The Jubilee Year of Hope is a chance for a fresh start and time a return to the heart of Jesus, Bishop Alan McGuckian declared after officially opening the Holy Door in St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast. The Bishop of Down and Connor told a packed congregation on Sunday that everyone has the ability to begin…
The canonisation of 16 Catholic women, martyred during the French Revolution, has been described as “wonderful” by an Irish priest, who added that “of all of the martyrs of the French Revolution, the 16 sisters of the Carmel of Compiègne are iconic”. Fr John Hogan, a priest of the Diocese of Meath and Postulator for the…
Following an event in a Dublin parish where a speaker who identified as transgender addressed the congregation during an ‘LGBTQIA+ Christmas Carol Service’, a leading academic on Catholic sexual ethics has said the issue is “complicated” and that parishes should refer to the Church’s recently published document on human dignity if unsure how to approach…
Former President Jimmy Carter died December 29 at his home in Plains, Georgia. At 100, Carter, who had been in hospice care since February 2023, was the longest-living US president. Carter, who served from 1977-1981 as the 39th US president, was a devout Baptist, and faith played a large role in his life. He even…
It has come to my attention – that’s to say, I admit of my former ignorance – that the Church has had a Syrian Pope. He was Gregory III and he came to the seat of Peter in 731, ruling for ten years. He sounds like a good egg: he was an “able and eloquent…
A longstanding Democratic Unionist Party MP has expressed his support for a Latin Mass pilgrimage reportedly under threat by Vatican guidelines set out in the 2021 motu proprio, Traditionis Custodes that curtailed celebrations of the Latin Mass, saying that “the Latin Mass prohibition is another example of a situation where believers are restricted in practising…
After reports confirmed that the Franciscan Friary in Clonmel was due to be closed on the first day of the year, Independent TD for Tipperary Mattie McGrath has decried the closure of a “fabulous institution” and said that he has written to the head of the friary to see if the decision can be reversed.…
Looking forward to the Jubilee of Hope in 2025, Bishop Niall Coll of Ossory diocese says he thinks “It has a wonderful message that needs to be shared in the context of an Irish society which is presenting as increasingly materialistic, secular and anxious.” Bishop Coll added: ‘Many people seem to find life meaningless and…
Bishop Martin Hayes says he is looking forward to the Lay Pastoral Worker Training Programme in St Patrick’s Pontifical University, Maynooth in 2025. “It will consist of a discernment period of six months, followed by a two-year part-time course,” he said. “We have now selected 19 people from throughout the diocese.” These lay people will…
Following much discussion in the Irish media about avoiding conflict during the Christmas period the CEO of Accord has said that rows between couples is a sign a relationship is “alive”. The head of the Catholic counselling and marriage charity Tony Shanahan told The Irish Catholic that “it is a good thing if relationships have…
Martina Purdy
Brandon Scott
Mary Kenny
Renata Steffens
Chai Brady