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 Matthew
 Carlson   One of the biggest events for young Catholics in Ireland has been cancelled this year due to low bookings and slow fundraising with volunteers and attendees opting to focus on the World Meeting of Families this August. Although there is some disappointment among organisers, they will now set their sights on the WMOF.…

Matthew
 Carlson   A former Irish international rugby player has been chosen to speak at the Pastoral Conference at the World Meeting of Families this month. Ronan O’Gara played fly-half for several Irish teams and is now the assistant coach of the Canterbury Crusaders in New Zealand. O’Gara will be speaking on the topic of ‘Celebrating…

A religion department in Dublin’s Trinity College will no longer be offering an undergraduate degree in Catholic Theological Studies following significant internal changes between departments within the university. The Loyola Institute, which was established in 2012 following an agreement between Trinity College Dublin and the eight religious congregations associated with the Milltown Institute of Theology…

Parents will continue to “foot the bill” for primary education costs until the sector is properly funded, a Catholic schools association has said as a third of families admitted back to school fees have put them in debt. Despite schools making efforts to keep costs as low as possible for parents, a survey conducted by…

Matthew
 Carlson   The recent drought in Ireland may have revealed a significant archaeological find – what is thought to be the childhood home of St Oliver Plunkett just outside Oldcastle. The hot weather and lack of rain this summer has exposed the outline of a house on what is now the Loughcrew estate with a…

A prominent pro-life group has said that a new president who defends the right to life could be a powerful voice for those who support pro-life initiatives. The comments come after the apparently unofficial launch of a campaign which would see Fianna Fáil councillor Éamon Ó Cuiv running for the presidential election. Spokesperson for the…

Unionists need to take their “heads out of the sand” and accept that a soon-to-be Catholic majority in the North of Ireland will pave the way for a reunification of the island, a prominent Irish priest has said. Fermanagh priest and well-known civil rights activist, Fr Joe McVeigh, said that in accordance with recent census…

The top Vatican official who will accompany Pope Francis on his trip to Ireland this month has said he was “shocked” to hear allegations of years of sexual abuse and harassment by his former boss Theodore McCarrick. The Vatican announced at the weekend that Pope Francis had accepted Dr McCarrick’s resignation from the College of…

The International Federation of Catholic Universities’ (IFCU), an organisation of over 200 Catholic universities throughout the world, has elected its first female president. At the conclusion of the 26th General Assembly Meeting in St Patrick’s College, Maynooth, last week Dr Isabel Capeloa Gil was elected as the organisation’s new president. She is the Rector of the…

Walkers from all over Ireland are taking part in the annual nine-day Walk to Knock to raise money for chronically hungry children in South Sudan and other countries where global hunger charity, Mary’s Meals provides school feeding programmes. Five groups walking under the banner ‘Step By Step To Feed The Next Child’, will set out…