Teachers look forward to meeting pupils’ needs in very difficult times Following a summer of hope and hard work, management and staff at Catholic schools look forward to welcoming back students after an “extraordinary” effort to reopen schools. Primary and secondary schools are set to reopen at full capacity over the next two weeks…
Month: August 2020
Cork parish digs deep to provide for Kenyan sister town
Work is almost complete on a new maternity ward in Turkwel, Kenya, following a donation of €105,000 by a Ballineaspaig Parish, Cork. Clare McCutcheon of Ballineaspaig’s Faith in Action (FIA) group was involved in organising the “huge fundraising” drive for the ward. Speaking to The Irish Catholic, she said the project “evoked generosity in people I’ve…
INTO calls out Medmark’s treatment of medically vulnerable
The Irish National Teachers’ Organisation (INTO) has called out the teachers’ occupational health service Medmark for advising that teachers with underlying conditions return to schools as they re-open, describing the move as “grossly unfair”. INTO has further called on the Government to intervene so that members can appeal against their Medmark decisions, and have the…
Jerry says a big thank you
Corkman Jerry Daly has said he would not have been able to continue distributing The Irish Catholic during the Covid-19 crisis if it were not for the help of local people – including local members of the An Post team. Mr Daly (89) has been a promoter of The Irish Catholic in Drinagh for many…
Unearthing Ireland’s religious past
New technology offers a fascinating insight into the religious nature of the early Irish writes Jason Osborne The veil of time has been pulled back and a direct glimpse into Ireland’s pre-historic past was offered as a joint team of archaeologists from Belfast and Aberdeen unearthed what they believe to be evidence of a series…
For rugby ace Billy, Christ is No. 1
England and Saracens star No.8 Billy Vunipola has attributed his reluctance to kneel as part of the English Premiership’s anti-racism protest to his Christian Faith. Before a recent clash between Saracens and Bristol, Mr Vunipola stood, while the majority of his team-mates took a knee. Explaining his decision on The Good, The Bad, and The Rugby podcast,…
Places of worship attacked every three days in North
There have been over 600 attacks on places of worship in Northern Ireland in the past five years, prompting calls for action to protect churches and other religious buildings. Following a Freedom of Information request to the police, Christian Action Research and Education (CARE), have discovered that since 2014/15, there have been 601 crimes recorded…
Senator Mullen calls on Government to end discrimination against fee-paying schools
Senator Rónán Mullen has called on Minister for Education, Norma Foley, to reverse what he has described as a “discriminatory move against fee-paying schools”. He further asked that fee-paying secondary schools be allowed to access the Covid-19 re-opening fund on the same basis as schools in the free scheme. Earlier this month, a Department of…
Turkey turns second historic Istanbul church into mosque
A month after the former cathedral Hagia Sophia was converted from a museum into a mosque, another Istanbul church-museum, renowned for its exquisite Byzantine mosaics, will undergo the same transformation. Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, has ordered that the 700-year-old Chora Church – currently the Kariye Museum – be turned into a fully functioning mosque.…
People shouldn’t be afraid to challenge priests to live by Gospel – archbishop
Archbishop Michael Neary has urged parishioners to challenge priests to ensure that they are living up to their vocation. He was speaking in Knock Shrine on Sunday as he presided at the ordination of Fr Shane Costello. Pointing out that seven priests of the Tuam Archdiocese have died in the last year, Dr Neary said…