The Irish Catholic Newspaper

30/05/2026

Quiet dedication of youth ministers celebrated at annual gathering.

Youth directors from across the Irish dioceses gathered for a few days of recovery and dialogue, reflecting on the theme ‘Come away and rest a while’ (Mk 6:31), at their annual retreat in Co. Laois earlier this month. Hosted by the Irish Bishops’ Conference’s Sub-Council for Evangelisation a...

30/05/2026

The Synod that forgot to save the Church The Irish Synodal Pathway process is a serious undertaking by serious people. But who is it for?

There is something very admirable about the Irish Synodal Pathway. The people involved — and this newspaper has spent considerable time examining who they are and what they do — are genuine in their commitment to the Church and to the reform they believe it needs. They are not cynics. They are n...

29/05/2026

More than 1,000 gather for Ignite conference in Dublin.

Over 1,000 Catholics gathered in Dublin over the weekend for the Ignite Ireland conference, headlined by US theologian Dr Scott Hahn.

29/05/2026

The Synod that forgot to save the Church - The Irish Synodal Pathway process is a serious undertaking by serious people. But who is it for?

To understand what the synodal process is doing, it is worth examining what it has chosen to discuss.

There is something very admirable about the Irish Synodal Pathway. The people involved — and this newspaper has spent considerable time examining who they are and what they do — are genuine in their commitment to the Church and to the reform they believe it needs. They are not cynics. They are n...

29/05/2026

Kilmore diocese to welcome relics of St Oliver Plunkett to pastoral centre.

Relics of St Oliver Plunkett will be available for veneration at the Conaty Chapel of the Kilmore Diocesan Pastoral Centre in Cavan on Wednesday, June 3, with the visit made possible through the support of the local Knights of St Columbanus. Speaking ahead of the visit, Pastoral Centre Director Seá...

29/05/2026

The closure of Carlow College, Ireland’s oldest Catholic college, founded in 1782, “marks another significant moment in the life of the Irish Church”, Bishop Paul Dempsey told The Irish Catholic.

The closure of Carlow College, Ireland’s oldest Catholic college, founded in 1782, “marks another significant moment in the life of the Irish Church”, Bishop Paul Dempsey told The Irish Catholic. Bishop Dempsey is a past pupil of the college and explained that St Patrick’s College (Carlow Co...

28/05/2026

Pope calls for robust regulation of AI in manifesto that ponders the future of humanity.

Pope Leo XIV called Monday for robust regulation of artificial intelligence and for its developers to work for the common good rather than profit, issuing a sweeping manifesto on safeguarding humankind as the technology impacts everything from work to war. Magnifica humanitas (“Magnificent Humanit...

28/05/2026

DR Congo diocese issues Ebola prevention measures.

The Catholic Diocese of Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has issued preventive measures to all Catholic parishes and communities following the declaration of an Ebola virus hemorrhagic fever outbreak as a “health emergency.” In a communiqué issued May 18, the chancellor of the dio...

28/05/2026

Archbishop's Pentecost message calls for a major parish shake-up, warning that change may bring "grief and loss" but is necessary for the future of the Church. Plus : debate over faith and the Church of England, Pope Leo's first encyclical, and inspiring stories from across Ireland.

Read more: https://irishcatholic.com

24/05/2026

The breath that brings the Church to life

There are feasts in the Church year that we celebrate almost instinctively. Christmas appeals to the imagination. Easter speaks to the deepest human longing for life stronger than death. Pentecost, however, is often more difficult. The Holy Spirit can seem elusive, abstract, almost impossible to gra...

24/05/2026

“We can end up as good people, no big betrayals, though no big self-sacrifices either,” writes Fr Ronald Rolheiser

“We can end up as good people, no big betrayals, though no big self-sacrifices either,” writes Fr Ronald Rolheiser Thomas Merton once said that what he feared in his own life was not so much a massive betrayal of his vocation, but a series of “mini treasons” that lead to a different kind of ...