Too much focus on who can and cannot be ordained as a priest risks distracting from Vatican II’s call to holiness and mission for all the baptised, the Bishop of Down and Connor, Dr Alan McGuckian has warned. He made the comment during a video conversation with theologian Dr Abigail Favale, after the question of women’s ordination…
Ballyshannon National School marked 150 years of education in the parish with a special Mass attended by pupils, staff, grandparents, and former students on a sunny day of celebration for the whole school community. Bishop Denis Nulty joined Fr Barry Larkin PP of Suncroft parish, Principal Lorraine McGovern, teachers, families, and past pupils for the…
The traditional Three Day Pilgrimage season at Lough Derg opened last week, following an ecumenical gathering on Station Island which brought together nearly 100 people from different Christian traditions. The annual Day of Friendship and Prayer took place on May 20, ahead of the pilgrimage season, with the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh, John…
If you spend any time in Catholic circles online, you may have seen the images: small groups gathered across Ireland, Rosary beads in hand, kneeling in prayer in the public square. The images came from the recent Rosary Rallies organised by the Irish Society for Christian Civilisation and its Ireland Needs Fatima campaign. According to…
More than 1,000 Catholics gathered in Dublin over Pentecost weekend for the Ignite Ireland conference, headlined by US theologian and author Dr Scott Hahn. The Dominican-backed event, held at The Convention Centre Dublin on Saturday, May 23, brought together Catholics from parishes, ministries, movements and religious communities across the country under the theme ‘Turning Embers…
An organiser of hundreds of public Rosary Rallies across Ireland has said the gatherings show Catholics are “rediscovering the value of devotion to Our Lady”. The 586 rallies, organised by the Irish Society for Christian Civilisation and its Ireland Needs Fatima campaign, marked the 109th anniversary of the apparitions of Our Lady of Fatima. Speaking…
A case against pro-life campaigner Claire Brennan under Northern Ireland’s abortion safe access zone law has been dismissed, with Ms Brennan saying she is “ecstatic” that the case is over. Ms Brennan, who has been supported by Christian Concern, had been accused of breaching the law outside Causeway Hospital in Coleraine. The dismissal comes amid…
Excitement is growing across the Diocese of Cloyne ahead of its first priestly ordination in nine years, as Whitechurch native Rev. Tiernan Burke prepares to be ordained to the priesthood on the Feast of Pentecost. The ordination will take place in St Colman’s Cathedral, Cobh, at 3pm on Sunday, May 24, marking a joyful moment…
Before Fr Luke Macnamara OSB became a monk of Glenstal Abbey, Scripture scholar and Dean of Theology at Maynooth, he trained in medicine. At the bedside, where illness reached into questions of identity, fear and faith, he learned to listen. He said: “There was a huge emphasis on the doctor-patient relationship and listening to the…
Lough Derg’s Prior has encouraged pilgrims to make space for God as the island’s Three Day Pilgrimage season begins, saying the Lord often speaks to people in ways they do not expect. Fr Laurence ‘La’ Flynn, who marks 50 years of priesthood this July, told The Irish Catholic that the ancient pilgrimage remains a powerful…