Two missionary sisters captured by rebels in northern Mozambique were released unharmed after 24 days, according to their congregation, the Sisters of St Joseph of Chambery. Sr Maria Inez Leite Ramos and Sr Eliane Costa Santana, both originally from Brazil, were reported missing on August 11 after rebels claiming to belong to the Islamic State…
The Vatican has named a church in Kazakhstan as the first minor basilica in Central Asia. The Minor Basilica of St Joseph in Karaganda was built at the request of persecuted Catholics who had been exiled to the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic by the Soviet Union. “Our beautiful church was built 40 years ago. At…
Letter from Rome Watch Catholics at most parishes when it comes time for the homily at Sunday Mass, and you’ll see body language and facial expressions not unlike the waiting rooms of dentists’ offices and traffic court. It’s a sense of anticipation, sure, but not the good kind. Catholics actually love to gripe about boring…
Thomas Cromwell: A Life by Diarmaid MacCulloch (Allen Lane, £22.50) Hillary Mantel’s inspired trilogy of novels beginning with Wolf Hall has prompted a lively interest in Thomas Cromwell, best known as Henry VIII’s consummate ‘fixer’. Her brilliant recreation of life in the 16th century remains in the demesne of fiction. Diarmaid McCulloch’s Life is an altogether…
Female inmates in Ireland’s largest women’s prison, the Dóchas Centre in Dublin, are subjected to xenophobic and threatening abuse and suffer chronic overcrowding according to a chaplain’s report. The 2018 report, seen by the Irish Examiner, was scathing of the conditions inmates face. It alleges there is overcrowding, with between 130 and 150 inmates being…
Personal Profile Medical Missionaries of Mary (MMM) is attempting to patch the world up both physically and spiritually, and Sr Carol Breslin is one of those who applies the bandages. Celebrating her Jubilee year with the congregation, Sr Carol’s interest in healthcare was first piqued by her mother’s example as she volunteered for various groups…
The legislature of the Australian state of Queensland has passed a law requiring priests to violate the seal of confession to report known or suspected child sex abuse. Failure to do so can be punished with three years in prison. Archbishop Mark Coleridge of Brisbane has said such a reporting requirement would “not make a…
From her base in the Holy Land, Sligo-native Sister Bridget Tighe is working to alleviate a destitution most of us will never know, still less experience. General Director of Caritas Jerusalem, Sr Bridget is thoroughly rooted in the Middle East. Her first encounter with the area came through a missionary trip as part of her…
Mindful Living We have been exploring the depth of meaning in the John Main prayer which Christian meditators say before meditation. The second sentence of the prayer reads: “Lead us into that mysterious silence where Your love is revealed to all who call.” In this article I want to reflect on the phrase: ‘Lead us…
The Government’s six-month Covid-19 plan, announced on Tuesday, proposes bans on all religious services except funerals and weddings for level three warnings upward. The country is currently at a level two warning, the maximum being five, which means religious services can take place with up to 50 people attending. The plan recognises the need to…
John L. Allen Jr.
Ruadhán Jones