German Chancellor Angela Merkel has visited Rome to meet Pope Francis in advance of the upcoming G7 summit in Munich this June. Speaking after the unusually long 40-minute audience, Ms Merkel said the main purpose of her visit had been to outline the summit agenda, as its emphasis on the elimination of poverty was “of…

Cardinal Bertone ‘knew about Pope Benedict’s resignation’ seven months before event Former Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone knew Pope Benedict XVI was considering stepping down at Pope at least seven months before his resignation was announced, according to a Huffington Post interview. The cardinal says he had many doubts about Pope Benedict’s plan, and said they “debated the topic at length after it…

The Jesuit Centre for Faith and Justice (JCFJ) has warned that a recent investigation report into care at the national children’s detention facility is of “extreme concern”. Eoin Carroll, Advocacy and Social Policy Research Officer at the JCFJ told The Irish Catholic “the current physical surroundings and internal architecture of Oberstown makes it an extremely…

Pope Francis has dismissed the former parish priest of Bangor, Co. Down from the clerical state following his conviction for sex abuse charges. James Donaghy was convicted in December 2011 of 23 sex abuse charges against three individuals and sentenced to 10 years in jail in 2012. In 2013 he was sentenced to another two…

A new opinion poll conducted by Amarach Research on behalf of The Iona Institute has found that 91% of respondents believe that when a child is being placed for adoption, it is best to try and place the child with a man and a woman. The second preference was a woman on her own, followed…

State body accused of ‘misleading’ on debate

The priest presiding at the funeral Mass of Oisín McGrath has paid tribute to his parents’ faith and selflessness when faced with the shock death of their son. The 13-year-old was a pupil at St Michael’s College in Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh, and was was fatally injured while playing football during his lunch a week ago.…

Church spokespeople have distances themselves from controversial comments about the film Fifty Shades of Grey made by a high-profile priest. Fr Paddy McCafferty, who serves in the Co. Down parish of Crossgar, has appealed to Catholics to avoid the film, which he describes as “contrary to the Faith and offends against human dignity”. Fr McCafferty…

Hundreds of people attended the funeral of popular Co. Tyrone parish priest, Canon Tom Breen, who was remembered last week as “humble and compassionate”. Canon Breen, who recently turned 84, passed away in the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen and was buried in St Davog’s Church in Dromore. Canon Breen was remembered for having…