A Co. Tyrone man has been enlisted by the Vatican to solve the problem of unsightly graffiti that keeps surfacing on the stone columns of historical buildings. Paul Bradley, from Greencastle parish, is the sales director for Britain and Ireland of French-based business Guard Industrie. His company has developed the product ProtectGuard which adds an…
Mags Gargan
Easter celebrations a community affair
Holy Week processions are true community events with thousands lining the streets each year
Dioceses gearing up for World Youth Day in Poland
Preparations for World Youth Day (WYD) in Krakow next year are gathering momentum in dioceses across the country, with expectations of large numbers of young people making the pilgrimage. Following a meeting in Maynooth with a member of the Polish WYD organising team, diocesan and religious youth ministries have begun to plan and promote their…
Mayo priests support road safety campaign
A ‘Blessing of the Roads’ ceremony will be incorporated into Easter Sunday ceremonies for many Co. Mayo parishes next weekend, with priests supporting an awareness campaign to reduce road deaths. The campaign from the Road Safety Office of Mayo County Council, supported by both local Catholic and Church of Ireland leaders, will see clerics blessing…
Call for improved preparation for priestly celibacy
Seminaries need to better prepare future priests for living a celibate life according to a senior psychiatrist. Prof. Patricia Casey, who said she personally “had no difficulty with married priests”, rejected suggestions that compulsory celibacy was too difficult for priests. “Priests have done it for many years and it seems to me that only in…
Our Government is set to radically redefine the notion of a traditional family
Children’s interests are of secondary concern in the new Children and Family Relationships Bill, writes Thomas Finegan
Large crowd to attend Dublin’s ‘Way of the Cross’
Archbishop Diarmuid Martin will lead Good Friday procession
Don’t judge Pope Francis just based on sound bites
Dear Editor, It seems on the face of it that Pope Francis has a habit of ‘putting his foot in it’. His comments last week that society without children is “sad and grey” reminded me of his recent remarks that married couples who opt not to have children are “selfish”. Yes, the Pope should have…
Loans for sacraments
Dear Editor, Congratulations to Cathy Burke on her letter ‘There is no necessary expense for First Holy Communion’ (IC 19/03/15). Our family, with a child making her Confirmation, was outraged when our local Killarney Credit Union published an advertisement offering loans of €1,000 to parents for Communions and Confirmations. Our credit union could not understand…
Mary McAleese’s comments wide of the mark
Dear Editor, Our former President’s remarks about Pope Francis left a stale taste in my mouth. Dr Austen Ivereigh was right to dismiss Mary McAleese’s claims that Pope Francis carries a “residual element of misogyny” that blinds him to the risks of insufficiently empowering women in the Church (IC 19/03/2015). Speaking as a woman, I…