January
The new year began with news that Mayo-born Fr Patrick Peyton – who died in 1992 – began his first steps towards formal sainthood, with Pope Francis having acknowledged his ‘heroic virtues’, decreeing him ‘venerable’. Known as the ‘Rosary Priest’, Fr Peyton organised massive Rosary rallies in cities around the world, enlisting the help of Hollywood celebrities to promote the devotion across the mass media.
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Also this month, the Pro Life Campaign welcomed Archbishop Eamon Martin’s decision to begin 2018 by speaking up in defence of the right to life, ahead of the referendum debate. In his New Year pastoral message, Dr Martin urged people not to fear speaking up for the equality of all human life. “You have a democratic right to do so as citizens committed to the Common Good,” he said.
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Renowned exorcist Fr Pat Collins told the paper that he is inundated almost on a daily basis with desperate people seeking his help, adding he is “baffled” that Irish bishops are not taking more action to appoint priests to deal with everything from people claiming ghostly encounters, being pulled from their beds, and even full-blown possession.
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The month ended with a serious question about whether the requirement to get married in a church building needs to changed. The query came after Pope Francis married a pair of flight attendants on board the papal plane. Bishop of Limerick Brendan Leahy said the act opened up new perspectives in Church rules and pastoral care.
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February
‘Equate: Equality in Education’, a group which campaigned for reduced religious influence in Church-owned schools, was forced to close down following a series of complaints to the State’s ethics watchdog over controversial funding.
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Pope Francis recognised the martyrdom of a bishop, seven Trappist monks and 11 other religious men and women killed by extremists in Algeria in the 1990’s.
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A special edition dedicated to 160th Anniversary of Lourdes celebrated the life of St Bernadette Soubirous, and her miraculous vision of Mary. Recounting his experience of the area, Fr Robert McCabe said: “I thank God for the many friends of Lourdes who have helped me discover the transforming message of Massabielle.”
Access the complete edition here.
Bishop of Galway Brendan Kelly said the Church must do everything possible to support women facing crisis pregnancies. We need to “support them in every way that we possibly can if there’s a child in the way” he explained, pointing out that people must be unafraid to say that “it is a baby that’s on the way from the very first moment”.
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Martin O’Brien spoke with the then-Bishop of Dromore John McAreavey about his failings in reporting historic abuse cases. He said: So, what I will want to do is for the good of the diocese. I will obviously reflect in the coming period as to how best go forward with that.” He added that in a leadership role, it’s easy for trust to get damaged and so the question is really to assess and see if you can “recover trust and rebuild trust”.
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March
One of Ireland’s leading Islamic scholars, Dr Ali Selim, rejected claims by an Imam that Muslims can vote to remove constitutional protection for unborn children. “Abortion is an act of murder and who can sanction murder. If you give people permission to do that basically you are giving them permission to murder,” he said.
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Fr Gerry Byrne of the National Association of Healthcare said that many nurses and other hospital staff are finding themselves constantly fire-fighting mode. He also warned that hospital chaplains across the country feel over-stretched as a result of limited resources.
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Dr Dermot Farrell was ordained as Bishop of Ossory and said that faith renewal has to be developed from the ground up. “It has to be done parish by parish, diocese by diocese. Certainly, Pope Francis will give some impetus but it won’t be instant renewal. It takes time and it takes effort,” he said.
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New survey figures revealed that Ireland’s young adults practice their Faith in surprisingly large numbers. The findings showed that Irish young adults remain among the most religious young adults in Europe, with around 24% of young people attending Mass weekly.
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A special 17-page edition on St Pio of Pietrelcina recalled the important impact he made on Catholics worldwide. Fr Francesco Napolitano said: “At Padre Pio’s Mass, there are those who cry, those who suffer, those who pray rapturously, and those who, by means of an unforeseen divine light, come to know their sins and visibly repent.
Access the complete edition here.
Northern Irish bishops vowed to work to overturn a Vatican decision that would see Pope Francis skipping a historic trip to the North during the World Meeting of Families (WMOF).
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April
Fine Gael Senator Catherine Noone, provoked criticism after complaining publicly on social media about an Easter Sunday Mass where the priest preached about the sanctity of all human life. Westport-based priest Fr Charlie McDonnell took to Twitter to say he had been saddened by what he described as an “attack” on the priest.
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In a landmark document on the call to holiness for all believers Rejoice and Be Glad, Pope Francis issued a rallying cry to Catholics urging them not to allow a rigid adherence to rules to turn the Church into a museum. He also insisted that priests must become “passionate missionaries” rather than bureaucrats sitting behind a desk.
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Sr Loreto of the Irish Presentations Sisters was the subject of a documentary – Sister India – which shared her story of teaching in India, and celebrated the work of other faith educators in the country.
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Utrecht’s Cardinal Willem Eijk suggested that the Irish Church must be prepared to consider closing hundreds of churches to concentrate resources on building strong faith communities. The Dutch cardinal said “we should not spend all the financial reserves we have – the next generation should not be left with empty hands in the announcing the Gospel”.
