Schools need to embrace Christian meditation The Diocese of Elphin has urged Catholic schools to try Christian meditation, noting that the practice appears absent from many schools in the diocese. In a statement on Facebook, the diocese said there is “a lot of talk about ‘mindfulness’ these days”, adding that it was “strange” that so few people seem to be…

A South Sudanese bishop has called for the release of a former regional governor who has been held without trial since his December 22 arrest by the national security service. “All citizens have equal rights before the law and have the right to be brought before a court to be punished according to the law…

Oscar-winning actor Jeremy Irons has said that the Catholic Church is right to say abortion is a sin, because it harms women. The Cork-based actor, who is married to Irish actress Sinead Cusack, said that while he believed “that women should be allowed to make the decision”, that he also believed the Church is correct…

Post-synodal apostolic exhortation due on April 8 Pope Francis’s eagerly awaited post-synodal apostolic exhortation on love in the family will be released on the morning of Friday, April 8, the Vatican has announced. The panel of speakers at the press conference, at which Amoris Laetitia (The Joy of Love) will be released, include Cardinal Lorenzo Baldisseri, general secretary of the Synod…

Paranoia as a result of the clerical sex abuse scandals is “hampering” priests from engaging fully with society, a prominent psychotherapist has warned. Kevin Egan, who has lectured in All Hallows College in psychology and pastoral theology, told The Irish Catholic that “the main thing that blocks mission in the Church today is paranoia or…

Pope Francis has met with the traditionalist Society of St Pius X, a group that separated itself from the wider Church decades ago in opposition to the reforms of the Second Vatican Council. The Vatican confirmed the weekend meeting between the Pontiff and Bishop Bernard Fellay, Superior General of the Society in a sign that…

Bernadette Smyth Abortion is a criminal offence in Northern Ireland, governed by sections 58 and 59 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861 and section 25 of the Criminal Justice Act (NI) 1945. The core purpose of this law is the protection of the unborn child. Ever since the Family Planning Association of Northern…

Kenyan election cannot be ‘a matter of life and death’, say religious leaders Kenya’s religious leaders have denounced the formation of militias ahead of next year’s general election. “We appeal to all politicians with their vested interests to cease making elections a matter of life and death for Kenyans,” the Inter Religious Council of Kenya, which comprises the country’s Catholic bishops’ conference as well as the leaderships…

The Archbishop of Armagh has called for “the shocking increase in levels of childhood poverty” in the North to be a priority in the upcoming Assembly election. Archbishop Eamon Martin led a delegation from the Northern Ireland Catholic Council on Social Affairs (NICCOSA) for the first official meeting between representatives of the Catholic Church and…

Poland’s Catholic bishops have called for a permanent ban on abortions in the country to mark the 1,050th anniversary of Poland’s  conversion to Christianity in the year 966. “Each person’s life is protected by the fifth commandment, do not kill. So the attitude of Catholics is clear and unchanging,” the bishops’ conference said. “In this…