Pope to meet students as part of synodal process Highlighting the importance of a Church that truly listens, Pope Francis will participate in a virtual meeting hosted by Loyola University in Chicago with students from North, Central and South America. The February 24 virtual meeting, titled ‘Building Bridges: A Synodal Encounter between Pope Francis and…
Category: News
ACN praises Catholics under fire in Myanmar
Staff reporter Aid to the Church in Need’s recent call for prayer for Myanmar was in recognition of the “extraordinarily dangerous” situation the Faithful find themselves in there, Director of ACN Ireland, Michael Kinsella told The Irish Catholic. The pontifical foundation invited Catholics on January 27 to observe a day of prayer on February 1 the…
Holy Land’s bishops invite Orthodox leaders to synodal path
Catholic bishops in the Holy Land invited their Orthodox counterparts to contribute to the consultation process leading to the 2023 Synod on Synodality. In a letter dated January 24, the Assembly of Catholic Ordinaries of the Holy Land (ACOHL) explained that Catholics in the region were taking part in the local stage of a two-year synodal path launched by…
Pope Francis key to improving Irish-Vatican relations, says expert
Pope Francis’ leadership has been key to improving diplomatic relations between Ireland and the Holy See, an expert in Vatican diplomacy claims. Victor Gaetan told The Irish Catholic that, according to sources in Rome, it was “the Irish Government’s willingness to work with Pope Francis that inspired it to re-open its embassy in 2014”. Mr Gaetan, author…
Cardinal Marx apologises to victims after Munich report
Cardinal Reinhard Marx offered a personal apology to abuse survivors on Thursday, in the wake of a report criticising the handling of cases in his archdiocese of Munich and Freising. Speaking at a live-streamed press conference in Munich, southern Germany, the 68-year-old cardinal said that the treatment of victims was “inexcusable,” reported CNA Deutsch. “I am attributed responsibility in…
Key NI census date announced for autumn
Staff reporter The North’s Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) this week announced the timeframe for a phased release of data from the census held across the region last year. The agency said that the first results on raw population statistics will be published by June, with further Census 2021 results published in stages until summer 2023. The…
Vatican Roundup
Peter’s Pence donations fall by 15% in 2021 Donations to Peter’s Pence fell by around 15% in 2021, the Vatican announced on Friday. In an interview with Vatican News published on January 28, Father Juan A. Guerrero, S.J., prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy, said that, while donations were still arriving from some countries, there was…
Tribute for popular author Colm Keane
The popular author and publisher Colm Keane has died after a cancer diagnosis. Over recent decades he created some 29 books, many of which were highly successful. He touched an enormous number of people through the books he and his wife Una O’Hagan, published through the small publishing firm they founded and ran themselves. In…
‘Shadow of secrecy’ still hangs over North
Staff reporter Primate of All-Ireland Archbishop Eamon Martin has used the 50th anniversary of the unlawful killing of 14 unarmed Catholics by the British army to criticise the fact that no one has ever been prosecuted. “Very painfully, the Bloody Sunday families were denied for too long the truth about what happened to their loved…
Senator calls for withdrawal of abortion review appointee
Senator Rónán Mullen has suggested that the abortion review chair appointee should “honourably withdraw”. This comes in light of the appointee, Ms Marie O’Shea’s, past social media activity which shows a preference for the repeal of the 8th Amendment, and the legalisation of abortion in the State. Examples included “retweeting a post in favour of…




Ruadhán Jones



Peter Costello

