Dana Rosemary Scallon performed her new song Light the Fire, about St Patrick’s work to spread the Faith in Ireland, to a packed Long Tower Church, Derry, on November 26. Ms Scallon was performing as part of the Derry parish’s annual novena, which takes place over nine Sundays before Christmas. The Irish singer shared her…
Mary Immaculate College’s failure to appoint a Head of Theology is “ridiculous”, a senior lecturer at the Catholic college has said, warning that the longer the situation continues, “the greater the damage to the college’s reputation”. Dr Cathy Swift in a letter to The Irish Catholic also warned that the failure adds to concerns that the college’s…
Ben Dunne did “the Christian thing” and forgave his captors, according to the son of the iconic and controversial Irish businessman whose funeral took place on Tuesday, November 28. The former managing director of Dunnes Stores was also remembered by chief celebrant Fr Damian O’Reilly as a “generous and caring” man who “cherished” the Christian…
Bishop Alan McGuckian SJ and parishioners active in ministries and apostolates from all over the Raphoe diocese gathered to discuss a vision for liturgy in the diocese on November 12. This group was drawn from choir directors, organists, cantors, musicians, singers and ministers of the Word and the Eucharist, from parishes all across Donegal. The…
Catholic schools’ bodies have warned that a draft for a new SPHE curriculum for Senior Cycle “ignores” and “underplays” spiritual wellbeing. However, they broadly welcomed the revision of the social, personal and health education (SPHE) curriculum, calling it “coherent and relevant” to the lives of modern teens. The National Council for Curriculum and Assessment (NCCA)…
After a Finnish MP was acquitted of hate speech charges levelled against her for expressing Christian beliefs about marriage, an Irish lawyer said her case showed the “chilling effect” such laws can have on Christians. As the Irish Government considers introducing its own hate speech laws, Mr Lorcan Price warned Catholics in Ireland that authorities…
A popular Catholic app has defended employing Irish actor Liam Neeson for prayer voiceovers, as it faced backlash due Mr Neeson’s pro-choice positions. In a statement, Hallow, a prayer app with millions of users, said Mr Neeson and his fellow actors have done “an incredible job” recording scripts for the Advent season. Mr Neeson joined…
A Finnish case shows the dangers hate speech laws pose for Irish Christians, Ruadhán Jones hears As Ireland considers introducing controversial hate speech laws, a Finnish case against a prominent Christian politician shows the “chilling effect” these laws could have here. While former MP Päivi Räsänen was cleared on November 14 by the Helsinki Court…
The Irish Synodal Pathway needs to be “much longer” than the five years initially proposed, the synod’s steering committee has told the Irish bishops conference. The Irish synod, launched in March 2021, was slated to end in 2026 with a national gathering, after five years of consultation and prayer. However, shortly after the Irish bishops…
Lecturers and staff at Mary Immaculate College (MIC) are “frustrated” over a continued “vacuum” of information regarding a proposed structural alignment with University of Limerick (UL), The Irish Catholic can reveal. Correspondence sent to staff following union engagement with MIC President Prof. Eugene Wall and seen by this paper reiterated the union’s view that it…