Bishop of Derry Donal McKeown has expressed his hope that next month’s international summit of bishops on the challenges facing young people can breathe fresh life into the Church’s youth ministry in Ireland. Dr McKeown, who along with Archbishop of Armagh Eamon Martin will represent Ireland at the month-long Vatican event, told The Irish Catholic…
EXCLUSIVE Just five first-year seminarians entered Maynooth to begin studies for the priesthood this year, The Irish Catholic can reveal – one fewer than last year which was considered the lowest in the college’s 223-year history. While returns from all of the country’s dioceses compiled by this newspaper show that 15 men have formally…
The first Irish diocese to be subject to a second review of safeguarding practice has been praised for its handling of abuse allegations and treatment of those making complaints and being complained about. The review of the Diocese of Kilmore, conducted by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland during…
Doctors’ right to conscientious objection will become a “flashpoint” in efforts to protect the lives of unborn children against the background of looming abortion legislation, pro-life GPs have said. “We may have lost the battle on the Eighth but the new battle is to protect freedom of conscience,” Dr Valerie Morris told The Irish Catholic,…
A priest who worked in inter-face communities in Belfast has said it is vital that Stormont is re-established to give people hope about their future. Fr Gary Donegan CP, nationally renowned for his ongoing commitment to conflict resolution and peace building in the North of Ireland, said there is “frustration” among communities of different faith…
Presidential-hopeful Joan Freeman has credited the intercession of Our Lady at Knock for healing her of a skin condition when she was a teenager. The Independent Senator who is running for the presidency said that her Faith was “absolutely responsible” for curing her of eczema on a visit to Knock Shrine when she was younger.…
The last Irish Magdalene Laundry owned by the State should be converted into a museum to commemorate the women and children who suffered there, a leading Irish academic has said. Dr Gillian O’Brien, Reader in Modern Irish History at Liverpool’s John Moore’s University, said that women have been second class citizens for “a very long…
Kilmore Diocese appears to be a model for child protection, writes Greg Daly Anyone in doubt about the role of canon law and proper application of Church processes in tackling child sexual abuse would do well to look at the newly-released ‘Second Review of Child Safeguarding Practice in the Diocese of Kilmore’. Following on…
The site of the martyrdom of St Oliver Plunkett has become the inspiration for the Church’s newest male religious order. Columbian priests Fr Manuel Agudelo Marin, 52, and Fr Hector Nagles Santa, 53, became postulants of the Adorers of the Sacred Heart of Jesus of Montmartre OSB, during a private ceremony in Grancey-le-Château, near Dijon,…
A scheme helping asylum seekers access third level education has been criticised by charities, who say it needs to be less restrictive. The Government has announced the continuation of the Pilot Student Support Scheme which was first introduced in 2015 and provides support similar to the current Student Grant Scheme. However the Irish Refugee Council…
Chai Brady
Colm Fitzpatrick
Greg Daly