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Prominent Protestant Minister Dr Ken Newell, said Pope Francis’ visit in the North would help resolve underlying religious and historical differences as could help revive Stormont. “I would see his coming North as similar to the Queen’s visit going South,” he said.
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May
The Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) reiterated its historical Catholic character and affirmed its commitment to Church teaching in the face of criticism of the society’s failure to take a stance in the abortion referendum. In a letter to the paper, SVP National President Kieran Stafford said although the society will not be issuing advice or comment to its members, it is still a lay Catholic organisation, strongly committed to the values of Catholic social teaching.
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Bishop Dermot Farrell said parishioners play a vital role in informing Mass-goers about Catholic social issues, including the right to life. He told RTÉ that there is a tradition in the Catholic Church, down through the years, of lay people preaching in church on various social issues.
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In a Referendum special, Archbishop Eamon Martin appealed to voters saying “the innate dignity of every human life is a value for the whole of society – for people of all faiths and none. It is rooted in reason as well as in faith.”
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Dr John Murray said Minister Simon Harris expressed “serious ignorance” about Church teaching after criticising Bishop Phonsie Cullinan’s decision to stop atheist politician John Halligan from being a Confirmations sponsor.
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With news of the passing of the referendum on the Eighth Amendment, the paper said that those who stood up against it can feel rightly proud of their response. “Those who voted ‘No’ on May 25 are a minority – but they have a choice whether they are content to be dismissed as an irrelevant minority or whether they will fight to be a creative minority.
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June
There was huge disappointment across Catholic communities in North as hope faded about the prospect of a papal visit to the region, Derry’s Bishop Donal McKeown said. “Theirs is clearly disappointment on the part of many people – that’s a fact,” he told the paper, adding that if the Pontiff visited, he would be assured of a warm welcome.
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The decision by Pope Francis to spend part of his trip to Ireland with homeless people in the Capuchin Day Centre would shed a light on those left behind by the economic recovery, SVP’s Kieran Stafford said. There is very “graphic evidence of frontline poverty in Ireland” that can be seen in the capital every day of the week.
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Waterford and Lismore’s Bishop said that Catholic hospitals need to resist performing abortions “at all costs” and medical professionals should have the right to oppose carrying them out. “Forcing the staff in a Catholic hospital to act against their ethos is not consistent with tolerance, openness and respect,” he said.
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The paper won four awards and received an honourable mention in this year’s Catholic Press Awards, the first time it has ever competed in the industry competition.
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Well-known American actor Chris Pratt advised young people to recognise the existence of a loving God and encouraged them to pray as it’s good for your “souls”. “You have a soul. Be careful with it…reach out to someone in pain. Be of service, it feels good and its good for your soul,” he said.
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July
Church-goers were “upset and angry” after it was revealed that the ‘Say Nope to the Pope’ group were ordering tickets for the Pope’s Mass only to destroy them. The group attracted the interest of 5,000 people on Facebook, with many people posting that they are ordering significant numbers of tickets but won’t use them as a form of protest.
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Pope Francis was urged to use his visit to Ireland next month to highlight Government inaction on climate change as targets continued to be missed despite political promises. Éamonn Meehan, executive director of Trócaire, said that the Pope’s leadership on a vital issue like climate which imperils the future of the planet would “resonate with the public”.
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Maynooth University historian Dr Jacinta Prunty told the paper that if Pope Francis were to visit a former Magdalene Laundry during his WMOF, he should hear the complex reality of the homes rather than a caricature of the institutions. “Will he be given only the grimmest Hollywood version? Or is there a chance that he might be briefed in a way that is closer to the historical record, with all its complexities and questions,” she said.
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It was revealed that Ireland’s last diocesan seminary, St Malachy’s, which served the diocese of Down and Connor and other northern dioceses was to close in September. “The closure of the diocesan seminary is a sad moment for all, not least for all those who have worked closely alongside the formation team who have contributed immensely to the formation of the seminaries,” a statement announcing its closure.
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August
The Loyola Institute, a religion department in Dublin’s Trinity College ceased offering an undergraduate degree in Catholic Theological Studies following significant internal changes between departments within the university.
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Fr Peter McVerry said hundreds of unfairly-incarcerated prisoners across Ireland should be released to mark the Pope’s visit to the country. He pointed out that with around 4,000 people currently imprisoned, the State could “easily release several hundred prisoners” who are no threat to anybody, and particularly women who are usually jailed for minor offences.
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Reports that more than one in five families referred to Gardaí when overnight accommodation is unavailable are Travellers were unsurprising said chaplain to the Travelling community Mallow’s Fr Tom Naughton. “There is a whole huge effort needing to be made with the integration of travellers in society in general, and society coming halfway with initiatives and endeavours and projects of working together so that misunderstanding and fear of the ‘other’ is broken down and taken away,” he said.
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Pope Francis’ letter to the world’s Catholics on clerical sexual abuse was praised for its strong language but criticised for lacking promises of action against clergy who have committed or concealed abuse.
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It was revealed that more than one million people tuned into Irish television at some point during the Papal Mass. RTÉ said that an average of 535,000 viewers saw the full Mass from start to finish from their television screens at home, in parish centres and community halls.
