The ongoing “lack of disclosure about murder” is causing heartache for families of Troubles victims including the disappeared, Archbishop Eamon Martin has said. The Primate of All-Ireland spoke out during Palm Sunday’s Mass for the Families of the Disappeared in St Patrick’s Cathedral, Armagh. He called for an investigation and information recovery process which can…
Family members of patients receiving palliative care are more likely to express a view that it would be better if the patient were no longer alive than patients themselves, according to an experienced palliative carer. Dr Faith Cranfield can count “on one hand” the number of people she has worked with in 10 years as…
An expert in Catholic education has hit back at “lazy” and “dangerous” myths perpetuated against Catholic education. Referencing Catholic education as ‘segregated’ or ‘an apartheid schooling system’ reinforces division and is “harmful to both the individual and social cohesion”, school chaplain and education expert Dr Aidan Donaldson has said. These arguments are “lazy and prejudicial”,…
A woman in Limerick nearly died from an ectopic pregnancy three days after having a medical abortion, a paper in the Irish Medical Journal shows. As no ultrasound was conducted, a situation developed in which the 24-year-old woman in question had a medical termination, before being treated in hospital three days later for an ectopic…
The Church is better at saying sorry for instances of abuse, a study from Queens University Belfast has found. The QUB report on Church documents from March 2020 to February 2023 concludes that apologies offered during this time “do not offer excuses or create scapegoats”. “They are usually very detailed, with acceptance of full culpability…
The Church in Ireland’s safeguarding culture and structures have “greatly improved” in the past 10 years, according to a report from the national safeguarding body. “A lot of progress has been made, and plans are in place to advance this further,” the overview report from the National Board for Safeguarding Children in the Catholic Church…
Christians in the birthplace of Christ hope for the return of Irish pilgrims after a plea from a Palestinian bishop to support for the local Christian population. Bethlehem Christians are “still in darkness” due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, but they hope to see pilgrims return soon, local guides and shop owners told The Irish…
MPs in the UK have been urged to acknowledge the “tremendous” Irish Catholic contribution to British life, as immigration debates descend to a “game of fear”. “The Irish Catholic contribution, both to the Catholic Church in England and Wales and to wider British life and community, has been tremendous,” Bishop Paul McAleenan told MPs. The Belfast-born…
Still lack of satisfaction with Church’s response to abuse allegations, writes Ruadhán Jones The quality of the Church in Ireland’s safeguarding structures and culture has “greatly improved” in the last 10 years, according to a report from the national safeguarding body. “A lot of progress has been made, and plans are in place to…
The head of the Catholic Education Partnership has welcomed the dropping of plans for a ‘neutral’ ethics programme at primary level, as a new round of consultation opens. The State previously sought to introduce education about religion and beliefs (ERB), which was supposed to be a neutral approach. “We have long argued this is based…