The Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference has urged parishes across Ireland to dedicate 30% of their church grounds for biodiversity and pollinators so grounds can be enjoyed “in perpetuity by the whole community.” The initiative aims to protect local biodiversity, raise awareness about global conservation efforts and emphasise the role of people of faith in safeguarding Read more
The Catholic Church in Ireland has launched a Year for Vocations as it battles a huge drop in the number of men going to seminaries. Where once every large family in the country expected one son to join the priesthood, the scandals that have rocked the Church in the last two decades have meant the Read more
Parishes often take a certain pride in how neat and tidy their grounds are – but soon they will be more concerned about letting them grow wild and attracting bees and butterflies. Following their spring general meeting Catholic bishops’ said they were asking parishes across Ireland to give over almost a third of their grounds Read more
Some Irish churches have introduced shorter Masses, and parishioners have been advised to wear extra clothes in church as Catholic clergy grapple with rising energy bills. Fr Andrew O’Sullivan, a parish priest in Dublin, said increased costs made it financially challenging for parishes to continue heating buildings, despite churches being ‘freezing’. He has been forced Read more
A group of 500 young Catholics in Ireland have sent a jointly signed letter to the Synod Steering Committee. The Committee is responsible for gathering and summarising responses to questionnaires for the Irish Synodal Pathway. The young Catholics wrote that they love the Church’s teaching, but their voices have not been heard. The process leading Read more
The Catholic Church in Ireland is “moving from maintenance to mission” and needs to renew and refresh itself, Archbishop Eamon Martin says. Martin made the comment after attending Ireland’s national pre-synodal assembly this week. “The question is — what next? “We are still not entirely certain, but we are open to what the Holy Spirit Read more
The great majority of practising Irish Catholics favour the ordination of women, marriage for priests who want it, greater roles for divorced and remarried people or couples and single parents, and more respect for LGBTQI+ people. They also want better-prepared, shorter sermons and the removal of bloodthirsty Old Testament readings from Masses and other liturgies, Read more
The Archbishop of Dublin has acknowledged that his diocese, the largest in Ireland, is facing “great challenges” due to a shortage of priests. Archbishop Dermot Farrell (pictured) has pledged to respond “positively and swiftly” to new proposals put forward by his parishes to deal with the challenge. “We face a particular challenge in the shortage Read more
Much of what the church has built up in Ireland over the last two centuries is crumbling before our eyes, says Galway’s new bishop. But fresh opportunities are also presenting themselves, he maintains. At his installation Mass last Sunday, Bishop Michael Duignan of Galway and Kilmacduagh (pictured) highlighted the Church’s diminishing role in the Republic. Read more
Two Catholic dioceses in Ireland will soon be under the leadership of one bishop, a representative of Pope Francis has told local Irish bishops. In a joint statement, Bishop Brendan Kelly of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora and Bishop Michael Duignan of Clonfert said that their two dioceses in the west of Ireland would be joined Read more