Plans by Government to introduce a free hot meal in primary schools to all children is not a good use of money, according to the director of Social Justice Ireland Fr Sean Healy SMA. Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphrey made the announcement after publishing an independent evaluation of the School Meals Programme – which…
Easter hope is hard to see for survivors of an earthquake that left 50,000 dead and around 1.5 million homeless in Syria and Turkey two months ago, an Irish missionary based in Aleppo has said. Christians in the Syrian city celebrated the Easter triduum amid the ruins of homes destroyed by the earthquake and 12…
The murder of a Romanian woman in prostitution in Limerick is a reminder that the sex trade is “inherently violent, dangerous and harmful”, Irish charity Ruhama has said. Their statement comes after Geila Ibram, a 27-year-old woman from Romania, was found dead at a residence in Limerick on Tuesday, April 4. Habib Shamel, an Afghan…
Russell Crowe, star of recently-released The Pope’s Exorcist that was partly filmed in Ireland, said he thinks Ireland still has “a deep affection” for the Church. “When we were shooting, for sure, we were aware of being respectful of people’s beliefs,” the Hollywood star said in an interview coinciding with the film’s release over the…
Catholics must promote the common good over guns, a Maynooth professor has said, after five people were killed and eight injured in a shooting in bank in Kentucky in the US. “Excessive individualism” regarding rights to bear arms is “out of sync” with Catholic anthropology, Tobias Winright, a professor of moral theology at St Patrick’s…
Faith-based education is needed in the North to promote forgiveness, justice and compassion, a Belfast-born nun and principal has said. Her comments come as politicians and activists push for integrated – secular, State run – education in the North, calling faith-based schools “segregated” and accusing them of fostering division between Protestants and Catholics. However, Sr…
The Pope: Answers is one of Disney’s newest documentaries, and sees Pope Francis explain that the Church cannot allow itself to become merely “a club of nice people”. Released on April 5 and directed by Spanish filmmaker Jordi Évole, the one hour and 23 minute-long documentary shares a conversation between Pope Francis and 10 young…
There were no Easter messages from Ireland’s top politicians this year, with some social media users expressing disappointment that the country’s largest religion wasn’t represented during its most important feast. Only a small number of politicians made mention of Easter, while none of the leaders of the country’s biggest political parties commemorated the occasion. “Wishing…
Pope Francis prayed on Monday for lasting peace in the North, as the island of Ireland marks the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. The Pope included the offering in his Regina Coeli prayer on April 10, saying: “With a grateful spirit, I pray to the God of peace that what was achieved in…
Minister for Health Stephen Donnelly has revealed that over 8,500 women availed of abortion services in Ireland in 2022. Minister Donnelly revealed the figure on April 4 on RTÉ Radio One’s News at One programme, which sees the number of abortions carried out in Ireland since the law became operational rise to around 28,500. Reacting…
Chai Brady
Ruadhán Jones