Skellig Michael to reopen this month Sceilg Mhichíl (Skellig Michael) is set to welcome visitors back this month, with a target date of June 21 for reopening the island off the Kerry coast. Office of Public Works crews are currently working on-site to prepare the popular destination for the reopening date, doing preparatory health and…
Notebook A few years ago I found myself in a pub – remember them? – for a friend’s engagement party. There I got chatting to a young doctor. We got chatting about our studies, and he was astonished to find out that I had studied science as an undergraduate yet somehow ended up a priest.…
Pope Francis on Wednesday encouraged busy Catholics to say the “Jesus Prayer” throughout the day
German Cardinal Reinhard Marx of Munich and Freising has submitted his resignation to Pope Francis, saying that bishops must begin to accept responsibility for the institutional failures of the church in handling the clerical sexual abuse crisis. Cardinal Marx (67) released a statement on Friday and, with the Pope’s permission, a copy of the letter…
With just weeks to go, organisers of this year’s ‘Rally for Life’ have revealed details of the weekend plan including a free screening of the movie Voiceless. This year the event will take place from July 1-4, and while the normal large gathering in Dublin will not take place due to Covid-19 restrictions a number…
As has become traditional at the June public holiday, Bishop Fintan Monahan has asked parishes across the country to pray for safety on the roads. As more people travel due to the holiday, the Bishop of Killaloe will also lead a ‘blessing of the roads’ ceremony in Co. Clare on Saturday. In a statement, Dr…
The Religious Sisters of Charity have called on the Minister for Health to speed up the transfer of St Vincent’s Healthcare Group to facilitate it “as soon as possible”. The congregation also insisted that it will have no role in the new national maternity hospital being constructed on the site. It comes after several politicians…
Aid to the Church in Need (ACN) Ireland has organised for Mass to be offered at a Mass Rock in each of Ireland’s 26 dioceses in the build-up to the Feast of the Irish Martyrs June 20. The Masses were offered for the renewal of the Faith in Ireland through the intercession of Irish Martyrs,…
Bishops call for return of Mass to Irish prisons Irish bishops have come out in support of prisoners’ “constitutional right” to practice their religion, as communal worship has yet to restart in Irish penal institutions. There is also growing calls for prisoners to be vaccinated sooner so that some of the restrictions on their lives…
Professional skateboarder Ryan Sheckler has been singing God’s praises in a podcast recently, describing his “Christ-based” approach to his relationship which sees him practicing abstinence before marriage. He said he wouldn’t have been able to do it before, but now that God has come into his life, he’s excited to see how it plays out.…
Ruadhán Jones