A Catholic Cardinal in Canada has urged lawmakers to respect the conscience rights of medical professionals as they debate allowing physician-assisted suicide. In an intervention before the parliamentary committee considering the legal change, Cardinal Thomas Collins, Archbishop of Toronto, reiterated the Church’s stance on assisted suicide and euthanasia, but, acknowledging the possibility that the legislation...
Taoiseach Enda Kenny has said that if re-elected, he would commit to a referendum on abortion if there were consensus on the issue. Speaking on RTÉ Radio as the election campaign gears up, Mr Kenny acknowledged that Ireland is “changed” since the issue of abortion first began to divide people “33 years ago”, but, despite...
The United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in its ‘concluding observations’ following Ireland’s appearance before the committee last month, has called on Ireland to remove the right of religious schools to prioritise student applicants on the basis of faith. It also calls for more non-denominational schools. The report expresses concern that Irish schools “continue to practise...
The European Parliament (EP) has declared the activities of Islamic State (ISIS) against Christians and other minorities ‘genocide’. In a Resolution adopted today, MEPs for the first time categorised the targeting and mass slaughter of religious and ethnic minorities as genocide, and called on the international community to act towards ending the killings. The move by...
Just 5% of Catholic primary schools in the Dublin area are over-enrolled, it has been revealed. This is far less than the figure of 20 percent which is often quoted. Dublin archdiocese has the highest percentage of over-enrolled schools in the country. Writing in The Irish Times newspaper, Bishop Brendan Kelly of Achonry, who is chairman...
The Minister for Health Leo Varadkar has announced plans for State funding of IVF and other fertility treatments. According to The Irish Times, the Minister stated his intention to provide funding for such treatments together with legislation to regulate this area of medical practice. “The ability to conceive a child naturally is a normal human...
Archbishop Eamon Martin has said Catholics should ask politicians about their policies towards the family, the right to life, schools and freedom of conscience in the coming election campaign. Speaking at a conference organised by the Iona Institute and The Irish Catholic newspaper, the Primate of All Ireland called on those who wish to be “advocates...
The Christian Institute has launched a petition to support the owners of Ashers Bakery in Northern Ireland ahead of the bakery’s appeal against a decision that they were guilty of discrimination for not baking a cake with a pro-gay marriage slogan on it. Ashers Bakery had faced legal censure in May of 2015 when a judge ruled that a...
Minister for Health Leo Varadkar has said he no longer agrees with the protection afforded to the unborn under the 8th Amendment to the Constitution. Speaking to The Irish Times, Minister Varadkar said that his once held conservative views have now been altered by “life experience and growing up a bit”. “What we have at...
Irish schools should allow children identifying as transgender to wear the uniform of choice, new guidelines state. According to The Irish Independent, the Department of Education has issued the ‘Being LGBT in School’ guidance for all schools under which schools will have to operate to better accommodate the gender preference of a given pupil. This includes allowing...
