A public consultation on whether to introduce exclusion zones around abortion clinics in Northern Ireland has found that only 13 of the 6,412 submissions from members of the public supported the bill. This works out as 0.2% of the total submissions. Despite the strong opposition to the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) Bill, MLAs voted…
The Irish Hospice Foundation is providing information and resources on supporting people through grief in the workplace, writes Jason Osborne Grief is a terrible thing. Writing more succinctly about it than I can, C.S. Lewis said that no one ever told him that it felt so much like fear: “I am not afraid, but the sensation…
A Catholic tendency to go against the crowd in all things sometimes works against the Church, writes Jason Osborne While the rest of the world rallies around Ukraine following Russia’s violent invasion nearly three weeks ago, a not-insignificant minority of Catholics have taken it upon themselves to champion Russia’s cause. Admittedly, I write on the…
NHS consultant Dr Dermot Kearney has been cleared of all sanctions placed after he saved 32 babies using the ‘abortion pill reversal’ treatment, writes Jason Osborne An Irish Cardiologist based in England, Dr Dermot Kearney, is enjoying “great relief” following his sudden exoneration after a ban placed on him by the General Medical Council (GMC)…
Heartbroken Ukrainians living in Ireland have said they are overwhelmed by the support they are receiving from parishes all across Ireland as the brutal Russian invasion of their homeland intensifies. It comes as desperate efforts are being made to accommodate up to 100,000 mostly women and children who are fleeing the onslaught in what is…
Trócaire has seen “the compassion of the Irish people coming to the fore” which has allowed them to offer aid on the ground in Poland and Ukraine amid the ongoing humanitarian crisis as a result of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The overseas development agency of the Catholic Church in Ireland, Trócaire is working with Caritas…
A parent-baby prayer group centred around adoration, Scripture and prayer has begun in Portlaoise parish, Co. Laois, which seeks to allow couples and their children to pray in a safe, relaxed environment. Michelle Ward, one of the event’s organisers, told this paper it’s a “parent”-baby group, as it’s “very important” that the husbands are “very,…
The aid Poland has offered refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine is being hailed as a model of charity, writes Jason Osborne Just over one week since the Russian invasion of Ukraine was launched, the calculus of war already appears stark. As of the time of writing, roughly 9,000 deaths are estimated to have been…
The news cycle seems more doom and gloom than ever, and it’s important to figure out how to deal with it, writes Jason Osborne Lent seems timelier than ever this year. The great season of repentance and refocus comes as war erupts closer to home for us in Europe than it has in a long…
A priest based in Dublin city centre said he’s seen “the character of the city” change during lockdown, and that there’s an increased sense of danger or lack of safety. Speaking to The Irish Catholic newspaper, Fr Darren Maslen, parish priest of Blessed Sacrament Chapel in Dublin city centre said the issue has affected his…