone The need for an ambitious plan of adult faith formation has emerged as one of the key themes from the national pre-synodal gathering in Athlone. Church leaders described as “heartening” the appetite parishioners displayed to deepen their faith. While a report will now be sent to Rome to form the Irish…
Rates of depression among young adults doubling during the pandemic is “not a surprising set of statistics” as young people didn’t have the chance to flourish, coordinator of pastoral care and chaplaincy at Technological University Dublin (TUD) Fr Alan Hilliard has said. Data published by the ESRI showed that as of December 2020, four-in-ten 22…
Insult and bitterness are all the rage in modern discussions about the deep topics, but as Catholics we must model a different way, writes Jason Osborne I’m not sure if it’s always been like this, but discussions today about many, many topics – be it religion, politics, or otherwise – are more often fraught, tense…
Ireland’s annual national march for life returns in just over two weeks’ time after two years of lockdown and is set to take place Saturday July 2, 2022. People are encouraged to join “the biggest and most exciting pro-life event of the year”, with the rally’s theme for 2022 urging the nation to “rethink abortion”.…
The National Women’s Council of Ireland (NWCI) has failed to provide clarification of a comment made by its director despite attempts by The Irish Catholic to seek clarity. The Irish Catholic sought to clarify Director Orla O’Connor’s comment in a March 22 op-ed for the Irish Examiner that “We urgently need…careful monitoring of conscience-based refusal…
Reading is one of the most valuable activities to invest in and summer is the perfect time to do so, writes Jason Osborne To my mind, there’s nothing better than finding a free hour or two and sitting down to enjoy a good book. Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, diving into a story, real or imagined,…
The All-Ireland Rosary Rally drew an unprecedented crowd of around 7,000 people in its first post-pandemic outing, with over 40 buses bringing pilgrims to Knock from around the island. The All-Ireland Rosary Rally was started by Canon Michael Fitzgerald of the Cloyne diocese over thirty years ago. He was inspired by the rosary rallies of…
The Church is doing gay Catholics a disservice by watering down teaching on homosexuality, hears Jason Osborne The term ‘LGBT’ is reductionist and if the Church bends to change its teaching on the matter, “the entire edifice of its teaching on sexuality collapses”. So says John (not his real name), a Catholic who prefers to…