EXCLUSIVE Just five first-year seminarians entered Maynooth to begin studies for the priesthood this year, The Irish Catholic can reveal – one fewer than last year which was considered the lowest in the college’s 223-year history. While returns from all of the country’s dioceses compiled by this newspaper show that 15 men have formally…
The first Irish diocese to be subject to a second review of safeguarding practice has been praised for its handling of abuse allegations and treatment of those making complaints and being complained about. The review of the Diocese of Kilmore, conducted by the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church in Ireland during…
Doctors’ right to conscientious objection will become a “flashpoint” in efforts to protect the lives of unborn children against the background of looming abortion legislation, pro-life GPs have said. “We may have lost the battle on the Eighth but the new battle is to protect freedom of conscience,” Dr Valerie Morris told The Irish Catholic,…
A priest who worked in inter-face communities in Belfast has said it is vital that Stormont is re-established to give people hope about their future. Fr Gary Donegan CP, nationally renowned for his ongoing commitment to conflict resolution and peace building in the North of Ireland, said there is “frustration” among communities of different faith…
The Church needs bishops who promote unity, “not soloists singing their own tune or captains fighting personal battles”, Pope Francis told new bishops from the Church’s mission territories. “And, dear brothers, flee from clericalism, an anomalous way of understanding the Church’s authority, one common in many communities where sexual abuse and the abuse of power…
Presidential-hopeful Joan Freeman has credited the intercession of Our Lady at Knock for healing her of a skin condition when she was a teenager. The Independent Senator who is running for the presidency said that her Faith was “absolutely responsible” for curing her of eczema on a visit to Knock Shrine when she was younger.…
The last Irish Magdalene Laundry owned by the State should be converted into a museum to commemorate the women and children who suffered there, a leading Irish academic has said. Dr Gillian O’Brien, Reader in Modern Irish History at Liverpool’s John Moore’s University, said that women have been second class citizens for “a very long…
The Vatican is set to respond to claims made by the former papal nuncio to the US which include allegations that Pope Francis covered up abuse. A statement was released by the Council of Cardinals this week which stated they were “aware that in the current debate” of recent weeks the Holy See is about…
The New York State Office of the Attorney General is the latest to announce that it is launching an investigation of sexual abuse of minors by Catholic Church clergy, and at least two of the state’s eight dioceses confirmed receiving subpoenas seeking access to its records. In a September 6 press release, the agency said…
Kilmore Diocese appears to be a model for child protection, writes Greg Daly Anyone in doubt about the role of canon law and proper application of Church processes in tackling child sexual abuse would do well to look at the newly-released ‘Second Review of Child Safeguarding Practice in the Diocese of Kilmore’. Following on…
Colm Fitzpatrick
Greg Daly