Irish pilgrims join faithful in Rome celebrating Pope Francis recovery
Pope Francis’s decision to declare 2025 a ‘Jubilee Year of Hope’ entirely prescient, says Limerick Bishop
Catholic Church
St Patrick: 13 facts you need to know about Ireland’s patron saint
What do we really know about our national apostle and what is merely myth?
Pope Francis shows intention to carry on as pontiff, starting process to examine Catholic reforms
Pontiff (88) remains in Rome hospital for treatment of double pneumonia
Three things we give up when we turn away from Catholicism
Unthinkable: Asking whether we have lost something from our lapsed Catholicism is not about rushing back to the past. It’s about facing the future with greater self-awareness
Vision of Pope Francis has signalled shift in how Vatican views women in leadership
Rite & Reason: The question remains whether recent reforms signify a genuine commitment to inclusivity or are merely symbolic gestures aimed at appeasing critics
Dr Willie Walsh obituary: Bishop who showed compassion and empathy towards survivors of clerical sex abuse
He was ‘a man of the people, for all people, rich and poor, believers and non-believers, especially the poor, the marginalised’
Pope Francis faces long recovery as he continues to struggle to shake off pneumonia, doctors say
Francis has hit the three-week mark in hospital with no indication of when he may return to the Vatican
Is it hypocritical of me to go to a funeral but not a Communion?
I am church-averse but I know the comfort that religion can bring
Pope Francis no longer needs to use mechanical ventilation, Vatican says
Francis, who has been in hospital since February 14th, had two episodes of ‘acute respiratory insufficiency’
Pope Francis suffers ‘acute’ breathing issues and is back on ventilation, says Vatican
Pontiff inhaled ‘copious’ amounts of mucus in another setback
As Pope Francis battled against ill health this week, the Catholic community in Ireland lost two great leaders
Bishop emeritus Willie Walsh’s simple goodness changed my view of him. Sr Máire Hickey sought to forge a connection between spirituality and the environment
‘I’m very fortunate. But I can see the younger generation are getting screwed over’
Broadcaster and podcaster Yates loves living in Ireland, but believes that the boomer generation have a lot to answer for
Pope Francis sitting upright and receiving therapy for double pneumonia, Vatican says
Doctors say Francis is not out of danger, but has had no further respiratory crises since Saturday
From national journalism and lecturing in TU Dublin to living as a Buddhist priest
Lecturer and journalist Ian Kilroy has published a new book in which he describes his practice as a Zen Buddhist priest, and offers his perspective on the importance of Buddhist teachings
Spanish victims seek criminalisation of conversion therapy
Several investigations open into treatment purporting to ‘cure’ LGBTQ people
Former bishop of Killaloe Willie Walsh was ahead of his time in Catholic Church
Throughout his period as bishop he was at odds with the rigidities of the papacies of John Paul II and Benedict XVI
Death announced of former bishop of Killaloe Willie Walsh (90)
Bishop was known for his relatively liberal views in the Catholic Church hierarchy
Pope Francis diagnosed with pneumonia as weekend engagements cancelled
Pontiff suffering from respiratory infection for more than a week
Amid all of the toxic masculinity, no one mentions the toxic femininity that supports it
When the institutions of the land imply women are inferior, it’s hard not to doubt yourself
Fifteen named Jesuits accused of child sex abuse were moved to new roles by order
Publication follows earlier naming of others which led to victims coming forward
A new generation heralds change in approach for Jesuits in naming probable abusers
New provincial Fr Shane Daly (51) was ordained just 10 years ago
Most adults delaying marriage and kids due to housing crisis, survey by Catholic agency finds
A survey of 1,000 people was carried out by Accord, the Catholic marriage guidance agency
‘We certainly didn’t cancel Christmas’: What happens when a Catholic school turns multidenominational?
