Home of Bishop of Derry Burgled
A Court in Derry has been told how the Bishop of the diocese of Derry, Bishop Seamus Hegarty was forced to confront an intruder in his own home last weekend.  The court was told how Bishop ....

Limerick church damaged during cold snap reopens
There was great joy in Limerick this week when a local church, which was extensively damaged during last winter’s cold snap, re-opened.  The communities of Ballyhill and Loughgill joined to ....

Greetings on conclusion of Ramadam
We need to open our hearts to mutual forgiveness and reconciliation, to recognise what we have in common, and respect differences, as a basis for a culture of dialogue, according to the Pontifical ....

Former Derry Bishop says,"Can't understand why police didn't arrest priest"
The former Bishop of Derry Dr Edward Daly has claimed that he does not know why the RUC did not arrest Fr James Chesney if they had reasonable suspicions that he was involved in the Claudy ....

Aggressive secular vision threatens religious freedom: Archbishop Chaput
State persecution of Christians in the West is now almost inevitable, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver has said. Speaking at a meeting of canon Law specialists in Slovakia last week, Archbishop ....

Majority supports me, says Cardinal Brady
Cardinal Seán Brady, the primate of the Catholic Church in Ireland has said that the vast majority of people in the Archdiocese of Armagh supports him. Responding to questions about his handling ....

Kildare and Leighlin priest slams new bishop selection process
A priest of the Kildare and Leighlin diocese has criticised the process of selecting a replacement for Bishop James Moriarty, claiming it was “secretive, non-consultative and greatly imbalanced.” ....

Newry Prior does best to facilitate weddings in historic chapel
The Prior of a famous Newry Abbey, which is one of the most popular wedding venues in Northern Ireland, has claimed that he is doing his best to facilitate weddings at the local Dominican Abbey ....

Top archeaologist claims monastic site could lose UNESCO status
A leading archaeologist has described the recent restoration work that took place on one of Ireland's oldest monastic islands as, “one of the great cultural disasters.”  Galway based ....

Special Mass for GAA in Clonmel
The huge contribution the GAA makes to the parish of Saint Peter & Paul's in Clonmel in County Tipperary was marked with a special mass last weekend as part of celebrations for the the bicentenary ....

Westmeath priest to sky dive for charity
A County Westmeath based priest will make a real leap of faith by skydiving to raise vital funds for his parish.  Fearless Fr Tony Gavin from Rosemount in County Westmeath will jump 4.000 ....

Killaloe Clergy Forced To Double up Due to Shortages
A shortage of priests is forcing change in the manning of parishes in a number of dioceses with priests now being asked accept responsibility for a multiple of parishes. In the Diocese of Killaloe ....

Limerick priest expresses concern over youth drug use
A Limerick City based priest and social commentator has claimed that children as young as 10 are becoming addicted to heroin in the city.  Fr Joe Young claimed that many devastated parents ....

Letterkenny cathedral refurbishment under way.
Work is under way on the restoration of the 110-year old St Eunan’s Cathedral in Letterkenny, Co Donegal. The project is taking about three months to complete and will consist of repairs to the ....

Ashbourne priest plans return to Pakistan
An Ashbourne based priest who works in flood-ridden Pakistan said that he would be returning to Pakistan next month with funds raised in Ireland to aid the relief effort.  Fr Tom Rafftery ....

Knock defends dress code but apologises to 13-year old
The management of Knock Shrine has stood over its decision to introduce a dress code for pilgrims but has apologised to a 13-year-old girl who was told by a security guard that her shorts were in ....

Killarney Friary to be new centre for Franciscan vocations
It was announced this week that the Franciscan friary in Killarney in County Kerry is the new postulancy, or centre for vocations, for both the English and Irish Franciscan community.  The ....

Report shows children in foster care at risk
Children are at risk of being placed with “unsafe carers,” according to a damning new internal Health Service Executive (HSE) audit. The unpublished report comes after a summer of devastating ....

Minister Attends Holy Island Mass
The Minister for Communications Mr Eamon Ryan TD and his family were among the 500 strong attendance at the recent annual pilgrimage to Holy Island in Clew Bay recently.  The island, which ....

Wexford Priest Asks Media to Give Clerics A Chance
A Wexford Town based priest who is also one of County Wexford's finest artists has made an emotional appeal to the media to give clerics a chance after many years of anti-church negativity.  ....

