Though Seán Farrell has worked in war zones, it is Ebola which still frightens him in a different way. In 2014, the Trócaire CEO led the organisation’s response to the outbreak in Sierra Leone, spending weeks in communities where despite households under quarantine, the virus was rapidly spreading. “It was one of the scariest things…
Catholics need to move from inherited or “cultural” faith towards a deeper personal commitment to Christ, foreign-born priests ministering in Ireland have told The Irish Catholic. Fr Anselm Emechebe MSP, a Nigerian priest who has served in Ireland since 2009, said the challenge is for Catholics to take greater personal responsibility for a faith often…
The Church must stop acting as though it is “on the back foot” and have greater confidence in what the faith offers society, Fr Patrick Cahill told hundreds gathered in Maynooth for CHARIS Ireland’s National Day of Renewal. The gathering at St Patrick’s College brought together Catholics from across the country for a day of…
Resistance among priests to synodality is leaving Irish parishes with “virtually no leadership” for reform, Fr Michael A. Conway has warned ahead of Ireland’s National Synodal Assembly on October 17. Writing in the September issue of The Furrow, the Galway priest and Professor of Faith and Culture at St Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth, said many…
KANDLE priests say fewer personnel are forcing a rethink of parish life Bishop Denis Nulty has warned that declining priest numbers are forcing Kildare & Leighlin to rethink Mass schedules, workloads and how its 117 churches are served. In a pastoral letter read out at Masses on Sunday, Bishop Nulty said priests being recalled by…
Trócaire CEO Seán Farrell has said he is “still haunted” by what he witnessed during the Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone, as the organisation responds to a new outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In a post this week, Mr Farrell said Ebola remained “personal” for him after his experience working in Sierra Leone…
Religion is “going through a great transformation”, according to Fr Laurence Freeman OSB, but the question is not simply whether it will survive. The deeper question, he believes, is what kind of religion will emerge. Speaking to The Irish Catholic about the World Community for Christian Meditation’s (WCCM) online series ‘The Future of Religion’, Fr…
Church leaders say renewal must take root in parish communities A “real spiritual hunger” is emerging in Ireland as some younger Catholics show a new confidence and intentionality about their faith, Church leaders involved in evangelisation have said. Julieann Moran, General Secretary of the Irish Synodal Pathway, told The Irish Catholic there are “certainly young…
Fr Kieran O’Mahony OSA has been remembered as a “fearless ecumenist” who built friendships across Christian traditions and helped bring Christians together through Scripture. Archbishop Michael Jackson described the Augustinian priest as a “staunch friend of the Church of Ireland”, recalling in particular his work on Ecumenical Bible Week. “It has grown to a success…
Sacred music can “bring us closer to God” and deepen people’s experience of prayer, the administrator of St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh, has said. Fr Barry Matthews was speaking after the Charles Wood Singers took part in Sung Mass at the Cathedral as part of this year’s Charles Wood Festival and Summer School, which has particular…