Michael Kelly is an award-winning writer and broadcaster specialising in religious and social affairs. Born and raised in Northern Ireland, he attended the Pontifical University St Patrick’s College, Maynooth where he obtained degrees in philosophy and theology and the Pontifical University of the Holy Cross in Rome where he studied social institutional communications. From 2002-2005 he was an Editor in the Central Information Service of Vatican Radio. In this role, he travelled with Pope St John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI on overseas trips. In 2005, he returned to Dublin to take up the position of Deputy Editor with The Irish Catholic newspaper, succeeding as Editor in 2012. He is a regular contributor to programmes on RTÉ, BBC, UTV, CNN and Al Jazeera. He also have extensive experience offering media training and coaching in the voluntary sector. Mr Kelly is a weekly columnist with Ireland’s largest-selling secular newspaper the Irish Independent and has been published in The Irish Times, the Irish Examiner, The Irish News, The Guardian, Our Sunday Visitor, Catholic World Report, the National Catholic Reporter and the National Catholic Register. He writes from Ireland for Catholic News Service of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. Micheal finished his stint as Editor of The Irish Catholic in January 2024 and has taken up the position of Director of Public Affairs for Aid to the Church in Need Ireland.
Martin McDonagh’s new film confronts us with the ultimate reality that each and every one of us will die, writes Michael Kelly It’s hard not to be touched by the marvellous beauty on display in The Banshees of Inisherin, which opened at cinemas at the weekend to critical acclaim. This article is not intended to…
Editor’s Comment One of the great sadnesses shared with me when I speak at parish missions and novenas around the country is the absence of young families. Often a grandfather and grandmother will be there with cheerful grandchildren, and at the cup of tea afterwards will share their dismay that their grown-up children – the…
Editor’s Comment In England and Wales, churches and other places of worship have been included in taxpayer-funded programmes aimed at easing the rising cost of fuel. Most places of worship are large and, particularly in the case of churches, were built at a time when insulation and energy efficiency were not priorities. In short, they…
Editor’s Comment A few years ago ‘clustering’ was a word largely unknown by Catholics across Ireland. Today, parish clustering is the order of the day as it has been embraced by people within the Church as a response to the declining number of priests. I’ve often thought that clustering – joining a group of parishes…
In just seven years, the Church in Ireland will mark the bicentenary of Catholic emancipation. Catholic relief in 1829 aimed to ease the restrictions on Catholics that had come about since the time of the English Reformation when King Henry VIII rejected the authority of the Pope and the widespread persecution of Catholics began. While…
Editor’s Comment The long-anticipated results of the census in the North (see page 6) have demonstrated what has been obvious for some time: Catholics now make up a plurality in the region. The news has been greeted in some quarters in the extreme. Some unionist commentators have deemed the results “meaningless” in the context of…
Editor’s Comment “If you ever wonder what the relevance of the Faith might be for people in modern Ireland try a death bed,” a priest once told me. He was speaking about one of the most profound aspects of his ministry – accompanying a departing soul on their final journey and comforting and consoling their…
Editor’s Comment Much focus in recent days has, rightly, been on the role that Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II has played in reconciliation. The late queen has been a keen supporter of the Irish peace process and has played no small role in building bridges between both Ireland and Britain and the two communities in the…
Editor’s Comment After the reforms of the Second Vatican Council (1962-65) great emphasis was placed on the restoration of the ancient order of the permanent diaconate. For many centuries, diaconate had been seen as just one more stop on the road to priesthood. The Church wanted to restore the tradition of the early Church where…
Most Irish Catholics feel woefully ill-equipped to share their faith, but the desire they have to do so is heartening writes Michael Kelly “Our spiritual growth is stunted. As adult members of the Church, we are not sufficiently grounded in our faith, and do not have the confidence in speaking about our love of God,”…