Almost three out of four Irish Catholics now believe it is time for the Church to mount a tactical retreat from education and divest many schools to the State, according to an online poll of readers of The Irish Catholic. The findings also reveal that people believe this will allow the Church to devote more…
With news that Ireland’s favourite funeral song is Andrea Bocelli’s classic hit ‘Time To Say Goodbye’, composers and musicians are insisting that liturgical music is still relevant today. In response to the research about the song, composer of Catholic liturgical music and a contemporary Christian songwriter Ian Callanan, said that he wasn’t surprised about the…
Veterans taking part in the 2018 Warriors to Lourdes pilgrimage to France said the journey has positively influenced their lives and benefited those around them. Maj. Jeremy Haynes, a first-time spiritual pilgrim and Lourdes visitor, said he is a changed man since visiting the shrine, where Mary appeared to St Bernadette Soubirous in a series…
Church social action charity Caritas has rushed to distribute thousands of face-masks and provide eye drops to people living in Indonesia’s Semarang Archdiocese following a series of volcanic eruptions. Considered one of Indonesia’s most active volcanoes, Mount Merapi, in central Java, has seen at least nine eruptions over the last month, sending steam and ash clouds…
In the aftermath of Iraq’s elections, Christians want to see a government formed that is free from the sectarianism that has torn apart the country, and they want Iran’s influence to diminish. Both issues have played a huge role in politics since the 2003 US-led invasion. Fr Emanuel Youkhana, a priest of the Assyrian Church…
Lough Derg buses gearing up Bus Éireann this week launched its Lough Derg bus service for this year’s pilgrimage season. Operating for four days a week, the Route 486 service begins on June 1 and ends on August 13. Based on demand, the service will be available from Friday to Monday each week, including the upcoming June Bank Holiday,…
Ethical intervention in economy needed – Pope and Patriarch Pope Francis and ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople called on Christians to work together to build a culture of solidarity in the face of growing economic inequality and a lack of respect for the human dignity of the poor and of migrants. The two leaders met privately on May 26 before addressing an international…
St Colman’s Society for Catholic Liturgy has announced that the Fota IX International Liturgy Conference will be held in Cork, from July 7-9 this year. The subject of the conference is on the divine office entitled ‘Psallite Sapienter: The Liturgy of the Hours’ and will be explored by a panel of experts drawn from the United…
Hundreds of people attended a candlelit vigil this week after the body of an 18-year-old, described as a “kind young man” by the parish priest, was found in a field in Louth. Fr Michael Murtagh, PP of Dunleer parish, said he saw Cameron almost every day, and that he was “a delightful kid to meet…
Catholics groups across Ireland have been invited to attend the annual Cork Eucharistic Procession this Sunday, in a celebration of witnessing to the Faith. The Procession, now in its 93rd year, commenced in 1926 when a group of businessmen in the city approached the then Bishop, Daniel Coholan, with a view to having a Eucharistic…
Colm Fitzpatrick
Chai Brady