Category: Irish News

New ambassador to the Holy See appointed

The Irish diplomat credited with enhancing relations between Ireland and the Vatican is to return to Dublin after completing her post in Rome, Emma Madigan – who was appointed Irish Ambassador to the Holy See in 2014 – is to be replaced by Derek Hannon who is expected to present his credentials to Pope Francis…

Voters ‘intimidated’ in Church- owned schools, TDs claim

Left-wing TDs Clare Daly and Richard Boyd-Barrett have complained that voters were “intimidated” when voting in the May 25 abortion referendum by being confronted with religious imagery in Church-owned schools. Speaking in the Dáil last week, Ms Daly said there had been “strategic location of religious iconography” in order to, she had been told “influence…

Baptism barrier’ removal plan is unconstitutional ‘game of bluff’

Government plans to ban oversubscribed Catholic schools from favouring Catholic applicants over non-Catholic ones may be unconstitutional, and are likely to be challenged in the courts, a leading expert on the Constitution has warned. Explaining that Irish law allows justifiable and proportionate discrimination in certain circumstances, UCC’s Dr Seán Ó Conaill told The Irish Catholic,…

Pilgrimage unites Christians and remembers WWI

During a pilgrimage with the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh to the Somme in Belgium, Archbishop Eamon Martin pledged to reach out in friendship and “build trust and lasting peace on the island of Ireland”. During a series of tweets about the ecumenical pilgrimage which aimed to mark the centenary of the end of…

Boy to walk Camino in aid of hospice care

A young Irish boy is getting ready to walk hundreds of kilometres across Spain to raise funds for those most vulnerable in our society. Eight-year-old Christopher Nugent is walking 300km from the city of Leon to Santiago de Compostela in the hope of raising funds for hospice care across Ireland, after having walked 200km to…

New proposals could lead to abortion on demand – pro-life group

A prominent pro-life group has criticised proposals made by Labour MP, Stella Creasy, to remove any criminal sanction for those involved with abortion. Commenting on the June 5 Westminster emergency debate on abortion, Dawn McAvoy, co-founder of Both Lives Matter said: “Stella Creasey wants full decriminalisation which would leave abortion largely unregulated. It could allow…