There has been a broad welcome to suggested changes to Ireland’s Catholic school patronage though one group said some proposals would “seriously undermine the identity of denominational schools”. The report of the Advisory Group of the Forum on Patronage and Pluralism, which has been written to give guidance on how best to transfer Catholic schools Read more
Posts Tagged ‘Ireland’
Vatican investigating Ireland priest for liberal views
Tuesday, April 10th, 2012
Fr Tony Flannery, founder of the Association of Catholic Priests, is under investigation by the Vatican for some of his liberal views, reports The Irish Catholic. The investigation comes just two weeks after the report of the Apostolic Visitation that described “widespread dissent” from traditional Catholic teaching by priests, religious and lay people. It is Read more
Pope will not attend Eucharistic Congress in Ireland
Tuesday, April 10th, 2012Pope Benedict XVI has appointed the Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, Canadian Cardinal Marc Ouellet to represent him in Dublin, Ireland, at the 50th International Eucharistic Congress this June. Before taking up his post in Rome, Card. Ouellet was Archbishop of Quebec, Canada, which hosted the last Congress in 2008.
Census: Even more Catholics in Ireland
Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012
Ireland is still the Catholic country of the English-speaking world reports the Irish Times. Results of the April 2011 census, published Friday, report 84% of Ireland’s population (3.86 million), describe themselves Catholic. The 179,889 increase in Catholics however represents a 2.8% drop from the 2006 figure. The percentage drop is put down to the the fact that Read more
Priest returned to ministry: abuse allegation unsubstantiated
Tuesday, April 3rd, 2012A Tipperary priest was this evening formally returned to ministry almost two years after stepping aside while an abuse allegation was investigated. The allegation was found to be unsubstantiated.
Fr Tadgh Furlong will now return to his post as Parish Priest of Cappawhite, Co. Tipperary.
Speaking at Mass this evening Archbishop Dermot Clifford said that Fr Furlong “has endured the prolonged ordeal of his standing aside with outstanding courage and honour.
“His approach has been fully in keeping with the dedication which he has shown throughout his priestly life to selfless service of Church and community,” the archbishop said.
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Ireland: Vatican delivers frank and critical sexual abuse report
Thursday, March 22nd, 2012
Clergy sexual abuse of children in Ireland had “opened many wounds” causing people to lose trust in their pastors, the Vatican said in its report into Ireland’s child abuse. Fruit of a year-long investigation, the report, published on Wednesday, acknowledged the Irish Catholic Church had failed many innocent young people and “those who should have Read more
Half-million pack Dublin for St. Patrick’s Day parade
Tuesday, March 20th, 2012An estimated half-million people crowded Saturday into central Dublin to view the St. Patrick’s Day parade, a focal point for Irish celebrations worldwide and the start of the tourist season in debt-battered Ireland.
Bands from Britain, the United States and Russia joined thousands of Irish volunteers on Saturday’s two-hour procession down Dublin’s major boulevard, O’Connell Street, across the River Liffey, past Trinity College and concluding outside St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
In his St. Patrick’s Day message, Catholic Cardinal Sean Brady offered prayers to the estimated 50,000 citizens who have emigrated in the past year to escape Ireland’s weak economy.
Read the article...Pope vigorously rings bell to promote Eucharist conference
Friday, March 16th, 2012Pope Benedict XVI “vigorously” rang a bell presented to him in the Vatican today by an Irish delegation promoting the upcoming International Eucharistic Congress.
Archbishop of Dublin Diarmuid Martin and International Eucharistic Congress secretary general Fr Kevin Doran were among the delegation that travelled to meet the pontiff.
The delegation this morning presented the pope with a bell, the ringing of which is seen as a symbolic call to Catholics to gather for the congress, as well as a bowl of shamrock and a commemorative medal. ”The pope blessed the bell, rang it vigorously, and paused to admire the icons as Archbishop Martin explained their significance,” Fr Doran said after the meeting in St Peter’s Square.
Read the article...Cardinal Brady meets clerical abuse victims
Wednesday, March 14th, 2012Catholic Primate Cardinal Sean Brady and representatives of a number of religious orders met victims and survivors of child abuse in Armagh today.
After the three-hour meeting, Cardinal Brady said he had apologised wholeheartedly and without reservation for the abuse the victims had suffered as children.
He said he found the meeting profoundly moving and reaffirmed the church’s committment to co-operate fully with the inquiry into institutional abuse set up by the Stormont Assembly.
Read the article...Church appeals for return of 900 year old stolen heart
Friday, March 9th, 2012The 900-year-old heart of a 12th century Irish saint has been stolen from a church in Dublin, Ireland, and a local Roman Catholic official is pleading for its return — “no questions asked.”
The heart of St. Laurence O’Toole was stolen from Christ Church Cathedral on Saturday, reports the Catholic News Agency. The news site quotes the Rev. Dermot Dunne as saying locals are grieving theloss of the relic. “It’s valueless” to others, Dunne told CNA, but means a great deal to the cathedral and the community.
According to several news sites, the heart was kept inside a wooden heart-shaped box inside an iron cage bolted to a wall. The cage had been pried open. Q13 Fox News, citing Irish media, noted that other valuable items inside the church were left in place.
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