Christians must resist the temptation to be harsh and judgemental, Bishop Donal McKeown has said. Speaking at the weekend, he likened some of the secular behaviour in modern Ireland to that of the religious hypocrites at the time of Christ. “Our secular world is very prone to precisely that Pharisaic desire to label people as…
Former world no. 1 Serena Williams has revealed in an interview that she has used the Covid-19 lockdown to study the Bible, having previously described faith as her secret weapon. In an interview on her return to tennis following the restrictions, Ms Williams said the virus gave her the time to reflect on the scriptures.…
The example of the Mother of God should offer hope in the midst of the pandemic to people worried about the future, Archbishop Michael Neary has said. Speaking at Knock Shrine on the Solemnity of the Assumption at the weekend, Fr Neary reflected on “the uncertainty which is brought about by Covid-19, the fear about…
Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin [pictured] has warned that there must be no place within the Church for “narrowness and bitterness”. He said that Catholics down the ages “have seen believers build barriers of narrowness and bitterness, when they think they are simply being zealous in defending the message of Jesus”. Speaking at Mass in…
A senior Catholic aid worker said humanitarian conditions are deteriorating in eastern Ukraine and urged Western governments and Churches not to forget the continuing six-year conflict. “We thought we’d overcome war in Europe, but a whole growing generation here now knows only war – teenagers who look like teenagers everywhere, but will tell you how…
Jesuit Fr James Martin will deliver an invocation at the Democratic National Convention this week where former Vice President Joe Biden will accept his party’s formal nomination for president of the United States. Fr Martin, an editor-at-large at America Magazine and one of the most well-known American priests on social media, will also be joined by a rabbi and an…
Two nursing homes owned by the Sisters of Charity were closed suddenly, taking staff, residents and the nuns themselves by surprise, sources say. The closure of Dublin nursing homes St Monica’s and St Mary’s and convalescent home Caritas was due to economic constraints. The sisters released a statement saying they “are very concerned about what…
Church bells and the Muslim call to prayer sounded on August 11 to mark a minute of silence for those who perished in the explosion devastating much of Beirut and its port a week earlier. The port, badly damaged by a deadly explosion of 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate, resumed partial operations. But the same…
The “downright rude and uncooperative” behaviour of a small number of Massgoers in Carrick-on-Shannon has been criticised amid ongoing Covid-19 restrictions. A note in the parish bulletin reads that the overall response “of our parishioners has been very positive. It has also enabled us to join with different families from our parish in celebrating anniversary…
Cardinal Maurice Piat of Port-Louis, Mauritius, has praised public responses to an oil spill that devastated the island’s coastline, as one prominent lay Catholic demanded “honest information” about the disaster. “Numerous families are afflicted by a pestilential and persistent odor – fishermen and all those living from the sea are suffering particularly, while ecological treasures…
Ruadhán Jones