Uniforms are on the way out and teaching staff are adjusting to a new ethical education curriculum
The Ghosts of Rome by Joseph O’Connor: Follow-up to My Father’s House draws an extraordinary picture of Rome under Nazi control
The Choir, led by Irish priest Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty, rescue and secrete escaped Allied POWs, Italian anti-fascists and Jews on the run
TV guide: the best new shows to watch, starting tonight
February 2nd-7th: including Amandaland, Miss Austen, and Samantha Mumba’s crack at Eurovision
Adrian Duncan: ‘I remember praying for a statue not to move because I didn’t want my world to be destroyed’
Berlin-based writer’s latest novel, The Gorgeous Inertia of the Earth, revolves around sculpted objects, absence, death and faith
Three reasons why the teachings of St Thomas Aquinas are more relevant than ever
Rite & Reason: In an era when leaders like Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin cause havoc with their casual relationship with the truth, Aquinas offers an antidote
‘It will be deeply sad’: Monks reflect on closure of Waterford monastery after almost 200 years
Mount Melleray Abbey, a Cistercian monastery in the foothills of the Knockmealdown mountains, now houses only six monks and will close this weekend
Italy’s first report on Catholic clerical sex abuse finds more than 60 cases
Investigators into Catholic clerical sex abuse warn of ‘dark field’ beyond cases examined
A new chapter begins for the Cistercian monks, but some things haven’t changed
Rite & Reason: The regime at Our Lady of Silence will be removed from the austerities of La Trappe. The rules on diet, work and silence itself have been greatly relaxed although the monastic day remains divided into work, study and prayer
A Tract for Our Times: A Retrospective on Joe Lee’s Ireland 1912–1985: Reappraisal of a historic classic
Nine contributors’ fresh engagement with Lee’s main themes is testament to the ongoing significance of his writing
Public relations pioneer Pat Heneghan dies following illness
Communications adviser played key roles in corporate battles, 1979 papal visit and electoral success of Fine Gael
Hope by Pope Francis review: Don’t believe the hype, this is another triumph of marketing over substance
Far from the autobiography it is described as, Francis uses recollections to reflect on current events
Derry nun takes step toward sainthood
Cause for beatification event will take place in Madrid for Clare Crockett (33), who died in an Ecuador earthquake in April 2016
Gay men can train as Catholic priests but must observe celibacy, say Italian bishops
Guidelines announced by bishops’ conference signify shift in views, but sexually active gay men will not be admitted to seminaries
Ireland’s most senior Catholic cleric criticises ‘merciless’ Israeli response to Hamas attacks
Archbishop Eamon Martin says he is ‘conscious’ such criticism attracts accusation of antisemitism but Israel’s actions are ‘disproportionate’
The Catholic Church’s Jubilee Year 2025 is a time of celebration, an expression of praise to God
Rite & Reason: Pope Francis situates the need for hope in the challenging world of ‘gloomy discouragement and ill-concealed cynicism’
Vatican Spies by Yvonnick Denoel: This could have provided John le Carré with enough material for a second career
This is a thoroughly researched book about espionage on and by the Vatican
On Christmas Day, what family and friends believe about Christ will be irrelevant
Rite & Reason: What makes Christmas religious is that regardless of their specific beliefs, people come together to celebrate the mystery and beauty of life
Where to now for our declining churches? Younger clergy reflect on a brighter future
Exciting times are ahead for Christian communities, based on joy, hope, energy and finding context and relevance in contemporary society
Bethlehem now ‘a Palestinian village subjected to intense intimidation, social starvation’, say church leaders
Church of Ireland Archbishop of Dublin Michael Jackson says reaction to immigration in Ireland has been ‘physical and shameful’
Pope reprimands Vatican staff for gossiping, calling it ‘an evil that destroys social life’
Francis offers public dressing down of some of the sins in the workplace at the headquarters of the Catholic Church
New evidence for the authenticity of the Shroud of Turin
So far nobody has come up with a credible explanation of how the the relic might have been forged
Pope Francis says he escaped suicide bombing during visit to Iraq in 2021
Francis made the revelation in his upcoming autobiography, Spera (Hope), due to be published in January
What is Rome waiting for? The life of Irish woman Edel Quinn was a miracle
Rite & Reason: Cork woman born in 1907 has been declared Venerable by the Catholic Church - a step on the road to canonisation, but with no guarantees
‘Cork has lost a gem’: Warm tributes to woman fatally assaulted after leaving soup kitchen
Daughter of Vanessa O’Callaghan (36) tells funeral Mass that she cannot believe her mother ‘is gone’
Fintan O’Toole on his career: ‘You had to learn to live with the fact that some people despised you’
The Irish Times columnist has made a new documentary about his life for RTÉ. Here he looks back on a career that he began as the Michelangelo of Tipp-Ex
Abused by Br Paul Dunleavy: ‘The real damage was not just what happened physically, but the lessons I learned from it’
Brendan Dowling made a complaint to the Christian Brothers about abuse by one of their members long before criminal cases were taken
Churches carry huge crosses as they try to move on from mistakes of past
Rite & Reason: All Churches face huge challenges moving on from terrible abuses into an advancing secularism
Why is there a Christian monopoly on chaplaincy in Irish institutions?
Rite & Reason: Iron grip that Christian denominations have over chaplaincy in Ireland cannot continue
Our school admissions system is broken. Many parents are in for a rude awakening
Families who expected a straightforward enrolment process are grappling with the harsh reality of Ireland’s oversubscribed schools
Here’s why churches across Ireland will turn red next Wednesday
Rite & Reason: One in seven Christians in the world faces persecution or extreme discrimination because of their faith
‘Is that your wife? You should be ashamed’: a charity collector’s anti-immigrant hate in south Dublin
A man, oblivious to the world, and so at war with the living, screamed and heckled a couple and their daughter
Priest numbers in Dublin to fall 70 per cent in 20 years, report predicts
Only two priests have been ordained in capital’s archdiocese since 2020, with none so far this year
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