It’s fair to say that the pace of modern life is accelerating. Technologies that once belonged to the realm of science fiction, think of films like Gattaca (1997) or Jurassic Park (1993), are quickly becoming reality. What seemed like speculation mere decades ago is unfolding before our eyes. From in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and embryonic…
The Synodal Pathway is God’s invitation to all of us – the baptised – to enter into a process of conversion and renewal as a pilgrim people. It prioritises communion, participation and mission rather than “organisational expediency” (Final Document 44), asking us to listen to the Spirit which requires attention to Scripture, the sensus fidei…
Why you, and not me?” Pope Francis once asked while visiting inmates in Rome’s Rebibbia prison. That phrase, which showed deep empathy, still resonates in the minds and hearts of the inmates, who today live their special Jubilee of Hope – welcoming visitors, sharing stories, and expressing their wishes. With his words, the Pope sought…
Prosecutors on the Greek island of Syros have filed felony charges against two Catholic clerics and six civilians in connection with the alleged embezzlement and money laundering of more than 3 million euros in diocesan funds. The indictments this month follow an investigation that began in late 2024 when Greece’s Anti-Money Laundering Authority uncovered suspicious…
Tetiana Metyk Ukrainian refugees carry deep spiritual wounds that, with God’s help, need healing. In the small chapel at Summerhill College in Sligo, around twenty parishioners are gathered for the Sunday Liturgy. Most are young or middle-aged, attending with their families. Little girls in bright dresses, fidgety boys occasionally dashing into the college corridor to…
In January 2025, Mount Melleray Abbey, a Cistercian (or Trappist) monastery nestled at the foot of the Knockmealdown Mountains of Co. Waterford, closed its doors after nearly 200 years. Once home to over 150 monks – a bustling hub of agricultural and spiritual life – the abbey dwindled down to just six monks at the…
As the synodal journeys—universal and local—have been undertaken, it is often noted that ‘synodality’ is Vatican II in practice. As Massimo Faggioli puts it, our operating system is the Church’s self-understanding that emerged from the Council’s dialogues and documents. More than sixty years on, pastoral practice and theological reflection continue to inspire and deepen this…
We live in restless times filled with tensions between persons, between nations. We can hardly keep up with developments in technology, politics, society — it feels like everything is in motion. And the Church, too, is on a journey of change and renewal. For some, that change feels unsettling. For others, it is exciting. But…
Over a month on from the death of Br Kevin Crowley OFM Cap, the Capuchin Day Centre’s Manager Alan Bailey pays a personal tribute to the friar ‘who practised what he preached’ The legendary heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali is quoted as saying that “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here…
Vocations have fallen drastically, and many parishes are now supported by clergy from countries such as India and Nigeria, writes Eamonn Coyle Ireland, a nation with over 10,000 years of human habitation, has been continually shaped by waves of migration, conquest, and cultural evolution. From its earliest settlers in the Mesolithic period to modern globalisation,…