Rebuilding Confirmation by Christopher Wesley (Maria Press, $US 10.95PRP) This important little book is subtitled: ‘Because we need more than another graduation’. This will arouse echoes in the mind of pastors and parents, for there is certainly a great confusion it seems among Catholics about what Confirmation is. Rites of passage are very important, and Irish…
It’s been a strange month for online Catholic news. July 1 saw Pope Francis informing Cardinal Gerhard Müller that he would not be renewing his tenure as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, the Church’s doctrinal watchdog. Readers may recall his public disagreement with Irish child protection advocate Marie Collins in…
Fr Vincent Sherlock The Redemptorist Fr Peter Burns directed our priests’ diocesan retreat this year. In some of his talks he spoke to us of Faith and the absolute need for it to be personal. He drew the vital distinction that though it need be ‘personal’, if truly lived it can never be private. By its…
EXCLUSIVE The Government is unaware of the cause of death of more than one in three asylum seekers who die in State care, The Irish Catholic can reveal. The failure has been described as “despicable” by a leading campaigner for asylum seekers. New statistics obtained by this newspaper under the Freedom of Information Act show…
The Government does not know the cause of death of the majority of the asylum seekers who have died in State care in the last 10 years. While two people are recorded as dying as a result of suicide and one resident was stabbed to death, the “suspected cause of death” of over one third…
One of the Pope’s closest advisers on the family has insisted that when dealing with marital breakdown, the Church must put the needs of children ahead of a simplistic application of rules. Cardinal Christoph Schönborn told The Irish Catholic that in the past the Church too often focused on sexual sins to the detriment of…
A revitalising form of Christian worship is making new ground in Ireland after having been recently approved by the Pontifical Council for the Laity. The Parish Cell System of Evangelisation entails a small community of faith groups, under the guidance of a leader, speaking about God’s role in their life as well as listening and…
In Shannon, Co. Clare, a group of women are working together to produce little dresses with big meaning. The Shannon Angel Sisters create ‘Angel Gowns’ for babies born too soon. At a time when a family finds themselves thrown into the world of neonatal intensive care units (NICU’s), their lives can be turned inside out.…
Emer McGlone My name is Emer McGlone I am 15 years old. I live in Boho, Co. Fermanagh and am a member of Cleenish Parish. I attend Mount Lourdes Grammar school in Enniskillen. Clogher don Óige was launched in 2003 by the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Clogher. Its aim was to inspire young…
Greg Daly
Mags Gargan
Colm Fitzpatrick