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
Catholic churchgoers in Ireland have raised 3.25 million euro for the people of Ukraine since the war began. Archbishop Eamon Martin of Armagh and Archbishop Dermot Farrell of Dublin paid tribute to the generosity of parishioners. Irish bishops had asked for a special collection in parishes across Ireland in the wake of the Russian invasion. Read more
Pope Francis has announced two Irish dioceses will be combined in a union under one bishop, a move aimed at streamlining the church’s hierarchy without depriving any town of its cathedral. One bishop will be appointed by Pope Francis to the Diocese of Galway, Kilmacduagh and Kilfenora and the Diocese of Clonfert. The change was Read more
Irish Catholic bishops have chosen a woman to head preparations for a national synod, due to be held in the next five years. Nicola Brady is currently General Secretary of the Irish Council of Churches, and Joint Secretary of the Irish Inter-Church Meeting. She has been noted for facilitating relationship-building between the Christian churches in Read more
Ireland’s Catholic bishops plan to hold a synod to hear from people who were raised Catholic but have walked away from the church. The synod will take place “within the next five years”. The bishops said they are “acutely aware of the huge challenges to the Catholic faith” that have emerged during the past 50 Read more
Ireland’s Association of Catholic Priests (ACP) says the vocations crisis has become so critical that sacraments like baptisms and marriages are likely to “disappear” from some parishes in the near future. The ACP, which represents over 1,000 Catholic priests in Ireland, says reform is urgently needed to prevent parishes from closing across the country. “We’re Read more
A new documentary claims many Irish Catholics practised a mixture of Catholicism and pagan rituals before the Great Hunger (1845-1849) triggered a major turning point for the Church in Ireland. Released yesterday, Irish broadcaster Raidió Teilifís Éireann (RTE)’s documentary Rome V Republic examines the events that led up to and followed the Church’s hold over Read more