Cardinal Sean O’Malley will lead the first ever chartered pilgrimage from the Archdiocese of Boston to Knock this summer, following a transatlantic pilgrimage from New York last year. The Boston pilgrims will travel to Ireland’s National Marian Shrine by an Aer Lingus operated chartered flight to Ireland West Airport Knock on July 14. The highlight…
Satellite photos reveal monastic devastation Iraq’s oldest Christian monastery has been destroyed by ISIS, it has been revealed. Satellite images have confirmed that Deir Mar Elia – or St Elijah’s – a 1,400-year-old monastery outside Mosul, has been destroyed by the jihadist militants. It is believed the monastery was demolished between August and September 2014, shortly after Mosul was…
An Easter Rising specialist has criticised as “inaccurate” the depiction of the Church in RTÉ’s drama Rebellion. Historian Dr Shane Kenna told The Irish Catholic that the programme’s depiction of the then Archbishop of Dublin William Walsh was particularly “unfair”. “Walsh was a nationalist and while he wasn’t a fan of the Rising he was…
The Holy Thursday foot-washing ritual will no longer be limited to men, the Vatican has ruled, but can include “all members of the people of God”. The announcement from Cardinal Robert Sarah, head of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Sacraments, follows a December 2014 letter from Pope Francis to the congregation. In his…
Eighth amendment key election issue – claim The key human rights issue of our time is the right to life of the unborn, and defence of the Eighth Amendment must become a central issue in the upcoming general election, Family and Life’s legal advisor told a gathering in Kildare recently, writes Susan Gately. Tens of thousands of Irish people were “walking…
The Diocese of Palm Beach has rejected as “completely inaccurate” claims by an Irish priest that he was “frozen out” by the Catholic Church for raising safeguarding concerns about a fellow priest. The US diocese was responding to an article in the Irish Independent which reported on the case of Strabane native Fr John Gallagher…
Irish folk singer Dolores Keane has spoken of how her Catholic faith helped her in her fight against alcohol addiction. In an interview on the Meaning of Life with Gay Byrne, the singer explained that prayer had played a big part in her life growing up, but she then lost her faith until she sought…
Catholic schools should not be governed by league tables or results, but by mercy and inclusion, according to the head of the Catholic primary schools body. Fr Tom Deenihan, General Secretary of the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA), said the danger of focusing on league tables is that “we would value the educationally gifted…
Congratulations to Kathleen Magennis from Dublin, who won our Christmas crossword competition. The first prize is a fully inclusive pilgrimage for two to Lourdes in 2016 with Pilgrimages Abroad. The three runners-up who will receive a copy of The Francis Effect DVD are: Mrs P. Gray, Dublin 9; Kathleen Murray, Co. Cork; Margaret McNulty, Limerick.…
Bishop Brendan Leahy has said it would be “great” for Christian unity if Churches could agree on a common date for Easter. The Bishop of Limerick told The Irish Catholic it would be a “truly great thing to have a common date for Easter”. Noting that Pope Francis had suggested recently that he would like…
Cathal Barry
Mags Gargan