Binge drinking makes women more likely to have abortions: study
Binge drinking increases the likelihood of having an abortion or taking the morning-after pill, a new study suggests. According to research carried out by academics at University College London, ....

Mother Teresa 100th birthday
A Special Mass to celebrate the 100th Birthday of Mother Teresa of Calcutta was held yesterday evening (August 26) at St Teresa’s Church in Dublin. It was just one of the many events in Ireland ....

Cardinal Brady issues statement on Claudy bombings report
The Archbishop of Armagh and the Bishop of Derry have issued a joint statement this week after a report by the Police Ombudsman for Northern Ireland stated in a report that the British government, ....

Bishop Willie Walsh concerned over traveller feud
The retiring Bishop of Killaloe Dr Willie Walsh has claimed that he has ongoing concerns about traveller feuds in Ennis.  Bishop Walsh said that he is very concerned that the feud in Ennis ....

Sexualisation of children not being tackled, say authors
Britain’s hyper sexualised society is harming children and the problem is not being addressed, two feminist authors have said. Speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, Kat Banyard ....

Priest and mystic clash over All-Ireland prediction
A Kilkenny priest has defended his criticism of a local psychic who has predicted that Kilkenny will win the All-Ireland hurling championship for a fifth time in a row next month. Fr Joe Delaney, ....

Record attendance at Our Lady's Island
Record crowds have been attending the pilgrimage to Our Lady's Island in Co. Wexford. An open-air Mass celebrated by Bishop Denis Brennan of Ferns, local clergy and a visiting priest from Florida, ....

Popular priests step aside as allegations are investigated.
Two popular priests have temporarily stepped down from their ministries over investigations into unspecified allegations made against them in the area of child protection.   Tyrone PP ....

Papal UK visit itinerary
Susan Boyle will sing for Pope Benedict XVI during his visit to the U.K.  The singer, who was a member of her local Catholic Church choir for years, became an international star after an ....

Priest's reunion in Thurles a huge success
The President of Saint Patrick's College in Thurles in County Tipperary has deemed the recent reunion of nearly 100 priests at the College an amazing success.  The reunion at the former ....

Lough Derg numbers boost
Numbers visiting Ireland's toughest place of pilgrimage continue to rise it was revealed in recently released figures.  The end of season has come for Lough Derg in County Donegal's ....

Glenstal priest distances himself from mother's call for boycott of Mass
A Benedictine priest in Glenstal Abbey, Co Limerick, Fr Simon Sleeman, has distanced himself from a campaign launched by his mother Jennifer for a boycott of Sunday Mass next month as a protest ....

Celebrating 60 Years of the Angelus Bell
The broadcasting of the Angelus on the national airwaves is celebrating its 60th birthday this month.  It was first broadcast on August 17 1950 from Dublin's Pro-Cathedral on what was then ....

Good father-son relationships help men cope with stress: study
Men who have good childhood relationships with their fathers cope better with daily stress, new research shows. Prof Melanie Mallers, who led the research project, said, “The message is that ....

Rwanda election concerns
Concerns have been expressed to the government of Rwanda about pre-election irregularities such as silencing of newspapers and journalists, expelling a human rights activist and barring two ....

More vocations
The Redemptoristine Sisters are celebrating Sr Monica’s (pictured) first profession today at 1:00pm.  The contemplative order, which provides access to its services using ....

More than one in ten civil marriages may be "sham", registrar says
One of the country's main marriage registrars has warned that up to one in six civil marriage ceremonies may be “sham marriages” conducted with the sole aim of subverting immigration laws. Dennis ....

Healing priest says he has never been busier
One of Ireland's most famous healing priests has said that he has never been busier.  Speaking this week ahead of a number of healing clinics Fr Noel Conroy, who runs a healing centre in ....

Minister pledges to help unmarried fathers
The Minister of State for Equality, Mary White has promised to help fathers who are being denied access to their children by their former partners. She said there isas an opportunity to tackle the ....

Laity runs church services on Mayo island in absence of a priest
Parish councils from all over West Mayo are coming to visit Clare Island in Clew bay in County Mayo to see how the local parish provides a Sunday service when there is no priest available to say ....