On June 11, the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland implemented a new policy titled ‘A Safe and Welcoming Church – Safeguarding Children Policy and Standards for the Catholic Church in Ireland’. Mr Aidan Gordon, who has been the CEO of the National Board since April 2024, shared the priorities,…

Since their foundation, the Irish State hospitals were under the supervision and operation of Church orders which provided care grounded in an ethos dictated by Catholic social teaching. Throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries, many of Ireland’s hospitals were established by religious orders, specifically orders of nuns. But as the issue of hospital ownership becomes…

Fr Gerry O’Hanlon SJ   The second (and final) session of the 16th Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on synodality convenes in Rome next October. Where are we at? Judging by the Irish response to the 2023 synthesis report, ‘Towards October 2024’ (May 2024), we are very much on track. In that…

Since their foundation, the Irish State hospitals were under the supervision and operation of Church orders which provided care grounded in an ethos dictated by Catholic social teaching. Throughout the 19th and 20th Centuries, many of Ireland’s hospitals were established by religious orders, specifically orders of nuns. But as the issue of hospital ownership becomes…

International charity Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) has revealed the agency spent €144.5 million over 5,000 projects in 138 countries in 2023, according to a recent report. “Once again, this year, these numbers reflect a true miracle”, said the head of the organisation, Irishwoman Regina Lynch. The international charity counts on “the generosity…

Luca Attanasio Father Gabriel Romanelli, an Argentinean of Italian origin, belongs to the religious family of the Incarnate Word (Ive). He is the only Catholic parish priest in the entire Gaza Strip. His parish, dedicated to the Holy Family, is located in the al-Zaitoun quarter of Gaza city (north of the Strip) and, before the…

The success of the first ‘Intentional Young Adult Ministry’ gathering, that took place on June 22 in Co. Kildare, shows a promising future for youth ministry in Ireland, as young adults continue to inspire and support one another in their faith journeys. This initiative, hosted by the Irish Episcopal Conference (IEC), reflects a hopeful and…

Theo McDonald Ireland’s hate speech bill has garnered international attention from critics who argue it will impede on free expression and debate. Home to a multitude of big tech headquarters such as Meta and Twitter or X, Irish domestic legislation will have major international repercussions for public participation on the internet and for society as…

The Irish sisters using goats and donkeys to cheer up the residents of a nursing home in Dublin are just the latest example of the unique relationship between the Church and the animal kingdom. Mount Sackville Nursing Home in Dublin has been making waves this week after the Sisters there revealed that key to their…

Ava Westendorf and Matt Letourneau Lying right outside of Phoenix Park, Mount Sackville Nursing Home is a peaceful, animal-loving, growing community that recently, through the Congregation of Cluny’s donation, built a €1.3 million euro expansion to build a new wing. When I first walked in to Mount Sackville on the morning of June 14, I…