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  • 3 comments

    Vatican News: Vatican Dicastery maintains that a layperson cannot deliver the homily

    June 23 2026
    Soline Humbert
    I wonder what French woman Claire Daurelle, if she were still alive, would think of this. Claire, a parish pastoral worker, was commissioned to preach the homily at Mass by the Archbishop of Lyon, Cardinal Decourtray in the 1980s & 1990s. She gave her testimony at a seminar I attended back in 1995. She concluded: "My greatest hope is that the Church will have a future, not an artificial future laid down by so-and-so; certainly not a stifling future, an imprisonment in Tradition; rather an open future with the Holy Spirit leading us onto new paths." https://womenpriests.org/vocation/daurelle-claire-daurelle-2/
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  • 3 comments

    21 June 2026 – 12th Sunday, (A)

    June 21 2026
    M G-B
    Yes, the grief of loosing a child is beyond words. A close friend told me of her anguish when her still born baby was placed beside her after the birth. She said she kept repeating "I can do all things in Christ who strengthens me."
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  • 1 comments

    Brendan Hoban: Carney and Pope Leo have much in common                

    June 23 2026
    M G-B
    After attending the May 2025 Papal inauguration Mark Carney said his Catholic faith influences his sense of responsibility and service.
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  • 3 comments

    21 June 2026 – 12th Sunday, (A)

    June 21 2026
    Rev R.T. Reid
    12th Sunday [A] – 20/21 June 2026 • Day for Life – “an annual event, to celebrate the dignity and value of human life at every stage.” • This year the ‘Day for Life’ falls on Sunday, June 21st – which is Father’s Day. The theme is "The Wonder of the Child in the Womb", which reflects on the humanity of the unborn, and acknowledges the particular grief of mothers and fathers who have lost a child before birth or in infancy. • When parents lose a child, they instinctively grasp how precious and unique the child is whom they have lost and whom they often name. They know how no other child can ever replace a lost child. Science is clear that life begins at fertilisation, when a new and unique human being comes into existence. Every technological development in recent decades has given us insight into how life in the womb unfolds for each of us. For example, as early as five weeks, the heart begins to beat. Parents are now able to observe some of these stages during pregnancy, through ultrasound scans. – e.g. knowing whether it’s a girl or a boy.. • It’s a co-incidence that we’re celebrating this Day for Life just a few days after the Dail voted to abolish the compulsory three-day waiting period before abortion can be accessed: the Bill was passed on Wednesday night by 86 votes to 70. Back in 2018 Leo Varadkar, who was Taoiseach, promised “There will be a waiting period of 72 hours for reflection & counselling…” And Michael Martin [the current Taoiseach] referred to the waiting period as an “essential component of the legislative package”. He called it “a responsible measure that ensured women would have access to information regarding all alternatives and supports, before proceeding with an irreversible decision”. He said it was a “meaningful safeguard” which “gives people time to reflect”. The mandatory three-day waiting period was, indeed, meant to give women an opportunity to reflect on what they are proposing to do, and to choose a more life-affirming solution. On Wednesday night Michael Martin voted in favour of doing away with the waiting period. • It’s estimated that as many as 10,000 women might have changed their mind during the three-day waiting period: in other words, 10,000 abortions that may not have taken place. These figures are contested. But even if there were half that number who decided not to have an abortion, it would mean that 5,000 babies continued to live and, hopefully, to be born. But now the waiting period is to be abolished. • Bishop Kevin Doran, in an interview on Thursday, said that the Bishops want to alert the Catholic faithful to the gravity of the situation that has developed over recent years. Again, going back to 2018, we all remember being told repeatedly – by, among others, Leo Varadkar, – that “Abortion in Ireland will become safe, legal and rare. "Safe, legal and rare." Between 2019 and 2024, according to official Government statistics, there have been 50,000 abortions. Does that sound like something that’s “rare”? Bishop Doran reminds us that these are not just statistics: they represent individual human lives: 50,000 lives and each life lost is precious, - has meaning and significance. • Advocates of abortion focus exclusively on women’s health and their autonomy in making decisions about their own bodies. Women’s health and their right to make personal decisions are really important values. And yet, here is never any reference to or acknowledgement of the existence of another person – the child in the womb – who also has rights. And the reason they won’t acknowledge the existence of the child in the womb is that advocates of abortion want to believe – and they want all of us to believe, that the human embryo is nothing more than as a clump or collection of cells: something regarded as worthless. But, as I said earlier, a clump of cells doesn’t have a heart-beat within five weeks: that’s the heart-beat of a child. You can understand the rationale behind this: it’s much easier and more straightforward to abort a clump of cells. If it’s accepted that a baby or a child has been conceived, then it’s a much, much more difficult decision. • In today’s liturgy [Opening Prayer/Gospel], Jesus is inviting us to proclaim – “from the house-tops” – our objection to a culture that promotes and facilitates widespread abortion. Being unashamedly pro-life and declaring it “with boldness and conviction” will almost certainly be met with disapproval and hostility. But that’s just an example of the “cost of discipleship”. Jesus made no secret of the fact that his disciples would be “universally hated on account of his name”. All too often we remain silent; we fail to find our voice in the face of so much that’s contrary to the Gospel and to the values of Jesus. • We give thanks for the gift of Life. We give thanks for “the Wonder of the Child in the Womb”. We pray for parents who have lost a child before birth or in infancy. And we pray for those who have had, or who are currently experiencing a crisis pregnancy – that they will find the guidance, and care, and support, which they so desperately need. AMEN
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