Church of Ireland Primate Archbishop Richard Clarke has warned politicians that a further liberalisation of abortion laws could pressurise parents of unborn children diagnosed with life-limiting conditions to terminate their pregnancies. Archbishop Clarke told The Irish Catholic he feared that liberalisation could create a “eugenics culture” and “begin a process where if there is any…
De La Salle brothers from different parts of Ireland assembled recently in Castletown, Portlaoise to take stock and plan for the future. The day began with morning prayer, followed by the ‘Report of the Year’ by Bro. Francis Manning, Irish Sector Coordinator. Bro. Laurence Hughes, Oxford, newly appointed provincial, was the chief speaker. He presented…
A dog reacts as it is blessed outside San Anton Church in Madrid, Spain on Sunday, when hundreds of people brought their pets to be blessed for the feast day of St Anthony, patron saint of animals. Photo: Reuters/Andrea Comas
Bishop Brendan Leahy has launched a new book which considers the subject of mercy, not only through a careful reading of relevant Scripture passages, but by exploring revealing extracts from literary classics and examples from popular culture. The book, The Message of Mercy, is written by Amalee Meehan, who works in faith development at the…
Singer Andrea Corr has revealed that she will be turning to prayer to help combat pre-concert nerves ahead of her first tour with The Corrs in over a decade. The 41-year-old experienced songstress admitted she still suffers from anxiety before performing and regularly prays before going on stage, according to a report in The Irish…
Sheila O’Leary, retired sacristan of St Finbarr’s Oratory, Gougane Barra in Co. Cork was honoured recently as a Dame of the Pontifical Equestrian order of St Sylvester. It was a fitting honour for Sheila O’Leary who gave so much of her time to the church. On December 29, Sheila was surrounded by her daughters Pauline…
The President of the Pioneers Total Abstinence Association has insisted that the ban on the sale of alcohol on Good Friday should remain in place. James Shevlin told The Irish Catholic he would “very much oppose” reversing the ban because “it is an acknowledgment that the country wants to hold onto some of its Christian…
The organiser of the national ploughing championships, the biggest event of its kind in the world, has said that she didn’t know how she would survive without God in her life. In an interview on The Meaning of Life with Gay Byrne, the legendary Anna May McHugh said “God is in my life in a…
The parents of one of the victims of serial child killer, Robert Black have said they prayed for the murderer, who died in Maghaberry Prison in Co. Antrim last week. In 2011, Black, originally from Scotland, was convicted of the 1981 abduction and murder of nine-year-old Jennifer Cardy from Ballinderry in Lisburn, Co. Antrim. “There…
Staff Reporter Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has warned that the artwork displayed at the national seminary in Maynooth gives the “wrong impression” of what the Church’s message is. Noting that the long corridors of St Patrick’s College are “tapestried” with large portraits of bishops, Dr Martin claimed that most of them were “of little or any artistic…
Cathal Barry
Mags Gargan