“Cling to the Rosary as the creeper clings to the tree – for without Our Lady we cannot stand,” – St Teresa of Calcutta
At the episcopal ordination of Bishop Martin Hayes, Archbishop Eamon Martin appealed to families to pray the Rosary for themselves, their loved ones and for all those whose health or livelihood is being seriously impacted by the coronavirus crisis.
Asia Bibi, the first woman to be sentenced to death for blasphemy in Pakistan, has called on the Prime Minister to help Christian girls in her country who are abducted, raped and forced to marry their captors.
“His homilies are precious because they are not only valid for back then,” said Fr Giulio Cesareo.
"[Cardinal Tagle] does not have any symptoms and will remain in mandatory self-quarantine in the Philippines, where he is located. In the meantime, necessary checks are being carried out among those who have come into contact with His Eminence in recent days," – Matteo Bruni.
"As we face the future, we must remember that the Lord who called us, whom we surrendered to on the day of our ordination, the Lord who placed His hands upon our head, that same Lord is calling us now!" – Bishop Dempsey.
Bishop Larry Duffy of Clogher issues Pastoral Letter for the Season of Creation.
"It is essential to find a cure for this terrible virus, which has brought the world to its knees. We must also cure the larger virus of social injustice, inequality of opportunity, marginalisation, and lack of protection for the weakest."
"It has become increasingly clear that the wearing of face coverings is likely to reduce the spread of coronavirus, thus helping to protect others," say Irish Church leaders.
“At times we are burdened and overwhelmed by the problems of the present moment and lose all sense of perspective, of the fact that we are on a journey,” said Archbishop Neary.
"I am scared when I hear stories of racist intolerance by groups of young people. They may not realise how damaging their behaviour is, but racist language is never fun."
"It is feared that in the worst case scenario, at the end of 2020 there will be a decrease of about one billion international tourists, with a global economic loss of about 1,200 billion dollars," – Cardinal Turkson.
“I know this is very difficult news particularly for the 38 parishes of Kildare & Leighlin affected by this two-week shutdown” - Bishop Denis Nulty.
"Make no mistake about it – there are people alive today who would not be alive had it not been for John’s vision and his work” - Fr Paul Farren at the Funeral Mass of the former leader of the SDLP.
“Today our celebration is a gesture of recognising publicly the place of the Muslim community as an integral part of the family of the Irish."
The Vatican's Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life has also invited young people “to do something that shows kindness and affection for older people who may feel lonely.”
The European bishops hope that “the recovery fund will help the weakest economies, the economies most touched by the pandemic to grow, and to be there for people... so that also the next generation can live in peace and in certain prosperity,” said Cardinal Hollerich.
“It is not just a matter of re-opening the schools, it is putting in place the measures necessary to keep the schools open," says CPSMA general secretary Seamus Mulconry.
“We are hoping that the new format will increase participation,” says Fr Neil O’Donoghue, a lecturer in systematic theology.
"The pandemic's effects are very particularly felt amongst the most vulnerable in society," says ACCORD NI regional director Deirdre O'Rawe.
"It is important that parishes remain alert to the possibility that a priest who retires or is moved to another parish might not be replaced" – Bishop Farrell.
“To insist on debt repayment in the face of the suffering caused by this pandemic would be an affront to the faith traditions that we represent. There is an overarching moral case for debt relief in many faiths,” state the bishops and religious leaders in the UK.
The World Food Programme says that COVID fall-out threatens famines of ‘biblical proportions’, with an additional 265 million people possibly facing starvation by the end of 2020.
“We have bonded more in this time and the opportunity to reflect more on Scripture has led me to see things I’ve never seen before, despite having read the words many times in the past. It’s just a different way of seeing things."
"I wish to remind all parishioners that the Sunday and Holy Day obligations are dispensed with for the time being,” said Bishop Cullinane of Waterford, urging caution among the faithful.
Thanks to a 'Herculean effort' by parishes, we are ready now to resume the sacramental life of the church, said Archbishop Micheael Neary.
We take this opportunity to invite all those affected by abortion - women and men - to avail of spiritual, sacramental and pastoral support, and we assure them that they will be welcomed without judgement and helped to find healing and peace – Council for Life.
In a statement on Monday, the bishop-elect said, “The Church of the future is about the increased involvement of lay people; of people and priests working together.”
... there is much talk of getting back to ‘normal’. That all assumes that our earlier ways of running society and Church were the best that they could be – Bishop McKeown.
“What the guidelines fail to take into account is the fact that you could have a small chapel on the side of a mountain in rural Ireland that can barely hold 50 people, and you could have a cathedral in a city that can contain thousands” – Peadar Tóibín TD.
