Maryvale Institute, a Catholic college in Birmingham, has established a new academic research centre named for St John Henry Newman. It will explore Catholic culture and tradition through conferences, publications and other media, beginning with a contribution to the Maryvale Conference on the new Directory for Catechesis.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols has spoken of the powerful impact of Pope Francis’ trip to Iraq on the Christian community there. Speaking to Channel 4 News on Sunday, he described the Pope’s visit to ruined churches that had been destroyed by IS as “a vivid expression of solidarity”. He said the Pope’s meeting with Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani meant “that anybody who claims religious motivation for violence will be now more and more marginalised from the main thrust of these great faiths”.
Six Irish bishops have called on the Irish government to modify the current Covid restrictions on funerals, which cap the number of mourners at 10. The pastoral message from the bishops of the six dioceses of the province of the Archdiocese of Tuam appeals for the number to be increased to 25. Responding to the government’s five-stage plan, Covid-19 Resilience and Recovery 2021: The Path Ahead, the six leaders said they found it “very difficult” to support the proposals and called for clarity on the return to public celebration of the sacraments.
The Jesuits in Ireland have publicly named a priest who abused students at Belvedere College in Dublin in the 1970s in the hope that other victims of Fr Joseph Marmion will come forward. In a statement, the order said that in 2019 it was contacted by a pupil attending the school in the 1970s. At 13, he was sexually and emotionally abused by Marmion. The priest taught in the Dublin school from 1969 until 1978. He also taught in Crescent College, Limerick, and Clongowes Wood College, Co. Kildare. He died in 2000. In 1977, concerned parents contacted the Jesuits, disclosing the sexual abuse. “In consequence, a decision was taken that Joseph Marmion be removed from the staff in Belvedere with effect from the end of the academic year 1977/1978,” the Jesuits said.
The Bishop of Nottingham has welcomed reports that an official inquiry is due to be launched into allegations of modern slavery in his diocese. The clothing giant, Boohoo, is under increasing scrutiny following allegations of exploitative practices at its factories in Leicester. Bishop Patrick McKinney said: “I was disturbed to hear of allegations of labour exploitation in some of Leicester’s clothing factories.”
An online celebration was held to mark Westminster becoming the first “live simply” diocese in England and Wales. More than 60 representatives from Westminster parishes watched Cardinal Vincent Nichols thanking the 108 Westminster parishes that have committed to Fairtrade principles.
The Catholic environmentalist Mary Colwell appeared on the BBC programme Countryfile last Sunday to call for the introduction of a new GCSE in natural history, to teach the skills of identifying, monitoring and recording the natural world and inform about migration of species and how the seasons affect wildlife.
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