As India continues to experience violent protests against a controversial citizenship law, Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai has said citizenship should never be based on a person’s religion. “The ongoing controversy and demonstrations and counterdemonstrations concerning the Citizenship Amendment Act (are) a cause of great anxiety for all citizens and could harm the country,” Cardinal…
Pope Francis prays for Philippine typhoon victims Reciting the Angelus with thousands of people in St Peter’s Square the day after Christmas, Pope Francis asked them to join him in reciting the Hail Mary for the victims of Typhoon Phanfone in the Philippines. The Pope told the crowd that he shared the suffering of the…
A champion of ecumenism, a prison chaplain and singing trio ‘The Priests’ are amongst those to be honoured by Britain’s Queen Elizabeth in her traditional new year list of awards. Tyrone-based cleric Fr Kevin Mullan is to be awarded the British Empire Medal (BEM) for what Buckingham Palace describes as “services to inter-Church collaboration and…
The new British government should acknowledge the “fragile peace” people of Faith have strived for in Northern Ireland and prioritse the peace process as Brexit looms, MEP Mairead McGuinness, Vice-President of the European Parliament, has said. Following the Conservatives’ massive election victory on December 12 and Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s moves to make it illegal…
Bishop Denis Brennan marked the departure of the Adoration Sisters from Bride Street Church in Wexford with a homily praising them for their “commitment and dedication”. The sisters were present in the convent for 144 years. The historic building will be made into a residence for American students. The group of enclosed nuns was established…
Plans proposed by a Government body to place all children in mainstream schools, including those with special needs, has been dubbed “catastrophic” and “not possible”. The recommendation from the National Council for Special Education’s (NCSE) for a ‘total inclusion model’ would see children placed in mainstream school regardless of the level of their disability. Principal…
The Cathedral parish in Armagh has introduced contactless payments to meet the needs of parishioners as more and more people don’t carry cash. A new free standing portal was installed in St Patrick’s Cathedral, with Administrator Fr Peter McAnenly saying it will help support the demands of the parish. Fr McAnenly said: “It is a…
True Christmas spirit will be felt on the streets of Cork City in the run-up to Christmas Eve, as hundreds of students from 22 schools across the city don the familiar yellow jackets and rally the troops for the annual SHARE (Students Harness Aid for the Relief of the Elderly) fundraising effort. The iconic SHARE…
Róise McGagh Northern Ireland’s bishops have said new abortion laws in Northern Ireland are “unjust” and that no one is obliged to cooperate with them. Currently there is a regulatory framework in place in the North that governs abortion provision until more permanent legislation is expected to be introduced in three months. “The new…
Pope Francis has abolished the obligation of secrecy for those who report having been sexually abused by a priest and for those who testify in a Church trial or process having to do with clerical sexual abuse. “The person who files the report, the person who alleges to have been harmed and the witnesses shall…
Michael Kelly
Chai Brady