The Iona Institute has called on faith leaders to protest against a new ban on communal worship in Ireland after the latest Covid restrictions came into force after Christmas. David Quinn, director of the Catholic think tank, said there was no direct scientific evidence to justify the ban. The Primate of All Ireland, Eamon Martin, said he would seek a meeting with the Taoiseach, Michea´l Martin, to discuss public worship in Level 5. In England, where swathes of the country were placed under Tier 4 restrictions, the bishops’ conference said it was grateful that communal worship could continue. A spokesman said Catholics were not under an obligation to attend Mass.
In his pastoral letter for the Feast of the Holy Family, Cardinal Vincent Nichols reflected on the twin challenges to the Church of Covid restrictions and abuse. In addition to lockdown regulations that prevented the Church from worshipping communally for part of last year, he said that “over these last months, the life of the Church has been stained by the emergence of the picture of the abuse inflicted on children and vulnerable people in the Church over the last 50 years. “We know, with the benefit of hindsight, that bishops and leaders, including myself, have made mistakes. I deeply regret them. We are continually learning from them.”
Weariness with ongoing restrictions, fear over new waves and variants of Covid-19, as well as grief and separation have left many families feeling uncertain about the future, the Archbishop of Armagh, Eamon Martin, said in his homily for the Feast of the Holy Family. He expressed solidarity with families that had been strained by emotional and financial insecurity.
The national president of Pax Christi England and Wales, Archbishop Malcolm McMahon of Liverpool, has written to all parish priests to urge them to mark Peace Sunday on 17 January. He encouraged parishes to donate to the work of Pax Christi as a way of making a practical contribution to continuing the work of peace.
A 58-year-old Scottish man has been awarded £100,000 in damages for abuse he suffered while in the care of a Catholic order. The man, who is only identified as Victim N, was in the care of the Sisters of Nazareth, which ran care homes in Glasgow, Ayrshire, Midlothian and Aberdeen that have been at the centre of allegations of ill treatment. Victim N, who has lived in England for many years, was initially unable to come to terms with his experiences, which continued after he was moved to the council-run Auldhouse Care Home in Glasgow, where violence escalated.
A survey by Christian Aid has found that people are acting more kindly as a consequence of the pandemic. Of 2,000 people polled by Savanta ComRes, 27 per cent said they were writing more notes to people they don’t see often and 25 per cent were saying hello to strangers in the street more than before.
The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS UK) has warned that new immigration rules set to come into force once the Brexit transition period ends could extend the “legal limbo” many asylum seekers face. On the Feast of the Holy Innocents JRS UK asked Catholics to pray for those undertaking dangerous journeys to find sanctuary, and those in immigration detention in Britain. More than 900 people sent Christmas cards to refugees this year via JRS UK.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols assured Catholics livestreaming his “Mass in the Night” from Westminster Cathedral on Christmas Eve that “knowing the darkness helps us to appreciate the light”. He called on society to “build back better” after the pandemic and highlighted the many acts of selflessness and kindness that characterised society’s response to the virus.
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