Pope Francis famously said we aren’t only living in changing times, we are living through the change of an epoch. He also said “Change is necessary to grow. If we do not change, we do not grow.” Leadership renewal is essential in any institution, and the Pope has led by example with some very high…
More than 242 million students in 85 countries had their schooling disrupted by extreme climate events in 2024 according to Trócaire as it launched it’s Lenten campaign this week. Caoimhe de Barra, Trócaire’s CEO, says “The deep injustice of this is that those who have done least to cause the climate crisis, and who have…
The National Synodal Team has released a list of themes and resources for proposed Spring Gatherings at local level nationally. Revisiting the generalised themes that emerged from the parish focus group stages of the Universal Synod in Ireland is useful, but three years after initial focus groups identified broad themes for discussion, the upcoming Synod…
More Irish dioceses set to amalgamate Exclusive Ireland’s four archbishops are scheduled to fly to Rome this week for meetings with the Dicastery for Bishops to discuss Vatican plans to amalgamate more Irish dioceses. Bishops have come under increased pressure from the papal nuncio Archbishop Luis Mariano Montemayor to move faster on diocesan mergers. Last…
Nearly six months on from its last statement on the mishandling of child abuse allegations, the Diocese of Down and Connor has issued another statement about more failures in its approach to handling child sexual abuse. On February 23 the diocese said it received a credible allegation against Fr Patrick O’Neill (now deceased) in the…
The recent trip by Bishop Donal McKeown of Derry to Rome to meet the head of the Dicastery for Bishops Bishop Robert Francis Prevost OSA (Augustinian) to petition for a change in Vatican policy towards plans to merge the diocese of Derry with the diocese of Raphoe has paid off The Irish Catholic understands. It…
Ireland’s coming population crisis will not be solved by secular people new study claims Young people who embrace religions like Christianity that strongly value marriage and having children will form the future core of Ireland’s dwindling population as their secular counterparts are less likely to marry and have children, the Iona Institute has said. Ireland’s…
For our new series on priests and the challenges in their busy lives, Garry O’Sullivan sat down for an exclusive interview with Fr Ron Rolheiser speaking on this topic. Fr Rolheiser, could you speak a little bit about the state of priesthood, the challenges for priests these days? “Well, one of the big challenges is…
Relentless Ministry – In a new series written by Priests, we will explore what most priests describe as “Relentless Ministry” and the challenges of being a priest in Ireland today Speaking to priests recently, the key take-away is how busy they all are. In one group of priests– a quick survey showed– none of them…
The Irish clergy community in LA is pretty small and tightknit and are rallying around those affected by the fires, says Fr Jarlaith Cunnane from Sligo, Pastor at St Cornelius’ Church in Los Angeles speaking to The Irish Catholic. “Apocalyptic is the word that gets throw around. In scriptures it refers to disaster and a…