EXCLUSIVE Dublin diocese looks set to divert funds previously reserved for future priestly training to pay lay pastoral parish workers instead. It is believed this initiative comes straight from Archbishop Diarmuid Martin and is to be debated this week by the Dublin priests’ council. The move comes as the shortage of trainee priests continues…
Irish Muslims should be “advocating far more loudly” for the rights of persecuted Christian Asia Bibi, who continues to be prevented from leaving Pakistan after blasphemy charges were dropped against her, a prominent Christian rights charity has said. National director of the organisation Aid to the Church in Need, Dr Michael Kinsella, has urged Muslims…
Moves towards a parish-based ‘apprenticeship’ model of priestly formation would mean the end of the national seminary at Maynooth, a former professor at the college has said. Calling for prospective clergy to study theology in Trinity College Dublin rather than at St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, Boston College’s Prof. Oliver Rafferty SJ told The Irish Catholic that any…
The patronage and ethos of Ireland’s schools should be determined at a local level by parents and communities, Minister for European Affairs Helen McEntee has said. While paying tribute to the Church and to the role of Church teachings in educating generations of Irish people, Ms McEntee stressed that not all children had positive experiences…
Catholic education has built a “reputation of success” because of its ethos and sense of belonging, an academic has said after Catholic schools topped Northern Ireland’s leader board. A performance guide which focused on the amount of top marks students received for the 2017/18 academic year found nine out of the top 10 schools were…
Chai Brady and Hannah Harn Missionary sisters in Ireland have said they are “very concerned” about members of their religious order in Mozambique after a cyclone devastated the country. The death toll of the natural disaster has risen to over 750 in three countries in the south of Africa. In Mozambique the fatalities are believed to be about…
The former religious affairs correspondent at RTÉ has told how Bishop Eamonn Casey tried to put pressure on him in the 1980s by urging other bishops not to talk to him. Kieron Wood – who was religious affairs correspondent for the national broadcaster from 1987-1990 – told The Irish Catholic this week that Dr Casey…
A Franciscan science teacher from rural Kenya who donates most of his salary to help poorer students has been crowned the world’s best teacher. Beating 10,000 nominations from 179 countries Peter Tabichi (36) was awarded $1 million (€886,185). The maths and physics teacher at Keriko secondary school in Pwani Village won the Varkey Foundation Global…
The broadcasting regulator has rejected multiple complaints that programmes broadcast leading up to last year’s referendum on the removal of the Eighth Amendment failed to be fair, objective and impartial. Two of the complaints to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI) were made against The Tonight Show, hosted by Matt Cooper and Ivan Yates, and…
Bringing leaders of youth initiatives together the Archdiocese of Armagh aim to revamp youth ministry and promote the idea of listening and learning from young people and each other. The Cornerstone Catholic Youth Conference took place over the weekend and is a new venture being spearheaded by the Armagh Diocesan Youth Commission (ADYC). The aims…
Greg Daly
Colm Fitzpatrick
Chai Brady