Why the increase in London parents attending Mass? I thought they were all mad but soon joined
A reported surge in mass-going was based on soft data, but hard evidence can still be found of how keen parents are on church
Catholic Church
Israel allows access to Jerusalem church after blocking a Catholic leader
Decision to block cardinal from Jerusalem’s Holy Sepulchre on Palm Sunday sparked outcry
He lambasted Ireland in the New York Times for locking up children. Now he may be sainted
What would Edward Flanagan say about a wealthy Ireland where children in care are put in unregulated emergency placements?
There’s more than one elephant in the room when it comes to schools and religion
Some parents want faith-based education
Teachers fear being fired if they speak out about religious discrimination
Schools may take action to stop teachers “undermining the religious ethos” of the school. This has a chilling effect
Spanish Catholic group draws backlash over vote to exclude women in Easter procession
Members carry religious floats during Holy Week celebrations
Irish priest moves closer to sainthood after being declared venerable by Pope Leo
Fr Edward Flanagan, born in 1886, has passed the second of four steps to canonisation
Write on: Eamon Maher on the legacy of novelist John McGahern, who died 20 years ago
The writer’s trajectory was not always a smooth one, but his star continues to rise
Homelessness has been a problem in Dublin for decades
Rite & Reason: There remains an enduring view among most Irish people that homelessness is fundamentally wrong
‘It didn’t make any sense to separate us’: Twin priests celebrate turning 95 together
70 years of ministry
Celebrating St Patrick’s Day
We must differentiate between St Patrick’s Day as a celebration of the man himself, and the public holiday fixed on that same date
St Patrick’s role in setting the date for Easter in Ireland
Agreeing a way to calculate when the movable feast should fall took centuries
‘Everything is bombed’: Beirut church shelters families fleeing waves of air strikes
Migrant workers and refugees shut out of official shelters as Israel bombards Lebanese capital
In Ireland, we’ll talk about anything except the meaning of life
Unthinkable: The voice of the Catholic Church in Irish education should be commended for raising the question of ‘purpose’
‘It is not a best man’s speech at a wedding’: the debate around eulogies at Irish funerals
Praise for ‘personal’ touches at funeral Mass but some see changing emphasis as sign of declining faith
Ireland among most religious countries in western Europe, survey published by bishops finds
Republic has one of the lowest proportions of adults reporting they had no religion, at 32 per cent
We’re not bouncy castle Catholics – we’re the incense and eulogies kind
Half of us are dubious about the afterlife, but most want church funeral with all the trimmings when we die
Letters: Catholic Church is a strange organisation indeed
Church’s policy on leaving is akin to that of ‘Hotel California’
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor and the Catholic Church
Fintan O’Toole’s analogy between the decline of the Catholic Church and the potential fall of the British monarchy is clever
Pope to tour four African countries in 2026
Leo’s first major overseas trip will involve visit to Algeria, Angola, Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon
Dublin cathedral to close for two years for €25m refurbishment
St Mary’s was designated a cathedral by Pope Leo last year on its 200th anniversary
Weaknesses in policymaking: A challenge to the Convention on Education
Reviews of the Department of Education have found it to be overworked, reactive, overly absorbed in short-term operational issues and lacking space for long-term strategic thinking
Britain’s King Charles should heed the lesson of the crumbling Irish Catholic Church
Abusers did not bring down the hierarchy here, it was down to the repeated cover-ups by bishops
Record number of people convert to Catholicism in Archdiocese of Dublin
St Mary’s Cathedral welcomes 129 at this year’s ceremony, up from 14 converts in 2022
Outsider by Paul Cullen: Moving memoir holds a torch up to cruel attitudes of the past
Cullen’s journey of discovery is the type that can haunt its reader in the middle of the night
The papal portfolio: more S&P 500 than sermon
Two new stock indices launched in conjunction with Morningstar – one for the US, one for the euro zone – are calibrated to Catholic principles
Appetite for church weddings rises among Gen Zs and millennials, says Catholic survey
Research by Catholic marriage agency Accord reports rise in couples seeking its marriage courses
The Irish Constitution: Leading judge on how it could impact the drive for a united Ireland
The Constitution, designed to achieve unity, ‘may ultimately complicate that ambition’, not ‘because it was weak and inflexible’ but ‘rather because it was sufficiently flexible and strong’
David Ryan’s papal audience followed participation in 2022 radio documentary
Blackrock Boys broadcast led to hundreds of testimonies involving some of State’s best known schools
Some Catholic teaching is ‘rancid’ and needs updating, says Mary McAleese
A bunch of celibate male bishops will not make required changes, says former president
Workhorse by Caroline Palmer: Nastier and more sophisticated than The Devil Wears Prada
Set in 2001 at a Manhattan magazine, the novel’s length sees plots sag, losing their deviousness and dread
Photo essay: A long road to priesthood – the journey of a Capuchin brother
The ordination in Dublin of Br Anthony Kurian was a milestone for the Kerala native, his family and the Capuchin Franciscan Order in Ireland
Crosswords & Puzzles
Crosswords & puzzles to keep you challenged and entertained
Common Ground
How does a post-Brexit world shape the identity and relationship of these islands
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