The Bishop of Ossory has promised that he will shortly give priests a detailed report on controversies around his management of the diocese. Dr Seamus Freeman has been the subject of criticism from many priests in the diocese in recent years and the issue has led to considerable disquiet. The issue has caused what can…
Bishop Brendan Leahy has warned that to rebuild the Church there first needs to be “an acknowledgement in humility of its defects”. Speaking ahead of Limerick’s diocesan synod due to take place this weekend, the bishop said the assembly will be an opportunity to take both the good and the bad of Church life and…
Staff reporter A last minute decision to attend the funeral of a colleague saved the life of a 79-year-old priest. Fr Michael Coen of Kilconly in Co. Galway was due to hear Confessions at Knock Shrine but decided instead to concelebrate the funeral Mass of Fr Michéal Mannion in Clonbur. However, Fr Coen suffered a heart…
A troubled nation may face more testing times, writes Paul Keenan The dying days of March proved to be a dreadful period for the Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). On March 20, a much-respected Assumptionist priest, Fr Vincent Machozi, was gunned down in his parish in North Kivu Province in the east…
Police in the North have launched an investigation after a pro-life campaigner claimed she was “pushed” by a Sinn Féin member at an Easter Rising commemoration. According to The Irish News, Catherine Sewell said she and her husband Ryan were manhandled as they tried to distribute anti-abortion leaflets at the event in Carrickmore, Co. Tyrone,…
Pope’s reminder of the source of salvation Only God’s infinite mercy can bring us salvation, Pope Francis said in his Easter message. Describing the world as “full of persons suffering in body and spirit”, with the daily news full of stories of brutal crimes and large-scale armed conflicts, the Pope said “the risen Christ points out paths of hope to beloved…
Pope Francis has appealed to Pakistan’s government to take steps to ensure the safety of the country’s Christians and other minorities. The Pope’s appeal came the day after a terrorist bombing in the Punjab provincial capital Lahore killed at least 70 people and injured more than 300 who were spending Easter afternoon in a public…
Hope still for kidnapped Salesian priest The Austrian cardinal who said in an Easter Vigil homily that the kidnapped Salesian priest Fr Tom Uzhunnalil had been crucified in Yemen on Good Friday has since rowed back on his claim. After speaking to Church leaders in the region, Vienna’s Cardinal Christoph Schönborn stated that he believed “there is still hope”, and…
This Easter was a very special one for the people of Burma (Myanmar), Yangon’s Cardinal Charles Maung Bo has said in an Easter message. Celebrating the outcome of the November 2015 elections, and the election of the country’s first non-military president after 50 years of military rule, he said “Easter breaks forth like a river…
Croatian soldiers serving in the NATO peacekeeping mission in Kosovo attend Easter Mass on March 27 at St Nicholas Church in the town of Janjevo, Kosovo. CNS
Michael Kelly
Cathal Barry
Paul Keenan
Courtney McGrail