Francis permits seafarers to grant absolution for sins Pope Francis has given priests who minister to seafarers special permission to grant absolution for sins that usually would require the intervention of a bishop or the Vatican itself. “Many seafarers come or will come to priest chaplains with problems on their conscience that make them suffer…
The Church is ‘forever young’, new bishop says The new bishop of Madison told the congregation at his installation Mass last week that the Catholic Church “is forever young” and this is “our moment” to proclaim the good news of Christ. “In God’s time, 2,000 years is merely the blink of an eye,” Bishop Donald…
The Archdiocese of Dublin is set to receive €95 million from the GAA for almost 20 acres of land in Drumcondra, Co. Dublin. The site has potential to accommodate 1,200 apartments, while the conversion of buildings already on-site could provide more residential accommodation. According to the Irish Times it is understood three parties have been…
A court in Germany has ruled that a homeschooling Christian couple may retain custody of their children as they await an appeal against the country’s compulsory school attendance law. For nearly 15 years, Dirk and Petra Wunderlich have been engaged in a legal battle over their decision to homeschool their four children, in violation of…
Hundreds of families and friends who have lost loved ones in “very traumatic circumstances” attended a prayer service in their memory over the weekend. Over 300 people travelled from across the country to Embrace Farm’s (Farm Accident Support Network) Ecumenical Remembrance Service on Sunday June 30 in the Church of the Most Holy Rosary in…
EXCLUSIVE Garry O’Sullivan Leading Irish newspapers The Irish Times, The Irish Examiner will tomorrow (Saturday) issue formal printed apologies to one of the two young seminarians falsely accused last year in a fake seminarian sex scandal story emanating from the Irish College in Rome. Large damages are also believed to be part of the…
Only 74% of Irish trust medical vaccines Colm Fitzpatrick and Chai Brady Parents are morally obliged to vaccinate their children if it poses a serious risk to their health, priests and theologians have said. With over 20 confirmed measles cases in the Dublin area since the beginning of the year, and other fringe outbreaks…
The Irish Catholic has scooped a major international religious journalism prize for the second year running. The ‘Welcome, Pope Francis’ special issue won first place in the ‘Best special supplement – one-time special issue’ category of the Catholic Press Awards, held this year in St Petersburg, Florida. The award to the staff of The Irish…
A prayer service to comfort families will be held in Leixlip, Co. Kildare this Sunday in the wake of the tragic murder of Ana Kriegel (14, pictured). Confey parish is organising the service “for people to come to pray for families who are hurting and grieving and for the entire parish community”, according to Administrator…
The Archdiocese of Dublin has offered no objection after a Wicklow primary school’s decision to introduce a new policy that will allow girls to wear trousers and boys to wear skirts in September. Uniform policy is decided by individual schools, with this policy seemingly aimed at transgender children. The Vatican recently reiterated its opposition to gender…
Chai Brady
Greg Daly