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September
Meath’s Bishop Tom Deenihan said priests in commuter towns need to engage actively with their communities to boost the Church’s visibility. “If the community isn’t coming into Church, it’s about the Church going out into the community. Now, that sounds very clichéd, but we have to be visible, we have to be present, and we have to be meeting people where they’re at,” he said.
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Just five first-year seminarians entered Maynooth to begin studies for the priesthood, the paper revealed – one fewer than last year which was considered the lowest in the college’s 223-year history. In all, 14 of Ireland’s 26 dioceses have no new students either entering the seminary or participating in a predatory year.
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Priests must challenge parishioners if they want to make the Mass relevant to their lives and prompt them to delve deeper into their Faith. Irish religious and lay-catechists called for homilies to be “more accessible” and really connect with people if they’re to make an impact.
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Students raised in religious homes are more likely to succeed, regardless of whether they went to a faith school or not, new research found. The study’s lead author, Prof. Alice Sullivan, said: Pupils who were raised in religious homes were more likely to succeed academically than those from non-religious backgrounds”, regardless of school.
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Ireland’s border communities feared border structures and barriers would become magnets for violence in the wake of a hard Brexit, Archbishop Eamon Martin said.
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October
Church in Chains, an outreach group which focuses on raising awareness of the plight of persecuted Christian worldwide, said that our Government is failing to protect the rights of religious groups. The comments came after the charity revealed that over 200 million Christians in 60 countries are persecuted, threatened, and fear for their lives weekly or daily.
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The 37-year-old moth of five Emma Mhic Mhathúna died after having been told that she had terminal cancer, after a misreading of a 2013 smear test. Her parish priest Fr Eoghan Ó Cadhla said she got “tremendous strength” from her “deep faith”.
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Fr James Noonan OCD, Prior of St Teresa’s Church in Dublin’s city-centre said parents are struggling to support their children financially during the Christmas holidays. “But I think that we just need to keep the balance between what’s genuine in this and what comes from the heart, and what is just a commercial outlet for it as well.”
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Irish missionaries who supported St Oscar Romero during his time as Archbishop of San Salvador welcomed the martyred bishop’s canonisation, feeling their constant support for him had been vindicated.
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The paper revealed that the NI government is relying on charities to help their most vulnerable citizens because the social welfare system can’t cope. Government offices have been increasingly referring hard-pressed welfare recipients who are struggling to SVP to meet a shortfall caused by welfare reform.
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November
Archbishop of Armagh Eamon Martin said the Church in Ireland needs to embrace the model of engagement of Pope Francis and think seriously about national synod or meeting of the Church here. He hoped “we could take the whole question of youth, and that in itself would form a really exciting, and really engaging process over the next year or two…”
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Catholic priests added their voices to for the Government not to forget Northern nationalists as on a Brexit deal intensified. “It’s of crucial importance to us that there be no border,” Fr Maurice McMorrow of the Diocese of Kilmore, told the paper. “We don’t want to see a mishmash of a job where we fall foul of the whole situation, but that’s what could happen between Theresa May’s situation and her political considerations.
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Parishioners were urged to stand up for hundreds of millions of persecuted Christian by ‘turning their churches red’ this month in celebration of ‘Red Wednesday’. “They’re our brothers and sisters who are being persecuted mercilessly for bearing the name of Jesus Christ, Bishop Phonsie Cullinan said.
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Merchants Quay Ireland (MQI), a leading agency working with people experiencing homelessness, said it expects the crisis to get worse as Christmas approaches. It predicted a “surge” in demand for vital services warning that it has already seen an increased demand on last year in recent months.
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The college chapel of the national seminary at Maynooth, one of Ireland’s most iconic churches reopened to the public having been closed for visits due to acts of vandalism.
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December
The last month of the year began with news that the Archdiocese of Dublin had been left in the in the dark over plans by the Religious Sisters of Charity to relinquish control of the St Vincent’s Healthcare Group and enable the building of a new National maternity Hospital. According to a diocesan spokesperson, there had been no contact between the sisters and the archdiocese around the issue, despite religious orders needing permission from the local ordinary – in this case Archbishop Diarmuid Martin – or even the Vatican when seeking to dispose of property above certain values.
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Parishioners at the Dublin church founded by Cardinal Newman were “delighted” that a second miracle attributed to him has been recognised by the Vatican, paving his way for sainthood. Fr Bill Dailey, parish priest of Newman University Church said there was a sense of excitement from parishioners. “I got texts and notes of congratulation and people letting me know they’d seen the story.”
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Given decreasing numbers of people attending Mass in Ireland, bishops said the laity need to be creative and original in bringing back those who have fallen away. Bishop Denis Nulty told The Irish Catholic that all Catholics are “evangelisers” and must try their best to build bridges and invite people back to the Church.
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The Mullinalaghta GAA football team shook the country after beating the Kilmacud Crokes to win the Leinster Football Club Final. “It is tremendous for the whole community. The lads have put their hearts and souls into it. They have been supported every step of the way by the community and their families – because it’s such a small community everybody is part of it,” said local priest Fr Michael Bannon.
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