“Cling to the Rosary as the creeper clings to the tree – for without Our Lady we cannot stand,” – St Teresa of Calcutta
Cardinal Nichols stated that the Sacrament of Holy Order is based, not on a command structure, but on humble service. He said in his homily: “Service is the permanent and underlying foundation of all that is done by deacon, priest and bishop.”
“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 of Assisi, Domenico Sorrentino, has said the town awaits the pope’s visit with “emotion and gratitude”.
“Catholics miss their parishes and church buildings and seem eager to return, not just content with ‘virtual Church’,” said Brenden Thompson, CEO of Catholic Voices.
Bishop Larry Duffy of Clogher issues Pastoral Letter for the Season of Creation.
The Central Statistics Office (CSO) data on Enforced Deprivation shows almost 900,000 people were going without basics prior to the pandemic – an increase of over 140,000 from the previous year. More than one in five children are now experiencing enforced deprivation.
The homeless numbers increased to 8,728 in July, up from 8,699 in June. In July, there were 2,651 children in 1,142 families homeless, according to the latest figures from the Department of Housing.
“One of the great strengths of our Catholic schools is that they form part of a wider parish and faith community who support one another," says Bishop Fintan Gavin.
"The people are really tired. They need psychological support and religious support because it has been a lot to deal with in a very short period of time," – Ms Yammine from Youth of Hope.
"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."
“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.
"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.
All this has exploded on our doorstep. The fact is that the poor and vulnerable will be the ones that will suffer most globally and locally in this pandemic - Fr Paddy Byrne.
"We cannot and should not expect to return to where we had been prior to Covid-19," says Archbishop Michael Neary of Tuam.
"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.
Bishop Nulty asked Liam Lawton to co-ordinate a virtual performance because choirs were not able to come together to sing due to COVID-19 restrictions. They want the song to give people hope during these difficult times of pandemic.
"Human rights must be respected in such a time," Fr Paul Daisuke Narui SVD.
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.
... 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.
"We will now be in the dreadful position of having to turn some people away from Mass once 50 people are already present,” said Fr Tim Hazelwood of the Association of Catholic Priests.
It is a source of joy for me to know that we now have a rescheduled date of Sunday 30 August for my Episcopal Ordination as Bishop of Achonry – Fr Paul Dempsey, PP of Newbridge and Bishop-elect of the Diocese of Achonry.
"In accordance with current public guidelines, bishops expect that the Sacrament of Confirmation will begin to be celebrated from late summer onwards," – Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference.
Last Saturday, I was in his room in the hospital. His only concern was to talk about his funeral ceremony – and he wrote with his felt-tipped pen, ‘Keep the Mass simple.’ And music? ‘Simple.’ – Bishop Donal McKeown
On behalf of so many, I wish to express heartfelt thanks to the Albert Gubay Charitable Foundation for this exceptional and magnificent donation to such important work – Cardinal Vincent Nichols.
I welcome this news and like other priests in Ireland I am greatly looking forward to celebrating public Mass and the sacraments soon with our congregations – Archbishop Eamon Martin, Primate of All Ireland.
