Archbishop Eamon Martin supports Bishop Phonsie Cullinan’s initiative which aims to encourage people to care for one other "at this difficult time.”

Irish bishops welcomed the recent announcement by Pope Francis that the theme of the synod in October 2022 will be “For a synodal Church: communion, participation, and mission”.

Catholics in China

The Church of the Nativity and other places of worship in Bethlehem are shut, all tourism and religious sites across the West Bank are closed and all tourists banned from the West Bank for an unspecified period.

“Live this difficult moment with the strength of the faith, the certainty of hope and the ardour of charity,” said the pope in a message to all those affected by the coronavirus outbreak.

There are over 300 million people in the world suffering from over 6000 identified rare diseases – European Organisation for Rare Diseases (EURORDIS).

“What kind of world do we want to leave to those who will come after us, to children who are growing up?" the Pontiff asks in a video message.

Bishop Leahy says that by focusing on Lent in terms of ecological conversion, we are taking steps that benefit not just ourselves and society but we are building up our community for the future.

“The idea is that we equip parishes to bring Laudato Si' to life in local parish communities,” says Jane Mellett of Trócaire.

Speaking about the annual Day of Prayer for Survivors and Victims of Abuse, Archbishop Eamon Martin said he believed reparation and repentance need to be part of the ongoing life and prayer of the Church.

The objective of our Lenten digital initiative is to assist our spiritual preparation for the joy and hope of the Easter season – Archbishop Eamon Martin.

Some 350 priests or one in four of the total number of priests ordained in Europe in 2017 were Polish.

The change in the formation of the Holy See’s diplomats was announced by Pope Francis in a letter to the new president of the Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy, Archbishop Joseph Marino.

Pope Francis emphasises that he is offering his “own response” evoked by last year’s Synod on the Amazon.

The chair of the Council for Healthcare of the Bishops’ Conference has encouraged people to pray for those affected by the virus and for the efforts to bring the outbreak under control.

The treatment of the Redemptorist "is scandalous to most Catholics in Ireland" and "destroys people’s faith and confidence", according to Fr Roy Donovan of the Association of Catholic Priests.

“We live an era of astonishing progress in medical science” and have among us “doctors, nurses and carers of extraordinary quality and dedication” yet “so many aspects of our healthcare system are scandalous”.

Pope Francis's response to the Synod's call for the ordination of married men and for women deacons eagerly awaited.

Hear the cries of migrants

We seem to be embracing in the name of tolerance and diversity an illiberal liberalism whereby for ideological reasons we stifle expressions of identity and culture – Bishop William Crean.

“The Church must consider whether to suspend masses and religious services,” said Italian consumer protection activist Carlo Rienzi.

Fr Richard Gibbons said he was delighted that Knock Shrine was being honoured at such an important Mass in Saint Peter’s Basilica.

“I see this conference as an endorsement of the key role the elderly play in our Church and in society today. Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI recognised that critical role when he wrote a special Prayer for Grandparents in 2008” - Bishop Denis Nulty.

A “gifted communicator”, the new bishop has served as Diocesan Youth Director and Director of Vocations and has hosted a successful religious affairs programme on KFM Radio and written a regular column in the Leinster Leader.

“In a time where some speak of a ‘post-truth’ society, one in which ‘alternative facts’ and ‘fake news’ are the order of the day, we know that ‘the word of God is alive’ (Heb 4:12)” – Bishop Dermot Farrell.

“The theme for Catholic Schools Week this year encourages us to see that we all have a responsibility to care for the earth, not just for our own future, but for the future of every one of God’s creatures,” says Fr Paul Connell.

“You may be surprised at the power you find in the Bible,” says Fr Pádraig McCarthy.

Local civil society can and must contribute to tackling issues of global importance, says Pope praising Fishing for Plastic initiative.

Commenting on the retired pope’s new book, Dr Austin Ivereigh, Vatican expert and biographer of Pope Francis said, “It’s a totally imprudent and ill thought-out intervention which has the effect of undermining Francis’s authority.”

Some of those involved in his “withdrawal” have been “shown up to be a lot less white than they presented themselves, and some of them have become more oppositional, even ‘heretical’, than I or my censored colleagues in the Irish Church ever were”.