The faith of Ireland’s Catholics continues, despite all

What sort of country will Pope Francis encounter? One where Mass attendance – though falling – is still among the highest in Europe, where scandals have dented people’s faith in the church, but faith itself has not died

Public consultations ahead of papal visit to begin in Mallow

Summaries of what is discussed will be forwarded to Pope Francis

Description of Yes result as an end to Catholic Ireland greatly exaggerates

Voters were almost all educated in church-run schools

Pope seeks new version of Lord’s Prayer: Has he tried it in Irish?

‘It’s Satan who leads us into temptation, that’s his department,’ says Pope Francis

Religious instinct will outlive evangelical secularists

Populist rants of Stephen Fry and Richard Dawkins insult intelligence as well as the faithful

Death of ‘sex as sin’ brought confession era to an end - priest

Remarks counter clergy at Galway novena who suggested practice making a comeback

Fr Tony Flannery vows to keep fighting for church reform

Banned priest: ‘It’s all falling apart so fast; it’s collapsing rapidly. Some say it’s too late’

Fr Brendan Hoban: Ireland’s last priests are a lost tribe

As we grow old as priests, we realise how little care, esteem or affection is in our lives

Archbishop accused of releasing ‘tsunami of invective’ on church

Fr Seán McDonagh says comments about ‘goings on’ in Maynooth caused embarrassment

Handling of Maynooth seminary claims could ‘damage’ church

Moving trainees from college amid gay subculture claims not fixing more important issues, Fr Brendan Hoban says

Catholic extremists do ‘untold damage’ to church, says priest

Public debate left to ‘obsessive’ religious who ‘psychologically bludgeon’ their opponents

Rome’s treatment of censured Irish priests a ‘great scandal’

Catholic bishops urged to develop more just and respectful process for dealing with cases

Priests seek national synod to tackle Catholic vocations ‘crisis’

Association of Catholic Priests says members are subjected to ‘huge mental and physical pressure’

Irish priests’ group to discuss vocation crisis with bishops

Meeting comes amid tensions between priests and bishops’ conference

Rite & Reason: Priest’s passing underlines crisis faced by church

As clergy die, who will replace them? Without priests, there can be no Eucharist

Mass attendance in Dublin to drop by one-third by 2030

Number of priests serving in parishes expected to fall by 60%, report says

Time for fair admissions to our primary schools is long overdue

Unwillingness to change the terms of the Equal Status Act that allows intake preference to be given to baptised children suggests a failure of political nerve

Priest says demand for secular schools is low

Catholic parishes ‘have no intention of handing over their local school to anyone’

Threat to separate church and civil ceremonies was a crude scare tactic

Expense and inconvenience involved would have one certain outcome: the abandonment of Catholic church weddings by even more couples in favour of civil weddings

Same-sex marriage vote an ‘unmitigated disaster’ for Church

People ‘no longer willing to listen to speeches and sermons on morality from the church’

Catholic priest advises Protestant guidance on referendum

Priest ‘unconvinced by many of arguments offered by both sides’

Archbishop declines to tell Catholics how to vote in referendum

Diarmuid Martin stresses ‘people should be informed’ about about same-sex marriage

Bishops’ threat over non-signing of civil wedding forms

If same-sex vote carried, the church’s view on marriage and that of State radically different

Parish level concern about bishops’ opposition to equality

Analysis: Priests express fears opposition to Yes vote could damage church

Fr Iggy O’Donovan calls for Yes vote in marriage referendum

Priest says stance of bishops, Iona Institute and fundamentalists damaging church

Senator Rónán Mullen asked to apologise to Fr Tony Flannery

Association of Catholic Priests accuses Mullen of ‘a gratuitous and ill-informed attack’

Significant drop in Irish numbers of priests and nuns

Between 2002 and 2012, number of priests fell by 13% and nuns by 23%, Vatican publication shows

Priests make radical proposals on vocations crisis to bishops

Survey finds 64 per cent of Catholic clergy ‘dissatisfied’ with new missal

‘Lively and fruitful’ meeting of Irish Catholic priests near Athlone

‘Enormous dissatisfaction’ with new missal expressed by representatives of the Association of Catholic Priests

Founder of priests group criticises Iona's legal action

They ‘should have grabbed one of the alternatives offered’ by broadcaster

Pope’s words warmly welcomed by Irish clergy

Association of Catholic Priests’ spokesman ‘exhilarated’

Fr Tony Flannery believes silencing to be an attack on priests’ association

‘The great weapon of the Curia is secrecy, the great weapon of all oppressors’

Papal nuncio’s qualifications to appoint Irish bishops questioned by Catholic priest

He ‘spent very little time in parish work and he has no formal training as a papal nuncio’

Funerals: sticking with tradition

The majority of funerals in this country are still Catholic, a rural priest talks about the phenomenon

More poets needed in political life, according to the Abbot of Glenstal Abbey

Mark Patrick Hederman told the Percy French Summer School a new Seanad should be constituted and should include artists.

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