We cannot lose heart, writes Seamus Ahearne
Seamus Ahearne OSA reflects on the Church in Ireland in the wake of action against Tony Flannery. He believes Church leaders in Ireland will show courage, since the Gospel asks no less.
Articles
Two Questions about the “Summary”
Is there anyone out there who can answer these two questions about the “Summary of Findings of the Apostolic Visitation?
Pádraig McCarthy
The Vatican is a ‘cold house’ for liberal Catholics, writes Kevin Hegarty
This is Kevin Hegarty’s response to the report from the Vatican Visitation of the Irish Church. We publish it with acknowledement to the Mayo News.
Seamus Ahearne OSA responds to the Visitors Report
I suppose we all had our own particular response to the Report from Rome after the visitation of the Irish Church. Some people had positive things to say; others were disappointed. This piece was sent to us by Seamus Ahearne OSA who works in a parish in Dublin. See if it relates to how you reacted.
Is our child protection system open to grave injustice?
Fr Paddy Banville asks if the leadership of the Catholic Church in Ireland is willing to sacrifice unjustly-accused priests on the altar of child protection, in his article published in The Irish Catholic, 15 March 2012
Brendan Hoban on Apostolic Visitation findings
This article by Brendan Hoban is a fuller response from the ACP to the report on the Vatican Visitaion of the Irish Church than the short paragraph published here on 20 March (below).
It expresses both the aspects the ACP welcome in the document, and those the association has some concerns about.
Thoughts on leadership: how solitude helps a leader
William Deresiewicz delivered this lecture to the plebe class at the United States Military Academy at West Point in October 2009. It was publised on The American Scholar website (http://theamericanscholar.org/solitude-and-leadership/).
Dave Pierre replies to Sean O Connaill’s critique
Since we put Sean O’Conaill’s critique of Dave Pierre’s book up as a post on the website, it is only fair to give the same prominence to the response from the author himself.
Reform in the Catholic Church will be glacial, at best
This article, taken from the ‘Rite and Reason’ column in Irish Times of 13 March 2012, was written by Margaret Lee. It raises serious and difficult questions about the role of lay people in the Church, and the difficulties around consultation processes that have been held in some dioceses; and indeed also around parish pastoral councils
Reflection on Mothering Sunday 2012
Mary O’Vallely sent in this beautiful reflection for Mother’s Day
A response to Dave Pierre’s book on falsely-accused Catholic priests
Sean O’Conaill (Derry) responds to a review of Dave Pierre’s book reproduced a short while ago on this website. Sean has a contrary point of view, and is critical of some of the facts presented and the conclusions drawn
Info on St Patrick available on new website
What do we actually know about St Patrick? Do we know anything for sure? How can we find out? Behind all the later traditions which grew around him, reflecting his influence on the people of Ireland, we have his own words. There’s now a website where you can get back to the real St Patrick. Let your parish know about it. Pádraig McCarthy.
“Safeguarding What?” by Nicholas Peter Harvey
This article is an excellent reflection on the policies of Child Safeguarding currently practiced by the Irish Catholic Church, raising many of the questions that we in the ACP have been concerned with. It is reproduced with permission from The Furrow.
Brendan Hoban writes on the ACP’s May gathering
Brendan writes about the gathering on May 7th, which the ACP is calling: ‘Towards an Assembly of the Irish Catholic Church’. First published in the Western People.
Meeting of newly-formed Association of US Priests
Fifty priests from nine dioceses in five states of the USA gathered in Columbus, Ohio, on January 24, 2012, for a regional meeting of the newly formed Association of United…
Interim Guidance on Leave from Ministry
Interim Guidance – Leave from Sacred Ministry and Apostolate for Clergy and Religious: Document January 2012
http://www.safeguarding.ie/wp-content/uploads/2012/02/Ministry-Leave-2012.pdf
Pádraig McCarthy
Moncrieff Show’s National Priest Survey 2012
This is the result of an opinion poll carried out among Irish priests by The Moncrief Show on Newstalk. It makes for very interesting reading.
With acknowledgement to Newtalk and the Moncrief Show.
Trust between priest and bishop has been replaced by suspicion
This Letter to the Editor, published in the Irish Times of 27 February 2012, raises significant issues regarding the priest-bishop relationship
The NCR applauds Sean McDonagh
This is a copy of an article in the current issue of the National Catholic Reporter. We didn’t know what an important person we were working with!!
Well done, Sean
Click here for link to original article
Kevin Myers on Church & State in Ireland today
“Any senator or TD who tried to raise the issue of clerical child abuse in the Dail would have been shouted down”. So wrote Kevin Myers in the Irish Independent of 14 February 2012.
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