Brandon Scott and Chai Brady Two members at the forefront of the Church’s safeguarding efforts have described the Church as being “very safe for children at the moment” due to the successes of the safeguarding reforms that have been implemented in dioceses across the country and that politically-motivated statements attacking the Church and calling for…

Following the publication of the Iona Institute’s new study ‘The rapid rise of ‘New Age’ weddings in Ireland: how should the churches respond?’, which reveals that fewer couples are opting for church weddings, journalist and commentator Breda O’Brien said that it can be challenging for churches to compete with the range of options on offer…

Recently, 40 Parish Pastoral Councils and Parish Finance Committees were officially commissioned to serve from 2024-2028 across the Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh, and Kilfenora. Training for these groups is currently taking place in the dioceses of Galway and Clonfert. Fr Gerard McCarthy, Diocesan Pastoral Outreach Coordinator, in a conversation with The Irish Catholic said, “We…

This year the Catholic Church celebrated the 110th World Day of Migrants and Refugees on September 29. The date is a moment for prayer worldwide and an opportunity for reflection on the reality of migration and its effect on the people, the world and the Church. Commenting on the importance of Our Lady Aparecida on…

The very unique church dedicated to Our Lady of the Rosary and the Guardian Angels, in the Sallins Parish celebrated 100 years with Mass led by Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin Denis Nulty on September 29. In his homily during the Mass celebration, Bishop Nulty said “similar churches would be found in mission stations, frontier towns, mining…

The recent visit of St Bernadette’s relics to Dublin drew around 2000 children and their teachers to Our Lady of Victories parish, an experience Fr Frank Reburn described as deeply humbling. He noted that schools had been contacting the parish office to request visits to the sacred relics. “We were getting phone calls from schools…

The Society of St Vincent de Paul marked the Feast Day of their patron saint with a special Mass celebrated by the Most Reverend Alan McGuckian SJ, Bishop of Down and Connor, at St Vincent de Paul Parish Church in Ligoniel, Belfast, on September 24. Nearly 100 members of Ireland’s largest voluntary charity attended the…

St Martin Apostolate, located in Dublin, is hosting an extraordinary exhibition featuring a life-sized replica of St Bernadette of Lourdes, along with a first-class relic. This event offers a unique opportunity to see the saint’s likeness as she appears in her resting place at the convent in Nevers, France. The lifelike replica is housed in…

Exclusive Stradbally Church robbed in broad daylight A Dublin priest has called on whoever took a much-loved relic during the Ploughing Championships to give it back so it may “give consolation to a wider scope of people”. Fr Bryan Shortall OFM Cap. of Priorswood parish in Dublin borrowed the relic of Italian teenager and saint-to-be Carlo…

Two politicians have voiced their “relief” in the aftermath of Minister for Justice Helen McEntee’s decision to drop the controversial ‘hate speech’ section of the proposed Criminal Justice Bill, but have warned that the issue may not yet have been kicked to touch as it’s likely the decision was made “to avoid backlash and divisive…