Staff Reporter Tributes have been paid to the Pope’s representative in Ireland, Archbishop Charles Brown following the announcement that he is to take up a new appointment in Albania in the coming weeks. The US-born prelate (57) was hand-picked by Pope Benedict XVI when relations between Dublin and Rome hit an all-time-low after the Taoiseach’s…

Mags Gargan and Greg Daly Parishes are urged to fill the gap Parish priests have warned that reports of the proposed closure of up to 80 post offices in towns and villages across the country will lead to the death of rural Ireland. “The last person out should switch off the lights,” said Fr Edward…

The Archbishop of Armagh has urged politicians in the North not to undo the progress made during the peace process following a return to a “language of division” in the run up to the Assembly election last week. Archbishop Eamon Martin expressed concern that the principles of the Good Friday Agreement “are perhaps not as…

Hollywood star Sam Worthington has said that working on his new film The Shack helped him to better understand his relationship with God. The Shack is based on the 2007 novel of the same name by William P. Young, which follows the spiritual journey of a father, Mack, after suffering a family tragedy which makes…

An Irish Columban sister who was violently attacked by a masked assailant in the Philippines, will not let her “terrible ordeal” affect her work, according to her congregational leader. Sr Kathleen Melia (70), who is originally from Co. Leitrim, has worked as a missionary in the Philippines for over 30 years, in particular campaigning for…

The decision by Wexford General Hospital to remove the word ‘saint’ from its ward signs has been described as “disappointing” by the local bishop, questioning a tendency to suppress references to religious belief in Ireland’s public life. The hospital revised the ward names after it drew down funding for improved signage after opening a new…

Leading child protection campaigner Marie Collins has challenged claims by the head of the Vatican department responsible for dealing with allegations of clerical abuse. Cardinal Gerhard Müller, who heads the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF), had rejected claims by Mrs Collins that members of the CDF had obstructed proposals for reform recommended…

Last Sunday saw Dublin’s pro cathedral host the annual Rite of Election and Enrolement for 50 new members of the Catholic Church in the archdiocese. In the presence of Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, 43 catechumens (awaiting baptism) and seven candidates (baptised) attended the ceremony to welcome them to the Church, culminating in each one signing the…

The campaign to save Cistercian College Roscrea is gathering momentum. Speaking to The Irish Catholic this week, Ronnie Culliton of Save Cistercian College Roscrea (SCCR) said there had been a “great response” since parents and past pupils launched an appeal for funds to sustain the institution into the future. “There have lots of small donations,”…

This is both a hopeful time and a grim one for those concerned about the persecution of Christians and freedom of conscience, according to an Iranian convert to Catholicism. Speaking in Dublin’s Newman University Church, Wall Street Journal editorial writer Sohrab Ahmari said there are grounds for hope, “because the question of the persecution of…