Archbishop Diarmuid Martin was the main celebrant at a Mass in St Francis Xavier’s Church, Gardiner Street in Dublin to celebrate the recognition of Fr John Sullivan SJ (1861-1933) as Venerable Servant of God. The church was packed to capacity as people of all ages came to celebrate the recent declaration by Pope Francis of…

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…

The narrative of Pope Francis as a progressive reformer is becoming so set in stone as to be beyond rethinking or nuance, writes John L. Allen Jr.

A number of members of religious orders are due to receive awards this week to honour their work in charity, overseas development and social activism. This weekend Dublin’s Lord Mayor, Christy Burke, will confer the Honorary Freedom of the City of Dublin on Bro. Kevin Crowley of the Capuchin Day Centre, which offers free meals…

Harry Fitzgerald, Anne Nagle, Michael Dovel, Hannah Best and Warwick De Silva at the Pure in Heart stand in the Divine Mercy Conference last weekend in Dublin’s RDS. See Page 8. Photo: John Mc Elroy  

Fr Peter McVerry will lead an ‘Evening of Reflection for Lent’ in St Mary’s Church, Dingle, Co. Kerry on Monday, March 2 at 7.30pm. The advocate for the homeless will share his Gospel witness as part of Dingle Parish’s ‘150th Fé Bhláth’ celebrating St Mary’s Church (1865-2015). Enquiries or information: 066-9151208 or tighnasagart@gmail.com  

Ireland’s 24th Divine Mercy Conference was a “full house” at the weekend, according to conference organiser Don Devaney. As expected, 3,500 attended on Saturday, with 3,000 coming along on Sunday. Mr Devaney said “having an all-Irish line-up made a difference” and he received a lot of positive feedback on the speakers, with people praising how…

Archbishop Diarmuid Martin of Dublin has advised priests that, in the context of forthcoming referendums, churches “are not appropriate places” to distribute campaign literature and that in “no circumstance” should they be distributed through schools. A statement on the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference website says that “experience has shown that during political campaigns, churches, because…

There has been a mixed response to new measures announced aimed at sustaining small schools. The head of the Catholic Primary Schools Management Association (CPSMA) said the new measures help “alleviate” community concerns, particularly in isolated areas. CPSMA General Secretary, Fr Tom Deenihan, said that while “the initiative will not lead to an increase in…

Dublin archdiocese aims to continue operating a car park in the grounds of Clonliffe College for events in Croke Park while it seeks clarification of an An Bord Pleanala decision that it is not exempt from planning permission. The car park, which can take more than 3,000 vehicles, including 100 specials needs places, has been…