Mags Gargan and Chai Brady New missionaries will ‘inject new life’ Irish parishioners are being urged to embrace new thinking and a new wave of missionaries from overseas as a way to revitalise the Church in Ireland. Decades after Cardinal Tomás Ó Fiaich provoked derision in the 1980s by saying the Church in Ireland would…

Chai Brady President Michael D. Higgins has expressed the hope that Pope Francis will travel North of the border during an expected visit to Ireland next summer. In a 15-minute meeting with Mr Higgins in Rome the Pope said the prospect of a visit to the North was a possibility. Mr Higgins told the Pontiff…

An Irish priest known for his work protecting children in danger of trafficking and abuse has briefed the Oireachtas on the depraved tortures faced by vulnerable young people. Fr Shay Cullen, a Columban missionary, has been fighting horrific treatment of women and children in the Philippines, and has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize…

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin has expressed his “humanitarian concern” for Ibrahim Halawa, an Irish citizen still awaiting trial in Egypt after four years of imprisonment. The Archbishop of Dublin used the visit of Pope Tawadros II of Alexandria as an opportunity to highlight the 21-year-old’s case in front of the Egyptian ambassador during a meeting at…

Ireland will provide €6m to two struggling African countries that have been ravaged by war and chronic poverty. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Central African Republic (CAR) are among the poorest countries in the world, with food insecurity and malnutrition affecting 6.4 million people. Each country will receive €3m from Ireland through…

The independent watchdog which monitors handling of abuse allegations in the Irish Church has seen its “sharpest decline” in allegations since it started keeping records. The National Board for the Safeguarding of Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland (NBSCCCI) received 86 new allegations during the period 2016/2017. The allegations include 72 relating to sexual…

Organisers have issued an appeal for at least 3,000 volunteers to assist with the planning and organising of the World Meeting of Families (WMOF) and expected papal visit to Dublin next year. More than 1,500 people have expressed an interest in helping, but twice that number is needed to form part of the operational team…

Staff reporter A social media campaign by the Diocese of Kildare & Leighlin asking for suggestions for the 2017 parish Christmas gift has been an “outstanding success”. Bishop Denis Nulty, who made the appeal in a video, told The Irish Catholic it was the first time the diocese had tried “this way of engaging with…

Pope calls for an end to violent clashes in Central African Republic Pope Francis has prayed for the end of conflict between Christian and Muslim militias in the Central African Republic. Last week clashes between the two warring sides intensified in the eastern town of Bria on May 20, which led to the deaths of…

Staff Reporter A young rugby player has revealed the strength he receives from his faith, speaking at a Mass to celebrate sport in his parish in Co. Sligo. Connacht prop and Irish under-20 squad member, Conan O’Donnell, told St Patrick’s in Strandhill that “God is important in my life”. “My faith was nurtured by regular…