Staff Reporter The Pope’s much anticipated exhortation following the Synod of Bishops on the Family is expected to be published by the end of the month. The key document, which will contain official Church teaching, is expected to address controversial issues such as whether divorced and remarried Catholics can receive Communion. Pope Francis has said that…

Mags Gargan, Cathal Barry and Greg Daly Dioceses across the island of Ireland have reported large numbers participating in Pope Francis’ worldwide promotion of the Sacrament of Confession as part of the ‘24 Hours for the Lord’ initiative which took place last weekend. In Limerick Fr Tony O’Riordan SJ, who was commissioned as a ‘Missionary of Mercy’ by Pope Francis, celebrated…

Catholics should encourage a “vigorous debate” among India’s intellectuals “about the danger of surrendering the future of the country to the aggressive elements in society”, Church leaders have said. Speaking in Bangalore at the 32nd plenary assembly of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India, Cardinal Baselios Cleemis said most Hindus do not seek to impose…

The principal of one of Ireland’s largest Catholic post-primary schools has credited male classroom assistants for the impressive exam results achieved by boys in his school. St Paul’s High School, Bessbrook in Co. Armagh, has almost doubled the amount of “good” GCSE passes by boys in just two years. In 2013, 36% of boys at…

Connecting dissident violence in the North to commemorations of the 1916 Easter Rising is too “simplistic” according to a leading political historian. In the wake of the attempted murder of a prison officer in Belfast, CofI Bishop of Down & Dromore, Harold Miller said he was afraid dissident republicans will attempt further assaults in the…

Survivors of sexual abuse who have summoned the courage to come forward have taught us many things, but one clear truth is that, in terms of its consequences, abuse is not an event, but more akin to a permanent condition. It’s not that abuse happens at a specific time and place, and then is over.…

Archbishop Eamon Martin poses for a post-Confirmation selfie photo with pupils from St Patrick’s Primary School in Donaghmore, Co. Tyrone.

Hollywood star Jennifer Garner has said working on a Christian film has helped to restore her own faith. The actress stars in upcoming movie Miracles from Heaven, which recounts the true story of a young girl who had a near-death experience and was later cured from a digestive disorder. Speaking to E! News the star…

Pakistan remains ill-served by its blasphemy law, writes Paul Keenan Two very different ‘heroes’ were celebrated in Pakistan last week, their differing yet converging stories being instantly illustrative of the religious gulf that continues to pervade in that country. On February 29, news filtered from Adiala prison in Rawalpindi that Mumtaz Qadri had been hanged…

Leading homeless campaigners have welcomed the prospect of the creation of a cabinet minister with sole responsibility for housing in the next government, but have cautioned that such a move would be “lip service” if introduced in isolation. “If there’s a cabinet minister and that’s all, then that would be window dressing,” Focus Ireland’s Mike…