Down & Connor Faith and Life Convention The radical challenge set before Catholics is to learn a new language, writes Michael Kelly One of the Pope’s closest advisers has urged the Church in Ireland to continue to work to build a culture of co-responsibility between laypeople and clergy. Cardinal Óscar Rodríguez Maradiaga was speaking…
Down & Connor Faith and Life Convention We need to learn a new way to reach those who do not feel themselves part of the Church, writes Paula McKeown The last Saturday in September is now permanently blocked out in my diary, as it is on that date that we in the Diocese of…
To strengthen and support young people in the Faith, members of the Synod of Bishops will need to listen to their real-life stories, interpret what they hear in the light of the Gospel and make decisions that will lead to an authentic renewal of the Catholic Church, said Brazilian Cardinal Sergio da Rocha. “Often we…
A song from the first album in almost five years by 2000s Canadian pop star Avril Lavigne has entered the US Christian music charts at number five. Ms Lavigne’s new single, ‘Head Above Water’, addresses how she turned to God whilst battling Lyme disease, which she was diagnosed with in 2014. She has described the…
Social media and a culture of brief sexual encounters is leading to loneliness among students and young people according to a university chaplain. Commenting on a BBC study that found 40% of people aged 16-24 often or very often feel lonely, Fr Leon Ó Giolláin SJ said he was “not surprised”. A culture that encourages…
The Irish Church should divest Catholic schools if they’re not providing a religious education, a Waterford and Lismore parish priest has said. Fr Michael Mullins said that it’s better for Catholics to become a “stronger minority” and that Catholic education is “decapitated” without religious teaching. “Education is more than just the accumulation of facts. It…
A prominent pro-life group has accused the Government of “railroading” abortion legislation which will leave no opportunity to make “life-saving amendments” to the bill. The Pro-Life Campaign (PLC) said Minister Simon Harris is “shutting down debate” on the forthcoming abortion legislation which is due to be introduced to the Dáil this week. Despite expectations, the…
Signalling his belief that the Church faces a serious crisis, Pope Francis asked every Catholic in the world to pray for the protection of the Church from attacks by the devil, and also for the Church to to be stronger in combatting abuse. Pope Francis asked Catholics to pray the rosary each day in October,…
Catholics will continue to regard sex outside marriage as a sin despite India’s Supreme Court ruling that adultery will no longer be a crime, Church leaders say. The country’s top court has struck down a 158-year-old British-era law which said it was a crime, punishable with a five-year jail term, for a man to have…
The Government needs to “wake up” and commit to protecting Christians who are persecuted globally for their faith, an Irish charity has said. Church in Chains, an outreach group which focuses on raising awareness of the plight of persecuted Christians world-wide, said that our Government is failing to protect the rights of religious groups. Launching…
Michael Kelly
Greg Daly
Chai Brady
Colm Fitzpatrick