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.
One of Ireland’s best-known trade unionists has come out for a ‘no’ bote in the forthcoming referendum on abortion. David Begg – who served as secretary general of the Irish Congress of Trade Unions from 2001 to 2015 – described the defence of the unborn as “the most crucial justice question of our time”. Writing…
The decision that Irish people are being asked to make on May 25 is one of epic proportion. Never before in the history of this State have people been asked whether or not they want to vote the fundamental right to life of one particular group out of constitutional existence. Bunreacht na hÉireann is not…
The foray into the abortion debate of the leadership of the Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) at the weekend is a puzzling one. I emphasise the leadership element to the intervention since I’ve been contacted by several priests this week who are members of the ACP but deeply annoyed at the statement and the obvious…
Pope Francis often chides Christians who are “stingy” with God’s mercy, preferring instead to preach a Christianity that is burdensome. The Pope is certainly not stingy with mercy, nor is he stingy with his time. He devoted several hours to listening individually to survivors of clerical sexual abuse at the Vatican last week. But, it…
Ireland’s educational infrastructure is in deep trouble. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the biggest single issue facing schools is the teaching of religion. Minister for Education Richard Bruton has latched on to the issue of the place of Faith in education as a convenient diversion from the real issues facing pupils and teachers on…
Senator Catherine Noone is the Fine Gael politician who chaired the Oireachtas committee on abortion. She has been described in the Irish Independent as having a “colourful career”. As well as her advocacy for abortion, Ms Noone has taken up causes as diverse as the regulation of ice cream vans and expressed her disappointment that…
A one-off RTÉ programme seeks to bring the Passion of Christ to life, writes Michael Kelly Actor Hugh Bonneville is perhaps best known for his role as Lord Grantham in the hit British series Downton Abbey. What people may not know, however, is that he studied theology at Cambridge University and has always had…
Announcements of Papal visits are supposed to be moments of unbridled joy. But, the news that Pope Francis is to come to Ireland in August is somewhat tinged with sadness and disappointment. Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown speaks for many when he articulates the disappointment felt about how organisers of the Pope’s trip have decided…
When I meet Catholics at events around the country, one thing which always comes up is disappointment and frustration that the Church is frequently misrepresented in the mainstream media. Time and again, people complain to me about the distortion that they see in newspapers and on television and radio about what the Church teaches. They’re…
Sometimes it’s hard to believe that it has been five years since the dreary rainswept evening when the little-known Archbishop of Buenos Aires appeared on the balcony of St Peter’s Basilica having just been elected as Pope Francis. Dressed in a simple white cassock and introducing himself to the world with an almost faltering buona…